1. If you're used to big room, get over it.

Long story, short: Dorms are small. Your space is not your own anymore. Living with someone is probably a new experience for you seniors, but it's not that bad. You learn to adapt fast. You learn how to make the most of the space you have, too.

2. Know the dorms that are available to you.

When I was looking at housing for the first time, I didn't even know that there were apartment-style dorms on campus. Neat, right? On the Middle Tennessee State campus there are two apartment-style dorms: Scarlett and Womack. They're located on pretty opposite ends of campus. Scarlett is four to a room and two to a bathroom. In Womack, you can have a private bedroom or you can share with one person. The mid-campus dorm area is referred to as Area II (this is where I live). The dorms here include Beasley, Sims, Smith, Gracy, and Judd. The layouts in Beasley and Sims are similar, as are the layouts in Gracy and Judd. Smith is the only co-ed dorm in the area. Smith, Sims, and Beasley all consists of one bathroom per floor. In Gracy and Judd, four rooms share one bathroom - so eight people to a bathroom as opposed to a whole floor. To learn more about these housing options and other options on campus, you can visit the housing page at http://www.mtsu.edu/living-on-campus/index.php.

3. If you live in Area II (Beasley, Sims, Smith, Judd, Gracy), get to know the people in the other dorms.

Prior to move in, I became friends with some people and it turned out that we all lived in the same dorm area. I didn't know that until we started walking back from the Student Union building. I'm still friends with those people and we don't usually hang out anywhere other than Area II. I slowly began to meet more and more people who lived in my area and even my building. Get to know the people who live around you. You'll probably have classes with them, so you can study and stress together.

4. Don't be scared to go random on your roommate.

I was originally going to room with a girl from my hometown, but it didn't work out. I was behind on applying for housing, and she had already applied and really liked the dorm she had been put in. We tried to work it out, but it wasn't possible. Instead, I was randomly roomed with someone. My roommate is a psychology major and I'm a recording industry major. Our schedules run in circles a lot. The most we're in the room together is usually when we're doing homework or sleeping. We are friends and we do talk, but we're also always missing each other. Don't be scared to go random because you never know what could happen.

5. Get to know your roommate before you move in and try to coordinate your room.

When I was at customs in July, my mom got the contact information for my roommate. I texted her that day but I’m pretty sure I had the wrong number. When I finally did hear back from my her, we talked a little bit to kind of get to know each other. We also coordinated what we were bringing to the dorm and the color scheme we were going to use..

Coordinating the dorm makes it look nicer. Also, if you have separate fridges, 1) there's more room for your own food, and 2) you don't have to worry about your food being snatched.

6. If you have early classes, set a lot of alarms.

If you have an 8 a.m., set at least two alarms (7 and 7:30). I had one 8 a.m. class this semester and I missed it all the time because I couldn't get out of bed. In my case, I had three: 6:30, 7:00, and 7:30. I'm sure my roommate loved when my alarm went off every 5 minutes, but it is seriously the only way I will get out of bed. If you can help it, avoid 8 a.m.'s at all costs (especially if you really like sleep).

7. L A U N D R Y

You will run out of clothes and your mom isn't going to come around every week to do your laundry for you. If you want clothes to wear, you have to actually wash them. It takes about two hours, but there is a lot you could do in that time. For example:

- homework

- nap

- start a movie

- watch an episode and a half of Grey's Anatomy

- do dishes

- clean your room

- organize something

8. Speaking of laundry, don't be that person who takes other people's laundry out of the machine.

Just don't do it. It's not cool.

9. Don't let community showers scare you.

I promise they're not as bad as they seem. You'll learn to appreciate your bathtub 100x more when you actually go home. After a while, you figure out the groove of how everyone on your floor showers. Once you know that, you'll know the prime time to shower when no one else is in there or when that one good shower isn't taken. My roommate and I have come to the mutual decision that, on the third floor in Beasley, the shower on the left side of the bathroom in the middle is the best. Community showers sound like such a turn off to dorm life at MTSU, but it's really not that bad. I thought it was going to be way worse and everyone tried to freak me out about it. Honestly, they're pretty clean most of the time. Our housing staff does a really good and thorough job cleaning the bathrooms (girls are just really gross and dirty). One of the best things is coming back from class and the hallway smells like bleach. That's how you know the bathrooms have been cleaned.

10. Two words: Shower shoes

That one should be pretty self explanatory, right?? Like I said, the housing staff does a great job cleaning the bathroom, but girls are gross. Shower shoes are a must.

11. Don't leave your hair in the sink.

Or your toothpaste spit. That’s just gross. I’m all for having a bomb hair day, but don’t have that bomb hair day at the expense of your floor mates who go into the bathroom and find your hair all in the sink when they just want to brush their teeth.

12. Don’t play Tetris with your garbage and at least try to clean your room every now and then.

Like I said, your mom won't be coming around to clean your room, so you actually have to do it yourself. Take. Your. Trash. Out. And make your bed. Doing those two things will make you feel better about your room. At least once a month, clean out your drawers and your fridge. It’s like a new start without the full commitment of actually making a new start.

13. The Food.

Okay, so its college campus food, its not going to be the best. You have to figure out the best places to eat. Personally, the James Union Building is better than McCallie’s, but McCallie’s is more accessible. The food courts in the Keathley University Center and the Student Union Building mostly all take meal equivalency. You can find loopholes so you don’t have to spend all of your FlexBucks. Being the end of the semester, I’m finding myself running out of FlexBucks faster and faster. I use my meal equivalency to my advantage as often as I can. If you’re really worried about spending your FlexBucks, just eat at McCallie’s and the JUB.

14. Learn to love the library.

Personally, I can't get any homework done in my room. My bed is usually too distracting. The James E. Walker Library is a really good place to get homework done. It's quieter and the wifi kinda sucks, so you can't watch Netflix and actually have to do work. I don't really know what it is about the library that makes it easier for me to get work done there, but I think it's just because I can't comfortably take nap in the chairs on the second floor.

15. You will miss home.

That’s okay. Call your mom, your dad, your grandparent(s), your sibling(s), your dog. It’s okay to be home sick. College is a new challenge. You’ve probably never lived on your own before. You probably won’t know what you’re doing, but you’ll figure it out. You’ll spend too much money because now you have all of this freedom. Try not to do it too often. Seriously though, call your mom. She’ll be happy to hear from you.