The University of Georgia (in my complete honestly, NOT BIASED AT ALL, opinion) is the best school in America and probably the world. The campus is huge and beautiful, and not to mention parallel to Downtown Athens, which is home to some of the most amazing restaurants (did someone say Chicken in Parchment???) and boutiques a college student could ever ask for. If you are lucky enough to be in the 55% that got in last year, you know that you are already start the best 4ish years of your life. The student body is so diverse, from frat boys to artists to the boys who do Parkour in Tate, but there are a few things that ring true for all UGA 2020 students.
1) You or someone you know was personally victimized by recruitment THE FIRST WEEK WE WERE HERE.
Rush is literally the worst thing girls will ever be put through. You just moved out of your house, you're about to start school, but instead of being given time to transition, you are forced to wake up at 4 am, walk in a huge herd of girls, and get rejected every single day for a week. Maybe it's the long days, maybe it's pure exhaustion, but for me, and every other girl I have ever talked to, rush was a scarring experience. 10/10 would NOT recommend.
I realize now I am one of the annoying people that says "trust the system!", "it works!", but in the moment it is truly torture. In the end, it does work out for most people, it definitely worked out for me, but I still stand by my opinion that rush is the absolute worst.
2) You have tried and failed to use the bus system.
There are no words to describe the bus system. "Terrifying" and "saw my life flash before my eyes" probably come pretty close. There are SO many buses with SO many routes. One minute you think you're on the way to ECV to get a personal pizza, then the next you realize you're actually on Family Housing and will be casually riding around campus for an hour until you get back to the bus stop that you started at. I realize there is an app with all the routes and times and whatever else those buses do, but sometimes, you don't have time to look at your phone. You just have to get on the first bus you see and hope for the best. Also, can we talk about the feeling you get when the bus you see the bus you need to be on speeding by you after you just got out of class? The worst.
2 1/2) You have probably almost been hit by a bus.
UGA likes to give their students plenty of opportunities to work around campus, whether it be in the dining halls, at welcome desk, and oh yeah...DRIVING THE BUSES. From what I understand, you basically just have to be nineteen with a clean driving record. I am 18 years and 11 months old with a clean record, and there is no way I could actually drive a bus. I'm sure this program has many advantages, like helping college students earn money, duh, but it does have a few pitfalls. For example, if you haven't been nearly killed by a UGA bus, I'm not entirely sure you are even an enrolled student at the University of Georgia. The drivers literally do not care at all, and if you value your life, you will run every time you see a flash of red and black coming towards you. Also, if you have your car on campus, you have probably almost been side-swept at least once while you were trying to exit your lot/deck. I'm 99% sure a bus I was on grazed a Mini Cooper once. It kept going.
3) You thought you would be fit af because you walk everywhere but you're still chubby.
The first week of school, I was out of breath every time I got to class because everything in Athens is miraculously uphill (#brumbybutt) and exactly 13 minutes away on Google Maps. Naturally, I took that as my invitation to eat everything in sight and not gain a single pound. That was mistake #1. Turns out, if you eat 5,000 calories a day and walk for 30 minutes, you'll get fat. Even though we totally should be, UGA students are not immune to the freshman 15.
4) Tests make you question if you should even be in college.
If you got accepted into UGA, you are probably used to consistently making A's. You plan to keep your streak in college, receive every scholarship possible, and graduate early. Then your professors are like LOL no.
I don't know who hires the professors here, maybe it's Satan, but for some reason, several of them do not understand the concept of "If the whole class fails, maybe they are not the problem." Even if you do have a good professor, you have to pay attention for the entire hour, take good notes, and study for hours to even think about passing.
God bless the curve.
5) Dining halls are a blessing and a curse.
But really, how many times did you hear "let the big dawg eat!" at orientation? You and your parents were all "Wooo! Free (not really) food!" Then you get to college and you realize you are not, in fact, a big dawg and you actually get tired of the dining halls fast.
There are so many options in the dining halls, and so many dining halls to choose from. But no matter how good O'Hacienda is, there are only so many chicken quesadillas you can eat before you start missing actual restaurants that do not contain hundreds of students and long lines.
Not to mention, they are SO UNHEALTHY. You can either get a pizza or a salad, and the pizza is warm with melty cheese gooey yumminess, and the salad is two pieces of wilted iceberg lettuce. Also, where is the fruit !!!! I am tired of apples !!!! We want grapes !!!! We want strawberries !!!!!
6) You have had to lurk outside of your building to get someone to claim you.
There's nothing quite like getting out of class, walking miles upon miles with a ten pound book bag, and finally making it up the hill.... only to realize you don't have your student ID. You get to check in 7 times before you face 'consequences', but since I suck and am physically incapable of keeping up with my ID, I used these all by September. So then, you have to wait outside and wait for your roommate or some kind stranger to say 'they're with me.' You walk by the front desk people even though they most definitely know by now that you live in that building and 'residents aren't supposed to claim other residents.' I know it, they know it, we all know it. I am really glad that the dorms are safe and they aren't letting serial killers in and everything, but at the same time, I paid for this shoebox, and if they know I live here, why can't they just find it in their hearts to let me in the building?
7) The crosswalk by Bolton gives you anxiety.
"Wait...wait....wait.... Walk sign is on for all crossings... Walk sign is on for all crossings....10...9...8....7....."
This crosswalk singlehandedly decides whether you get to class on time or not. You get ten seconds to cross the entire intersection, and if you miss it, you're stuck waiting for another 5 minutes for every single light to turn green. Most of the time, you'll be walking down the hill when you see it counting down. You have two choices: either wait, or take off in a dead sprint to get across before time runs out. You will always choose #2, and you will also always run out of time. Then, you're in the middle of the intersection when the light turns green, and everyone hates you because you ruin everything and you only give yourself 7 minutes to get to class on time.
8) You have been #blessed by Cane's.
I didn't know if Raising Cane's was an Athens thing or not, so I did some research and apparently there's a million all over America. BUT, there's not one where I'm from and there's not one in Atlanta, which is where everyone else is from, so whatever. Nothing says "Athens" quite like Cane's. For about $7 you can get a little piece of chicken-finger-break-from-the-dining-hall heaven and it is also conveniently located 5 seconds from all the dorms and also 5 seconds from Milledge. It stays open super late so if you have late night cravings or need a study break, Cane's is there for you. If you haven't been there yet, you should probably just drop out. Jk, just go and take me.
9) You have been sick since move-in day because the dorms are as old as our parents.
There are some that are much older, but all of the high rises were built in the 60s, which is also when some of our parents were born. Not only do we get prison cell bedrooms and community bathrooms, we also get 50 year old dust to ensure that we will have a permanent cold. I guess it's pretty cool that our dorms are ~historical~ and if you asked a 65 year old alum what dorm they lived in, they might say "Russell." Too bad that does not make up for the fact that I will probably be coughing until the day I die.
10) Going home is THE BEST.
Going home is like going to visiting all your adoring fans. (OK, just my parents.) You get to snuggle with your mom and your dog and you get to hear your dad's jokes. You get home cooked meals, just the way you like it, and the fridge is probably stocked with your favorite things when you get there. You don't have to shower with shoes on, and you get to sleep in a bed that is NOT a twin and NOT on stilts. Everything is familiar to you. Even if you have work piling up, and you should be studying for a test, writing an essay, and finishing a project, you feel like you have no worries and you can finally relax. Honestly, best feeling in the world.
11) ...But you can't wait to come back.
As amazing as home is, there is no place like UGA. This is your home now, too, and you miss it when you're gone. You can't wait to see your roommate, walk by Sanford on the way to class, and go to Menchie's when you get too stressed. You have your own little routine, your own little life made in Athens. They say all roads lead home, and you know yours have started to lead here.
