Op-Ed

According to Ben Locke, over 30 percent of students who seek help for mental health issues report that they have considered attempting suicide. (Novotney) The transition from a high school senior to a college freshman is a drastic change physically and mentally. The expectations high school seniors have are very unrealistic. This tends to lead college students to drop out their first year. College freshmen are stressed out due to many things surrounding the college experience.

According to the U.S. Census and American College Testing Program, an estimated 18 million students enrolled in college in 2008; nearly 34% dropped out in the first year because they were over confident, under-prepared and lacked realistic expectations about college. The amount of homework due weekly can be overwhelming. In my first semester of freshmen year, I had to read a 1000-page textbook, eleven plays, and a 900-page book. All my life I was taught to read two books for one year. I also had at least three essays due weekly. These assignments stressed me out completely. I would stay up every night until three or four in the morning because I wanted to receive an A in my assignments. Then, I will wake up at seven in the morning to go to school. I was running on three hours of sleep. Once I finished school, I went straight to work and stayed there for at least five hours. I was not prepared for all of this and I had realistic expectations of college.

Students believe their grades will remain the same because it is just like high school. In a 2010 study, 89% of students expected that their collegiate academic experience would echo that of high school. (Harke) They tend to be optimistic and confident. The only difference is in college you get to party every weekend. Movies and TV shows provided this stereotype to seniors. Carmela, a senior at Christ the King High School, said, “I do not think Christ the King has prepared me. The hardest things for me to do as a senior is taking the SATs and ACTs.” Seniors are informed that they can miss classes in college all the time and it is totally fine. For many college students’ experiences, this is not the case. Incoming students fantasize over their new fairytale lifestyle.

The transition from high school to college is overwhelming. Students are dependent and not independent. In high school, the teachers and counselors keep students well informed about due dates for everything. In college, you are told what to do and you are not reminded a second time. Students have to be up to date with their studies and not fall behind in courses. Throughout their life, they were told what to do every step of the way. High school senior teachers tell us college will be difficult but do not prepare the students for it.

High schools should challenge their upperclassmen because they are entering the “real world.” Throughout high school, I was never trained for college. I was always told college is difficult, but high school never prepared me for it. A student is supposed to give at least nine hours a week for each class. A full-time college student regularly takes five classes. This takes away forty-five hours from their week. This does not include work, health, and social time.

College freshmen are stressed out due to many things surrounding the college experience. They have to worry about how they will pay tuition. Many students take out student loans. If you are commuting to school, then you have to pay for Transit now. The MTA is charging $2.75 a ride and the price will be rising to $3.00 soon. Freshmen are worried about getting a job right after college. Before college starts, many freshmen are stressed about the difficulties with college. Due to pressure, over 30% of college students attempted suicide because of mental health issues. Students have to learn how to balance classes, homework, job, and internships.

David Crane, college freshmen at Mercy College, said, “I felt as if I did nothing to prepare myself for college. The teachers really did not teach nor prepare us for college. I wish they would have prepared us because I would not be stressing out over the work and classes now.” This mentally hurts a young adult tremendously.

The stress levels of a college freshman need to lower. If they are alert, then the stress level may decrease because they are not overwhelmed with the amount of work. High school teachers have to let seniors be more independent in doing the work. Stress overpowers college students all the time. The transition is a rude awakening. College should be challenging because it is the next level in a student’s academic career. But many high school seniors have been completely blindsided by the reality of college. Students are harming themselves due to the pressure of college. This needs to end now!