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High school was not a long time ago, but the amount of changes that students go through when transitioning into college is significant. Challenges are common in this transition, and despite the similarities, high school and college can be two completely different experiences.

Geography is a key factor. In the United States, it is common for students to attend college far away from home. As a result, they meet people from different places and cultures. Kiya Jones, a freshman at Grand View University from Texas, chose to attend college in Iowa because she received a scholarship to wrestle. Even though she knew she was going to be far away from home, Jones didn’t imagine the difference would be so big.

“I had no idea how different it was going to be,” Jones said. “It was a cultural shock when I got here and actually saw what it was.”

Despite saying that she likes the people at GV – more than she used to like people at her high school – Jones felt more comfortable when she was closer to home.

“I was more comfortable in high school just because I live 15 hours away from home now that I am in college, and I don’t have my mom, I don’t get to see my family,” Jones said.

Jones has realized that being in college means learning to be responsible and independent.

“The transition was hard for me because I moved away from everything I knew,” Jones said. “I was constantly thinking about my mom not being here. My brother is not here, my sister is not here.”

Zach Harris, a junior at GV from Iowa, said he knew in high school that college was going to be challenging.

 “I knew it was going to be a lot more of individual decision making, I am by myself basically, living with people I barely know,” Harris said. “I don’t have my mom with me, I will have to look out for myself a lot more.”

Living at home with his family also made Harris feel more comfortable. Since moving to college, Harris has had to learn how to cohabitate with roommates. According to Harris, he is a different person now that he is in college because he is more independent and mature.

“I am more responsible now,” Harris said. “I have to do what is right and it is my choice; nobody is forcing me. There is a lot of independent decision making in college, which didn’t happen as much back in high school.”

A positive change for Harris has been the variation that college brings to his life. Although high school was repetitive, Harris said that in college he sees and meets new people quite frequently. Academically he said college is more demanding, that he needs to study harder and that the professors’ behavior are different.

“In high school, if you fail the teachers are on you every single day trying to make you get better,” Harris said. “But in college if you fail most of the professors don’t really care because it’s college now. You are the one paying for the class.”

Vinicius Schwindt is a senior at GV and an international student from Brazil. The reason why he came to a different country to attend college is because he no longer saw a good future in the level of soccer he was playing in Brazil. However, in the United States he could still play and try to go pro while studying at the same time. He believes that a college degree is necessary to open more possibilities for another profession in the future. Despite his love for the sport, this was not the only attraction for Schwindt to go to college; he was also looking for knowledge.

“I see the college as an opportunity to gain more knowledge, experience and prepare a little more for the job market,” Schwindt said.

Schwindt attended high school in Brazil. He said it was a good preparation for college; despite having to learn a new language and adapting to a new environment, he managed to adapt quickly and that the secret to success in a college in the United States is organization, planning and time management. Unlike Jones and Harris, Schwindt said he feels more comfortable at college for the opposite reason because he no longer lives with his parents.

“When you go to college you have a little more freedom, and a little more maturity to start an adult life,” Schwindt said.

Schwindt said that after he started college, he saw the world differently; he started thinking about the future more often and how to get a job. He says that in college he has more work to do, but that the level of difficulty is the same as when he was in high school.

“We are always busy because there is a lot of homework, but the level of hardship I would say is the same, at least based on my experience,” Schwindt said.