Whatever the path, make it yours

I’m not gonna lie, my first semester of college was rough. Within days of starting of school I was living by myself in Elwell Hall with constant thoughts I was never going to be able to form a friendship. Everyone else on my floor had a roommate and someone close to connect with.

 
Adding to that stress I realized after nearly failing my first college biology class, maybe I should reconsider my major. I thought I wanted to go into radiology. I thought making friends in college would be super easy.

 
I thought I had this college thing figured out.

 
From visiting Bloomsburg in the summer to moving in and then to the first week of classes, I had this overwhelming fear about adjusting to such a big change from high school. And before the fall was over it was becoming true.

 
One clear thing hits you when you reach college. You’re on your own. It can be thrilling and quite rejuvenating. It can be motivating. It can also be down-right frightening. So, I took it upon myself to really figure it out — to find my path. They say college is a journey. It’s where you follow your career dreams and find yourself. Actually, that’s what I did at Bloomsburg.

Up first was my major. I didn’t wait it out and immediately went to my advisor to discuss the other options I had. As a freshman you want to do well right from the start and make your family proud — make yourself proud. I always heard of people coming into college being undecided without a major, which was something I never considered. I thought going into college I already had to have everything figured out, which is the furthest thing from the truth.

 
It's okay to be undecided, and it’s okay to change.

 
So, I then changed my major to communication studies, focusing on the track of interpersonal communication. I had already taken an interpersonal communication class and enjoyed it. The professor was great and very supportive. My sister had been a communication studies major at another school, so I knew a little about what I was getting into.

 

People often underestimate communication studies and the opportunities it could bring after college. The courses I’ve taken over the years have been anything but easy. I had to take public speaking, which was a fear of mine I never thought I could overcome. The thought of standing in front of a classroom of strangers to make speeches about my beliefs or touchy subjects scared me to death. There were also rules of public speaking I had to learn, like constant eye contact with your audience and not always looking at flashcards. I got through the hard courses though, and fast forward to my last semester, I’ve already completed my major courses I need for graduation.

 
This was the best decision I could’ve made! I’ll forever be grateful to my younger self for deciding to make a change when it was needed — to choose a new path, right there and not later. This was something truly meant for me.

 
Me … yes, back to me. That first semester seemed to be just that … me. I was lost in my major, and I was lost in my search for friendships. So, much like my major I took it upon myself to figure it out. If it wasn’t going to be as easy as I thought to find friends, I would make it easy for them to find me. I left my (residence hall) door open. I chatted with others at hall meetings, and I made it a point to make friends in class.

 
Simply put, I made friends. Though unlike many fellow freshmen and my Elwell neighbors I had yet to find my best friends, my people — my Bloom people. I learned that’s okay. It doesn’t happen for everyone their first semester or their first year of college. But it does happen, trust me.

And it’s absolutely the best thing about college.

 
— Sarah O'Leary, a senior communication studies major with an emphasis on interpersonal communication, is interning with the Office of Marketing and Communications this spring. She is a native of Scranton and is an avid Harry Styles fan.

#BloomOnward #HuskyLife