The summer before my freshman year of college was a time full of anxiety, and google searches. I was going to a school hundreds of miles away from home and I knew absolutely no one in my freshman class. I didn't know what classes to take, or what I needed for my dorm. I spent hours and hours overanalyzing my dorm room decor Pinterest boards, debating on what items from my closest were cool enough for college parties, stalking my professors on ratemyproffesor.com and arguing with my mom about shower caddies. My obsessive preparedness wasn't as useful as I hoped, and I made some pretty terrible mistakes freshman year (I wore a maxi dress to a late night at frat, and signed up for a 9 a.m.). Despite the fashion mistakes, I learned a lot of valuable lessons, these are the most important ones.
1. Invest in your Twin XL bed
Sleeping in a dorm is not ideal in any way. Having a stranger snoring a few feet away from you while your hall mates run up and down the halls screaming on a Tuesday night will result in less than ideal sleep. Buy a nice mattress, fluffy pillows, a sleep mask, giant teddy bears or whatever else you need to be able to sleep through the circus meets sleep-away camp freshman dorms are. When shopping for bedding, I highly recommend buying a queen or full size comforter instead of an XL Twin. You can use it once you move out of the dorms and it hangs over the end of your dorm bed so you can hide everything under your bed. Sleep in college becomes kind of an obsessive thing, you will find yourself bragging about an epic nap you took or complaining about how little your diet of iced coffee, red bulls and last minute study sessions never allow you to sleep, so seriously find every way to get the best rest possible.
2. You can be over prepared
Freshmen are pretty easy to spot, they travel in large groups, wear lanyards and have way too many things.. Coming to the first day of class with every single book listed on the syllabus is not the move. It's both a waste of money and completely unnecessary. Wait until the first day of school to purchase any book. All the ridiculous organizational tools and gadgets they sell at Bed Bath and Beyond are something you will never ever use and a waste of space and plastic. You will 100% throw out the shoe organizers after this year, same with the popcorn machine. Buying every single item with your chosen school's logo will be fun for about a month but when your school water bottle, hat, workout shorts, and t-shirt will probably not seem cool when you look back at your first tailgating pictures. Keep it all simple, basic and classic. It will make life easier, cheaper, and less embarrassing to look back at.
3. Don't drink the Jungle Juice
College is the time where most people experiment with drinking for the first time. There's nothing wrong with going out and having fun but it's so important to find the right balance of partying and school. If it takes over your life, you're going to have a hard time fixing your GPA, and possibly friendships in the semesters to come. Have fun, but take it easy, there will be a thousand parties to attend before you graduate don't tire yourself out semester one. Most importantly don't drink the jungle juice, it will always get the best of you and leave you crying in the corner, falling down or leaving you with a major headache.
4. You probably won't be best friends with the first person you meet
The first couple nights in the dorms, everyone is so overwhelmed and excited by the idea of being in college they try to become friends with everyone possible. You'll spend half of the first semester getting dinner with groups of 20+ people, most of whom you don't share much of a connection with. The giant groups of mismatched friends create a ton of unnecessary drama and are primarily stressful. Be kind and friendly to everyone you meet but try to find friends you really like. Find the group that is right for you, and do your own thing as much as possible. Join clubs, talk to people in your lectures, and you'll eventually find your people.
5. College is full of change
If I was the same person I was freshman year, I would be a person still unable to do laundry, talk to strangers and grocery shop. Being on your own, and being in college teaches you so much about yourself and what you're able to do. It's scary and it's fun but it's also so important. Challenge yourself, take classes where you fight for a C, listen to new music, talk to people who are so much different from you. You change more in a year of college than you do in all of high school which is good and hard. Work hard but have fun. At the end of your freshman year you will be a better older version of yourself which is what college is all about.
