OUR VIEW: Incoming freshmen don’t quite measure up

Pardon us if we’re not surprised by Rob Nief and Tom McBride’s comments about this year’s class of college freshmen being unprepared for the challenges in front of them. Nief and McBride, who spoke to USU faculty last week, said that college freshmen across the country have displayed a sense of entitlement when it comes to their assignments and responsibilities, while also lacking the patience and understanding to complete basic assignments. For those of us old enough to remember when a phone was something you used to call people (as opposed to, you know, watch live European soccer matches), the shift to impersonal communication that has engulfed this current freshman class is alarming. It hit us, we think, somewhere between having to replace the “LOLZ” and “OMG” in their first articles submitted to The Statesman, and the awkward stares we got from the university’s freshmen when we sat down to study for midterms.

    It got worse when we had to explain what midterms were, and that – believe it or not – we had to head to our respective places of employment (otherwise known as ‘jobs’) following classes.

    Ok, we know its standard practice to pick on the freshman, but who among us hasn’t noticed a certain sense of disconnect when it comes to the most recent additions to the USU community? From hanging around the Junction smoking (seemingly 24/7, may we add) to text messaging right in front of professors in class, the behaviors of some of our school’s current freshmen have left us wondering if they even know what they’re here for.

    We’re not saying college shouldn’t be fun – no, that would be BYU – but there should be some work involved, and it’s only expected that the struggle to balance academics, work and a responsible social life might incur a little stress along the way. Nief and McBride may be onto something, and if they are, count us among those who fear for the future. Let’s take pride in our university and our studies, and prove that being a college student isn’t just an oxymoron.