I was always told that living in would be one of the best experiences of your college career, and during my sophomore year at the University of Iowa, I realized that this statement is true. With my one year of living in the Delta Gamma house, I made unforgettable memories and close relationships with people I couldn't imagine living without. Living in a sorority house may not be the most calming and private campus housing, but it is certainly the most fun.

1. Create a group message for all the live-ins

Large group messages with 40-plus people can be created on the app called GroupMe. The group message will be the center of communication for your pledge class. The main topics of my pledge class's GroupMe included odd events that happened the night before, our chef's food, and countless memes. If your pledge class doesn't have one, make one now because it will definitely keep you entertained.

2. Memorize the house code

You can write it in your planner or make as many notes in your iPhone as you want, but eventually you'll forget your planner or your phone will die. I've spent one too many times banging on the door hoping that someone inside the house would hear me. Trust me, its not fun when its -15 degrees out. Learn from my stupidity and learn the house code.

3. Play pranks on each other

From cake fights (apologies to our house mom) to hanging incredibly creepy dolls in the showers, it seemed that there was always some sort of mischief going on in our house. The majority of my favorite memories of living in the house have stemmed from these pranks. Remember: when in doubt, always steal your friend's towel from the shower.

4. Always take care of the incoherent ones

If you see a sister struggling, help her out. Bring the girl some water and food and help her to her bed. In the morning, she will be thankful that you helped her and pay you back for your kindness later on.

5. Be aware that your privacy will be limited

You will brush your teeth, eat dinner, and sleep in the same room as your sisters. Its a lot of time together. At first, I was wary of this; I'll admit, I'm an introvert and was never fond of the idea of living with 50-something other girls. I used to enjoy my space and time alone, but after living in the house, I find myself missing random people barging into my room.

6. Keep tabs on your clothes

With 50 girls comes 50 closets. In girl language, this means countless new outfits. Always remember who borrowed your clothes and when. If you're the one borrowing them, always remember to return them as fast as possible -- hopefully without jungle juice stains.

7. The kitchen will be the gathering place

If you're looking for one of your friends, always check the kitchen. I learned this lesson with my second-semester roommate. I always knew that if I couldn't find her in our room, she was most likely sitting at the kitchen table, making some concoction to eat. I swear, the kitchen has a magnetic force that will keep you in there for about an hour talking to somebody. BEWARE.

8. The kitchen will also become your body's worst enemy

After arriving home from a night out, the next logical step is to find the kitchen and devour everything in sight. At my sorority house, we were not allowed to use ovens, but our house staff made up for it with supplying us with around eight different types of bread and bagels. Sometimes, if we were lucky, a very rare microwaveable pizza would appear. But remember: Just because it looks good doesn't mean that it will make you look good. Trust me, the same goes for your chef's meals. Always remember to balance out the butter-filled entrees with healthy options and to limit your dessert intake. I would recommend doing some grocery shopping so that you have alternative meals.

9. Tell your chef about any dietary restrictions

You need to make any food allergies known to your chef so she can properly label the food so you don't mistakenly eat it. If you're a vegetarian or lactose intolerant, make it known so that you can actually have a meal other than salad. I made this mistake by not telling our chef I became a vegetarian and I had a difficult time finding anything to eat other than english muffins and cheesy potatoes (sorry, arteries).

10. Label your food

When I say label, I mean Sharpie the hell out of it and install an ADT security system on your leftover pizza, because some drunkie will not be able to resist your Papa Johns or pokey sticks.

11. If you live far from campus, always walk to class.

Like I mentioned before, with all of the desserts and carbs that are served for dinner, weight gain is imminent. At least with a long walk to and from class, you're bound to burn off a few of the calories you ate at lunch.

12. Find your study spot

I admit, living in a sorority house makes it incredibly hard to focus on doing homework. I am a huge procrastinator, and being around my closest friends made it nearly impossible to write my papers or study for my exams. My advice to you is to find where you can focus the most. If it's your bedroom, study there. If your house has a study room, take advantage of it. If all else fails, make the trek to the library or the IMU. Remember: school always comes first.

13. Having a maid does not give you permission to be messy

Simply put, pick up after yourself. Always put your dirty plates in the right spot and don't leave food on the counter. Just because you don't want to pick up after yourself doesn't mean that someone else wants to. I promise wiping down the table isn't as hard as infomercials make it out to be.

14. Get to know the house staff

Your house mom, chef and plenty of other people make sure that your house doesn't fall apart on a day-to-day basis. Without them, your house probably would burst into flames. Always make an effort to start a conversation with them and be pleasant around them. They work too hard to be treated disrespectfully. Plus, it feels good when your cook can remember your name when you live with 50 other girls.

15. Enjoy every second of living in

Living in is going to be one of the best parts of your college career. You're lucky enough to be able to live with 50 of your closest college friends, with a fabulous chef and an awesome house mom. What more could you ask for? Spend as much time together and go out with your sisters as much as possible, because it goes by faster than you can imagine.