Hello, lovelies. I am currently two weeks away from finishing my junior year of college. This has easily been my favorite year of college so far and I’m really excited about senior year (but not about the uncertainties of post-grad life).
As you all know by now, I am going to Europe in May, which is why I’ve been scheduling out posts early. So just as a disclaimer, I’m not done with my junior year yet.
Let’s get into it.
Related
- What Commuters Should Expect Their First Week of Freshman Year
- 1 Month Into College Update (Freshman Year)
- Mid-Year College Update (Freshman Year)
- Reflecting On My Freshman Year Of College
- The Glorification Of Busy | One Month Into Sophomore Year Update
- What It’s Like To Move Out For College | One Month Into Junior Year
- What It’s Like To Transfer To Another College | Mid-Year College Update (Junior Year)
//Living In A Dorm
I lived with my parents during my first two years of college then moved to a dorm last August. It’s a really nice dorm room with a wall of windows and a private bathroom I share with three other girls. My roommate is really sweet, but we hung out more last semester than this semester because she got a new job and our schedules don’t overlap as much anymore. We’re planning on going out to dinner together at some point before the semester ends, but we don’t hang out much outside of our dorm room. I’ve learned this year that it’s not that hard having a roommate and that you can live with someone without ever talking to them. I’m just glad that I like mine.
I go back home every weekend to see my family. My younger brother has autism, which is the biggest reason I go back so frequently. I’m going to write about that whole transition and you should expect that post in May. I know that I’m going to cry the entire time I write it, so stay tuned for that content.
I think the best part about living in a dorm is that I can go out on weeknights. Both to see friends and to study at the library. My productivity level has skyrocketed since moving out, which is why I don’t do a lot of school work on weekends. I focus on spending time with loved ones and relaxing (and my job, of course). I enjoy being able to go out and not having to tell my parents. They would let me go out on weeknights when I lived with them and I would tell them when I did because it’s common courtesy, it’s just easier now. If I want to do something, I can just go do it. I’m also able to join more clubs and go to school events because I live on campus now. It’s not a whole ordeal of driving or taking the train back to my university at night.
Related – Dorm Room Tour
//Transferring Colleges
I like the university I’m in now, but it would be unfair to compare the two because my experiences were so different. I went to Georgia State University in Atlanta for my first two years but didn’t live on campus. I used to avoid announcing the college I go to on this blog for privacy reasons, now I realize that it doesn’t matter. I currently go to the University of Georgia in Athens, GA. It’s about an hour northeast of Atlanta. The campus is really pretty, but I miss being in downtown Atlanta every day. I miss being able to take the train and walking to different parts of the city in between classes. It was a lot of fun.
But I am much more connected to the community at UGA than I was at GSU because I go out more. I wasn’t able to join clubs at GSU because all the club meetings were at night and by the end of the day, I just wanted to go home. I also have closer friends. I go out more now that I live on campus because it’s more convenient and I can see them every day. I definitely think the biggest drawback of commuting is making new close friends because my deeper friendships during the first two years of college were with my friends from middle and high school.
Overall, transferring has been great. I know that moving out would have been much more of a fight if I transferred to a school in Atlanta and UGA is a better school. I would like to someday talk about attending a PWI (Predominantly-White Institution) as a person of color because this year was my first year ever really experiencing that, but I will probably wait another year to talk about that in detail. It has definitely been a huge transition.
Related – What It’s Like To Transfer To Another College | Mid-Year College Update
Related – What It’s Like To Move Out For College
//Classes & Productivity
As I’ve mentioned before, I’m significantly more productive now that I live on campus. I prefer doing work at the library or student center over my dorm room, but now those places are only a few minutes away.
I added an anthropology minor because I had room in my schedule and I love the subject. I’m glad I did because I made an amazing new friend in both the anthropology classes I’m taking and we hang out every single day.
This semester feels significantly easier than last semester because I’m taking fewer credit hours. My classes this semester are also all related to my major, which makes learning much more fun. I’m going to be taking the max amount of credit hours again in the fall because I want to finish as many credits as possible so I can enjoy my last semester. Wish me luck.
Related – 15 Helpful, No-Fluff Productivity Tips For College Students
//Social Life
My social life is significantly fuller now that I live on campus. I’ve made more friends, go to on-campus events, joined clubs…it’s been a blast. I hang out it one of my best friends from middle school, Stellah, multiple times a week and our weekly couch dates at each other’s places last hours. I feel like I’ve mentioned these things a lot over the past few months, so I won’t ramble too much here. It’s just nice that I’ve started cultivating a community at UGA.
//In General
This year has been great. The Spring semester, in particular, has been awesome. Now that I’ve adjusted to transferring and living on my own, a lot of things have improved. I’ve made more friends, my grades are better, and my brother has gotten used to me not living at home.
This year has felt long and short in many ways. I’ve done so much stuff both social and schoolwork wise that it’s hard to comprehend that it’s only been nine months since I moved. Life is like that I guess.
I hope you all enjoyed. School has been so busy these last few weeks, but I’m glad that I’ve been able to keep up with these once a week uploads and scheduling posts out early for May.
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What has this past year of school been like for you? If you have transferred to another college, what was the transition like?