The end of the school year is quickly approaching and seniors are getting ready for the next step in their life. Whether it be going directly into the workforce, military or going to college, they’re finishing out their final month and a half of high school. Most students take the route of going to college, but might not know what college life is like. Alumni from last year’s senior class give their take on the college experience.
Alumna Jessica Winson, who goes to the University of Maryland and graduated last year, said that college is different from high school. “You have complete control over your own schedule, so you are in class a lot less than you are in high school, but there is more work outside of class that’s associated with that,” Winson said.
Winson is part of the club lacrosse team, a sorority, a Sports Business Society and she has an internship with Maryland Athletics as a marketing intern. College can be a lot more stressful than high school, and Winson’s schedule is packed with classes at various times throughout the day. But she makes time to go to the gym, go to practice, do her homework and attend her club meetings. “I definitely had to teach myself how to study and get all of my work done because it’s significantly heavier than what you get in high school,” Winson said.
Since college campuses can be massive, it can be difficult to stay in contact with people, especially with high school friends. Winson misses being able to see the same people every day and misses all of the school sports and spirit events. She also had to get used to final exams, as the closest MCPS has to that are AP exams. “In college, you have to make a lot of your own effort to stay in contact with people, so it’s definitely harder and I barely see some people from high school,” Winson said.
Alumnus Owen Lomotan, who attends Penn State and graduated last year, said that college is more independent and carries a larger workload. “Nobody is going to tell you when to study and you have to be proactive when you need help,” Lomotan said.
Lomotan is part of Penn State’s club cross country and track teams and hopes to join the newspaper as a sports writer next year. He was a staff writer for Common Sense during his high school years. “The part of high school I miss the most is probably running for the cross country and track teams, it was really like a second family to me,” Lomotan said.
High school doesn’t always do the best job of preparing students for what’s to come in college, especially when it comes to final exams. Lomotan felt that he would have benefitted from knowing what preparation was required for these exams. “I am still learning lots of things on the fly and while that is fun, it can also be stressful and frustrating to balance so much academically and personally,” Lomotan said.
