At the beginning of my spring semester as a sophomore, I got to thinking about how many struggles I’ve had to unexpectedly, face throughout this year. I thought sophomores were supposed to be the experienced ones who’ve been around the block and know what’s going on. Boy, was I wrong.
Sophomore year of college, I’ve realized, is a lot like a midlife crisis- you think you’ve got it all figured out and are finally settled in, but then life goes “nope, tricked ya!” and a whole new level of hardship just slaps you right in the face. Yep, it’s great to be a second-year.
Similar to those you face during your freshman year (except not quite as dramatic or wild), college sophomores are forced to endure some tough situations and decisions. Here are five major struggles that sophomores face as we make our way through our second year of college.
1. Facing the fact that you’re no longer the “baby.”
As freshmen, we were always the center of attention since we were the “babies,” which basically meant that we were in our prime. Getting to experience new things and meet new people all the time was great, but now that we’re sophomores, all of a sudden we start to feel irrelevant. You see all these new, clearly younger people at the bars and you kind of feel old. What’s happening?
2. You can no longer blame your mistakes on the fact that you’re a freshman and you “didn’t know any better.”
As a continuation from the last point, since we are no longer part of the youngest group on campus, it is no longer acceptable to make stupid mistakes and having them be okay because we’re still “new.” Well now we sophomores aren’t “new,” what are we then? Old. We are old and feeling very out of touch, even though we’ve only been here for less than two years.
3. Deciding on your final major.
As sophomores, we are required to pick our final major by the end of the year, and by “final” I mean technically you aren’t supposed to be switching your major anymore after this year. This can be tough for those of us who have been through three or four (or more?) majors throughout our time here. Settling into one major can feel restricting, but just try to keep an open mind and remember your major doesn’t define your career.
4. Senioritis has come way too early.
This one probably hits home for way too many of us sophomores. At this point in our college careers, we are pretty comfortable with knowing how college classes work. This can easily lead to becoming too comfortable and letting schoolwork slide to the back burner while spending more time with your friends in mid then you probably should be. Which leads me to my final point…
5. Accepting that you’re definitely going to spend way too much money on coffee and nights out in the coming years.
You know there is a Starbucks in every library for a reason: the company knows college kids will pay anything to have their coffee, especially when it is conveniently located less than a minute walk from your study spot in the library. And nights out are obviously a given for college students.
Despite all these struggles, I can honestly say that being a sophomore is also pretty great. You’ve managed to make your way through freshman year (even if it was just barely) and now are more experienced in every aspect of college life. Just be sure to use your knowledge and experience gained throughout the past two years and make the next two even better.
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