5 Things I Wish I’d Known Before My Junior Year of College

5 Things I Wish I’d Known Before My Junior Year of College

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As my junior year of college comes to an end, I’ve found myself in a pretty reflective mood. A few weeks ago, my advisor reminded me that the next time we meet, in the fall, we’ll be going over the Senior Checklist.

All I could say was, “What?”

For some context, I’m graduating early in Fall 2027. I started taking college classes in high school, which put me about 24 credits ahead. Right now, I’m working toward a Bachelor’s in Elementary Education, a minor in Literacy, and a Master’s in Elementary Education. I’ll be starting my master’s classes this summer (so…wish me luck).

I wouldn’t change anything I’ve done, but I’ll be honest — a little warning would’ve been nice. Neither of my parents went to college, so I’ve been figuring everything out on my own. My classes haven’t necessarily gotten harder, but they’ve definitely become more time-consuming and (dare I say) sometimes feel a little…useless.

So here are five things I wish I knew before my junior year:

1. Burnout is real, and it hits faster than you think. I sat through so many required seminars about burnout and always thought, “That won’t happen to me.” Yeah… I was wrong.

During the second semester of my freshman year, I got really sick. Two weeks into the semester, I ended up with Influenza A. For two straight weeks, I could barely get out of bed. I was constantly sleeping, running a high fever, and emailing professors whenever I was actually awake.

Trying to catch up afterward was overwhelming. We were already weeks into the semester, and everything just piled up. And honestly, I didn’t help myself. As the weather got nicer, I started skipping class… and eventually stopped going altogether.

It was a rough time.

If I could go back, I’d tell myself this: stay consistent, even when it’s hard. It’s so much easier to keep up than it is to catch up.

2. You don’t have to have your social life figured out right away. I put so much pressure on myself to make friends at the beginning of college, and it was exhausting.

I’ve always been someone who prefers a small, close-knit group rather than a huge circle. But my campus is very sorority-heavy, and that just isn’t me. I’m not into partying or going out all the time, and for a while, it felt like that’s what everyone around me wanted.

It made me feel like I was doing college “wrong.”

But over the past couple of semesters, I’ve found a few people I can genuinely call friends. And it happened naturally, just by being in the same classes and seeing the same faces over time.

So if you’re stressing about not having a ton of friends right away, don’t. The right people come with time.

3. Working during college changes everything. This is something I don’t think people talk about enough.

At one point, I was working two jobs while taking 16 credit hours. It was exhausting. Now I’m working one job as a para, which I love, but it still takes up a huge chunk of my time.

Balancing work and school is no joke. There are late nights, early mornings, and a constant feeling of being just a little behind.

Looking back, I wish I had slowed down and stuck with one job. Trying to do everything at once isn’t sustainable.

4. You don’t have to be “involved” in everything to be successful. Because I was working and focused on academics, I wasn’t very involved on campus, and for a while, I felt guilty about that.

At my school, being “involved” usually means joining a sorority or being part of the student government. Neither of those aligned with who I am or what I want for my future.

And that’s okay.

Being involved is about perspective. It’s about choosing what actually matters to you. If you want to work, work. If you want to run a club, do it. If you’d rather focus on your classes, your future career, or even just getting through the week, that’s valid too.

College doesn’t have to look the same for everyone.

5. It’s okay to not have everything figured out. This might be the biggest one.

There have been so many times where things didn’t go according to plan, classes I needed were full, grades didn’t turn out how I hoped, or schedules just didn’t work in my favor.

And every time, it felt like a bigger deal than it actually was.

The truth is, as long as you’re moving forward and staying on track to graduate, the small setbacks don’t define you. Not everything is going to go perfectly, and that doesn’t mean you’re failing; you’re just figuring it out. Here’s the secret: everyone else is figuring it out too.