The 6 Things I Would Like To Share With Incoming College Freshman | The Odyssey Online
Start writing a post
Sports

The 6 Things I Would Like To Share With Incoming College Freshman

What I wish I had known coming into my freshman year.

2
The 6 Things I Would Like To Share With Incoming College Freshman

Going to college is a huge deal. It is life changing. Yes because you are about to embark on some of the greatest and hardest four years of your life- but also because you are expected to pack your whole life up and move into a room that is the size of a nice walk in closet. Here are some things that I wish I had known as I headed off to my dream school in the warm September of my freshman year.

1. The shoes

Your mom told you, the “Going to college: What to NOT Pack” articles told you, and even your gut told you. But you didn’t listen and you still took all 33 pairs of shoes to college with you. You thought you’d honestly need all your shoes (rainy day boots, cute date night sandals, work-out shoes, and the one pair of Sperry’s you wear 24/7 plus 29 more pairs). But in reality, you only wore six pair for one whole semester. Mom is always right, duh. Plus, the bins piled full of shoes and stuffed in the back of your dad’s stereotypical SUV did look kind of ridiculous on move-in day…

2. The Vacuum

It may stay in your closet, it may get used daily, it may even have not been on your packing list. Either way I am telling you straight up that vacuuming you dorm room can turn a blah day into a yay day. And I know you're like, “Emily, you are nuts,” but guys, seriously, there is no better simple joy than having a clean, tidy, and freshly Dirt-Devil vacuumed room. Trust me!

3. The Dining Hall

If you go to a small private school like I do, there is only one dining hall. When you visited the college, you may have been pretty impressed with the selection and taste. But things change, and soon you resort to either the salad bar or the cereal every time you eat due to lack of “good” choices. It is what it is… I mean, sometimes on a Tuesday it would be pancake bar day (which is fabulous), but other times, you just have to go with the flow and be unimpressed by the dry chicken. In reality, you have food. Some people don’t have near the food you do. Stay blessed.

4. The Stapler

There is nothing to say here except if you’re a late night paper writer, the last thing you want to do is trek to the student union (OK, two-minute walk for me) to staple your eight-page paper on "Breaking Bad" at midnight. Plus, socks and Birkenstocks with P.J. shorts probably won’t get you any cute boys phone numbers.

5. Speaking Of The Cute Boys

I guess I always have high expectations? I know there are awesome, generous, fashionable men of God on our campus… but I haven’t met them yet. I thought I would meet some breakfast-food-loving-kinda-hipster-kinda-preppy-boy in Starbucks one day, but I never did. Besides, freshman year is for getting study habits down, adjusting to the college life, and finding groups or clubs you want to join. Oh, and also doing your own laundry.

6. The Little Weird Things

Your roommate snores really loudly sometimes. You call your parents just to see how their day was because you miss them -- and didn’t have any other excuse to call. You shower at 6 A.M. before you check you school e-mail, only to get back to your room and find out your 8 A.M. is canceled. You Facetime your dogs and feel no shame. You ask a boy to the Pacer’s game, he comes, you have a great time, you like like (like in third grade) like him, and then you find out a couple days later he is dating someone?? (It happens. I guess?) You find out that your best days are the ones where you carve out quite time for Jesus in the mornings. You decide that 11 P.M. on Thursday nights is best used for spontaneous C-club runs for ice cream with your best friends. You realize that Girl Power Pandora station is probably the best pump-up jams ever before going through recruitment or getting ready to go to a formal. And finally, you actually miss your little brother. Who knew?

Report this Content
This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
campus
CampusExplorer

New year, new semester, not the same old thing. This semester will be a semester to redeem all the mistakes made in the previous five months.

1. I will wake up (sorta) on time for class.

Let's face it, last semester you woke up with enough time to brush your teeth and get to class and even then you were about 10 minutes late and rollin' in with some pretty unfortunate bed head. This semester we will set our alarms, wake up with time to get ready, and get to class on time!

Keep Reading...Show less
Student Life

The 5 Painfully True Stages Of Camping Out At The Library

For those long nights that turn into mornings when the struggle is real.

1300
woman reading a book while sitting on black leather 3-seat couch
Photo by Seven Shooter on Unsplash

And so it begins.

1. Walk in motivated and ready to rock

Camping out at the library is not for the faint of heart. You need to go in as a warrior. You usually have brought supplies (laptop, chargers, and textbooks) and sustenance (water, snacks, and blanket/sweatpants) since the battle will be for an undetermined length of time. Perhaps it is one assignment or perhaps it's four. You are motivated and prepared; you don’t doubt the assignment(s) will take time, but you know it couldn’t be that long.

Keep Reading...Show less
Student Life

The 14 Stages Of The Last Week Of Class

You need sleep, but also have 13 things due in the span of 4 days.

882
black marker on notebook

December... it's full of finals, due dates, Mariah Carey, and the holidays. It's the worst time of the year, but the best because after finals, you get to not think about classes for a month and catch up on all the sleep you lost throughout the semester. But what's worse than finals week is the last week of classes, when all the due dates you've put off can no longer be put off anymore.

Keep Reading...Show less
Student Life

Top 20 Thoughts College Students Have During Finals

The ultimate list and gif guide to a college student's brain during finals.

160
winter

Thanksgiving break is over and Christmas is just around the corner and that means, for most college students, one hellish thing — finals week. It's the one time of year in which the library becomes over populated and mental breakdowns are most frequent. There is no way to avoid it or a cure for the pain that it brings. All we can do is hunker down with our books, order some Dominos, and pray that it will all be over soon. Luckily, we are not alone in this suffering. To prove it, here are just a few of the many deranged thoughts that go through a college student's mind during finals week.

Keep Reading...Show less
Student Life

28 Daily Thoughts of College Students

"I want to thank Google, Wikipedia, and whoever else invented copy and paste. Thank you."

1537
group of people sitting on bench near trees duting daytime

I know every college student has daily thoughts throughout their day. Whether you're walking on campus or attending class, we always have thoughts running a mile a minute through our heads. We may be wondering why we even showed up to class because we'd rather be sleeping, or when the professor announces that we have a test and you have an immediate panic attack.

Keep Reading...Show less

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Facebook Comments