I’ve just finished my second week back in college, and I feel like I’ve found my rhythm despite being rather stressed out the first two days from the adjustment. One aspect I’m having trouble adjusting to is the progressively lowered expectations that the professors demonstrate as opposed to what they initially set forth in the syllabus. And yes, this is apparent in only the second week.
It’s difficult for me in that though I’m non-traditional, I’m young enough that it’s not readily apparent to my instructors, which results in all sorts of ninja surprises, in which I say something I shouldn’t know were I a typical 18, 19, 20-year-old undergrad.
I really only have myself to blame for any weird disconnect between who I actually am and what experience I have and who their target audience is.
Even back when I was a traditional student, I did things all wrong. I took what sounded interesting, and even when it was within my actual field, my major, I took the 300 and 400 level classes before taking the prerequisites, which sounded redundant and dull.
Now to graduate, I’m going back and taking primarily sophomore level course work, though I’m a senior by number of credit hours and progress in my program.
I will say that I see now that college would have been a great deal easier the first time had I simply taken the courses in the proper order, rather than being left to intuit the missing skills myself.
That, and it’s said so often by others that it’s practically cliche, but being out in the world does really put things in perspective – gives me a cognitive structure to place everything I’m learning.