Never having to take another class ever again is something students used to joke about in our younger days. Years later, that day is nearing.

Going to college is something most teenagers dream of and make a reality, especially if they are able to attend the school of their dreams.

When it comes to college, there are things that I have certainly learned along the way. Those ideals are ones I believe the average college student endured.

The biggest factor is that after four years or more depending on your major, you grow as a person. Over the course of a college career, change occurs, or as I like to refer to it, personal growth.

College provides the opportunity for students to be their own likely for the first time ever in their lives away from their immediate family. Whether it be a short drive or a plane ride away, students being independent is a vital lesson to be learned because after graduating from college, the real world will be knocking, awaiting your arrival.

The purpose of going to school for most students is to gain a degree in a field they want to have a career in.

Incoming college freshmen are pressured into deciding what they want to specialize in the second they start applying to colleges senior year of high school. While some students have had their mind made up since they were children, others have no idea, and there are even cases in which students change their majors multiple times.

Luckily for me, I knew the career path I wanted to take since I was a child, which was to be a sports journalist.

Sports is something that has played an important role in my life since I was a child and is something I love. But after four years of going to college, I got practice on non-sports related content and fell in love with the idea of writing in general.

Before entering school, I would have never thought that I would be interested in writing about anything other than sports, but that changed.

If a student does not experience personal growth after four years, then I believe those particular kinds of students are doing college wrong or should not have attended college in the first place.

College is truly not for everyone. So if you are a student that does not believe in the college process and realize it is not for you, it is fine to avoid debt and get a regular job to begin to make your living because you control your own destiny.

For those that do complete the college process, controlling your own destiny is something that holds true as well.

Controlling one’s own destiny correlates back to the idea of being independent because you have the say in what you want to do.

Although people cannot control outside factors like getting fired from a job, gaining an injury and things of that nature, how hard you work is something you can control.

One thing college does is force you out of your comfort zone. Whether it be things like “breaking out of your shell” or experiencing a job interview for the first time, there will be times where fear will come into play.

Being nervous about things like job interview or about giving a capstone that will determine if you can graduate or not, it is totally normal and okay. Being anxious over things like that show that you truly care.

I would bet fear took place when you experienced your first day of high school, and that fear was even higher after enduring your first day of college.

As time passes though, you become less nervous and get accustomed to each situation and end up being just fine.

That same idea can be applied as you experience life changing events like getting your first job in your career path, getting married, and buying your first house. All of these events are something every college graduate hopes to experience.

Just like starting high school and college for the first time, when these life changing events take place, things like fear, anxiousness and nervousness will come to in play. When they do, take a deep breath, and realize you will get accustomed and everything will begin to fall into place and become comfortable.

The biggest fear instilled in most college graduates at the moment is getting that first official job.

Getting that first job is something that terrifies me as well, but if the passion and work ethic is present in an individual, that job will be there for the taking, even if takes an individual longer than expected.

It is fine to not get a job straight out of college and work somewhere else until that job in your career in presented.

It is also important to consider that you can end up in a job not related to your career and the next thing you know, you end up being at that particular company for over 20 years.

With that being said, the most important takeaway from college is that once it is over, the path is not always straight.

The path one takes after college is over is something that he or she likely never thought of taking before. That uncertainty can be scary but it also something that should be embraced.

Making connections through college and outside of college after graduating is what is going to get you through life. These connections can be made face-to-face, over the internet, and many others. You never know when you can come across someone that can provide you an opportunity that could change your life forever.

After graduation, be open to things that you otherwise would not have been receptive to before, take risks, work hard and most importantly, have fun.

With all the pressure and stress the real world will bring upon us as the class of 2018, it is important to have that balance and enjoy the good times just as much as getting through the bad times.

When it is all said and done, life is short, so it is important to make it what you want and to enjoy the rollercoaster known as life because the last thing you want happen is to grow old and live a life full of regrets.