San Diego State University: Emily

Biggest Lessons: If I could do first semester all over again, I definitely would not have gone out Sunday night of Labor Day Weekend. That was the most traumatic experience of my entire life. I decided to go out with my friends and we went to a random house party about 20 minutes walking distance from our dorm building. It was not a frat party, but just a random house party with upperclassmen. All I remember is taking 3 or 4 shots and I completely blacked out. I woke up in a hospital bed. It was absolutely terrible and the it was the worst that I have ever felt. I was definitely drugged because I have drank more than 3 shots before and was completely fine and did not end up in the hospital after being found on the floor unconscious. Since this event happened, I had to have a meeting with a judicial officer and got told the worst news that a freshman girl wanting to rush could hear. "You are not allowed to rush until junior year". I got put onto probation for a year and a half. I learned after that to watch what I was drinking and to always be cautious every time I went out. It hurts inside every time I see girls post sorority pictures or having events, but I know that God always has a plan.

Football Game of the Year: The most memorable football game was definitely the Homecoming game. My friends and I had such a fun time tailgating. All of the fraternities had all of their tents set up and everyone was blasting music. You could see everyone dancing and having a good time everywhere you looked.

Favorite/Most Memorable Experience: My most favorite memory was just being able to bond with all of the people on my floor every single night. Being able to hang out with your best friends 24/7 is so much fun. All of the stuff that we always talk about and everything we do is great. I've had the privilege of meeting some amazing people on my floor and I wouldn't know what I'd do without them.

New Year Resolutions: My New Year's Resolution is to become more fit and work out at the gym 5 days a week. I want to get more fit to prepare myself for dance team auditions in a couple months.

Song of the Year (Fall 2015): Sorry by Justin Biebe

Extracurricular/Co-Curricular Activities You're Involved In: Dance Club, Yoga Club

How have you changed since you started college?: I definitely have changed in numerous ways since beginning college in 2015. I have grown as a person by learning different things and being put into a completely different environment than what I have been used to for the last eighteen years. Moving half way across the country was one of the biggest decisions that I have ever had to made and I would never change it for the world. The beginning of first semester, I faced a huge culture shock and having to deal with trying to find new friends that I would be spending the next 4 years of my life with. I learned that it is definitely okay in college to be by yourself and that sitting alone at a table during lunch is completely fine. I promise you will not get judged. All through high school, everyone is always so worried about sitting with friends and if they're caught by themselves, they were considered to be a "loner". That is not the case in college, and especially at such a large university. I have also learned that there aren't really such a thing as "cliques" in college. Everyone talks to everyone, no matter your personality or status as a person. I have definitely matured as a person because I was always trying to get in the middle of drama and was constantly gossiping about other girls in high school. College truly makes you grow up.

Favorite Christmas/Holiday Ritual: My favorite Christmas ritual is when my family and I go downstairs Christmas morning and open up our stockings and presents. It is such a fun time and it makes me realize what family is really about. It makes me so thankful for them and I truly am grateful for them every single day.

From a scale of 1-10, how well do you think your first semester went?: I think from a scale of 1-10 I would put my first semester at an 8. It did start of really shaky, but by the end of September, I met amazing people on my floor and most importantly met my best friends. The homesickness definitely was a huge obstacle that was extremely difficult to deal with. I never thought that I was going to get THAT homesick, but it happened. For the first couple of weeks, I never left my room and all I could think was that I wasn't going to make any new friends. All I wanted was to go back home to Illinois and be with my high school friends. It was such a hard transition. I finally started getting comfortable and began saying Hi to people in the hallways. Before I knew it, my outgoing talkative self was back and college was going absolutely great. Also, my family was able to fly out for family weekend and that truly helped me a lot. Unfortunately, in the middle of October, I dealt with a loss of someone I was very close with back at home. I was not myself for a couple of weeks and there would be times where I would be crying underneath my sunglasses walking to and from classes. Thankfully, my friends were able to cheer me up. After that, my social life and friends in the dorms were nothing but amazing. The only thing that I did struggle with were some of my classes. I was definitely not prepared for college based on the classes that I took in high school. Finals week was one of the most stressful weeks ever. Overall, I did enjoy first semester and I had an awesome time.

Penn State University: Paige

Extracurricular/Co-Curricular Activities You're Involved In: Sigma Kappa sorority; Rêve Dance Company

How have you changed since you started college?: Since my transition to a near 40,000-student campus two hours away from home, I have learned to survive on my own. Living in the dorms is definitely easier than those living in apartments, but for those coming from comfy houses, the dorm life is a change. Laundry, meals, activities, class: it's all up to you. It is also entirely in your hands to declare a major, make friends, and decide what kind of person you would like to be in your brand new home, where nearly no one knows anything about you. I can't say that I have changed who I am, but it has been amazing to start over and a design a new life.

Biggest Lessons: As many freshmen may say, I would take more time to study. My grades didn't suffer too much this semester, but I know that I did not earn the best grades that I could. This isn't high school anymore and it is not so easy to get by without studying. Time management is most important in learning all necessary material, for all of your classes. Get involved, but don't add too much to your plate that makes it hard to get good grades.

Football Game of the Year: It has absolutely fascinated me to see the dedication to our boys in blue and white. Penn State alumni tailgate like there's no tomorrow and are more than willing to participate in the student section's declared themes. The most memorable weekend this year was the primetime lineup against Rutgers. It was our first "Stripe Out." Sections in Beaver Stadium were divided entirely into blue or white. I mistakenly questioned if all of the game-goers would actually participate to the fullest extent. With a simple google search of "Penn State Stripe Out," you can see where I was wrong. Rutgers students claimed that Penn State was their true football rival. During the 8:00pm game under the lights, our players proved them wrong with a final score: Nittany Lions 28 - Scarlet Knights 3. Penn State is in fact, in many aspects, UNRIVALED.

From a scale of 1-10, how well do you think your first semester went?: I think that my first semester at Penn State in University Park would be a solid 8. State College, PA has lived up to my expectations while exceeding them in most ways. I love my roommate, I've made amazing friends, and I wasn't even homesick (...sorry Mom)! I was a little busy and sometimes felt overwhelmed, consequently leading me a little astray from my studies. Overall, it has been amazing and I am expecting a 10 for Spring Semester!

Favorite/Most Memorable Experience: My most memorable experience was performing, twice, in Greek Sing 2015. Sororities and fraternities are matched up to perform a 6 minute movie or musical on stage in front of hundreds of other students. We worked for weeks to perfect our version of "Into The Woods." I was a featured dancer and had an awesome partner to dance with. We did not end up winning, but scored high and won best set. It was a lot of work, but was totally worth seeing the show come together.

I was the only student to perform twice in Greek Sing. I performed the final, exhibition performance with the brand new dance team on campus, Rêve Dance Company. I auditioned after learning about the team in an involvement fair, knowing nothing of the excitement that was to come. Greek Sing was our largest performance this year and we've heard quite a ton of talk from students enjoying and respecting what our team has to offer. We've definitely achieved our goal of making a name for ourselves on such a huge campus. (We will even be performing at the Penn State Dance Marathon benefitting childhood cancer in February!) Many good things are to come, look out for videos on our Youtube Channel and facebook!

New Year Resolutions: In my opinion, resolutions are awesome, but shouldn't stress you out either! My New Year Resolution is simply to remember that with so many changes, influences, and pressure, that no one's life will be perfect. An old friend once told me, "Never stop being you." I will be true to myself. When times get rough, people come and people go. Sometimes, you are all that you've got. Listen to those who support you and disregard those who don't. I won't let anyone bring me down or dull my sparkle in 2016. Neither should you.

Song of the Year: Love Yourself by Justin Bieber

Anything Else?: The freshman 15 doesn't exist unless you make it! So, good luck to all of you college students! Get good grades, call your parents, indulge in your favorite off-campus meal once in awhile, and have the time of your life....starting now!

UCLA: Rachael

Extracurricular/Co-Curricular Activities You're Involved In: Kappa Kappa Gamma Sorority, UCLA Nursing Program, and the UCLA Cheerleading Team

How have you changed since you started college?: Prioritizing is a necessity!

Biggest Lessons: Work smarter, not harder.

Football Game of the Year: The UCLA vs. UC Berkeley blackout game was a blast!

Favorite Christmas/Holiday Ritual: Going to the beach and spending time with family!

From a scale of 1-10, how well do you think your freshman year went?: 10!!! College is so much fun and living in a dorm is awesome! It is like having a slumber party every night!

Favorite/Most Memorable Experience: Cheering at my first UCLA football game, getting accepted into the Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority, and meeting my many new close friends!

Anything Else?: Go bruins!