biggest-gaudiest-patronuses:

you’re going from one extreme environment to the polar opposite, and that is gonna throw you at first.

high school:

• every minute of the day scheduled
• immediate penalties for missing class
• need permission to go to the bathroom WTF
• your movements/behavior strictly enforced with punishment systems
• you’re forced to interact with teachers and classmates
• small assignments over short periods
• basically bullied by the administration into obeying arbitrary rules

college:

• you can show up late. it’s a jerkwad thing to make a habit of, but you can do it
• YOU CAN FUCKING SKIP CLASSES WTF. most professors don’t take attendance. I missed soooooo many classes. use good judgement or your grades will suffer
• DONT NEED PERMISSION TO GO TO THE BATHROOM. or leave class early. you can just, literally walk out? on bad mental health days I found it helpful to like, leave in the middle of class and spend 10-15 min resting. and then walking back in. (but be careful not to disrupt the class. I mostly did it when there was a back exit.
• No Body Cares About Almost Anything. Dress code what’s that? u wanna wear a bikini to class, you can. a unicorn onesie? go ahead. randomly burst into parkour while walking to class? it’s whatever. you can literally (in the short term) get away with so much shit, and so many bad choices. no more demerits or detention or suspension
• very little accountability/punishment, but the few rules they do enforce come at a huge cost if u get caught (these things are also arbitrary)
• big part of your grade can be large end-of-term essays/assignments. you get to put it off andoff and no one holds you accountable…. until the grades come in. (I’ve failed more than one class this way)
• you have to consistently self monitor or you’ll end up putting work off until way to late
• No one’s stopping you from making bad choices. or even telling you not to. usually the opposite really. pay attention to your choices.

high school forces you (unsustainably) into study routines but without teaching you how to do it without external pressure. That framework collapses super quickly. you’re going from one ridiculous extreme to another, you’re gonna end up overindulging & being irresponsible bc

• you couldn’t until now
• your brain is trained to weigh consequences/rewards in the short term
• you’re exhausted from high school
• it feels like everyone else is doing it

my GPA bombed in college, I was not prepared. my advice comes from only my experiences, but check the notes, I’m sure my followers have loads to offer. off the top of my head:

• look for stablizing influences
• no seriously choose your friends wisely, their bad habits will become yours. college students tend to function in herds.
• join study groups. for most classes. do it.
• FREE TUTORING THERE’S FREE TUTORING TAKE ADVANTAGE
• make friends with the TAs, go to them for homework help. you can like, ask them about a specific question and they’ll walk you through it.
• as s freshman, maybe don’t sign up for classes with large term projects.
• always check ratemyprofessor.com before enrolling in a class. it won’t always tell you much but it can give you huge red flags.
• you can change your class schedule super easily for maybe 2 weeks. use that.
• you can actually basically avoid talking to the professor the entire semester. DONT do this. be careful about self isolating
• ASK FOR HELP ASK FOR HELP ASK FOR HELP. professors can actually be really accommodating if you explain you’re struggling with adjusting, mental health, deadlines.
• MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES. USE THE STUDENT HEALTH SERVICES.
• just make a (free!) appt w/ any therapist. it’s amazing and you don’t need parent permission. do it at the start of of the semester, before you start struggling. this is s fantastic prevention tool
• last thing: if you’re a white dude be careful not to talk too much in class it’s a Thing)
• related note: don’t take philosophy

tell your mom I’m having a good day and I said hi!