Congratulations!

You've arrived at the 52d week and college is officially in session (or about to be).  You've made it.  Take a bow!

As you finish this year and begin your first year of college, I can't resist giving you 3 final tips.

1. Manage your own expectations. College is a transformative experience and transformative experiences aren't always fun; in fact, they are work and they have as many miserable moments as joyful ones.  Expect lows as well as highs.  Expect homesickness along with the giddy delight that comes from your freedom.  Expect to hate it and to love it all at once.
2. Take academics seriously, especially at first. You are in a new environment where it is likely to be more academically challenging.  Don't assume that you can approach a freshman year the way you approached your senior year.  You're a beginner again.  So do yourself a favor and act like one.  Go to classes, do the reading, set up study groups.  And just like it did actually matter what your grades were in 9th grade when it was time to apply to college, it will actually matter what your freshman grades are when it comes time to apply to grad school or get the first job.  Don't blow it because you are simply too full of yourself (or worse partying so much you forget that the point of college is education).
3. Explore, explore, explore.  There are people to meet, new activities to try, once in a lifetime experiences to be had.  Don't limit yourself to things you've done before.  College is a brief four years.  Take full advantage.

Wisdom?

Before you turn your attention fully to college, I'd like to invite you to share some of your wisdom with those coming after you.  Post your best tips for those that are just about to begin the 52 Weeks to College journey! And if you have any questions you'd like us to tackle in future blog postings, please send them our way!

Alison Cooper Chisolm writes the series 52 Weeks to College. She has worked in admissions at Southern Methodist University, the University of Chicago, and most recently Dartmouth College. She is a graduate of Yale College and the University of Virginia Law School. As part of the Ivey Consulting team, Alison works with college applicants and their families as they navigate the college admissions process. Read more about Alison here.