The Chandler Essays #3: THE SEVEN LESSONS I LEARNED FROM COLLEGE

"I wish that I knew what I know now." — From the song Ooh La La by The Faces (1975)

To the high school Class of 2020,

There's nothing I can say about COVID-19 that hasn't already been discussed. Meeting your new college peers online is in no sense ideal. If you're anxious about starting your college career under such "interesting" circumstances, understand you're not alone.

Pandemic or no pandemic, everyone is lost their first year at college, but in the grand scheme of things, your early adversity will prepare you for the tough road ahead.

It took me a few years to figure out who I was, recognize my skills, come to terms with my faults, and find the right major. But I got through it.

Now that it's over, I feel obligated to share what I've learned and offer sound advice for those who start in the Fall.

Here are the most important lessons I learned from college:

1. You don't need a "traditional" college experience.

If you've read my introduction, you'd know my college experience was far from traditional. Imagine a school with no football team, no fraternity row, no ivy-covered buildings. Yea, that's what I went through.

Instead of tailgates, we watched political debates on television; the quarterback on campus wasn't an athlete at all— it was a stray cat called the "Wonk Cat." (Check out her IG here.)

It took some time, but I learned I didn't need a big, beautiful sports school or a prestigious Ivy League education to enjoy college.

Realize it's okay if you didn't get into your ideal institution and be proud of the school that accepted you.

Expectations that your time at ____ University will be the "best four years of your life," is something I learned not to be true. Instead, go with the flow and find your niche. Then plan from there.

If you're not sure you're ready, that's okay too. I recommend taking a gap year. I wish I did.

2. It's never too late to find your crew.

When schools do open up, you're going to meet a lot of different people from all walks of life, from the wise upperclassmen to the kid with seven internships.

It took me a while to learn people come and go. In freshman year, I've made promises to live with individuals after college; two years later, they've poofed to a different city.

No one is responsible for your happiness. Protect yourself. Don't take those around you for granted, but be a little selfish, stay open-minded, never stop meeting people, and get too content.

College life will sometimes feel lonely but stay proactive, and eventually, you will meet your crew.

3. Work smart, not hard.

Having a healthy social life is wonderful, but let's be real; that's not where all that money is going. (Ask your parents.)

College challenges you by holding a high academic standard.

As a standout in high school with a 4.0 GPA, let me be the one to tell you college is, to put it simply, different. I won't get into how my grades plummeted, but the Monday Night Ragers were not helping.

Here's the deal. Have fun, experiment, live your life, but also remember that there's a fine line between self-care and self-indulgence.

Be safe, take care of yourself, and find smarter, more efficient ways to study BEFORE going out to Tequila Tuesday.

Each semester I got better at managing my time. Since there will likely be no socially distant house parties your first semester anyway (right?), treat the Fall like it's a test run.

Something that worked in high school, may not work as well in college.

See which testing strategies are more efficient. Is it easier to handwrite your notes? Or to type on a doc? When you study for a test, do you find a group or examine the slides?

It took me five years to notice I never looked at my notes on Google Docs and instead copied the professor's lessons on Quizlet. To save time and make life easier, I skipped the middle man and started typing out notes on Quizlet flashcards during the lectures in class, instead of after. It kept me on track and gave me more time to study. Tah-dah!

4. Textbooks are dumb.

Okay, maybe this isn't so much of a life lesson, as it is a way of re-evaluating what you already knew.

Avoid buying textbooks at all costs.

Most professors go over the content from the books over their lectures anyway because they know students don't read them.

Most of the writing is dry, overly complicated, and the information can't seem to stay relevant for more than a few years.

You're much better off settling your time into advocating for better books, using TedTalks, and reading my blog (:

5. Your professors don't care if you're wrong, they want to know you're listening.

Oh, the dreaded Gen Eds.

You take a lot of classes where the subjects may frighten you, and the professor with three PhDs may give you the willies.

Fun fact: your professors are still human, and all they want you to do is listen to them and participate.

Put yourself in their shoes. It's hard going up to a class of 20, 60, 100 twenty-somethings, lecturing information on a subject they know you may or may not care about.

I have had to sit through lectures where the professor would ask a question, and the whole room would go silent until someone, usually me, would raise the sympathy hand.

Professors will take anything. After all, they spent years studying one particular subject, not you. Of course, you may not know the answer.

And don't ask questions they answered on the syllabus. They freaking hate that.

6. Don't procrastinate on your passions.

College can be so much fun, but it can also be depressing.

Why? Because many kids feel forced to grow up and focus on how they're going to make money from a degree, losing track of all the activities that used to make them happy.

Don't let overtly pragmatic expectations stop you from doing what you love. If you want to paint, paint. If you're going to make music, make music.

It would be best if you had an outlet. That's not procrastinating— it's prioritizing your needs.

7. There are no guarantees, but that doesn't mean there aren't opportunities.

Nothing is set in stone.

I don't know what's going to happen over the next four years. I don't even know what's going to happen over the next four months. Neither does anybody else.

Just keep your eye open for any opportunities to explore, learn, and grow and remember to have fun.

Congratulations on moving forward, and I wish you all the best. Cheers!

-William Amari

Amari.Will@Gmail.com