Within university environments, there is often a need for adaptation for those entering this new space and for fitting in to succeed. However, what happens when that need is not met? What happens when you do not fit in or succeed? Furthermore, what happens when adapting is harder than it seems? This article addresses the issues and mental health concerns of first-year students trying to fit into their new college environment.
University is a new place for teenagers turning into adults; it’s not like high school, where things are mostly planned for students. In high school, classes are planned and there are teachers and counselors who advocate for you and reach out to you. Extra activities are planned to fill the empty spaces of your day. Teachers are more readily available, whereas in university, you have to take it upon yourself to reach out for help. For students who have never had to put themselves out there like that, it can be an uncomfortable experience and eventually lead to mental health issues. In fact, according to Jeanette Malecki, from The Pit Journal, “there is an increase in the prevalence of moderate and severe anxiety, high perceived stress and high levels of depressive symptoms associated with major depression.” This change from high school to college can sometimes take a toll on one’s mental health. Students are trying to fit in and focus on their studies while navigating their way in life.
While college is often described as the best years of a person’s life, a time of new friendships, it is also a time marked by sleepless nights, racing thoughts and a persistent sense of being overwhelmed. For many students, that shift is manageable. For others, it is destabilizing in ways that go far beyond academic struggle. This pressure to adapt isn’t just academic; it is social and cultural as well. Students who come in with strong academic foundations may find the social side harder than expected. Students who thrive socially may need more time to find their academic rhythm. Students navigating financial pressures, family obligations or personal challenges, along with their coursework, are managing more than people around them realize. There is a reason the first year of college is unlike any other. You are not just learning new academic material; you are learning how to be a new kind of person. The point is not that the transition is easy. It is that working through it is worth it, and that every student on this campus has what it takes to do exactly that.
With all that being said, I took the time to interview some freshmen students at Eastern University who spoke up about how their journey started, sharing similarities in experiences. Myia Grant explained that she felt “very nervous to experience college because it was such a big change from high school,” a sentiment that reflects the uncertainty that many students feel at the start of this transition. That nervousness often evolves into new pressures as the semester goes on. Nora Mayne admitted that she can feel overwhelmed when she takes on too much, sharing, “I feel overwhelmed when I overcommit sometimes,” while Lani Bell described moments of emotional struggle, saying, “Emotionally, I felt stuck when I let my trouble get the best of me.” As a freshman myself, transitioning to college made me realize how self-dependent I can be emotionally which reflects the personal growth that students experience.
Despite these challenges, the first year also brought its own set of silver linings and encouraging first impressions. Matheus Wichocki stated that “my very first semester was pretty good,” and Mylan Sudler-Jones echoed that optimism, saying, “My first semester has been going well.” Together, these voices highlighted the wide range of emotions freshmen experience as they adjust to college life.
These conversations revealed something important: students who name what they are going through, who reach out to someone and say, “this is harder than I expected,” consistently find that the situation shifts. The reality of this is that most freshmen students are adjusting and questioning, they just don’t always show it. These feelings of academic doubts, uncertainty and social anxiety are not signs of inadequacy. They are signs of engagement. They mean you care about being here, about doing well, about becoming someone you are proud of.
With all that being said, there are sources that make a difference. Eastern University has invested in its students’ mental health and the need to fit in. This University has a range of support sources design specifically to help their students thrive, their first year and beyond. These resources exist because the university understands that academic success and personal well-being are not separate goals. They are the same goal. Some of these resources are: Cushing Center for Psychological Services (CAPS). CAPS offers individual counseling, group therapy, drop-in sessions, workshops and psychiatric support, all free and accessible to enrolled students. It is the most valuable tool available to students on campus yet underused. CAPS also holds grief groups for those struggling with the loss of someone. Whether you are feeling disconnected from your peers, carrying the weight of anxiety or you may just be looking for a way to slow down and process everything around you, CAPS helps you to get a perspective and helps you feel heard.
A few students have expressed how CAPS helped them to deal with their mental uncertainties and helped them balance their emotional turmoil. What sets CAPS apart is not just what they offer but how they offer it. The staff at CAPS are trained to create an environment where students feel genuinely heard and supported, not judged, not rushed and never made to feel that their concerns are too small to matter. Whether a student walks in knowing exactly what they need or walks in simply knowing that something feels off, CAPS meets them there. Using CAPS is not an admission that something is wrong with you. It is an investment in making something go right.
Public Safety is another resource that plays a meaningful role in student wellbeing, particularly outside of regular business hours. They may not seem like a big deal, but they are always around making sure students are safe. They are available around the clock to give students the support they need, whether that is a referral to CAPS, just a conversation, an immediate crisis intervention, or just a bit of transportation. Their presence on campus is not just about security. It is about making sure that every student, at any hour, has somewhere to turn.
Peer support programs are designed to make students feel comfortable. Some of these support groups are Wednesday Night Worship (WNW), Grow groups, Delight Club and more. Students have spoken about how these groups were able to help them when they were overwhelmed. Grant says “When I feel stressed, I enjoy going to the Delight Club and WNW to get centered, connected to the community and God.”
Here’s what’s true about university: nobody comes already belonging. Belonging is constructed one step at a time, through the meaningful connections that we make, the challenges we face and are pushed through when it is easy to leave. Belonging is knowing that you’re not alone and there are people around you to help you. Those moments are built in the study groups that slowly become your friends, and that afternoon that you finally decide to go to CAPS, realizing that talking about it makes it smaller. In the campus event you almost skipped, which ended up being the best part of your week.
The first year of college is not a test of whether you fit. It is an invitation to build the kind of fit that actually lasts. Eastern University has made it possible for you by creating the resources that are meant to fit your needs. The rest is up to you, and you are more ready than you think.
