Opinion | Loving Milwaukee, Finally

Approximately one in three students will drop out of school before finishing their first year at UW-Milwaukee. As an incoming freshman, I knew this statistic, but I never thought I’d come as close as I did to being part of the 33 percent.

I felt it happening before the second week of classes.  Pantherfest, an event for students to expand their social horizons, left me alone in my room until an hour before the headliner.

“I can’t do it.  I can’t even imagine myself being here another week,” I cried to a family member on the phone.  I had my idea of what Milwaukee would do for me, and I resented the city for not meeting my expectations. I demanded for Milwaukee to step up its game.  What I didn’t realize was that I was the one who had put in more effort.

Two years later, I’m living in an apartment with the best friends I could ask for.  I’m thriving in a major that I just recently decided on, working at a job that I love and living happier than ever before.

I often look at how it all changed changed. I wonder how many students went through the same thing I did, and how many of those students left the city that I now call home because of it.

It all comes down to a few steps that I took to change my experience. First, I found my people.  I can’t stress how important this is when starting a new chapter of your life in an entirely different setting.

You can find them by simply striking up a conversation with the person sitting next to you in your freshman seminar.  Odds are, this person is just as eager to make new friends as you are. It’s easy to feel alone because of the size of Milwaukee.  But it’s Milwaukee’s size that gives you the opportunities you need to find a group of people that you can bond with.

The second thing I did was get out and explore the city.  This can seem intimidating at first, especially when Milwaukee has a population sitting at over several hundred thousand. But Milwaukee is the smallest big city you can live in.  It reeks all the benefits of diversity and opportunities in a big city, with the feeling of a small one. So Google “things to do in Milwaukee,” and take advantage of your M-card by taking the 20-minute bus ride downtown. The opportunities are endless.

If you’re still having trouble adjusting to Milwaukee, my last recommendation is a change in perspective. I’m lucky enough to be able to call Milwaukee home.  I understand, though, that this will not be the case for everyone. For some, nothing can replace home.  To those people who still long for their hometowns, I can say this; your first home doesn’t have to be your only home.

Think of Milwaukee as a weekend at that cool aunt’s house that you visited. You were always excited to go there, but you were always excited to get back home.  You cherish the experiences you have at both, and your childhood wouldn’t be the same without either.  Your new adulthood can have the same perspective.  Your time in Milwaukee, even if for a short time, can be great.