Showing posts with label high school. Show all posts
Showing posts with label high school. Show all posts
Wednesday, July 25, 2012
Birthday Girl!
Monday, July 16, 2012
Orientation
Okay, whew. The pressure of choosing a college is done. Now it's time to move on to actually going to your college. I actually went to my own orientation three weeks ago, so the experience is pretty fresh in my mind. Let me start off by talking directly to the girls (and possibly some guys, I don't judge). If you're going to a large college with a large campus, or if your orientation is scheduled for a day that is supposed to be ridiculously hot, pack light and wear shorts. My orientation was a two day ordeal, and dragging all of my crap over to the residence hall was exhausting. Not to mention I was in a dress, and you know what happens when you are hot and sweaty and exhausted and your legs are rubbing together in a dress. I was not a happy camper. At the very least, wear leggings. Please, for my sake.
Okay, glad that's over. Now for some general advice. Take a backpack. Number one thing I was grateful for. They gave us a bunch of papers and free t-shirts and information with no place to put everything and little opportunity to return to the room to dump it all in our suitcases.
Next, if you're staying overnight like I did, don't think you need your own pillow if they provide one for you. It was one more thing I had to lug around, and after walking around campus for approximately nine hours straight, I could have slept on the sidewalk, taking my chances with the rapists and the muggers. You won't care if your head is on your favorite pillow.
Be friendly!!! I'm sharing my dorm room with three other people. Two of those girls met each other at orientation. You could meet your future roommate, best friend, spouse, or enemy at orientation. But it's hard to make a good first impression if you're being shy or being grumpy. So be nice and get to know people!
Learn something. After all, that's why you're at orientation. Pay attention to the speakers, but be prepared to accept the fact that you won't absorb everything. The staff at orientation will be the first to admit that they're throwing a lot of information at you, but usually if they cover any important information, they'll give you a handout with everything you need to remember. Don't worry, if you pay attention, you'll be fine. Also, be prepared to schedule your classes at orientation.
Have fun! Yes, you're there to become familiar with the campus, meet people, and learn things. But you won't accomplish any of this if you don't just let go and have fun :)
Overall, go to orientation, have some fun, meet some people :)
Okay, glad that's over. Now for some general advice. Take a backpack. Number one thing I was grateful for. They gave us a bunch of papers and free t-shirts and information with no place to put everything and little opportunity to return to the room to dump it all in our suitcases.
Next, if you're staying overnight like I did, don't think you need your own pillow if they provide one for you. It was one more thing I had to lug around, and after walking around campus for approximately nine hours straight, I could have slept on the sidewalk, taking my chances with the rapists and the muggers. You won't care if your head is on your favorite pillow.
Be friendly!!! I'm sharing my dorm room with three other people. Two of those girls met each other at orientation. You could meet your future roommate, best friend, spouse, or enemy at orientation. But it's hard to make a good first impression if you're being shy or being grumpy. So be nice and get to know people!
Learn something. After all, that's why you're at orientation. Pay attention to the speakers, but be prepared to accept the fact that you won't absorb everything. The staff at orientation will be the first to admit that they're throwing a lot of information at you, but usually if they cover any important information, they'll give you a handout with everything you need to remember. Don't worry, if you pay attention, you'll be fine. Also, be prepared to schedule your classes at orientation.
Have fun! Yes, you're there to become familiar with the campus, meet people, and learn things. But you won't accomplish any of this if you don't just let go and have fun :)
Overall, go to orientation, have some fun, meet some people :)
Saturday, July 14, 2012
Pick Your Poison
The time has come. The time to choose your home for the next four years of your life (hopefully). So where do you begin? To be honest, I'm not an expert. I'm you. I just graduated from high school and I begin my college experience in the fall. But hey, who are you going to trust? The professional psychologist who will tell you about what college should be like, or an actual college student who will be willing to tell you when she screws up? ;) (No offence to anyone who is a psychologist. I'm sure you are nice people)
Okay, to start this blog off right, I want to talk about the very beginning. Actually choosing a college. There are many factors, and yes it is overwhelming, and yes it is stressful (and yes, your teenage hormones will probably cause you to breakout. Twice.)
First: How large do you want your campus to be?
Experience: My best friend and I are extremely similar. We both attended extremely small high schools. We both are heterosexual females between five and six feet in height. She chose to go to a college with about 3,000 students, while my college will have roughly 55,000.
Conclusion: It just depends on your personal preference. With small schools, you get a ton of personal attention and help if you need it. Also great if you come from a small high school and you're used to knowing everyone. However, depending on the school, choices in clubs and classes can be limited. With a larger school, you have lots of activities and classes to choose from. You also have an unlimited amount of new friends you can make and people you can meet. However, it can take a hour to get to class and if you need help, it can be difficult to talk to a professor who doesn't know who you are.
What is most important to you?
Okay, obviously you want to look at all aspects of a college before you decide. But if you're planning on majoring in Bowling Industry Management, you better make darn sure the college of your dreams offers Bowling Industry Management. However, if you're majoring in something general that virtually every college offers, like English (hey, just like me!), then you can pick another focus. Are you an extremely light sleeper who needs specific sleeping accommodations? Make sure you look at the dorms. Are you a picky eater? Better make sure you eat a meal on campus during your visit. Pick what affects your life and make sure you can be comfortable. This is going to be your home, after all.
Distance?
Are you going to get homesick the first weekend or are you planning on moving across the country to get away from home? This can be a tricky situation. My advice is if you have never lived away from your parents before and you're leaning toward the homesickness, stick to a college within your home state. It doesn't matter if you want to eventually be independent, go to college your freshman year and if you love being away from home, transfer your sophomore year. But that's just my advice. I'm not your keeper.
And finally: price.
You can skip this if your financial situation is secure. But if you're like me, you will be going to college on a budget. I'm not going to say much on this subject except fill out the FAFSA, apply for scholarships, and talk to your parents.
I hope I could help in some way! Leave a comment if you're trying to decide on a college or if there's a factor in the decision process I missed. Obviously I already decided on my college, so I'm going to be most helpful with questions pertaining to large schools. But I will keep you updated on what college life is really like, so stay tuned and remember: You can be a college survivor ;)
Okay, to start this blog off right, I want to talk about the very beginning. Actually choosing a college. There are many factors, and yes it is overwhelming, and yes it is stressful (and yes, your teenage hormones will probably cause you to breakout. Twice.)
First: How large do you want your campus to be?
Experience: My best friend and I are extremely similar. We both attended extremely small high schools. We both are heterosexual females between five and six feet in height. She chose to go to a college with about 3,000 students, while my college will have roughly 55,000.
(I'm on the left and she's on the right)
Conclusion: It just depends on your personal preference. With small schools, you get a ton of personal attention and help if you need it. Also great if you come from a small high school and you're used to knowing everyone. However, depending on the school, choices in clubs and classes can be limited. With a larger school, you have lots of activities and classes to choose from. You also have an unlimited amount of new friends you can make and people you can meet. However, it can take a hour to get to class and if you need help, it can be difficult to talk to a professor who doesn't know who you are.
What is most important to you?
Okay, obviously you want to look at all aspects of a college before you decide. But if you're planning on majoring in Bowling Industry Management, you better make darn sure the college of your dreams offers Bowling Industry Management. However, if you're majoring in something general that virtually every college offers, like English (hey, just like me!), then you can pick another focus. Are you an extremely light sleeper who needs specific sleeping accommodations? Make sure you look at the dorms. Are you a picky eater? Better make sure you eat a meal on campus during your visit. Pick what affects your life and make sure you can be comfortable. This is going to be your home, after all.
Distance?
Are you going to get homesick the first weekend or are you planning on moving across the country to get away from home? This can be a tricky situation. My advice is if you have never lived away from your parents before and you're leaning toward the homesickness, stick to a college within your home state. It doesn't matter if you want to eventually be independent, go to college your freshman year and if you love being away from home, transfer your sophomore year. But that's just my advice. I'm not your keeper.
And finally: price.
You can skip this if your financial situation is secure. But if you're like me, you will be going to college on a budget. I'm not going to say much on this subject except fill out the FAFSA, apply for scholarships, and talk to your parents.
I hope I could help in some way! Leave a comment if you're trying to decide on a college or if there's a factor in the decision process I missed. Obviously I already decided on my college, so I'm going to be most helpful with questions pertaining to large schools. But I will keep you updated on what college life is really like, so stay tuned and remember: You can be a college survivor ;)
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