Hey friends!
It's that time of year again -- the time of excited students, weeping parents (whether it's from joy or depression can vary), stressed out professors, and lots and lots of packing. Today's post is going to hopefully touch on most of the key parts of going back to college.
I write this as I sit in my tiny room back at school, hunched over at my desk on my computer with Disney music playing on my stereo. Yes, I regularly listen to Disney music. Don't hate. That said, I figured while the whole move-in process is still fresh in my mind, I would let all of you know what I have learned from both my Freshman and Sophomore move-in days. If you're going to be an incoming Freshman, I advise you really pay attention because there could be some seriously helpful tips in here.
Honestly, I wish I had found someone who had recently gone through this process so that I could know what to bring and what not to. I'm not talking about the "no toasters or candles" obvious policies, but the "how much clothes and storage and entertainment" kind. I will also talk about dealing with homesickness, time management, dealing with roommates, and getting involved. I'm excited to write this one, so I hope you're excited to read it!
So first, I know that move-in day is right around the corner. I attend Marian University, and our Freshman move-in day is this Friday, August 23. This year, I am going to be a Student Mentor, so I'll be helping all of them get oriented to campus and to college life; I also think this makes me a little bit more qualified to write this sort of blog. It's kinda my job to do this on campus, so why not let other Freshman reap the benefits?? Since you'll be up and away pretty soon, you have probably bought most of what you'll be bringing to your dorm. In that case, I won't go over the major items that you will have all undoubtedly gotten already, such as bedding, school supplies, furniture, etc. I'll just hit on what I found to be helpful to have after-the-fact. In other words, what I found I needed after moving in and had to go shopping for.
#1. A floor lamp.
I had no idea that we had very minimal lighting in our dorm room last year. At night, the only lights we had were above our closets, and provided about as much brightness as two flashlights hanging from the ceiling. The next day we went to Walmart and bought a 5-bulb floor lamp. Word for the wise -- ALSO GET LIGHT BULBS! Yes, we forgot to buy them, so went yet another night with dismal lighting. Lesson learned.
#2. Storage drawers.
One of the most space-saving objects I bought were the stand-up storage drawers. I actually bought two of them. One has different sized drawers for different objects. For example, I used the narrower drawers to store all of my office supplies like post-its, paper clips, command strips (see tip #3), stapler, etc. I'm also an artist, so I put all of my art supplies (paint, palette paper, coloring books) in the larger drawers. The second stand up storage 'unit' only had three large drawers. This is excellent for storing all your non-refrigerated food and snacks. I have also seen students place their snacks in under-the-bed storage containers. Either way, the food isn't randomly placed all around the room, and people can't just grab your food and walk away (yes, it does happen). Bottom line: invest in some storage drawers. You can even get different colors to add some pop to your life!!
#3. Command strips.
This is a college student's life saver. In most, if not all, dorm/residence hall rooms, you are prohibited from nailing things into the wall. This is a pain in the butt for most students, especially girls. I have found that it is way more likely for women rather than men to decorate their rooms and add a personal touch, like hanging pictures or cork boards or even curtains. The downside is that almost always it requires to be stuck to a wall. This is where the miraculous Command Strips come in. They can hold almost anything up, depending on the weight. It's basically like double-sided sticky tape on steroids. There are different kinds as well, depending on the project you are trying to accomplish. This is one thing that I would DEFINITELY not forget to pack. And buy more than you think you will need because you will undoubtedly find yourself using them for more items than you thought. For example, you can hang cords out of the way or stick that bulky surge protector to the side of your desk so it's not hanging from the outlet. Honestly, if you don't buy some of these before you move in, you will find yourself going to a store to find some.
#4. Printer.
I know these things are expensive, but I would have died without mine last year. For the first few months, I took full advantage of using the free printing at the library on campus. I mean, what college student doesn't love free stuff? If you say you don't, you'll learn -- FAST. Luckily, I also got my printer for free as a gift. But it really did change everything. I had been finishing an assignment at 11pm, then running over to the library to get it printed for my 8am class the next day. So lots of late night strolls, which I didn't mind in the least. However, being in Wisconsin, those late night strolls would have been just awful once winter started. Marian is a very small campus, but I still managed to get frost bite on my ear last year when I was outside for just 10 minutes without a hat on a particularly cold day. It was terrifying. Anyways, back to the point. My printer in my room saved me so many late night trips and was really convenient for me. I would try going without one for a while and debate whether you would prefer one or not. Who knows??
#5. Planner.
This is yet another item I cannot live without. I use it for absolutely everything: keeping track of homework, club meetings, birthday dates, planning holiday breaks, even writing down funny jokes I heard during the day. Seriously, everything. On top of that, I also have a calendar on the wall in my room (hung by a command hook!) to keep track of big events that are going on during that day, or writing down when an assignment is due. Now I know everyone isn't as gun-ho about this as I am, which is fine. I don't judge. But especially when you're starting at a new school, it's good to have somewhere to write down everything that's going on that you need to remember: the next baseball game, when Midnight Madness is, when that Calculus assignment is due, etc. Things start to get mushed together pretty quickly, and it can be too easy to miss something important. Having somewhere to write it all down is key. This is also a critical part in perfecting your time management. A major problem that a lot of college students encounter is not knowing how to deal with all the free time they have suddenly found themselves with. Unlike high school, you are not in class from 8am-3pm. You might have one hour here, and then a 3 hour break before another two classes. It's tricky to get into a good routine for when you want to do homework, be with friends, and sleep. And if you add a sport to that mix, it becomes even harder. The key is making some kind of plan for the week; hence, my idea to write things down in a planner!
#6. Comfy chair.
Easy enough to find, right? Most of you will have already gotten one, but for those who haven't I seriously recommend rethinking that decision. When you have friends coming into your room to study or hang out, the limited amount of seating offered is quickly used up. And no one really likes sitting at those desk chairs to watch the latest episode of Once Upon A Time or Game of Thrones. I know there could be limited space in the room to put a butterfly chair, as we have faced this problem as well. The best way to attempt to fix this problem is to think about rearranging the room to maximize space. Loft the beds if you can so that you can fit items underneath them. Or bunk the beds to free up a wall. Do your best, and find some seating areas.
#7. Coloring books.
Yes, you read that right. Bring some coloring books. This is a great way to break the ice with your roommate and newly made friends. It seems childish, but it's amazing. I received a coloring book as my graduation gift, and it was one of the best gifts I received. In fact, my friends and I went coloring-book-shopping to find different kinds. We found an awesome Disney Princess one, on top of the friendly animal one that I was given. There is also a hilarious coloring book on Amazon for pretty cheap called "Unicorns are Jerks", and I got that as a present this year. It only has about 10 pages, but its hilarious. (Also, when looking it up on Amazon, read the comments/reviews. It will make your day). There were a good few months during the school year, on a daily basis, where our motivation to finish our homework would be that we could color afterwards. Then we would proudly hang up our newest coloring page on the wall in our room for all to see. When the year ended, I kept them. All of them. After we graduate, I'm going to take all of the pictures we colored throughout the years and make a scrap book. Coloring books because our biggest stress reliever, and I would highly recommend going to the dollar store and picking up a few!
ROOMMATES
I know one of the biggest concerns for new college goers is whether or not they will get along with their roommate. And let me be the first (or 100th) to say that there is a chance that you will not. There are a few key things that I found to be helpful when getting to know my roommate. Unfortunately, I'm writing this a bit too late for this piece of advice, but maybe if you decide to have a new roommate next year you can heed this little tidbit. When you find out who your roommate is, I HIGHLY recommend calling them as your first move. Don't text, or tweet, or friend them on Facebook. Yet. It's really important to establish the initial contact with a phone call. I'll be the first to admit that I hate phone calls. I am incredibly awkward on the phone, and all my friends know it. There's only about two people I can actually enjoy talking to on the phone, and when we do it's for hours. It's weird. But I took a leap of faith and called my roommate at the first chance I had. Actually, I was on vacation with three of my best friends from high school when my mom called me with my roomie's info. I admit that I put off the phone call for a few days because I was really nervous about it. What if she sounded mean? What if she didn't answer?? Should I leave her a message at the risk of sounding really creepy? "Uh, hi. This is Jackie, and we'll be living together next year. In a room. At school. So yeah, just call me back and we'll talk about, uh, bedding. And stuff. K Bye." Thank goodness she answered the phone, and I didn't have to leave a message. And it was definitely awkward. Neither of us really knew what to say, so we covered the basics: names, majors, where we're from, who will bring what. Actually, a few minutes after we hung up the phone, we started texting each other about other things we needed to talk about, and this went a lot smoother. We actually got along really really well before we even met for school. There was one point during a texting conversations when I knew we were going to be really good friends. We were talking about what we were willing to share and not to share (also a HUGE thing that needs to be clear and precise with your roommate. A lot of arguments can start over this). At one point, I had asked about food. I asked if we were going to share "things", or is it "every woman for herself", to which she replied "well I'll have some, but it's an emergency you can use some of mine". This answer confused me, until I realized she didn't understand that I was talking about food. Think about it for a minute...... (hint: I used the word 'woman', which lead her to go down a different route....) And once I figured out what she thought I had meant, I gently thanked her but told her that I wasn't asking about that. It was pretty hilarious. When my family would ask if I had talked to my roommate yet, I would tell them that I had, and that I knew we were going to be friends. After all, she understood my jokes. That's all that mattered.
Anyways, it wasn't for a few days after talking with one another that we became friends on Facebook. This is also really important because you don't want those awkward/embarrassing/revealing pictures that you could be tagged in to be the first impression that you make on your roommate, and vice-versa.
Once you get to school, it's easier to get to know your new-found room buddy. Perhaps you're an only child and have never had to share a room before. If that's the case, it might be slightly more challenging for you, but nothing you can't take. Or maybe it's refreshing to have someone to talk to. If you've had siblings, hopefully this experience won't be as bad as what your childhood room-sharing years had been like. I got really, really, REALLY lucky with my roommate. We became fast friends, and, soon after, each other's best friend on campus. I know this might not be the situation for everyone. In fact, some of you might have the exact opposite experience. If this happens, you should immediately talk to your RA or a mentor who you can ask for help. Don't be immature and make things bad, because that is the worst thing you could possibly do. Also, make sure that you have other friends and places to go to in case you need some time with other people. Even if you become besties, there can be times when you just need to see a knew face, and that's perfectly okay.
It's okay to be nervous about meeting your roommate, but don't let that ruin your college experience. I'm happy to say that my bestest buddy and I will be rooming once again this year! (Unfortunately, our room is about half the size as the one we shared last year, so that's a challenge we'll have to overcome together!)
GET INVOLVED
From the moment you walk onto campus until the day you graduate, you will constantly hear this phrase. Why? Because you should! There have been studies that have proved that students who get active and involved on campus in clubs, organizations, and/or committees have a higher statistic for staying in school and getting better grades. You should find at least one club that interests you. I recommend going to a few meetings of several different clubs so that you can decide what you like and what you don't. No one is going to be upset if you decide something isn't for you. At my school, they recommend joining one club that's related to your major, and one that you would like to do for fun. The important thing is not just sitting in your room all day and night. Get out there and have fun! And, by 'fun' I do not mean going to parties and drinking until you can't even remember who was at the party. No. Wrong. In fact, I completely discourage this. However, I'm not going to say "don't do it" because I know darn well that whatever you decide to do or not do won't be because of what you have read here today. I only caution that you make smart choices; ones that won't come back to bite in the butt; ones that don't have negative consequences if you get caught; and ones that will make you look like a leader on campus, not a follower. So don't be afraid to go out and get involved in something positive. Who knows, you might even make friends and like it!
HOMESICKNESS
Also another fear that may strike the hearts of incoming Freshman. I am 2.5 hours away from home, so close enough to go back for a weekend if I really wanted to. The problem I had last year was that I didn't have a car on campus, so I didn't go home very often. I honestly didn't find this to be too much of a problem. I never really got very homesick, unless I knew there was a family party that I was missing out on. It also helped that my roommate's family sort of adopted me, so whenever I could I would go home with her for the weekend for amazing home cooked meals, laundry, and family love. Even though I was lucky enough to have this, there would still be some days where I would feel a little homesick. The best way to remedy this would be to get involved. The more you participate in activities on campus, the less time you have to feel homesick.
I know this has been a really long posting, and it took me two days to write it, but I think that it will be extremely helpful to those who are about to start their college experience or going back for another year. I know I am extremely excited to be back at school and I can't wait for the Freshman to come in a few days and to get them excited to be at Marian. I have covered a lot, but no where near close to everything. If you have any questions about going to school, even if you think it's a stupid question, please ask it! I can guarantee that there is someone else out there who is wondering the same thing, and it too afraid to ask. The biggest thing to remember about going to college is that everyone else who's there on move-in day is just as nervous as you are about meeting new people and making friends. Get out there and step outside your comfort zone; introduce yourself to new people, take advantage of new opportunities, and have fun!
Your buddy,
Jackie
