Many of us, when we begin to apply for colleges, no matter where else we apply, we also apply for the one closest to home. For some, it’s their first choice, for me, it was my back-up. I knew I wanted to put myself out of my comfort zone and I chose a school two hours from my hometown. As a freshmen, it was scary and nerve wracking but looking back as a soon to be senior, it was also one of the best decisions of my life. Here are the top five reasons I think going to school away from my hometown was one of the best decisions of my life—and why you should seriously consider it.
1. I had to grow up and become independent—in a snap.
Going to college and living on campus forced me to grow up and make better and more mature decisions much quicker than if I’d lived at home and stayed in my hometown. And yes—I did make some not-so-great decisions along the way but, those are actually what taught me because I had to fix them myself. I couldn’t go crying to mommy and daddy that lived across the hall. You learn that sometimes you have to put on your darn pull-ups because dang it—you’re a big kid now.
2. I created a professional network of people triple the size of my network back home.
Being two hours from home meant putting myself out there and getting a job. I couldn’t just keep my old high school job at the local ice-cream shop, I had to update my resume (SO important), join some clubs and honors groups and do a few interviews that were not easy in the slightest but it paid off in not only a monetary way but with experience and opportunity also. I have bosses and coworkers who are the absolute best and would do almost anything to help me with my schooling and career. Having those professional ‘friends’ and making professional connections (along with keeping your old ones) gives you that much more of an advantage and that much bigger of a network.
3. I met some of my best friends whom I will be friends with for the rest of my life.
You will always have your high school friends and sure, they’re great, but there’s something more lasting about your college friends. You’re friends with your high school chums before you really even know yourself and let’s be honest; most of us just kind of bumbled around high school looking awkward, smiling and nodding. In college, sure you’re definitely still bumbling around but you know what you stand for and believe in and more importantly, you’re no longer afraid to stand up for that. Making friends who believe in and also stand up that similarly to you makes for lasting friendships. College is where you have the freedom to figure everything out, doing that alongside others’ creates an unbreakable bond.
4. I gave myself the chance for endless opportunity.
Going to school away from my hometown, for me, took me out of the farmland in the middle of nowhere and into the city, or 25 minutes away at least. My hometown is an hour and twenty minutes from any big city; and that’s Cleveland and Columbus big, not NYC big. That shift laid a plethora of opportunity at my feet. Job markets in small towns are r-o-u-g-h so getting internships, and even more importantly, paid internships in small towns is so difficult. There are so many more businesses and corporations with countless opportunities near Cleveland than in lil ole Ashland. I also got the opportunity to meet people from all over the world that opened up my opportunity for travel. The friends you make by getting out there is astounding.
5. I opened my own eyes.
No matter where you live, big or small, just seeing that town and how it operates is so limiting. Going away for school opened my eyes and expanded my horizons. It allowed me to gain a ton of new experiences and see how other people and how other cities operate. It showed me that the views my home town had instilled in me were not the only option and that I was free to choose my own path and make my own values for myself.
Don’t get me wrong, this article has no intentions of bashing my, or anyone’s, hometown, I love my little town in the middle of nowhere but there’s something amazing about taking a new place you chose all by yourself and making it your own. Home is where your heart is, my heart just happens to be in two places now instead of one.
