Flynn: College tips for the class of 2024

It’s graduation season and my heart is breaking. All my seniors are getting ready to begin a new phase of their lives.

As I’ve met and worked with young people across Cass County, I’ve often thought I missed my calling as a teacher. But I could easily see myself huddled in a classroom corner crying my eyes out during the last week of school. How do you say goodbye every year, teachers?

Last year was my first full year in Cass County schools and the first graduation season that I felt invested in. I wanted to do something to recognize the students who I had adopted during that time.

So I wrote a list of tips I wish I would have known when I started college. This year, I want to share those tips with my favorite students and the ones I never met.

Even if you aren’t going to college, these tips may prove helpful in your life. And remember, you can start college at any time. I started at 25.

And don’t dismiss the opportunities available to you at Ivy Tech. If you want to get a feel for what college will be like or if you want to go for a full degree, I can’t praise Ivy Tech enough for how they have grown and evolved to aid today’s college students in finding their career pathway.

Class of 2024, you are truly amazing. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. Go out into the world and live happy lives. Help others. Do great things.

Josh’s tips for college

The first semester is difficult for everyone. You are learning a new school, how everything works, meeting new people. Hang in there. By your second semester you will feel like you own the place.

Take the classes you don’t want to take early. Don’t be an idiot like I was and wait until your last semester to take speech and math.

Apply for university and departmental scholarships. I worked at a university for 15 years and was surprised by how few people applied for scholarships. And the students who did win a scholarship maybe weren’t the most deserving. So never think you can’t win a scholarship. Make the time and effort to apply for them.

Take opportunities to network and meet professionals. Try to find things in the community outside of campus you can be involved with. Just try to meet people who can help open career paths and create opportunities for you.

Don’t be afraid to use a school’s mental health services. They are there to help you succeed and there is nothing wrong with asking for their help. Go if you are struggling with school. Go if you are struggling with a relationship. Go if your parents wouldn’t take you to a therapist when you were a minor. Just go. You will be able to get very affordable help (in some cases free) along with medications if needed. There is no shame in asking for mental health help.

Don’t be afraid to change course if something doesn’t feel right to you, be it a class, major or the school. You know what is right for you and you know what you need. Follow your heart. (But give it time. What you hate the first semester may be the best thing ever in the second.)

Your professors will become your friends and family. Talk to them. Listen to them. Get to know them. They will find opportunities for you. They will help you. They will be there for you throughout your life.

Find the people with passion in your classes and be their friend. Surround yourself with classmates who aim high and want to take you into orbit with them.

Never let anyone make you feel less than. You know what you can do. Don’t let anyone tell you or make you feel like you can’t do something.

Work hard but take time to relax and have fun as well. Reward yourself for completing that essay, for that long study session. You deserve it.

Wishing you all the best, Class of 2024!