College can challenge young adults in more ways than just academically. Now that they are on their own, students may find that trying to make friends without comfort of familiarity to be difficult. They may no longer be around the people they saw in high school, and young adults may find the fear of having to ‘start over’ to be far too overwhelming, so they avoid it altogether.
While the friends they made prior to leaving for college are still a phone call away, having in person connections are also very important. Knowing you have someone to walk to class with, grab lunch with, confide in, and overall spend time with while in college can affect the experience that they have. It helps students feel as if they aren’t alone during a time that is already stressful, as they now have independence and responsibilities they may have not had in the past. Having a friend to go through those new experiences with them helps students not only feel like they have support but can also give them the confidence to do things they otherwise may avoid. Going to social gatherings, opening up about emotions they don’t want to call home about, and having someone in the same environment who understands what they are going through are all things that friends in college can help with. However, if they do not have the skills to make new friends, college can go from something exciting to something they dread.
Being confident in their ability to socialize can help students take the first step when trying to create a relationship with their peers. Knowing how to not only start a conversation, but continue it, actively listen, understand boundaries, advocate, and not only make the connection, but nurture the friendship are just some of the skills young adults need to be successful in social situations while in college. If they do not have them, making and keeping friends in that environment can be hard, or scary enough to where they do not want to try at all. They may begin avoiding socializing altogether, leading to isolation, emotional struggles, and even may cause them to want to drop out/not return to college at all.
With so many colleges now offering virtual classes as well, being able to make these connections may be for students now than it had been in the past. As stated in The Quadrangle, “Oftentimes, individuals consider the first year of college to be the most challenging because it is a transitional period. However, Fairchild raises the point that for students with severe social anxiety, college could become more difficult over time… [Fairchild said] “If they start out their first year avoiding social situations and avoiding classes where they have to give presentations and avoiding that stuff, it may actually become worse as they go along, instead of confronting it and figuring out how to make it better…” Whether it be a college freshman or a senior, having strong social skills can help them be successful in life, and at the College Life Skills Program, we can help them not only be prepared, but feel confident.
Our team of Doctoral and Master level professionals utilizes a series of highly individualized strategies, services, and techniques to help young adults who are college bound, in college, and even after college succeed in and after their transition into adult life. We help teach them skills they need to be independent so they can be successful in the real and work world, help them learn how to balance independent life on their own, and other life, executive functioning, social skills, and emotional maturity. If your young adult is struggling with the transition into college and adulthood, CollegeLSP has the tools to aid them in achieving and generalizing such skills.
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Dr. Eric J. Nach, Ph.D., M.Ed., A.S.D.C., is a Developmental and Behavioral Specialist. Dr. Nach is the founder of the College Life Skills Program where he and his team of professional’s help develop the Emotional Maturity, Executive Functioning, Life Skill and Social Abilities of college students and those high school students preparing for college. The CollegeLSP is a subsidiary program of the Support For Students Growth Center, located in Boca Raton, FL and providing services nationwide
The Quadrangle. (2020, March 9). Facing social anxiety in college. https://mcquad.org/2020/03/10/facing-social-anxiety-in-college/
