Congratulations! You're about to embark on the best four year journey of your life. Temple is a diverse school with a crowd for everyone. My time there still goes down as the best years of my life. Trust me, you're not going to regret picking Temple. Before you set off for your journey, though, here's some advice from a former Owl!

Freshmen Dorms: Best & Worst:

While I never actually lived on campus as a student, I still know what's good and what's not so great about the campus housing. Morgan Hall is probably the place to live. Some freshmen end up living here, and it's apartment style living with a small kitchen and living area. There are also restaurants and decent dining hall food right in your building! While none of the buildings are horrible at Temple, some are definitely more up to date than others.

Get To Know Philadelphia:

You're living right in Philadelphia! You're right in the midst of every opportunity you could possibly imagine. I know you're going to hear about how dangerous it is in North Philadelphia, but the campus itself is super safe and very close to tons of opportunities in center city Philadelphia via the subway. Lots of students get internships in the city that lead to job offers post-graduation.

Where To Eat... Other Than The Dining Halls:

Like any college experience, you won't want to eat at the dining halls 24/7... even if they do have decent food for a college campus. Temple's campus has tons of restaurants that accept Diamond Dollars, which you can load onto your ID card and spend at participating places just like cash! If I had to pick five restaurants you have to try off campus while you're at Temple it would be: La Rosa Pizza, Dos Tacos, Federal Donuts, Sky Cafe and Nan Zhou. When it comes to on-campus eats, there are tons of delicious food trucks to choose from, and you HAVE to check out Richie's. Both are parts of Temple tradition.

Let's Go Owls:

I'm not super objective on this one because I'm a big basketball fan, but you have to go to both a Temple men's and women's basketball game before you leave campus. You should definitely fit in a football game as well! The Owls play their games at the same stadium as the Philadelphia Eagles, so it's a really neat experience. For a more off the radar sport, check out Temple Gymnastics. They have some really talented athletes on their team!

Pack For ALL Weather:

When the weather is nice at Temple, it's beautiful, but be prepared: when it's windy, it's WINDY! You'll feel like you can't move, and just avoid the courtyard and stairs behind Morgan Hall at all costs if it's windy.

It's Not A Real Beach:

A common thing you'll hear around campus is people saying that they're going to "the beach." This is actually just lingo that refers to the largest grass spot on campus by the bell tower where a lot of students study or hang out on nice days. There's no beach, but there is grass that will get crowded very quickly on nice days, so if you want to do your studying outside, plan accordingly!

Above all else, good luck! Temple is an amazing university, and I wouldn't trade the time I spent there for the world!