It is no surprise that every student has a different set of challenges when navigating through college. Usually, when you’re 18, you enter college, work a part-time job, and maintain your academics, which is your number one priority. Most students, especially those who live on campus, have more accessibility when it comes to getting to class on time and staying on campus longer than students who commute. College is a time to experience life outside of what we all knew from our grade school days. College, for all students, can also bring many benefits and challenges that can alter our lives when we don’t notice it. 

I graduated from high school in 2019.  I had the mindset that I was going to graduate college in 4 years and enter the real world. I enrolled in the Rowan College of South Jersey (Cumberland Campus) in the Fall of 2019. I went into college as an Education major thinking that once I graduated from college, I was going to teach for the rest of my life. As we all know, March of 2020 changed everything. Ten months passed before I enrolled back into college. 

During the lockdown, I dealt with internal mental health issues. I had no desire to go back to college, let alone have the will to get out of bed and face reality. I had been secretly battling depression. Not seeing friends and interacting with others on a day-to-day basis played a role in my mental health.  During the 2020 Spring semester, I failed most of my classes and I didn’t care about the whole “college life” anymore. In July, I was working two jobs to just save money and didn’t pay any regard to what the future was going to bring. 

In November of 2020, I decided to go back to college for the Spring 2021 semester. However, it was not an easy decision, considering I had to pay out of pocket for courses I had failed in the previous Spring semester.

Up until May 2022, I worked really hard to finish my associate’s degree and became the first in my family to obtain one. I took online classes, but once in-person classes started, I would strictly take night classes. Once 2022 came and I graduated, I turned my passion towards psychology, because I wanted to help other people in whatever line of work I do in the future, to be receptive and understanding of the importance of mental health, and to make a positive influence in the world one day. 

Since being here at Rowan, I have learned to juggle a full course load, a full-time job, and a part-time job. It has taught me that college is not necessarily as traditional as many people may put it. With this, I wanted to learn from other students who have faced challenges not only in dealing with college but also dealing with other life circumstances and navigating those as well. 

It’s vital to acknowledge that all college students have their own paths and journeys. It can take someone 5, 6, or even 10 years to jump the hurdle of getting a degree. Understanding that it is not about how you start, but how you finish. 

Jon Bach is a junior biology major here at Rowan University. He graduated from Camden County College in 2023 with a degree in Liberal Arts and is now here with the goal of one day becoming an evolutionary biologist. However, the journey for him has not been an easy one.  

Bach graduated from Washington Township High School in 2009 and attended Gloucester County College later that fall. He then transferred to West Virginia University and attended for 3 semesters, when he then transferred back to Rowan around the spring of 2012 to help out his family. He was only here for one semester, but ultimately dropped out to help take care of his family full-time at home. 

During this time, he was taking care of his two younger brothers while his parents were in the process of a divorce. As his brothers grew and went to college, he found himself with a job as a receptionist at a vet hospital. He worked his way up through different positions and realized then that he enjoyed working with animals. 

In 2018, he began enrollment at Camden County College. He ultimately ended up dropping out due to his father having suffered a traumatic brain injury. In 2020, he decided to voluntarily enter a psychiatric ward to deal with undiagnosed bipolar disorder. He had been self-medicating for 10 years with drugs and alcohol. Soon after being placed on medication, he became sober and pursued again to enroll in Camden County College. Graduating in 2023 with an associate’s degree in Liberal Arts, he is now on the path to soon graduate with a B.S. in Biology. 

“Life doesn’t always happen in a straight line, you fail until you give up,” said Bach.

Like Jon, there are other students whom I have met during my time here at Rowan who have had their struggles in life and are working towards their degrees. 

Psychology major Sara Walziki, a 28-year-old student, and a mother of 2 daughters, is graduating this semester with her bachelor’s degree. She started college in the spring of 2016, but during that time period she became a mother and dealt with many life-altering events. She graduated with her associate’s degree and moved to New Jersey to continue her education. She now plans on pursuing a career in human resources and works to better the lives of herself and her daughters. 

Whether in college or not, life will throw many obstacles and opportunities at a person in order for them to grow. In college, you get to explore sides of yourself, pursue your interests, and make sure you study to get your dream job. 

As I prepare to soon graduate in the fall, I have found the beauty in the great people I have come across while here at Rowan.

The challenges Jon, Sara, and myself have faced make us individuals with stories that will lead others to pursue their great success.

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