Psychologist’s Advice on How First-Year Students Can Adapt to Studying with Ease

A certain confusion, missing family and friends, a feeling of being “lost” in a large (or not so large) city – this is normal.

On 1 September the academic process begins in all educational institutions. First-year students often find thoughts creeping into their heads: “Why did I come here?”, “I don’t want to do or study anything, I want to go home as soon as possible”, or even “After the first semester I will transfer from here back home, to where it is good”.

“Remember that it will be hard for a while! A new space, new people and a new daily schedule will require getting used to and rebuilding your own ways of interacting with the world! If a first-year student chose the specialty because they wanted to, and not against their will, then new acquaintances, friends, interesting classes and nice places will quickly ‘override’ sad thoughts!”.

First-year students who come to study are usually still psychologically children who copy the behaviour patterns of their parents. And that is perfectly normal. That is why it is so important for parents to stay calm, to be aware of and acknowledge their own anxiety, and to remain adults.

Recommendations for first-year students: a certain confusion, missing family and friends, a feeling of being “lost” in a large (or not so large) city – this is normal. Give yourself time for the new place to become close and dear to you. Remember: adaptation (the process of adjusting to something new) affects everyone and can last from three days to a year and a half or more.

Adaptation may go more smoothly if you take care of the first-year student’s safety in advance:

• Before the academic process starts, get to know the city: a street map, trolleybuses, minibuses, shops, academic buildings, the dormitory, the bus station, the railway station, etc.
• Understand exactly where and with whom the first-year student will live.
• Know clearly the committee, the group number, the classrooms and the class tutor (preferably by sight).
• Know how to act in a situation of difficulty or misunderstanding. For example, in the event of an emergency (a wallet was stolen, got lost, ended up in an unpleasant company) – the right to an urgent call. To whom you can call at any time. Mum, Dad, a sister or all of them at once.

The process of changing the status of an overtired ninth- or eleventh-grader into a student full of hope for the better is complex and multifaceted. Its course depends on many factors:

• The psychological readiness of the whole family system to cope with the tension and overload of the graduation and admission periods.
• The ability of parents to warmly let their child go into “new worlds”, to hear, support and respect their choice and to believe in the best.
• The strength and desire of the child themselves to take the first steps into their own independent life, which is not yet adult but no longer childlike.
• The suitability of the chosen educational institution, the lecturers, the academic workload and those who will live and study alongside.

The more we do something by force, without pauses and without relying on our physical and psychological resources, the stronger the backlash may be. Because the strength of any person, and especially of an older teenager or eleventh-grader, has its limits, and nobody can study 24/7. Our body, as an integral system, automatically shuts down under overload. Therefore laziness, apathy and irritation can be manifestations of moral exhaustion and fatigue.

So:

• Less worry – more faith! A teenager, a young man or a young woman loses faith in themselves – adults keep believing in them!
• Let us remember sleep!
• Let us air the room where the teenager’s main study activity takes place!
• Physical activity: morning exercises, an evening walk, a family hike!
• Tasty and healthy food. Glucose, omega-3, unsaturated fatty acids, vitamins and something especially tasty! Plus dried fruit, fruit and nuts.
• Bonuses and special joys: a trip to the cinema, desired gifts, pleasant surprises – can lift the mood and help increase tone and motivation!
• Approach studying without fanaticism from all sides!
• Where possible, we keep anxious, “scaremongering” panicking relatives out of reach of the first-year student (they have enough with their parents and themselves).
• your own ways of creating a safe and comfortable space for a difficult period of life.

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