The zip of the suitcase, the crackle of duct tape and the silent tears of parents are the sounds that soon to be college freshman associate with moving out of their beloved homes. One of the biggest changes someone has to go through in life is the transition of the high school life to college life. The increases of school work, meeting new people and living on their own are only some of the problems they will encounter. But the students have been preparing themselves since before they can remember, looking forward to the new found freedoms, pulling all-nighter’s and making new lifelong friends. For most teenagers this is an experience everyone clings to and looks forward to, no matter how big the transition.
“Well I don’t want to go more than 6 hours away because I’m really close with family,” said MHS senior Karyle Pick when talking about the deciding factors of which college she would attend. If they decide on a college at the beach where it’s a steady 90 degrees all year or a college in cold mountains of Colorado they have to decide if they can truly leave their family for months at a time. Even though the seniors are looking forward to their freedoms they may not want to spread their new found wings too far.
Most students didn’t want to go more than 6 hours away so they have a semi decent ride back home for a weekend or to visit family. Jessica Miller, a senior, said. “Max school is eight hours away but I’ll probably stay three hours away”. They find themselves trying to find this balance between moving out and being on their own and still needing their parents for little things.
This is a day they have been waiting for since freshman year but the actual expectations of college are far different than those of their hometown high school. Not only the transition of school work and friends overshadow their move but also the responsibilities of “doing laundry” as Jessica Miller said. Or the daunting task of “making food because my mom always makes dinner for me,” said Pick. These things may seem insignificant but when students are newly on their own they truly find how much they had wish they had helped their parents with dinner some nights.
With independence comes responsibility, and this some teenagers are not quite ready for. “I think that people will find out they’re not ready,’ said Pick when asked if she thought students will be completely prepared for what is to come. The prospect of not having their parents there to give them money for the weekend is something they will have to get use to according to Jessica Miller by saying “some kids get things handed to them and don’t understand the concept of work”. Even though they will be working towards making a lifelong career some new college students may want to be self-sufficient money wise as well during this time.” This just adds to the weight and pressures of college.
Even though the weight and pressure seem to completely overtake the exciting college picture there are plenty of positives to moving away. The list seemed to go on and on for senior Jessica Miller as she talked about what she is mostly looking forward to. “No curfew, no one yelling at me over food” she said. “My own schedule, independence but with the backup of my parents.” Even senior Timothy Schumacker said he is most looking forward to “being able to do what I want.” The simple fact that college brings these extended freedoms draws practically any and all teenager to be more inclined to be on their own and to have that full college experience. Another senior Sarah Mueller said that she feels “the biggest advantage of living on my own would be the freedom; I’ll be able to go as I please and I won’t have anyone telling me what to do.” The other responsibilities of high school to college transition all but seem to disappear when the prospects of no curfew and no one to answer to are in the horizon.
