The Great Transition

Brandon Carter

Getting ready to leave for college is not one of the easiest things to do. Can colleges do something to help? The transition from home life to college life can be quite difficult. One of the hardest parts of the transition is the separation from friends and family. Leaving behind people you have grown up with and shared so much with is not something a lot of people want to do. As stated by Dr. Jennifer Crissman Ishler, an assistant professor of counselor education at Pennsylvania State University, "Part of the adjustment process for first-year students involves grieving the loss of precollege friendships as they have known.” When finally leaving for college, saying goodbye becomes that much more difficult for a few. Some may not find it as hard to leave because they attend a college that is near their home town, while others find it much more difficult because they live several hours away. One could say that visiting friends on the weekends or every few weekends is a remedy to the problem and that there is no real reason to feel stressed about leaving friends behind. The truth of the mater is just knowing that it might be a few months before you see them again makes it harder to deal with.

In addition to affecting how students feel the difficulty of trying to maintain precollege friendships may affect student’s grades and future friendships. According to Dr. Crissman Ishler - many students who felt separation anxiety spent a lot of time and energy trying to maintain ties with old buddies -- which in turn prevented them from investing in new friendships at college. Dr. Crissman Ishler believes it is important for colleges to get involved in the transition process. With activities such as orientation and freshman seminars, colleges are starting to get involved in the process of students transition.