10 Student Frustrations That You Probably Never Thought About

Nobody ever said going to college was easy; it’s expensive, time consuming, and mentally taxing. Maybe that’s the reason that, in 2014, nearly 41% of the students who started their freshman year at a 4-year university ended up dropping out before graduation. While there are certainly other factors that can and will bother today’s college students, here are 25 Student Frustrations That You Probably Never Thought About, as well as some handy tricks that might help to deal with them.

10

Picking a Major

Source: http://college.usatoday.com/ Image: Matthew Hurst via https://www.flickr.com/photos/skewgee/4033294775

College students are under a lot of pressure to figure out what they plan on doing with their lives, and a big part of that decision is based on which major they pick in college. Remember that college is a time to experiment and try out new things; you don’t have to decide on a major until the end of your sophomore year, and switching majors is a lot less difficult than it sounds. The most important thing is to find something you are passionate about. You shouldn’t worry about taking your time to find out what that is, no matter how long you’re weird aunt you see once a year nags you about it.

9

No Social Life

Source: http://jhsap.org/ Image: Nazareth College via https://www.flickr.com/photos/nazareth_college/15094295136

Many students struggle to balance their school and friends, and it can be very disappointing to miss a party or get together because of homework. Since nobody can really see the future, there is no for sure way to avoid conflicts between school and social life. However, staying ahead of schoolwork can help make unexpected assignments less detrimental to your weekend plans.

8

Conflicting Schedules

Source: personal experience, Image: Dru Bloomfield via https://www.flickr.com/photos/athomeinscottsdale/4507847940

Once you finally find that cool club or extracurricular activity that you’d really like to take part in, you can bet that it will meet right in the middle of your most important class. Try to learn the meeting schedules of activities that interest you before selecting your courses, but don’t wait too long; classes can fill up quickly, and if you take too much time, you could get stuck going to school at 7:30 in the morning, and nobody wants that.

7

Group Assignments

Source: personal experience, Image: http://calicospanish.com/

Some people do very well in groups, and divvying up the workload is a great way to take some of the stress out of a big assignment. When the teacher tells you who to work with, however, you never know who you might end up with. Being forced to work with someone who is constantly complaining or doesn’t pull their weight can be difficult and especially frustrating.

6

Empty Wallet

Source: http://www.goodfinancialcents.com/ Image: https://pixabay.com/

Even those who come from the wealthiest lineages have their bank accounts tested by college. School is expensive enough as it is, and your first job can be hard to get. Be sure to check out some of the departments on campus, all of which are usually hiring around the start of the semester. Also, remember some of the best jobs can come from connections you already have, so don’t be afraid to talk to your friends and acquaintances about any job opportunities they might know of.

5

Office Hours

Source: personal experience, Image: https://pixabay.com/

Yeah it’s probably written at the top of the syllabus, but let’s be honest, you lost that thing the second you walked out of class on the first day. Catching a teacher during their office hours is way harder than they claim, and that’s if you you can find where their office is at all. Here’s a hint: it’s probably going to be on the complete opposite side of campus from the classroom.

4

Grades

Source: http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/ Image: Bman2011 via https://www.flickr.com/photos/59318207@N04/5963475453

One of the biggest causes of stress among students, the grades that you receive in college could haunt you for life. Maintaining a strong GPA is important, especially if you’re planning on attending grad school, but it should be totally achievable assuming you study at least 40 hours a week and ace every exam.

3

Getting Lost

Source: https://bigfuture.collegeboard.org/ Image: https://pixabay.com/

If you’re a college student attending school out of town or even out of state, chances are you will be pretty confused at first. The best thing you can do is try to get outside, make friends, and explore your new home. Also bringing a map probably isn’t a bad idea either.

2

Relearning Everything

Source: http://www.familyeducation.com/ Image: Hades2k via https://www.flickr.com/photos/hades2k/7437152606

Remember everything that you were taught throughout grade school? Well it turns out most of that will probably be useless or just downright wrong. It isn’t that your high school teachers were trying to sabotage you or anything; it’s just that college is such a vastly different experience that most of the ways you were taught to do things, such as writing an essay, are very different from how they are done in upper-level schooling.

1

Bad Technology

Source: personal experience, Image: https://commons.wikimedia.org/

We live in an increasingly digital world, and technology gives us infinite opportunities to learn and complete tasks in ways that weren’t possible before. Unfortunately, it is a double edged sword, and a single misclick or faulty internet connection can delete that essay you’ve spent the last week on. It’s never a bad idea to back up your work when working on a computer and to check in to make sure your teacher actually received anything you turned in over the internet.