1. You consistently get asked if your school was like Fame or Victorious.

This is one of the first things that people ask me when I say I went to an arts school. And no, it's not really like either of those things, because those are over-exaggerated media depictions that are not realistic. But yeah, it is kinda like that, just on a more low-key level.

2. You’ve never been to a high school sports game.

My school did not have any sports teams, and I never went to other school's games because I had no reason to, so I've never been to a high school sporting event.

3. You knew everyone in your graduating class, probably even your school.

My school had 200 students total. Needless to say, I knew pretty much all of them, and I definitely knew everyone in my graduating class.

4. You knew a lot of people in the LGBTQ+ community

As it is an arts school, my high school was very accepting of the LGBTQ+ community, and a lot of my close friends identified as such. It was really nice to be a part of such a loving and accepting community. I also heard so many jokes about being gay on the daily.

5. You didn’t have the “typical” high school experience.

Needles to say, if you attend an arts high school, your high school experience will be anything but typical. I had Yoga Fridays in my theatre class. We had a piano in our cafeteria. We had dance parties as "warm-up" in class. It wasn't "normal," but it sure was fun.

6. Your school dances were actually fun.

Ok, this one may be a little biased, because I helped plan my school's dances, but still, I think they were pretty fun, especially in comparison to dances at other schools. It wasn't awkward, you felt like you could have a good time even if you didn't have a date, and the majority of the people there were actually dancing. I always thought they were pretty fun.

7. You are used to people being loud and crazy.

Arts students can get pretty crazy sometimes. But you get used to it pretty quickly. So crazy, loud, weird people seem pretty normal to me.

8. You made really close friendships in high school.

I made some incredible friends in high school. All of us already being united by a common love of the arts automatically makes us click faster, and we spend so much time together that we can get really close fairly quickly. I think that many of the friendships I made in high school will last me for many years to come.

9. You’re a great collaborator.

At least at my arts high school, collaboration and working together was a very important part of the program. And as painful as it was at the time, I do think I am much better at working with a group of people from different disciplines because of it.

10. You were really close to all the faculty and staff.

From the cafeteria workers, to our receptionist, to our principal, I was close with nearly everyone that worked in my school. They all really had a deep connection to the students, and we loved them a lot. It was a wonderful environment to be in.

11. Most, if not all, of your friends are artists.

At one point I was thinking about all my friends, and I realized that all of them were some sort of artist. Not only are all of your school friends artists, but additionally, any activities you do outside of school are likely arts related, so any friends you meet there would be artists as well. This may sound limiting, but honestly, artists are such a diverse group of people, that you will have a wide array of friends, even if they are all artists.

12. Your hallways were anything but boring.

From the art hanging on the walls, to students dancing or playing music, the hallways in an arts high school are always filled with wonderful creations.

13. You had some pretty eccentric teachers

Your arts teachers especially may be a little bit odd. But you love them all the more for it, and sometimes that's what makes them such great teachers.

14. You were used to having friends that lived far from you.

I lived an hour away from the arts school I went to and there were some people that literally lived an hour from the school in the opposite direction, living nearly two hours away from me. Needless to say, meeting up with friends was a bit challenging. But we made it work.

15. You actually miss your high school.

I know that a lot of people don't miss their high school once they're in college, but I really do. I am loving my life at college, but my high school experience was so special that I do really miss it. My experience at my arts high school is something that I will always carry with me, and I will be forever grateful for it.