One of the most transitional phases of one’s life is entering college.
For many people, there is so much unfamiliar territory.
With so much newness, it’s easy to let these new concepts provoke anxiety, fear, depression, loneliness and much more.
What might seem like an unpopular opinion holds true for me, and it’s the fact that one of the most important things in college is getting involved–not just focusing on making the best grades or graduating in the shortest amount of time possible.
Though those can be great things, they’re not necessarily the most important.
When transitioning to college there are a vast number of people. Some will have multiple similarities with you and some will have major differences. There are people from different nations, different cultures and different backgrounds, which can hinder the process of people making connections.
Whether intentional or not, your mind is intimidated by these aspects, essentially hurting how you go on to experience your next chapter of life.
However, when you put yourself out there, you allow your brain to feel more comfortable not just around people in general but in your setting.
For the next however many years, you will spend plenty of time on this campus, and therefore it’s key that you feel comfortable and included.
Here at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, many student organizations are offered, and when I say many, I mean it.
From the most popular, like sororities and fraternities, to campus ministries, to work outlets, to even major-specific groups.
It is actually insane how many options are available to you. I would love to list every single one, but it is quite literally impossible, mainly because I don’t know them all, and frankly, there are 229 of them.
Getting involved leads to so many benefits that you might not even realize at first. Community in itself is so valuable for humanity.
Dorothy Day, an American journalist, social activist and anarchist, once said, “We all have known the long loneliness, and we have found that the answer is community.”
When granting yourself the availability to belong to a group or community, you start an internal work within you, which operates a removal process of all those negative emotions mentioned before.
It’s not said enough, but your mental health is important, and being stuck in your dorm all day or in class and never truly engaging in social interaction can genuinely harm you.
When I first came into college, I had no one. All of my friends went to different universities, and I was the only one here at UL Lafayette. I didn’t realize it at first but this became a very hard concept for me to grasp.
I was staying in my dorm every day and only leaving when I needed to. In these moments of loneliness, I was experiencing insecurities, anxiety and true desperation for people to be in my life.
However, I was too afraid to reach for it. Luckily, organizations ended up finding me, and I started getting plugged in around campus.
Through these organizations, I have made friends with people I would have never met before, I’ve gone to events I wouldn’t have heard of otherwise and I have felt a genuine happiness that I didn’t think I would have had beforehand.
In the beginning, I became content with my own sadness.
I thought “this is just what college is like,” but what I didn’t realize is college has more to it than that. It’s not just about the classes and the grades but also the connections you make and the experiences you gain.
Frankly, this isn’t really plausible without connections or without community. Therefore, that is why it is extremely important to become involved.
It’s not a UL Lafayette thing; I’m not trying to convince you how great the student organizations are here.
It’s a you thing. I want you to experience true college life and delve into memories and face encounters that you will remember for a lifetime.
When placing yourself into a community, vulnerability takes place, which leads to fellowship, comfort and delight.
Yes, it’s intimidating to put yourself out there, but there are no differences or challenges that could take place that should stop you from uniting with others. Forming relationships with others can unveil your similarities and bring a light to your life that wasn’t there before.
If you’re still unsure about branching out, then just take my word for it. It can change your life.