College 411
By Kate, age 18, New Hampshire
Sweet Designs Featured Writer
It's a brand new year! School year, that is. Some of us are in our last year of high school while others, like me, are just starting out at college! It can be scary and exciting, but for all you future college kids out there, I'm going to prove that the fear is all in your head!
First things first: move in day. Depending on the college, it might be different. Each college does its own thing. For me, move in day was a Friday, and all the way until Monday was orientation for the freshmen.
Moving in was pretty exciting. I got to finally meet my roommate and set up our room! It was a bit of a challenge trying to figure out how to organize things so we had enough room, but we managed, even in the 90 degree heat! Be sure to bring LOTS of water and Gatorade! You will be glad you did!
Orientation for me consisted of lots of group activities. You know, the usual team building and trusting exercises. I met a lot of people, though, and had a lot of fun. Typically, I can be a shy person. But at a school with not even 300 students total, it was hard to hide in the corner. And everyone was really friendly, anyway, which made it easy to fit in.
Classes were easy enough to get into. My professors are all really laid back and they each had their own syllabus, complete with a list of dates that things were due, etc. It was so helpful for me and helped me keep organized and on top of things.
I also love the freedom we have. We're finally treated like adults. My teachers don't mind if we swear, and they often join in too. We have some really interesting conversations, but it makes it fun because we can express ourselves the way we want. Of course, this freedom comes with responsibilities and respect. We can't just get into fights and swear at people. That's not nice, anyway!
One thing I was most worried about, though, was getting along with my roommate. I will admit, we are very opposite. She isn't someone I can ask for relationship advice or anything, but we do have fun and we put up with each other. As long as you can respect each other, you shouldn't worry too much about it. If there is a problem, though, most, if not all, colleges do have options where you can talk to someone and switch roommates if you want. Of course, that is something you have to do yourself. You're an adult now, so you shouldn't expect people to just fix things for you.
Relationships: one of the biggest things in college. My advice?
1. Don't come into college with a boyfriend already. Chances are, you will meet some truly awesome people. I have already met a really sweet guy and we have been dating casually.
2. Outside of college boyfriends are also hard when it's long distance. It's hard to see each other, and let's be honest, he's probably meeting some cool girls, like you're meeting guys. Do you really want to have to worry about that?
3. Don't jump into anything right away (unlike me!) I'm not official with the guy I have been seeing, but it also wasn't what I expected. There's going to be so much going on the first few weeks - let yourself adjust to your new surroundings and schedule. Don't stress yourself out!
Don't forget to have fun! Know your limits, and remember - you're an adult. Yes, you have a lot of freedom. But you can also get kicked out. Don't lose your head. There are plenty of people who will understand that. The people who don't obviously haven't moved on from being high schoolers.
So go out there and enjoy your college life! And for the seniors in high school, make sure you pick a college you will like! You are paying to go there - make sure it's worth your money!
