So I graduated from college almost seven years ago, and I graduated from high school almost eleven
years ago. In fact, I had my 10 year reunion, high school reunion, last June. And yet, for
some reason, YouTube keeps recommending me 2020 college acceptance reaction videos.
But I'm not complaining because I find them very entertaining to watch, and I remember
very clearly that whole rollercoaster of emotions. You put so much time and energy into writing
your applications, and then for those months between submitting your application and finding
out the results, you're just simultaneously preparing yourself for the best and worst
case scenario.
-Champagne? -Happy.
-Sponge? -Sad. To soak up my tears.
-Gummy bears and gummy worms? -Bears, sad. Worms, happy. Come on, Erin.
Anyway, I know a lot of you who watch my channel are either in college right now or maybe you
just recently graduated or are about to graduate, so I wanted to make two videos.
In this first one, I'm going to be sharing my thoughts and advice on college itself,
starting college, things that I wish I knew before going to college. And then in the second
one, which will be uploaded sometime shortly after this one, I'll talk about my advice
for getting through those early years of postgrad life.
Before we continue, if you're not already subscribed, and especially if you are going
to be a college graduate soon, then please be sure to hit the subscribe button, as well
as the notification bell so you can be notified when that next video comes out.
I had no idea what I wanted to do when I started college, and to be honest, when I was a kid,
I also didn't really have a super clear idea of what I wanted to be when I "grew up," so
I went through phases of wanting to be a teacher, an interior designer (which stemmed from many
hours of watching HGTV when I was in middle school), and a lawyer for like, a couple seconds.
I did know when I started college that I would major in English, and I applied as an English
major, really just because I liked the subject, and I liked writing, and I was like, might
as well do something that I like because there isn't really anything else that I'm sure that
I want to do. So I didn't have a plan when it came to a career path, and I did have a
major, but I just wasn't really sure what I was going to use it for. When I started
college, I just kind of felt like I didn't have an identity, not to be dramatic. I think
it's because growing up, and especially in high school, I felt very defined by grades
and also by swimming, so that felt like that was who I was, because it really was the majority
of my world at the time. But then I went to college and I wasn't the best student. I mean,
in my English classes, there were so many other students who were smarter than me, wittier
than me, more analytical, and could voice those opinions really well and eloquently
in class. I also wasn't swimming anymore because college Division 1 swimming is a whole other
level that I could not get to. And so I felt pretty negatively about myself because I felt
like I didn't have this passion that all the people around me seemed to have on the surface,
whether they were pre-med and really wanted to go to med school, pre-business and had
all these entrepreneurial goals, or even like architecture, and having this really awesome
skill that they could develop. I just kind of felt like I was there, and I didn't really
know what I wanted to do. I had some interests, like I liked my major, I liked writing, I
liked music and playing music, I liked swimming and all of that, but none of those were my
passion. There's a lot of pressure to know what you want to do and find something you're
passionate about at an early age, or at least at a college age, and while some people do
find it, or at least start to find it or explore it or discover it, it's really a lifelong
process to find a passion and to really get into it and do something with your life that
relates to your passion. I don't want to say that college is only a time to find yourself
and explore everything and see what's out there. It is to an extent, but I don't want
to say that that's all college is because that's just impractical. What I am saying
is that finding a passion and finding a career goal is a lifelong process, and so if you
don't know that right when you're starting college, it's OK. Follow what feels right
and appropriate for you at the moment, and eventually you will find the right career
goal or career path for you.
I already said that I wasn't the best student in college. There were a lot of other people
who engaged a lot more in the classroom. Like I did all my assignments, I went to lectures
(most of the time), but I rarely contributed to discussions or asked questions during class,
and even less frequently went to office hours. I think this came from laziness, as well as
feeling like I had nothing to ask or talk about at office hours. But that's just stupid
because there's always more to learn and know about a subject or a topic, and if you know
everything, then why are you taking that class in the first place? I think I also had a bit
of a fear of asking questions and coming off potentially as stupid or something, but your
professor's not going to think that you're stupid for asking questions. If anything,
they're going to think that you're really insightful or thoughtful, or at least eager
to learn more. These professors have office hours that are dedicated every week, or multiple
times a week, depending on the professor, in order for you to go and talk with them.
These are really smart people who have done lots of research on whatever topic you're
studying, so just take advantage of that while you can. And making that connection with your
professor not only helps you learn more and do better in your classes, but it also is
setting you up for the future, when you might need to potentially ask them for a letter
of recommendation when you're applying to grad school. Going to office hours takes like
15 minutes of your time so it is so worth the effort, there's very little risk involved,
if any, and you get so much out of it.
I mentioned earlier that I was a swimmer in high school, so I was swimming multiple hours
a day, I was competing every week, and I was eating whatever the hell I wanted. Fast forward
to college, and I was still eating whatever the hell I wanted, including late night fried
chicken strips, and garlic cheese fries, and multiple bowls of Cap'n Crunch for dessert.
The difference was I wasn't swimming every day anymore and burning a bunch of calories,
so, do the math, I definitely gained the Freshman 15. And if you're Asian like me, then you
already know all the comments I got from family members and family friends during those first
few years of college. So when I gained those 15-20 pounds freshman year, I kind of felt
like a failure because as I said earlier, I identified as an athlete growing up my whole
life, and so going into college, I was like, yeah, I'm still going to be disciplined, I'm
going to work out every day, like this is what I do, this is who I am, and...that didn't
happen. But that's OK, and it makes sense because when you go to college, you're in
a completely new environment, you have a new schedule, you have new friends and new people
around you, a new living situation, new food that you're eating that's available to you.
So if you're not able to balance all of that and maintain your figure from being a teenager
in high school, then that's OK. Of course, I would never want anyone to just completely
disregard their health and live an unhealthy lifestyle, but if you end up gaining some
weight in college your freshman year, it's OK. There's a reason they call it the freshman
15, there's a reason it happens to a lot of people. It's because you're juggling a lot
in a new environment, so just give yourself some grace.
When you're in high school, your schedule is pretty much all set out for you, like you
have your six periods or whatever in a day. (I don't think that's changed much, but it
has been a while since I've been in high school.) But generally, you start and end at the same
time every day, with some exceptions here and there. In college, you have a lot more
flexibility with your schedule. Obviously there are certain classes that you have to
take, whether it's a general requirement or it's for your major, and sometimes those classes
are only offered at certain times, but you have a lot more freedom in your schedule and
every day your schedule could be very different. For example, my first semester of college,
I didn't have any class on Fridays, and that's because I purposely chose classes that did
not meet on Fridays. And this was great in theory, because I would have a three-day weekend
every week -- a four-day weekend if there was a holiday on Monday, even better -- and
I was thinking that on this extra day, this extra Friday that I had off of classes, I
would still wake up early, maybe do some exercise (this was when I still thought that I was
going to be exercising all the time in college), get ahead of my assignments so I could have
the rest of the weekend off, like it was a great plan. What actually happened was I would
stay up super late on Thursdays and then I would sleep in on Friday, and if I didn't
get anything done on Friday, it was fine because I still had Saturday and Sunday, and then
of course, people want to hang out and go out on Fridays, so I would do that on Friday,
and still not feel bad about it because I still had the weekend ahead of me. So anyway,
this extra day that I had in my schedule that I thought would make me more productive actually
didn't do anything at all, or maybe sometimes even made me less productive. As I said before,
you're in a new environment, you're balancing all these new things, and you suddenly have
this freedom in your schedule, and sometimes you end up abusing that freedom and not using
it in the most productive way. You have this awesome flexibility when you go to college,
but just be mindful of how you use it.
In case you're new here, or you don't know me, I studied abroad for a semester during
my junior year of college, and all my friends know this because I never shut up about it.
I was at the University of Bristol in England for the spring semester of my junior year,
and so when I came back for senior year, I was just badgering everybody I knew who was
younger than me to go study abroad. Because honestly, I just want as many people as possible
to go study abroad. I have a video about why you should study abroad where I address reasons
that people give for NOT studying abroad, so if you need some convincing, then please
go watch that video. I'll link it in the description box. But seriously, if you're going to start
college, or even if you're in college (it's not too late), go study abroad. The number
one regret I hear from my friends who didn't study abroad in college is that they didn't
study abroad, and for me, one of my regrets is just that I didn't study abroad for longer,
like for a full year. So please at least just consider it and look into it. I know that
sometimes it feels like it's not an option for you, but a lot of times you can find a
way.
I think for some people, college really is the best time of your life, and for others
it just doesn't really live up to those expectations. Everyone's journey is just very different,
and so many college experiences are nothing like what you see on TV or in the movies.
I think college really is just another chapter of your life -- it's a significant chapter
of your life -- where you learn a lot and you grow a lot. College definitely isn't going
to be easy for some, academically, socially, mentally, physically, but that's actually
good because it's through challenges and hardships that you grow as a person. So try to learn
as much as you can, don't be afraid of looking stupid when you go to office hours, go abroad
if you can, and just be accepting of yourself in a new and changing environment.
That is all for Part 1 in this two-part series. Again, in Part 2, I'll talk about getting
through those early years of postgrad life. If you're getting ready to go to college or
maybe even grad school or something, then congratulations! Good luck, you worked so
hard for this and I'm very excited for you. And if you made it this far into the video,
then thank you so much for watching and supporting my channel. I really appreciate it and I will
see you in the next one. Bye!