We’ve all seen it in movies, heard about it from family members, and read about it in books – college is supposed to be the best four years of your life.
To many, this statement couldn’t be more true. College, is where students learn about themselves and grow as individuals, meet the people who will have a great impact on your life for many years, and of course fulfill your dreams of becoming what you really want out of life, and earning a degree at the end of it all.
But what many fail to forget and mention is the amount of work that goes into getting a degree. Whether it’s a long days of never ending classes, late nights in the library studying for a big test, being involved in clubs and sports around campus, and not to mention finding time in the day to take a nap or two or have some down time to hang out with friends. It all builds up, and leaves students stressed and exhausted.
College is fun, but the stress can sometimes outweigh the fun. Stress is a challenge not only faced in college, but also in life. But the last thing students want is to add more stress to their lives.
“Finding enough time to study for my tests, and managing my time to study and managing my time to get away from studying has to be the biggest thing for me,” said Dakota Null, a William Peace University first year student. “I have a calendar now, it lets me know what I need to get done and keeps my day in order, that’s what’s helped me out, coming into college it’s been a bit overwhelming.”
Every class is affected by stress. It’s not just something that first year students deal with and then it’s done. Sophomore’s, juniors, and especially seniors are affected by stress.
“I think what stresses me out the most is finishing well, I start off really strong in the beginning, but keeping that momentum throughout the semester can be difficult,” said BethAnn Mills, a senior at WPU. “Really prioritizing is the key, friends and looking after myself are priorities just like my school work, that helps me not become quite so tunnel-visioned.”
Students may not find it helpful or to their benefit to talk to professors and faculty members about the amount of stress they’re dealing with but faculty members like Sheri Keasler, or otherwise known as “Mama Sheri” to students on WPU’s campus see’s it differently. “Everyone needs downtime, but I think it’s important to have a good relationship with professors, because that gives students that one on one time and makes the students feel less stressful if they can openly talk with their professors about the issues they have in class”, Keasler said.
Stress is something that will always be a part of life, it’s just that college seems to add a bit more stress to it. It’s all about prioritization and managing time effectively.
