My time at Winona State University
While I was finishing up high school, I decided to pursue higher education at Winona State University, in Winona MN.
During my senior year in 2021, I was not able to tour schools due to the pandemic, so I chose the only school that I had toured.
I packed my belongings and moved onto campus in August. I decided to study I-Design. A choice I hoped I would enjoy due to my love of design.
My First Semester
After moving to Winona State, I had a difficult time adjusting and making friends. I ended up making friends in my classes. I enjoyed my first semester there, but I had this aching feeling that I wasn’t in the right place.
That aching feeling led to the decline of my mental health. I made it through the fall semester without any trouble, but the tides changed after winter break leading into the second semester.
Spring Semester 2022
After winter break, I took it upon myself to start scouting out other schools that I could transfer to. At this point, my mental health was at an all-time low.
I knew about Drake University because my sister is a Drake alum, and I knew that I had some connection with the school. I made the decision to apply to Drake University, just to see what would happen. I ended up getting accepted in March, and I had a difficult choice to make whether I should finish the year or withdraw from Winona State or not because I wouldn’t have made it through the semester.
After talking over the situation with my advisor, I came to the decision that withdrawing was the best option for me. April 2022, I had my admitted students day at Drake, and I knew that I made the right choice.
My Time at Drake University So Far.
When I moved to Drake University, it became clear that it was the correct school for me. I fell in love with the classes, the people and the location.
I came to Drake as a double major in multimedia journalism and graphic design, but that quickly changed to multimedia journalism and public relations.
It took me some time to decide on what I wanted to study which ended up being digital media production and graphic design. After I figured out what I wanted to study, the classes came easier to me and I was starting to make more friends.
My mental health started to increase, but it’s a battle I continue to fight on a daily basis.
Wrapping Up
Overall, I am thankful for my time at Winona State because it helped clarify that Drake was the school I needed to be at. Drake has given me so many opportunities to grow, that I wouldn’t have pursued if it wasn’t for Winona State. So, although my time at Winona State was rocky, I value my time and experience being a WSU Warrior.