Ah, commuters. We all have at least a few friends at college who are always underdressed/overdressed, complaining about traffic, late to class because of said traffic, and avoid 8 a.m.'s (but for a different reason than you). They're known to complain about having to stay in a friend's rooms on the nights they choose to hit up the houses or do not feel like driving home at 12 at night. They point out that the college's text-alert system is flawed for texting people five minutes before a fun campus event begins and their backpacks are so heavy that they should be registered weapons.
I am one of these students.
I live twenty minutes from my campus. And no, I don't like driving that every day of my college career. It seems that my fellow commuter students are the only ones who appreciate my silly complaints about having to wake up earlier than everyone and feeling powerless once it starts raining and you're wearing flats instead of rain boots.
Even class becomes a different scenario. Professors don't understand that just like them, you too have to come to campus to get anything done, including meet with them. Assignments that require you to go to the library or some other campus building to complete a task make you angrily grumble in your desk.
Somewhere, certain phrases become lost in translation between on-campus students and commuters. Some of my on-campus friends complaints are about something I believe is a luxury. To them, my complaints seem the same way. Here is a list of things that I notice have different meanings to commuters than they do on-campus students.
1. 8 a.m. Classes
On-Campus Student: An inconvenience to their sleep schedule. Requires an early alarm clock and a wake-up-accountability from someone. Could fit time to study before class. Hated regardless of possible perks.
Commuter: A major inconvenience. Tries to avoid at all costs unless it is a required class. Means getting up a 6:30 in order to get ready and looking decent for the rest of the day, take all of the day's crap to their car, grab some form of breakfast bar and coffee, and pray to God that their outfit will match the weather later this afternoon. No time to study before test or quiz due to the time it takes to drive to campus. Hated no matter what positive spin people put on it.
2. Meeting With Professors During Office Hours
On-Campus Student: A chance to conveniently meet with their professor to discuss a paper or project. Requires little to no planning or schedule rearranging unless the professor cannot meet at a convenient time for them.
Commuter: A chance to meet with their professor to discuss a paper or project whenever the student does not plan to stay on campus. Every time that that the commuter is available and walks to their office while still on campus, the professor is gone. Requires an email to the professor asking to meet with them at a specific time so that the student KNOWS that they will be there once the student gets there because the student won't be on campus for the rest of the day.
3. Last Minute "Class is Cancelled" Emails
On-Campus Student: The golden ticket of last minute notices. Requires the student to either stay in bed or their dorm or simply walk back to their dorm.
Commuter: A bittersweet notification. Normally is sent right as the student arrives on campus and had to battle four cars for a parking spot in the commuter lot. Requires the student to waste their time in the library or find something resourceful to do until their next class.
4. Change of Seasons Between 8:30 and 12:30
On-Campus Student: A chance to change your outfit mid-day. Requires student to walk back to their dorm and choose a weather-appropriate outfit.
Commuter: *Dies of heatstroke while walking to next class*
5. Last Minute Plans
On-Campus Student: An invitation that is gladly welcomed. A quick change of clothes and possibly a shower later and the student walks over to their other student's dorm.
Commuter: An invitation that is gladly welcomed, but it normally sent when the student has already driven home and settled in for the night. Sometimes frustrates the student depending on their comfiness level. Requires a change of clothes, a bag to pack in case things get a little late, a text to an on-campus friend requesting to stay on their couch, and possibly the notification of parents (if the student lives with them) that you are staying on campus.
6. Backpacks
On-Campus Student: Something they use to transport necessities for 1-3 classes to walk across campus.
Commuter: A bag used to transport the student's entire lives in for the day. Includes snacks, books for every class they have homework in for that week, laptop, pens and pencils, phone charger, headphones, and possibly a change of clothes (if they have room). Weighs a million pounds.
7. Parking Lot
On-Campus Student: A place to park your car with the occasional fight for a spot closest to your dorm. Rarely gets dirty and student rarely leaves car hoping that the student who you stole the spot from doesn't key your car.
Commuter: A battleground where it's every driver for themselves. Daily frustration and anger ensues whenever some Kia Optima takes the last spot in the commuter lot and you have to park in overflow which is like walking from The Shire to Mordor (with a backpack the weight of Gandalf on your back). Always gets dirty whenever time and parking are limited. Student frequently leaves car hoping it doesn't get keyed or contemplating keying someone else's car. A chance to get a ticket for parking somewhere that isn't a space.
8. The Library
On-Campus Student: A place to study and cram for finals if you don't want to study in your room.
Commuter: Home away from home. The only place where commuters can study away from home because you can't focus on anything there. Also, the vessel that houses commuters between classes and during the times when the student's class is cancelled and their friends are in class. Student basically lives there and knows the librarians favorite movie and candy.
9. Home
On-Campus Student: A place that students look forward to going to. A place of comfort, good food, and free laundry. A chance to catch up with family and old friends.
Commuter: A place that commuter students feel like you never left because you haven't. A place that you only see during the hours of approximately 10 pm to 7 am. This is where the student spends the least amount of time depending on their schedules but are believed to always be at. Mostly used for sleeping.
Despite our differences, we are all students on the same path to maybe someday become professional, well-rounded adults. College is what you make of it and whether you are a commuter student or an on-campus student, we all have the opportunity to make our college experience count. Understanding each other's struggles only makes us aware of the world around us and helps us for later on in life.
