But Sophie isn’t dwelling on the past or having trouble adjusting to life at her dream school. "I'm not homesick," she says. "I haven’t experienced any culture shock."

Instead, she views her time at the University of Michigan as an opportunity to reinvent herself — and not just because she can finally choose what to wear every day after years of Catholic school uniforms. At Michigan, Sophie can pursue her ultimate goal of applying to the Ross Business School while exploring a growing interest in dermatology. She maintains many of her pre-college interests, but Sophie has no intention of treating college like an extension of high school. Michigan’s diverse student body is already exposing her to a wide variety of different personalities and new experiences.

"This is a school where people are still finding their place," says Sophie, who uses the phrase "finding my place" quite often in the course of our conversation. "It’s nice to have girls you can be new to," she adds.

That's where rushing comes in. At a university where there are more students in just one of her freshman lectures than there were in her entire graduating class back in Chicago, Sophie feels that being involved with something — be it a club, a sport, or Greek life — is crucial to making new friends. She also believes that having a strong network of sorority sisters looking out for one another can help keep a freshwoman safe, especially given the concerning rates of sexual assault on college campuses (though Sophie also says she has never felt unsafe going out at night). But her dream of joining a sorority primarily comes from years of hearing about her mother’s experience in one — and seeing firsthand the many lasting relationships her mom formed during that time.