Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Now 15 years out it hasn't seemed to matter much. I don't relate to stories people tell about college but it was only 4 years. Not a huge deal in the scheme of things.

Yeah, I'm five years out now and I can't relate when people start talking about college stuff such as greek life. I totally have nothing to contribute except be envious of their magical time.

People who are incessantly talking about their college years five years out are stuck in a state of arrested development. What did you wish you could have had about the "college experience": friends? relatively carefree years? immersive experiences? Some of that you can find do as an adult. Pursue that and don't glamorize what was, as many have said, basically an illusion.

Best years of my life were my thirties!

I don't know - while I don't think it was the best four years of my life - there was something magical about college. It helps that I went to one with a beautiful campus in a mid-size town that I loved. But, for me - being away from home and having the freedom to do what I wanted was just beyond words. I didn't always use that freedom wisely - my biggest regret is not studying enough in the beginning. But, it was in some respects a great carefree time of my life that I always look back fondly when I hear a certain song and I never miss a reunion. I made some great friends and even the friends I thought weren't so great are becoming better - its nice to catch up with people who knew you then. However, I think my best time in terms of "fun" was my 20's. Out of school, first job. Or maybe my grad school years. Or maybe finally meeting a man I wanted to marry. Or maybe finally getting the baby I was told wouldn't happen. My point is that there are good points and bad points through life. What I have found as I get older as the highs aren't so high but the lows aren't so low. And I'll take that. . But, some of my most magical moments were college. Even some in high school though on the whole that was not fun So - enjoy what you have and try to enjoy. Trite but true

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Now 15 years out it hasn't seemed to matter much. I don't relate to stories people tell about college but it was only 4 years. Not a huge deal in the scheme of things.

Yeah, I'm five years out now and I can't relate when people start talking about college stuff such as greek life. I totally have nothing to contribute except be envious of their magical time.

Whenever people tell me those stories I always think it was a miracle they didn't get alcohol poisoning or date raped. Scary stuff.

I don't think I missed anything.

Anonymous wrote:Honestly, you missed very little. For me and my friends, campus life was binge-drinking, hooking up, slut shaming, studying hard, gaining weight, working out, and more binge drinking. Oh, and more random hook-ups and slut shaming. I don't look back at those years with any sort of nostalgia.

THIS.

ONWARD. Focus on kicking ass in your life now. Nothing else matters.

Me too OP, very few people had that experience and, they are the only ones still talking about it! By 30 no one cares or talks about it anymore.

Anonymous wrote:I am a 28 year old woman who never had the "college experience". I went to community college my first two years and then joined a large state school where I had trouble making friends because I was extremely shy and awkward. 2 years later I graduate with hardly any real friends and never went to a college party or a frat party. I deeply regret it and wish I wasnt so awkward and socially inept then.

Did I really miss out on the best 4 years of my life?

I had the same exact college experience. Sometimes I wish I had done more but it's probably for the best that I didnt.

Honestly, you missed very little. For me and my friends, campus life was binge-drinking, hooking up, slut shaming, studying hard, gaining weight, working out, and more binge drinking. Oh, and more random hook-ups and slut shaming. I don't look back at those years with any sort of nostalgia.

You had the college experience, just not the one you wanted.

Anonymous wrote:I am a 28 year old woman who never had the "college experience". I went to community college my first two years and then joined a large state school where I had trouble making friends because I was extremely shy and awkward. 2 years later I graduate with hardly any real friends and never went to a college party or a frat party. I deeply regret it and wish I wasnt so awkward and socially inept then.

Did I really miss out on the best 4 years of my life?

You might have missed out on a rite of passage anyway.

Worked in the day and went to college and grad school at night. No college experience, and I have absolutely no regrets. I am shy and it is hard to make friends, but I have made a few good friends around common interests and pursuits. Met my DH at work.

By the time my kids are ready for college, I think the college experience will be a dim memory. Education will be done on line and with work/training type jobs in the future.

No. I was outgoing but poor so I went to a commuter university and thus didn't have a college experience. Didn't matter. My best year was 29-30 because I had education, money, I looked good, had a great job, great friends, and had a lot of fun. Met my husband and then did all that other stuff. I think of that year as my college experience quite frankly. I had a LOT of fun.

The college experience is overrated. The parties were just a bunch of people drinking, you didn't miss anything. I did go to study abroad overseas for a semester, that was my best college experience. The other 3.5 years...they were ok. Trust me, you didn't miss anything.