Sometimes your school is surrounded by rolling fields and cows, and eventually certain things become very apparent: city life is far away and you now are a part of the country. There are definite positives and negatives, but at the end of the day we love our small-town country school.

1. So much nature.

Which means you get to explore by hiking, rock climbing, running, hammocking, star gazing or just being out in nature. This is awesome because the scenery changes with every season, so you constantly want to go out and be in the great outdoors.

2. No one leaves on the weekends.

When home is a few hours away and there are friends and activities going on at college, not many people go home for a regular weekend and this makes a huge difference. Weekends are the time when you can de-stress, relax and have fun. These are the times when you get to know people the best and make the best memories.

3. You go to the same restaurant or coffee shop every week.

Ground Round or Acoustic Cafe for the third time this week?

4. You often think, "If we were in the cities we could..."

This is quite logistical, but it is true, every time you think, “If we were in the cities we could…” remind yourself everything in the city costs money that you don’t have. So really it must be a blessing!

5. You are further from home.

This hits each person differently, but in the long run it normally helps people gain independence and confidence as they learn to "make it" on their own.

6. You can learn all the hidden nooks and crannies pretty easily and you develop your favorite spots for coffee, studying and everything in between.

It is always fun to have your special spot, and it helps it feel like home when the lady at the coffee shop knows your name and order.

7. You bump into people you know everywhere.

I don’t know about you, but I love seeing friendly faces wherever I go. It is more than likely that you’ll bump into multiple people you know on the next Target, Caribou or McDonald's run.

8. There will be a lot of on-campus events for you to enjoy.

Everyone enjoys those campus-wide movie/pizza nights, fun dances, live music and the list could go on and on.

9. Going shopping will become an all-day adventure (or online shopping will get real).

You either decide you are going to drive for at least an hour to the nearest shopping mall and spend the day trying to find the perfect dress in the limited number of stores there or enter the risky game of online shopping. Most likely both.

10. There is a crazy amount of bonding.

When your college is in the middle of nowhere, it means that people really form a community, and because you are together so often, for so long, the bond that forms is strong and lasts for years to come.