Hello, my name is Katie Townsend and I am a second year here at Florida State University. This University has countless of different resources and activities to aid students to learn about themselves before they get into the real world. College is the place to figure out what career you would like to pursue for the rest of your life. Personally, I had no clue up until a week ago what I would like to do with my life in the future. I took a course called Innovation by Design here at FSU and this course gave me an insight into a new career path. Taking the time to explore different classes (especially interesting ones that fill a graduation requirement), will drastically benefit your route through Florida State. The Career Center has a ton of resources like professionals to critique resumes, Nole Network, and information regarding advisors to aid you to what you need (even if you don’t quite know what you need yet).
Figuring out what you would like to pursue as a career is important, but your mental health should be addressed first. Since the pandemic in 2020, most people’s mental health has been in a decline. According to the American Psychological organization, they state, “During the 2020–2021 school year, more than 60% of college students met the criteria for at least one mental health problem, according to the Healthy Minds Study, which collects data from 373 campuses nationwide (Lipson, S. K., et al., Journal of Affective Disorders, Vol. 306, 2022).” College students tend to be stressed and anxious about finding a career path, finding a partner, paying bills, becoming an adult, etc. Your mental state should be addressed before anything else.
I personally have had a tough time adjusting to this new college life and figuring out what I want to do to begin this new reality of the adult world. Anxiety continues to spiral as the years pass and life gets real. However, there are resources at FSU that I have utilized that have helped me. FSU offers counseling and psychological resources for free at https://counseling.fsu.edu/. Therapy can be expensive and intimidating, but FSU makes it less stressful when it comes to counseling services for students.
Further, I feel that working out is a big part of mental health, and Florida State offers many free workout classes such as spin classes, yoga, and F45. Getting outdoors can be hard when classes pick up and the stresses of everyday life prevail. Taking the time to simply enjoy the present moment with some friends or alone is worth a try. The FSU Recreation Center offers free kayaking, paddleboarding, canoeing, and obstacle courses. At first, I was skeptical and intimidated by these classes and resources, but once I utilized them my life changed for the better. Taking a spin class with a friend once a week, or doing some yoga will aid an incline in your mental health. I hope you check some of these resources out that FSU provides and take advantage of them while you can!