College Freshman Flaws

“There are only 7 days in a week and “someday” isn’t one of them.” – Rita Chand It is not a surprise that college students in general have an issue of waiting until the last minute. College freshman especially have trouble because of the new adjustment. Today, freshman college students have problems setting and following priorities such as: academics, networking, and responsibility. There are a number of reason why this is such an issue for them. Without assistance, freshman obstacles can lead to serious issues that will deeply impact one’s life. One of the most common struggles college freshman have is maintaining a healthy life style. Because of the amount of stress and expectations mounted on college freshmen, they basically burn out.
The question is how does this affect their health? With college being so stressful, students begin to lose sleep and their appetite because of wacky schedules. “If you’re not sleeping enough or not eating nutritious food, your immune system will take a hit.”(Flanagan). Sleep deprivation and poor diets is popular in college freshman. Students that lack sleep will arrive to class late, nap in class, or even skip class. Because of time, some students don’t have time to eat lunch or don’t wake up in time for breakfast. It is important to eat healthy and maintain a healthy sleep schedule. The result of studying last minute and catching up on assignments caused me to lose sleep, eat less, and have a low academic performance. Another struggle college freshman face is low motivation and no long term vision.
Normally college freshman are taking courses that aren’t focused on their major. Most freshman feel that these courses are really boring and a waste of time. Right now I am struggling in my history class because it is something I am not interested in. It is important for college students to be motivated in their work. “The students who succeed will need to be self-motivated.”(“Breakthrough Learning”). I believe freshman have trouble getting up, going to class, studying, and making deadlines because aren’t motivated. Personally there are times I struggle because there is no one to remind to study or work on assignments. I now have the freedom to do my own thing in college. College freshman are also far away from the finish line, so they aren’t as motivated as seniors. Because their vision of graduation is so blurry, freshman will more likely go left than right. If college freshman don’t change, they could possibly fail or even drop out. According to nurse practioner, Sandra Halburner says, “Although, if you do begin to notice that your quality of life is starting to crumble-such as lower grades or sleep loss-that’s a huge sign to that it’s time to make a change.”(Halburner). It’s safe to assume that if a student doesn’t prepare themselves for the next exam or finish their assignments, they will receive failing grades. And continuing making those unsatisfactory grades, college freshmen will
drop out.
Lastly, college freshmen struggle with misplaced priorities.
They rather choose to go out with friends or stay in bed and watch television instead of doing school work. Social media, Netflix, and college parties are just a few of the many distractions college freshman face. Overall the issue here is that social acceptance are odds with their priorites. The feeling of being in the “in crowd” will interfere with schooling. Even I face the same issues. For example, I knew I had an assignment due the next morning, but I attended a college party instead. I was positive I could get it all done, however, I was wrong. The first week of college I was already failing a class. I don’t believe students (myself included) want to fail college, they are just simply distracted or their priorities are just mixed up. It’s hard to do both, so that is where “true grit” comes in. Having “true grit” means having the perseverance to finish. “To persevere academically requires that students stay focused on a goal despite obstacles (grit or persistence) and forego distractions or temptations to prioritize higher pursuits over lower pleasures (delayed gratification, self-discipline, self-control).” (Farrington). I completely agree with Farrington; because students are so distracted and tempted to do what they want, they are not as focused to accomplish certain
goals. College freshmen are not totally doomed to end in failure. Colleges provide many of opportunities for students to correct their problems. “If you do find that your grades are going downhill, set up a meeting with your professor to see if there are any extra credit opportunities or if there are other ways you can get back on track for the rest of the semester.”(Flanagan). Colleges know how hard adjusting can be so that is why there are people here to help guide us. Once college students recognize that they are struggling, advisors, counselors, and student success coaches are hired. When I noticed I was misplacing my priorities I took time and looked at the bigger picture. Netflix, friends, and social events will always be there, so make that “someday” today!