College can be a challenging experience for anyone choosing to attend. As someone who’s tried and failed to attend college twice before, one thing has made my experience at Weber State University far better than my previous two attempts, and that’s getting involved.

After graduating from high school, I chose to attend Brigham Young University for my first semester of college. It was an OK experience to say at the very least. I wasn’t attending BYU with a specific degree or life path in mind; I just went because that’s what you’re supposed to do after high school.

I took basic general education classes and got overall OK grades. Lots of B’s and one C. During my semester there, I felt pretty aimless. I was also isolating myself from the other students a lot. I didn’t quite fit in at BYU, and I was dating someone who went to Utah State University, a whole two-plus hours away.

I spent my weekends driving up to Logan, Utah, and my weekdays were spent figuring out a lot of personal choices. I wasn’t going to campus events, I wasn’t trying to make friends, and I wasn’t making an effort to dive into college life.

After my uneventful semester at BYU, I transferred to Utah Valley University for two semesters, hoping a change of scenery would make things click; it never did. I was putting in a little bit of effort to try to make some friends, and I was recently single, so I went on a date or two, but overall, my experience at UVU was extremely draining.

I didn’t really have a plan while attending UVU. I eventually declared a major in Commercial Music, but once again, I wasn’t really embracing the experience. I’d go to class and go home; not much more.

I did attend a few campus events at UVU near the end of my last semester there and even found a small group of friends within the commercial music program, but I was merely an observer of everything I participated in. I wasn’t actually getting involved in any real way.

My time at UVU ended similarly to my time at BYU, disappointing and underwhelming. Fast forward a few years and a whole pandemic later and we get to the fall of 2024; my first semester back in college in a few years and my first semester at Weber State University.

Admittedly, the first month or two at Weber started similarly to my time at UVU and BYU. I wasn’t really doing anything besides going to class. However, midway through the semester, I started to put in more effort.

I took steps to make my in-class friendships extend outside of the classroom and I even attended a few events here and there on campus. As I started to put myself out there a little bit more, I noticed a change in my mentality; classes began to seem less like a chore.

I still had to work, of course, homework still had due dates and finals were still on the horizon, but my day-to-day motivation was getting stronger because I was starting to develop a community at Weber. Those developing friendships helped cause a shift in my mindset that made me want to succeed at Weber for more than just myself.

I wanted to succeed in order to graduate with my friends. As silly as that sounds, it had a real impact. I couldn’t fall behind again, I couldn’t take a semester off again, because then the friends I made in my program would move on ahead of me and I didn’t want to lose those connections.

In the spring semester, I made a fateful decision that had an even greater impact on my motivation to attend college: I joined The Signpost. I signed up because it seemed interesting and I wanted to give reporting a try. Little did I know that it would highlight a passion for journalism I didn’t know I had.

While I’m not changing my major, it has highlighted new careers and life paths I could take after I graduate and it’s motivated me to keep exploring journalism during my last two years of school.

The biggest thing that has allowed me to succeed at Weber was getting involved. Put yourself out there, ask classmates to hang out and develop real friendships with them. Find a club or organization that seems interesting to you and just give it a shot. You never know what could happen.