When I was deciding where I wanted to go to school, I was absolutely 100%, dead set on making my own path and separating from my siblings – especially my twin sister.
My brother was already going to school at Michigan State and then my sister declared that she was going to Michigan State as well, so I looked at other schools, determined not to let my love for the Spartans cloud my judgement. But, in the end, I chose to come to Michigan State because my parents raised me right, and if it was my choice to go away from my siblings for school, it was just as much my choice to go to the same school as them.
Soon, I found that my siblings being at my 50,000 person school were not hindering me in the way I thought they might, but they were helping me sort my way through college, and my life would be so much different without their help along the way. Here are five reasons why going to college with a sibling is a really smart and fun idea.
1. You always have someone to talk to
The first few weeks of college are tough, and anyone who says differently is a liar. Especially coming from out of state, I knew only two people coming into school: my brother and my sister. Making friends was 10x harder than I thought it would be, so it was nice to at least have people that I knew right away to talk to all the time as I was trying to meet new people. Even now that I have friends at MSU other than my siblings, it makes talking to them even more fun because you have lots of stories to tell.
2. They're always there to help when you need it
The amount of times I've had to ask my brother for help this year is probably annoying to him, but it's something that I wouldn't have if I chose to go to a different college. I know that, even though he is busy all of the time, he's just one call away if I need him. The same goes for my sister. Sure, they may be reluctant or give me crap about it, but I love that they always have my back.
3. They buy you stuff when you don't have money
My sister cringes every time I ask her to pay for me, knowing that when I say I'll Venmo her the money or pay her back I'm lying. She does it anyways, and when I have money and she doesn't, she knows that I'll take care of her.
4. There's always something to talk about
On car rides home, or just in general when we all go home for breaks or eat dinner when our parents come to visit, we always have something interesting to talk about because we are sharing a common experience. We know some of the same people, go to the same events and take some of the same classes. When we go to family gatherings over breaks, we can tell our family stories about each other and talk to each other more than we had in previous years.
5. It brings you closer
My sister and I have always been super close, but being in college together has brought us even closer. With my brother, we have a pretty big age gap, so we never really got along growing up. Being at school with him has made me appreciate him so much more and I actually like talking to him now, and I would say that we get along way better than we ever have.
Even though he jokes around and pretends he doesn't know me when he sees me on campus, I know that college has brought us all closer together in a way that wouldn't be possible if we went to different schools.
My family has always been close in general, but going to college with two of my siblings is probably the best choice I could have made when deciding where to go to school. Even though we all bug each other way too much and get into arguments, we all help each other out in ways that we couldn't if our situation was different.
I am truly grateful for all that they've done for me to help me get through my freshman year of college and I can't wait to share the next three years of loving Michigan State with them.
