My brother and I both started college before we turned 18. It was difficult to connect with our peers, but we don't regret it.

• My brother and I graduated from high school early, so I started college at 17 and he started at 16.
• It was difficult to connect with classmates because we were younger.
• But it was great to start our college experience early and meet new people outside of our hometown.

Starting college early isn't for everyone, but my brother and I both decided it was the right path for us. I skipped my senior year of high school and started college just after I turned 17. My brother skipped two years of high school and started at 16.

Recently, we had a chance to chat about being younger in college. We realized that even though it was difficult to fit in at times, we'd do it all over again because of the opportunities we landed.

We left high school early because we were ready

Our circumstances were different, but we had the same reason: We were ready. Academically, we had completed what we needed at the high-school level, and mentally, we were ready for what college had to offer.

I had completed almost all my required classes by filling study-hall slots with electives and helping as a teacher's assistant during lunch periods. When I contacted Albertus Magnus College in Connecticut to take a class during my senior year, the college administrators asked me to come full time. I was grateful my high school worked out a plan for me to attend college instead of finishing out my senior year.

Fortunately, the plan allowed me to attend milestone senior events like prom and graduation with my class. But it did feel strange being back for those events — I had already moved on, and they didn't seem as important anymore.

It was different for my brother, though. He was homeschooled until what was supposed to be his freshman year of high school. But when the school looked at the coursework he'd completed, they said he was a junior, not a freshman. That meant my brother was able to graduate in two years.

At 16, my brother attended Southern Connecticut State University to study political science.

Starting college younger was exciting

When I started my freshman year of college, I was ready to meet new people and take classes in subjects I'd need for my career. It took me a little time to decide what that would be. After changing my major a few times, I decided to study English because I love reading and writing. Later I pursued graduate degrees in education to work as a teacher.

The fact that I was younger than all my classmates only gave me more confidence in social settings and in the classroom.

After attending a relatively small-town high school with 1,000 students, I found it fun to meet a variety of new people. My brother and I enjoyed making new friendships outside of our town, and we realized there was a much bigger world to explore.

When you have a tendency toward academic intelligence, high school can feel limiting. In college, we were able to see more opportunities. With my unexpected early start, I also avoided senioritis, or the feeling of not wanting to do anything related to school for the last few months of the year.

But there were times we felt out of place

We decided not to live in the dorms on campus and instead continued to live at home. Our parents thought that was best because of our age, so we just commuted to class. At times it felt difficult to make friends because we were on campus only for classes.

When we did socialize with our classmates, I sometimes had to explain my age gap. It did become tiring to explain to so many people why I was younger.

My brother struggled to hang out with his friends, who were always two years ahead of him — for instance, when they were 22 and able to drink, he was still only 20. There also was an awkward situation in class when my brother had a minor medical emergency; because he was under 18, the school had to call an ambulance.

Moments like that reminded us that we didn't quite fit in with our peers.

Even with these challenges, we'd do it again

As much as our age sometimes felt awkward, it set us apart. It seemed that being younger may have opened doors for opportunities. It showed that we were smart, capable, and able to take initiative. Plus, it gave us confidence in our abilities. When we moved on to grad school and our first jobs, all of this helped.

My brother went on to pursue a master's degree at Carnegie Mellon University. He completed an internship in Washington, DC, then worked for a US representative. Now he works for the Connecticut Senate Republicans Office.

"Looking back, I wouldn't have done it any other way," my brother told me. "It got me to where I needed to be."

I also pursued graduate school at the University of New Haven and later earned my certificate in educational psychology and gifted and talented education.

Starting college early taught us that we don't have to follow what works for everyone else. We paved our own path and did what worked best for us — and it paid off.