Hello, to all you nervous high school seniors, college has something wonderful in store for you!
By now a majority of you reading this have already chosen, or are in the process of making a decision in regards to what university you should attend, but nothing is going to prepare you for the amazing adventure of being a college freshman until you actually get here.
Roommates
The first few weeks are going to feel a lot like summer camp, except the camp counselors are the RA's in your building, and they probably aren't going to keep an eye out for you unless you are doing some wicked things in your dorm room, or have an issue with your roommate. The best advice I can give you about your roommate situation is that sometimes you will get the luck of the draw, and your roommate will become your best friend.
The worst case scenario? They smell bad, touch your stuff without permission and gossip about you and who you bring back to your dorm.
To be totally honest with you, future collegiate, sometimes it's good to have someone who is slightly in the middle, kind of a friend, but also respectful, and aware that they are sharing a room.
Friends
So remember when you started scouring the internet for advice on things like what kind of school you should choose, and you just so happen to have landed on a Buzzfeed video describing college life? They were not wrong. The friends you make in the first few weeks of college are very temporary, that's going to be a good thing and a bad thing.
So the people you originally thought you would end up being best friends with, might not always make it with you to the next semester. Don't let that stop you from making as many new "friends" as possible, those acquaintances will make college life much easier.
Example: You want to go to dinner and don't have anyone to go with, well you see Sam, this chick that lives on the same floor as you. She calls you over or you do the confident thing and walk over to her, and ask her if you can eat with her. That one person may open so many doors for you!
Dorm Life
Living in a co-ed building is cool. No, the boys are not walking through to catch a glimpse of half-naked girls. If anything you may end up making more friends with the males than the females, or vice versa. As a girl, living on a floor with all females, things can get really petty. Sometimes drama breaks out, girls tend to move out mid-year, or fights occur.
Not physical or anything, but words hurt. It especially hurts when you're not comfortable with college life yet. My best advice is to stay out of drama and to not comment or spread gossip. Yes, there is going to be chatter and not everyone is going to be best friends, but that also may end up being different in regards to your personal experience. Just be considerate of others that live in the same dorm as you.
Don't start screaming in the halls at 1 a.m. on a weekday, try not to make the bathroom into a furry disaster with your knotted hairballs and please don't pee on the seat.
Parties
Every school is a party school. There will be parties, sex, drinking and drugs. All of your parent's or guardian's worst nightmare. There will also be parties that get busted, and you do have the potential of getting into serious trouble on campus if you get caught drinking underage, or even worse doing drugs.
Just know that there will be drinking, and there are usually always big annual celebrations involving beer on campus. It is something that both campus safety and the school know of, but that doesn't mean that they are exactly accepting of those activities.
My best advice for you "party people" is that you make safe, quality decisions in regards to your alcohol intake. If you get sick or even worse get in an accident of some kind, you could put your life in danger, and risk your position as a student at your university. Never accept shady alcohol, and always know the history of the house or apartment you're going to drink at. Don't be naive, they do drug people at parties. Just keep safe and always go with a trustworthy group of people.
Other than my prior warnings, college parties are bomb—one of the best things about college. You will make lifelong friends and have both good and bad experiences at these weekly events. Live it up, this is your chance to dance and play drinking games with your favorite people.
P.S. The weekend starts on Thursday
P.P.S. You don’t have to party or drink to make friends!
Sex
Be safe; college campuses are filled with STDs. Make sure to always use condoms. They are pretty much always free on college campuses (they even have free lube on my campus).
Make sure your partners are respectful individuals that won't spread your business all around later. Also, no means no. If someone attempts to force you to do anything you don't want to do, immediately separate yourself from them physically and tell them to get out.
Always keep campus security on speed dial. And if that person begins to harass you, reach out to administration. Don't ever let anyone make your college experience a living hell because they don't understand the basics of consent.
Homesickness
Whether it's the food, your high school friends or your family, something will inevitably make you miss home. This little bout of sadness may last for a while, but it'll disappear as long as you start to make good solid relationships here at school. You'll also notice that when you head home for winter break, by the end of it, you're begging to head back to your new friends and regain the freedom you once had. Make sure to keep in contact with your family and at least call someone from back home once a day, just doing those small things can help lessen the heartache you feel and get you back on your feet again.
If things just aren’t going your way and you still feel depressed while on campus, attempt to reach out to the counseling center on your campus. It may make all the difference for you to have someone to speak with regularly and openly about your struggles.
Classes
Depending on your major, your classes will be more science, math or reading intensive. I would advise you to always do something you enjoy. For example, if you love math but are an English major, which is a little rare, then you should talk with your adviser about minoring in math or getting all of your necessary math requirements out of the way first and foremost.
College is great because you can decide for yourself what you learn and what your focuses will be. This means that learning is overall more enjoyable and what matters to you is important. The level of difficulty of college classes again depends on what you're good or bad at.
When you get to college make sure to keep yourself organized and always keep a planner. My cell phone is my life because it has my whole semester calendar on it. The best way to succeed in college, classes wise, is by doing the same thing you would in high school to succeed: take notes, pay attention and give that class due time to focus in on the important topics.
You may find that you study more in college than you have in your whole entire life, don’t let that intimidate you, though. To me, college classes have not really increased in difficulty from high school classes. The level of work is just different and the amount spent focusing on a certain subject may be shorter than before, but a lot more dense.
Well, good luck class of 2020!
