The Sophomore Mindset

As we’re digging deeper into this semester, that freshman glow seems to be fading more and more every day, and the concept of calling ourselves “sophomores in college” is becoming more of a reality. While this semester comes with its own perks of living with all of our friends and having the luxury of a kitchen, it also marks the end of an era. Adulthood, or the idea of growing up, getting older and having real responsibilities is starting to slap us in the face. 

As a freshman, everything is simple; everything is new. The innocence of this mindset allows everything to be exciting and fresh. There are no real responsibilities as a first-year; we’re expected to get to college, adjust to a new life and just enjoy it. As a sophomore, on the other hand, we wake up from this freshman dream, and the reality of life kicks in. It’s the little responsibilities like running the dishwasher and buying your own groceries that make it feel more real, but also the responsibility of being more mature and grounded.

We’re supposed to be role models and people that underclassmen look up to (which is so strange to think about considering we were those underclassmen no more than four months ago). Not only this, but for some reason being a sophomore also means knowing your future. The expectations are much higher. We’re not just here to go to class and live this college life, but we’re also here to prepare for internships for upcoming summers, plan where we want to live for the next two years and know exactly what we want to do with our lives. Even though we’ve done our first year of college already and everything isn’t necessarily “new,” that doesn’t mean we aren’t readjusting to this new structure and environment in our lives. 

So, what does this mean? We’re all for getting older, and while adulting sounds appealing, we want to enjoy these next three years. We at The Edge have come to the realization that every year here at Elon is going to be new and different. So, with this mindset, we’ve come to understand that freshman year’s chapter has been written, and a new chapter has begun. Instead of overwhelming ourselves with all of these new responsibilities or panicking as expected, take a moment to sit back, relax and live in the present. We’re all going through this experience together, and while every chapter isn’t easy, know that you’re not alone on this journey.