Six years later at Sacramento State and I’m excited to say that through all my hard work, I am finally graduating college this spring.

Long ago, college was depicted in my mind and in the minds of high school students that college was a four-year program. For some, four years is still a realistic goal and many can finish in that time frame. But for many others, college has now stretched out into a more realistic 5-6 year gig.

With many programs declared heavily impacted, rising tuition costs and limited space in classrooms, many students today are facing semester setbacks, major changes and an uphill battle just to cross through the finish line and achieve their dreams.

As a soon-to-be Sac State graduate I will be walking after switching my major twice. I went from spending two years trying to get into one of the top graphic design programs in the area, to later switching into another impacted program with business administration, and finally settling down with an old strength of mine: journalism.

But I am not alone through all of this. Many other students are also switching their majors in what has become a common trend today.

As high school seniors enter college, many are still unsure of where they want to go and what they want to do in life. They are still learning about life and how to be an adult. To commit to one concentration and stick it out through the rest of your life is a lot to ask for right after grad night.

Although switching majors can be one of the most frustrating things any student has to go through, there are valuable lessons that can be learned and underlying aspects that can help strengthen any college student and prepare them for life after college.

One factor that I believe is one of the best learning elements of all, is failure.

Many of the world’s top successful people have failed at first; from Walt Disney and Thomas Edison to J.K. Rowling and Albert Einstein.

Even though it is well known these important figures in society failed at one point or another, not getting accepted into a program or having a portfolio denied is one of the biggest let downs for a hard working college student.

Failure is bound to happen unexpectedly to all of us at some point in life. It is all about how we learn to cope with our losses and bounce back from them. It’s what can potentially make us, as human beings, so much stronger.

Being a sixth-year college student is almost embarrassing to say to others, but now that I look back on the experiences, which I’ve learned from rejection and failure, I am more motivated to take those negative experiences and turn them into the next great success story.

So this goes out to every student out there who also had to deal with a setback in school. This goes out to every student who has had to switch routes and go down the other road in life. I toast this cup of coffee to you and remember to always give your best on whatever path you go down. Cheers.