As I have journeyed further through college, I have always wondered when I would be considered an ‘adult.’ 

Legally, when you turn 18 you are considered an adult. You can vote, enlist in the military, be called for jury duty, buy a lottery ticket, etc. At 18, though, most people are still in high school and live with their parents and the rules that go along with their living situation. 

Then all of a sudden, you are on your own. Moving away to college or just out of your home town with all the responsibilities of an adult but the stature of a teenager. It can be a very imposturous experience to hear from teachers that ‘you are adults now’ then be treated like a child by the world. I cannot be the only young person who remembers being talked down to by people older than myself simply because they thought they knew better. 

This has become more frustrating as I go through college, as again, some professors treat their class like ‘adults’ and others look down at them. I keep waiting for the magic number when all of a sudden I am equal to the “grown-ups” around me. And in most cases, I am still waiting. 

At 21 and a senior in college, there are still people who peer down at me with disgust. The only reason, I assume, is that they presume I am an out-of-touch entitled college student who does not understand the world like they do. Then again, maybe I am an out-of-touch entitled college student who definitely does not see the world like they do. 

When I took on the role of Editor-in-Chief, I had a glimmer of hope that my fancy title and new responsibilities would give me brownie points with the adults, but that has proved to not be the case. Communication to me, as a student leader, from other adults on campus has been inadequate and choppy. I should not be hearing about campus events and news from my friends in other organizations who heard it from their friends in a different club. 

I assumed that once I was expected to act like an adult that I would be treated like one and maybe I am and I just do not know it. I hope that adults respond to their emails and talk to each other about important developments within their organizations because so far, that is not my experience. 

Maybe I will be an adult once I have my first real job after graduation. Working with professionals in their field, learning, growing as a person. But I fear that then I will be the new, young person in the office who does not understand the industry or the importance of life experience. I suppose everyone has been there before and I am just taking my turn. 

For now, I will continue living in this adult-ish limbo. This is not to say I do not appreciate being half an adult, but I wonder how long I will remain this way before I am considered an equal and am trusted by the full adults around me. 

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