College experiences should balance classes, parties

Bonnie Fitzpatrick / Columnist

My junior year I lived with two seniors. Their lives were so different than mine. They were always talking about where to move after graduation and what kind job they thought they would get. Already I was bored of Elon, the bar and classes, and I was ready to move on. So I took off spring semester.

I thought life was great – no classes, no professors, no deadlines and no stupid research papers about stuff I had no interest in researching in the first place. I was a 20-year-old, playing adult.

Yes, I worked, but I played more, and yet I wasn’t even old enough to drink or rent a car. I spent more time on the beach and in the gym than most people do in their lives.

I went out every night and didn’t accomplish anything I had planned to do while I was away from Elon. Why? I thought I had done it all, learned it all and experienced it all at Elon. But I was still only a junior.

When I came back to Elon last summer to take classes to catch up so I could graduate on time, I never thought summer sessions would be some of my most memorable times at Elon.

All the normal Elon situations don’t apply during the summer. Everyone is friends with everyone. It doesn’t matter if you're Greek or not. Everyone parties together and classes are easier and more fun than during the year. It feels like your own personal campus. I would highly recommend experiencing Elon in the summer because it will give you a whole new appreciation for the school.

But what I realized last summer was that college is only what you make it. It is possible to learn more in a summer than in three years, or you can party all of college and learn less about life than someone else does in a semester.

After a semester off, and a terrific summer here, it was tough when reality hit – the impact Greek life has on Elon’s campus, the typical scenes and experiences that make Elon Elon – and once again I had to work at creating what I wanted for my last year of college.

As important as it may seem now to experience the parties and night life in college, if you balance the two, you will not only leave Elon with a plethora of memories, but also a toolbox of knowledge to prepare you for life after college. And the beauty is that because of all the opportunities available, you can balance the two in just one semester if you have to.

The things I have done just in my last semester have made more of an impact on me personally, emotionally and physically than all the three years combined.

This semester I had a terrific internship that taught me about myself and the direction of my future. I have gained valuable writing experience with The Pendulum. I created and completed an independent research project that I never thought I was capable of. Above all, I still had fun this semester.

Even though there were long and tiresome nights working, they are nights that I will remember because the pride I felt from accomplishing tough work has meant more to me than any money I made working in the past, or any party.

Even though college is fun and leaves many – often too many – opportunities for crazy nights, drinking and partying, I challenge each student to seek experiences that make for a true capstone experience in college.

Your parents aren’t spending $80,000 for a four-year party, and as your graduation is someday three weeks away, I am confident if you take advantage of each and every academic opportunity, do an internship, do volunteer work or even write for The Pendulum, when you receive your diploma you will know you are ready to take on the world, not just the next bar. Because I’m positive most Elon students don’t need more help in the partying department.