As I type this I am staring at my newly earned Associate in Arts degree and certificate in creative writing from the Community College of Philadelphia. I am realizing that no matter how tedious, all of the work was worth it. All of the nights staying up to write papers, reading handout after handout, and studying for countless hours prepared me for where I am now.

I must admit, however, that during my first semester at CCP my mind was filled with doubt. Would I be able to actually finish college? Was I truly prepared?

I suppose this is the feeling of all incoming freshman: whether they will be able to stick with college. Succeed in it. Over the next several weeks, I plan to share personal stories of my time at CCP and current transition to Temple University.

During my first semester at CCP, I was already wary from my then short-lived Temple experience and I was constantly going over in my mind what I didn’t know and what I should have known. During my first year at CCP I found myself surrounded by people who seemed to be pondering the same questions. Some appeared to be just out of high school, like myself, while others had been out of school for years and had decided that they wanted to better themselves.

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