People from everywhere go to IU to complete a degree, but it’s no surprise that the majority of people are native Hoosiers. Compared to someone from Indiana, the college experience of an out-of-state student is quite different. As an out-of-state student, allow me to shed some light on some of the differences and complete struggles that we endure. Of course, I acknowledge that it was my and every other out-of-state students’ decisions to go to school away from home, but everyone needs to vent, right?!
Let’s start off with the basics. Travel. No student knows the pain of traveling to and from school like an out-of-stater! I’m from New York, so connecting flights are usually the only option. What does this mean, you might ask? This means that unless the stars align, the chances of one of those flights being delayed or cancelled is pretty high, especially since most break times fall in the colder seasons. Not to mention we all have to monitor how much luggage we take, as well as weight, because the Go Express bus only allows two items -- and the airlines don’t allow bags over 50 pounds. It would be nice to just throw everything in the trunk like you in-state students can, but I get anxiety just thinking about the length of that drive.
This leads me to carpools. A lot of Hoosiers have friends from high school or family members that also chose to come to IU. Having a buddy to travel with makes everything less exhausting and obviously more fun. Most out-of-state students are walking in blind their freshman year. Making new friends is great, but having some friends to cushion being thrown into collegiate life is something that we do not enjoy the luxury of.
Next, let’s talk mom and dad. Home is not the most accessible place as an out-of-state student. This is more of a freshman year thing, but hey, it still creeps up on you as you go through your undergraduate years. I wouldn’t call it homesickness, but remember those moments when all you wanted was your bed at home and for your mom to cook you dinner? You were then quickly reminded of the flight that you are not booked to be on because you can’t just go home whenever you want like some other students. Again, I’m not trying to make digs at the in-state Hoosier crowd; honestly, I’m just admiring how good you guys have it.
Once we’ve gone through the stages of denial about how we will not be able to drive or fly home tomorrow just because we can, we calm down and start to think about why we chose IU. Whether it was the people, the campus, or just the plain 'ole education, something made us come all this way. Plus, after meeting some new people, I realized that there is an uncanny population of people from the east coast at IU, particularly from New York. There must be something in the water that keeps drawing us East Coasters to dabble in the Midwest.
