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3 Differences Between Sophomore and Freshman Year

3 Differences Between Sophomore and Freshman Year

It has been way too long since I’ve last written a blog post. I am long overdue for some personal reflection. To begin, I cannot believe that it’s already October! I moved into my dorm on August 16th, for RA training, and since then, the days have just been flying by. In the past month and a half, I have found that there have been three main significant changes from my freshman to sophomore year:

1) University of Rochester becomes a lot smaller after you’ve been here for a year. I knew someone in every one of my classes before they even began. I know at least two to three people in Starbucks at any given moment. This change really makes me appreciate that I decided to go to a medium-sized school. I feel like the University of Rochester is the perfect size; I always have a friend around to make me feel welcome and there are always new people to meet!

2) Sophomore year comes with a higher workload. It might just be the classes that I’m taking (or that I’m taking 21 credits) but I always have work to do. If I finish my weekly assignments, it’s just in time for the next ones to come up, or just in time for me to study for my upcoming exam. Sometimes this can become a bit overwhelming, but if you keep yourself on a schedule and take care of your health, everything is manageable. It definitely doesn’t feel like my assignments are busy work, but are actually necessary for my studies. The challenging course pace has helped me to fine-tune my organizational skills and has kept me actively engaged in the material. I often compare college to the hyperbolic time chamber from Dragon Ball Z. Socially, intellectually, and emotionally we are all growing at a rate that I have not personally found in any other place or time, in my life. 

3) I have way more responsibilities than I did freshman year. There is seldom a day when I have no obligations for any of my organizations. I usually have some sort of event or meeting, all seven days of the week. They’re not all incredibly time-consuming, but the idea of not having a day without responsibility makes me feel like an adult. These responsibilities, especially being a Residential Advisor, have definitely caused me to mature a lot.

I’m sure that these feelings will only continue to grow as I grow along with them. If you take anything away from this post, it should be:

1) Enjoy the lack of responsibilities that come with freshman year. I was extremely involved my freshman year and I still had significantly fewer responsibilities than this year. I’m not saying to be irresponsible, but recognize that you’re only going to add responsibilities to your plate from this point onward.

2) You will rise to the occasion. Do not seek comfort; seek challenge and experience. I have continually taken on more responsibilities and I have continued to be impressed by my own transformation, because of these experiences.

3) We’re growing up, but that doesn’t mean we have to grow boring! I have a lot of responsibilities but I would say that if anything, this year is more fun and interesting. I am self-actualizing into the person that I truly want to be and it is more satisfying than complacently remaining the same person I was.