As the University of North Georgia marks the fourth week of the fall 2025 semester, students are readjusting to new schedules and work.
Some potential struggles students may face after summer vacation are time management, a new environment or schedule and balancing mental and physical health.
Sara González, a 2025 University of North Georgia graduate, has had her own struggles getting back into the groove.
“I feel like you never know what to expect, as far as academic rigor goes,” Gonzalez said. “It helps to know that others are in the same boat as you. Having a community of people you can rely on helps a lot.”
Gonzalez advised the use of communication with both professors and classmates alike, opening up about the struggles faced and asking for study tips.
She thinks other students should consider establishing good relationships with advisors, professors and peers more often to create lasting connections.
“Take it one step at a time and remember that your mental and physical health matter as much as you getting your work done. Don’t be afraid to ask for help, chances are somebody is in the same boat as you.” -Sarah González, University of North Georgia 2025 graduate
Izora Smith, a senior professional sales major at UNG, finds she struggles most with falling back into the routines and her school workload. To deal with the stress of this, Smith takes time for herself outside of school, going outside, hanging with friends and partaking in hobbies.
“Figure out a schedule that works for you and stick to it.” said Smith, “Pick what works for you and you know you will be able to stick with!” Smith believes in setting out a game plan to set aside time to focus on specific struggles.
“I honestly wish I had learned how to relax more before school. I am way too hard on myself, and it took me forever to realize that everything comes together in the end, and you can’t stress constantly about every little thing.” – Izora Smith, senior professional sales major at UNG
“Career advisors, tutoring, and requiring internships [help] you with planning for your future and setting yourself up for success,” Smith said. “I have used tutoring for my calculus and accounting classes and they were very helpful with everything!”
The University of North Georgia offers academic, campus, financial aid and other student support resources online. This information can be found here.
Gabrielle Henriques, a political science major, highly advises using academic resources.
“I used to be a tutor, and students that came to tutoring or workshops said that it helped them with their language classes,” said Henriques.
UNG requires many students to take a foreign language and tutoring is one of the services offered with the language lab. Language labs can be found on the Dahlonega, Gainesville and Oconee campuses.
Aside from academics, Henriques advised getting involved on campus to go to new events and meet new people.
“Look at all the events to see if they have free food because there have been multiple times where I missed an event and found out later that I missed some fire food,” said Henriques. “I did make it in time once to get boba, though, and it was totally worth checking the newspaper.”
