It seems pertinent, if not cliché, that I reflect upon the last four years of my life here at CNU, now that graduation is almost on my doorstep. Attending college in a new environment will always have its ups and downs, from tumultuous roommate relationships to anxiety about what you’re doing with your life, but when you’ve found that perfect place to call your home, college can be one of the most enjoyable experiences for anyone.
Back when I was in high school, CNU had a growing but still recognized reputation for its excellent liberal arts education, small class sizes and strong community dedicated to making it the best university it could be. (Into my senior year, CNU has received numerous rankings from U.S. News and World Report to Kiplinger.) Of course, and I’m not ashamed to admit it, it was probably the fact that I wouldn’t have to brush my teeth with 20 other girls that pushed CNU to the forefront for me.
All joking aside, even when I received my glowing acceptance letter, I still felt apprehension about if I had made the right decision. “Will I be happy here,” “Will I find my niche,” were probing questions I had as I packed up my stuff into cardboard boxes. Apprehension is normal about any big life-changing moment, but the faculty, staff and current students always made me and all the other freshmen feel included and welcome in their growing community.
Some people find connections through CNU’s bustling Greek life (Read Courtney’s blog about recruitment week!), and some make themselves busy with different employment opportunities (Read Ryan’s blog about his work experience!). I think I found most success academically, filling my head with theories, concepts and new paradigms in a very Hermione Granger-ish style. Finding new intellectual challenges was more fun than drudgery, especially getting the satisfaction of mastering courses I never thought I could. Of course, science and math are a different subject all together. But back to the point: finding something to love and feel passion for isn’t a hard thing to come by at CNU.
While there’s no perfect formula for ensuring a perfect college experience, know that it’s partly the effort that you put into it. Things, as my mother loves to remind me, will never be handed to you on a silver platter: if you want to have an amazing experience, you have to work for it. If you can manage that, then everything else will fall into place. I can honestly say that attending CNU has been one of the most rewarding experiences I could ever ask for. Like me, you will have support in every corner and people here genuinely want you to succeed.
