Planning for college early can help assure students are ready for the school year come fall. College is much different than high school, and the experiences that you have will definitely leave an impression on you. Here is some advice to the current senior class from Wahlert alumni who are now college students themselves.

“I’m not going to lie, the first week of college is overwhelming. You are going to miss your Wahlert family (no matter how much you say you can’t wait to get out of Dubuque) and that is okay. But in college you are going to meet new people and make lifelong friends,” says Maria Ambrosy, Bradley University, ‘20.

In addition, Kate Hanley, University of Dubuque, ‘20, added, “As important as it is to study and make time for homework, get involved in sports, activities or clubs. It is an easy way to make friends and get familiarized with the campus.” Hanley advises, “Pick something that you love doing. Chances are, you will meet like-minded people.”

College is full of seemingly endless nights of studying and writing, with more intense workloads than high school. Some challenges of college work include the large amounts of reading, short deadlines, and a lot of writing.

Jack Benda, Iowa State, ‘20, says, “College classes can be extremely difficult. It is important to remember that you are going to fail at some point. You will bomb a test or a big project. What is important is that when you fail, it means that you have to learn and grow from it.”

“You’re going to stay up too late, drink too much caffeine, and question what you are doing with your life more times that you can count; and you will look back on it saying it was the best time of your life. So when you are awake at 4 a.m. studying for your biology exam, fueled by procrastination and sleep deprivation, questioning why you did this to yourself, don’t worry too much,” says Ambrosy. “Everything will work out how it’s supposed to.”