Moving to college was easily the most exciting and frightening experience of my life. I was saying goodbye to everything I was familiar with and saying hello to all the new possibilities that awaited me. Not knowing what to think of college, I had never been away from my family and friends for an extended period of time. Combining that with the plethora of information freshmen receive, confusion on which classes to take and the desire to connect with my peers, the whole ordeal intimated me even before I stepped foot on campus. And this is why the orientation issue was created for you. This paper will answer some of your biggest questions about your upcoming Northwestern experience and then some. Do you want to know the best classes to take? An overview of the sports teams? Advice on the best places to go at 1 a.m.? This issue has all these answers and more.
On a more personal level, the best advice I can give you about college is to approach everything with an open mind. If you walk into every situation thinking you already know the answer, you will never learn. Another piece of advice would be to own who you are. Since you have been accepted into NU, I would not be far off in assuming that you are some of the brightest students in the nation. Our experiences in high school helped shape who we are, but they are not the only thing that will shape us. When you walk on campus you will have this feeling like you should take on everything. While I do not doubt that you can very well take on everything, it is important to know what is important to you. I knew I was one of the meeker kids, so I stuck primarily to the religious community at NU. Of course, I have also taken chances and tried new things, which is why I get to write a letter asking you to try different things.
I often tell people that the day I got accepted to NU is a day I wish I could live over again and again. My time at NU has easily been the best time of my life so far. I have made countless friends and mentors and have met people who will forever have an impact on me. Stretch your legs and get comfortable freshmen, it will be a wild ride and we are glad to have you.
