Having made the choice to go to a small liberal arts school in the middle of nowhere, I constantly question what it would have been like to attend a large state school or university full of both undergrads and grad students. I have a couple friends that go to larger schools, so my perception of those schools are molded by blurry snap stories and Facebook albums full of "darties" and dressed proudly in school paraphernalia. Here are 15 things I think big school kids do.
1. They go out every night without a doubt, but they still manage to get their work done.
2. They embrace the work hard/play hard motto without crashing.
3. They have hundreds of friends, and know everyone on campus.
4. They don't know every face at school, but pretty close.
5. It's easy to feel lost at times when the school starts to feel too big.
6. They get away with falling asleep in class, and still get the grades they want.
7. They are all in a sorority or fraternity. Each Society has a beautiful house.
8. They are ALL beautiful people.
9. They spend hours on getting ready. They dress up for class.
10. They take transportation to get to class. Big schools have big campuses.
11. They have "darties" every weekend. They wake up and drink all day and then go out at night.
12. You need to be fully energetic to rally whether it be in schoolwork or a night out.
13. All big schools are in great cities where the restaurants and bars are endless.
14. The "drunchie" game is strong. Pizza after a long night out.
15. All the students are in great shape and work out everyday, and maintain their "drunchie" lifestyle.
All of these preset ideas are only molded in my brain by silly unrealistic movies and wisps of stories that I hear from friends that attend larger schools. A small liberal arts school experience seems so different, but both are great options. Of course, I will never really know what it is like to attend one of these larger schools and I cannot rely on these unrealistic ideas I see on Imsmacked or Snapchat. Hopefully one day I'll have the opportunity to visit one of my friends and see which of these ideas remain true, if any. A college experience is so unique to each person, and some schools are more fitting than others, which is why it is so important to visit each school and choose a school where you can see yourself most. However, college is only four years, it is not your entire life, so even if the school of your dreams doesn't turn out to be what you thought, don't let that make you feel like you missed out on a typical college experience. Appreciate what your learned during those four years and use that knowledge to succeed in your new job.