Western Illinois University is a college that has over 10,000 undergraduate students. They have 2 campuses in Macomb and the Quad Cities. Western is known to be one of the top schools in Illinois for law enforcement majors. In addition to that, they have 12 signature programs that are accredited. Below are some words/phrases only WIU students can relate to.

1. Q-lot

This infamous parking lot is where freshmen have to trudge through intense wind to get to class and tailgating takes place before football games. The freshman dorms--Bayliss, Henninger, and Tanner are already far away from everything on campus. Q-lot is right in front of the dorms, and it feels like forever walking through it. In order to get to your class on time, leave 5-10 minutes earlier just to walk across Q-lot.

2. No one knows where Macomb is

“Where do you go to school?” “Oh, I go to Western Illinois University in Macomb” After I tell people I live in Macomb, a blank stare comes across their face. I always tell them it’s in the middle of nowhere near the Iowa-Illinois border. Macomb is surrounded by a bunch of cornfields, nothing special around here.

3. Colonel Rock the III “Rocky

This furry four-legged friend can be seen all around campus! On special days he will be at the bookstore or even the library. He attends all of the home football and basketball games. He is even cuter in person and very friendly. Students and fans can pet and take pictures with Rocky!

4. Dining Center Food

I thought coming to college meant good food. After the first week the food becomes boring and bland. In the Bayliss and Henninger dining center at Western they only serve dinner Sunday through Thursday. At Corbin-Olson it takes about 5 to 10 minutes just to get your food. This doesn't even count check out time. In the union there is a bagel shop called Einstein's, but it's very rare not to see a long line there.

5. Tanner Hall Fire alarms

As a freshman, living in Tanner has its pros and cons. The pros are having the computer lab and the c-store. The cons are dirty elevators and the worst is having 15 fire alarms so far in just one semester. The fire alarms wouldn't be so bad if I didn't live on the 13th floor out of 16. Also, if they fire alarms weren't at night and it wasn't freezing cold outside.

I would never change my choice on attending Western Illinois University. Living in this diverse community has given me so many opportunities to grow as a person and within my major. Although the school isn't always perfect, this is my second home. I can't wait to see what the next 3 1/2 years brings for me.