I’m in my 3rd semester of community college and feel like I’m missing out on the college experience
I’m currently 19 and in my third semester of community college. When I was in high school, I didn’t really believe people when they talked about how difficult it could be to make friends or have a social life at community college, but now I understand what they meant.
I don’t have anything against community college itself. Honestly, my first semester started pretty well. During the first few days, I saw a lot of people, including some people I knew from high school, so I didn’t feel completely alone. But as the semester went on, things changed. For example, one of my classes started with around 24 students and eventually only had about 13. I’m not even sure if people dropped the class, but it was a huge difference.
The hallways were usually almost empty, with maybe 2 to 4 people sitting around studying. Once class ended, everyone would just leave and go home. Most of the people in my classes were also older than me. I don’t really have a problem with that, but I was really hoping to meet more people around my age and make some friends.
Growing up, teachers always told me that college or university was where you would meet your friends, make connections, go to events, and have experiences you wouldn’t get in high school. I guess I had those expectations, and now I feel like I’m missing out.
I’m going to be completely honest: I feel behind compared to other people my age. I feel like I’m never going to experience the typical college experience, like making a group of friends, going to parties, or just having people to hang out with after class. Sometimes I feel like I’m watching everyone else experience life while I’m stuck on the outside.
University is also really expensive. Right now, my financial aid covers around 80% of my community college costs, but if I want to transfer to a university, it looks like I may need to take out loans because FAFSA doesn’t seem to cover enough. I know community college is a good financial decision, and I know getting my degree is important, but emotionally, I’m having a hard time accepting that this is my college experience.
I’ll still be attending this semester because I want to at least finish my degree. I’m just hoping things will be better this time. Maybe I’ll meet people, make friends, or finally feel like I belong.
I know this is mostly just a rant, but could someone reassure me that going to community college is still a good decision? Has anyone else felt like they were missing out on the “college experience” and eventually realized they were okay?