So Long, Sophomore Year!

I have officially completed my sophomore year of college! I certainly do not feel like I’ve been a college student for two years, and the part of me that still feels like a high school senior can’t wrap her head around the fact that I will be a junior in the fall. This year has been unconventional, to say the least. Despite its challenges, sophomore year has been a year of tremendous personal growth and many rewarding experiences.

Recap:

FALL SEMESTER

In August of 2020, I moved into my first apartment! Although living in a dorm and being away from home for the first half of freshman year gave me some semblance of independence, this was the first time I felt like a real adult. Living with five other people was an adjustment from the two-person household I'm accustomed to, but I enjoyed living with my friends. Naturally, some aspects of living off-campus aren't as much fun. Let's just say that after living in the apartment for a few weeks, I quickly realized how much my mom does to keep our house clean. (Thanks mom!)

As far as school goes, I was exhausted, stressed, and unhappy for most of the fall semester. All of my classes were asynchronous, which allowed me to have a very flexible schedule. However, for someone that tends to overdo school work, the lack of time constraints was horrible for my overall well-being. I never stopped. Recorded lectures took me twice as long to watch because I could pause and take extremely detailed notes (it once took me 5 hours to watch a 50-minute lecture). Even once I had finished watching a week's worth of lectures and completed all my assignments, I felt a need to keep doing more school work. I worked on the blog irregularly, skated once a week, had Friday night movie nights, and spent the rest of the time in front of my computer or surrounded by papers.

My days felt very similar to my first semester freshman year; waking up at 7:00 a.m. and not going to sleep until 1:00 a.m. The difference between the two semesters was that sophomore fall was infinitely more isolating. I was living with my friends, but we were all stressed, and I spent most of my days alone. Even for an introvert, the lack of social interaction was getting to me. By December, I was frustrated with school and anxious to use the creative part of my brain.

Although submerging myself in school work was nothing out of the ordinary, I was sick of the mental and physical exhaustion it caused. This prompted my New Year’s resolution of implementing more balance in my life.

SPRING SEMESTER

I started the semester with my New Year’s resolution in mind. I was determined to make time for my passion projects. I had drafted a schedule to ensure I was working on my blog, learning French, updating the Classically Leah platforms, and sketching dresses every week. And then, a few weeks into the semester, I got my first internship, and that schedule was abandoned.

Once I started my internship at bloom daily planners, time seemed to accelerate, and the weeks blurred until February somehow turned into May. Although I only worked eight hours a week, the added commute time meant I had 10+ fewer hours of free time. Regardless of this test of my time-management skills, acquiring an internship was a turning point in my college career. First and foremost, it eliminated the stress caused by being the only one of my friends without an internship or research position. More importantly, I genuinely love working at a planner company with such a positive organizational culture. This position has given me the experiential learning opportunity I was missing and opened my eyes to new possibilities.

For the most part, school was more of the same. It was a lighter course load than some of my previous semesters, which helped me transition to a more “balance-focused” mindset. One of the best parts of sophomore year was that I finally got to take a fashion design class! I’ve learned a lot in college, but I have never loved a class as much as I loved this one. It was the first time I’ve learned about a subject I’m genuinely passionate about; I was eager to read the textbook and excited to work on the assignments.

Throughout the entire semester, I was battling the over-studious student in me that wouldn’t accept anything less than perfection. The thought of allowing myself the freedom to commit my time to something other than studying and being the best possible student was (and sometimes still is) scary. Although I’m much better than I was in the past, I still haven’t quite gotten over my fixation with grades. The more things I added to my plate, the more stressed I was about maintaining my GPA. Fortunately, I have very supportive people in my life who reminded me that a lower grade will not ruin my life and, in the grand scheme of things, should not be my main concern.

That said, the spring semester changed my perspective on college. Although I will most likely continue to be an over-studier for the remainder of my school career, I’ve come to appreciate and prioritize the value of college beyond the lectures and textbooks. I’ve been fortunate enough to make new friends and engage in thought-provoking conversations that have expanded my worldview. Lastly, my internship and fashion class have enhanced my motivation and determination to pursue a career I will be passionate about.

Three Lessons I've Learned:

ONE: MAKE FRIENDS WITH THE PEOPLE IN YOUR MAJOR/ AREA OF STUDY

Except for my freshman year roommate, all of my friends are engineers. Making friends freshman year was primarily a matter of convenience. I was fortunate enough to be living in the same hall as some amazing people who have since become my close friends and roommates. That said, between the pandemic and my introverted personality, once I had my friend group, I never branched out.

Come spring, I finally befriended a few people in my business classes, which proved to be very beneficial. In addition to being able to help each other on assignments, it’s been nice meeting people who are on a similar path. Some of my stress in the fall was attributed to feeling like I was falling behind because my engineering friends were already doing research or had internships lined up. Once I made friends with people in the business school, I had a more comparable reference point, and we could relate to each other’s struggles and goals.

TWO: PRIORITIZE YOUR WELL-BEING AND TAKE BREAKS

I’ve learned that it's better to prioritize my well-being than it is to try and endure the exhaustion and stress of constantly doing school work. I can think of a handful of days during the spring semester where I didn’t do a lick of homework or anything school-related. I would make time to hang out with friends or take an entire day to work on my side projects. With all my added time commitments in the spring, sometimes taking a break just meant going on a long walk or going to bed early.

Of course, there were some weekends where I had no choice but to stay home and study. But overall, I was content with my life for the entire spring semester and always felt like I had something to look forward to.

THREE: IF YOU HAVE THE RESOURCES, TAKE CLASSES ON SUBJECTS YOU ACTUALLY WANT TO LEARN ABOUT

Not to drone on about my fashion course, but it really did change my perspective on school. I am fortunate enough to be in a situation where I have the flexibility to take a few classes for pure enjoyment. At some point, when you are learning about a subject you are passionate about, it stops becoming a class you take for the grade. There were moments I teared up reading the textbook because I was so moved by what I was learning and the fact that I was finally taking a class that catered to my interests. I spent more hours than necessary sketching and analyzing fashion shows because I cared about retaining everything I was learning. This class gave me more confidence in my ambitions and introduced me to other people interested in pursuing a career in fashion.