Going off to college is taking a huge leap in life. New friends, new teachers, and a new environment will suddenly replace your familiar zone of high school. In an attempt to help recent high school graduates, (and other college prospects), with this transition, two editors have compiled hundreds of quotes from college graduates, current students, and dropouts to make an advice book: How To Survive Your Freshmen Year.
This “survival guide” is divided into twenty chapters, covering topics like fraternities and sororities, laundry, what to take to college, dorms, and food. Students of Ivy League, private, and state schools share their wisdom about what to do, what not to do, and how to be successful in college while still having fun. This guide is unique in that, because it includes advice from so many people, some opinions even oppose each other. A quote from a student may recommend living off-campus, (“There’s too much going on, everybody’s always messing around”), while another student says that living in dorms “is an essential experience.” Advice is also given about making friends, studying, dating, and studying abroad.
Useful lists are also placed throughout the book. According to the “Top 10 Freshmen Favorites,” the most popular items taken to college are a sleeping bag, guitar, headphones, blender, “blankie”, photos, organizer, cell phone, Bible, and toothbrush. Other lists reveal the current top five best dorms and bottom five worst dorms, as well as the schools with the best parties and biggest Greek life.
Even though I am not packing up to leave for college quite yet, I enjoyed reading this compilation of guidance, stories, and helpful facts. I found it much easier to read quotes from different students than wordy text from one point of view. Many of the students’ views surprised me, while I found myself agreeing with other students’ statements. The various opinions make the book balanced. I plan on going back through the book before I actually do have to pack and prepare myself for college.
How To Survive Your Freshmen Year is the first in the series of Hundreds of Heads survival guides edited by Mark W. Bernstein and Yadin Kaufmann. The editors’ other how-to books include the subjects of dating, moving, and raising a teenager. For more information, you can visit the editors’ website, www.hundredsofheads.com. The book is currently available at Barnes & Noble, Borders, and Davis-Kidd for $13.95.
Check out these quotes from How to Survive Your Freshman Year :
“THINGS WON'T BE PERFECT AT THE BEGINNING. You're going to have a couple of rough months when you're trying to find your niche and remember why on earth you came to college. But give yourself time to integrate, to decide how you want to spend your time, who you want to spend your time with, and what kind of people will complement those objectives. You can drive yourself crazy trying to do everything with all sorts of people or you can try to figure out what makes you happy and who you're comfortable with. But that won't happen immediately. It takes at least a year, maybe a little longer.” (Anonymous, University Of Virginia, Senior)
“I HAD A BATTERY-CHARGED, PORTABLE BLENDER. It was super. It cost $50. I was dorm shopping with my dad, and I said, ‘I need that blender.’ He was like, ‘You don't need a portable blender for college.’ I was like, ‘No, no, Dad, I need that. Take the comforter out of the cart. I need that.’ So we got it. And I made everything in it. A blender helps make friends.” (Casey, Georgetown University, Senior)
“TRY TO BE AS OUTGOING AS YOU CAN. All the people that I'm friends with now I met the first two or three weeks. You end up being closest with the people that you meet early on - because you're all in the same situation, going through the same thing. You're all in a new school, no one knows anyone.” (Chip Jones, Hamilton College, Junior)
“CHECK UNDER YOUR ROOMMATE'S BED for old, moldy food. For two weeks our room completely stunk. People were avoiding my room and I was wondering, ‘What's going on?’ I never thought to look under my roommate's bed. When I did I found an old can of salsa and moldy bread.” (Sierra, Cal Poly San Louis Obispo, Junior)
“THE ROOMMATE-SELECTION SURVEYS never ask questions that are meaningful enough to give you insight into how it's really going to be like to live with someone. So just expect the unexpected and get ready to be flexible. According to the survey, my freshman-year roommate appeared to be a conservative who liked country music. She turned out to be a very dynamic and wild gal who kept me laughing throughout the year.” (K. Harma, Western Washington University, 2001)
“DON'T READ IN YOUR BED; you'll fall asleep. I would read in my bed and I would, obviously, fall asleep. When you're in your bed, that's what you do. And then you start to associate reading with sleeping, so anytime you try to read anywhere, you fall asleep. So, don't read in your bed.” (Bethany, James Madison University, Senior)
“I HAD A PROFESSOR TELL ME ONE TIME that the workload in college is like shoveling snow. If you do a little bit every day, you'll get by. If you wait until everything piles up, it becomes an impossible task.” (Nicholas Bonawitz, University Of Rochester, 2001)
“IF YOU'RE QUESTIONING whether or not to go to a party, you better not go to that party, you know what I'm saying? Kids in college don't have good judgment. That's how you learn responsibility, learning how to listen to yourself. Some kids are like, ‘You think I should go to that party? Because I've got a midterm.’ It's like, ‘Keep your butt inside and study. You just answered your question.’ Learning how to answer your own questions; that's a big part of college.” (Anonymous, Brown University, Sophomore)
“GO FOR THE GOOD TEACHERS and the bad times instead of the good times and bad teachers. I took calculus the first semester at 8 a.m. and that time just sucked. But I had a good teacher and I got an A. Second semester, I took a class at 1 P.M. and it was a hard teacher, and I got a C.” (Amy Sceviour, Georgia Institute Of Technology, Sophomore)
“MY FIRST DAY OF CLASS, a department chair said something that stuck with me. He said, ‘It's possible to go through four years of college unscathed by education. It's a tragedy if that happens.’ He went on to say that college is about challenging all of your preconceived notions; from your personal values to your religious values to your social values to your political values. If you have a real college experience, it should all be challenged. If you don't have the courage to face that, you're not getting as much out of college as you could. Be prepared to be challenged.” (Michael A. Fekula, University Of Maryland)
“THE FRESHMAN 15 HAPPENS TO EVERYONE, and don't believe anyone who tells you otherwise. I guess I learned the hard way, but just because you can take as much as you want in a dining hall does not mean you should.” (Amy, Princeton University, Freshman)
“IF YOU FIND YOURSELF IN THE LAUNDRY ROOM and don't know how to wash your own clothes, do not push the ‘help’ button. This button is for security purposes only; for example, if you are attacked. No little helper will come and help you wash your clothes. Instead, you will sound the alarm and call the police.” (Anonymous, University Of Pennsylvania, Senior)
“EVEN IF IT DOESN'T BOTHER YOU to walk around for a few days without a shower - please, oh God, before you forgo the morning cleaning, please think of the person sitting next to you in class.” (Adam, Elon University, Sophomore)
“ONE TIME OUR F.A. RANDOMLY SAID, ‘I'm going to go to beach to go swimming, you want to go?’ It was 2 a.m. in the fall and it was freezing cold. But we said, ‘OK.’ So we all went: swimming in freezing water at 2 a.m. in the ocean - and I've never felt more alive. You'll never remember staying up and studying for a midterm. What you'll remember is staying up and doing something instead of studying.” (Mikey Lee, Stanford, Junior)
“IT'S OK TO SAY NO. You don't have to do everything the first semester of your freshman year; you have seven more semesters to go. There's time. Pick one or two things that you're really passionate about. Then, go to your classes. Believe it or not, it's why we're here.” (H.D. Ballard, University Of Virginia, Freshman)
“YOU WANT TO KNOW HOW TO GET GIRLS? Respect them. Be nice to them; it's that simple. Forget pickup lines or getting them drunk. In fact, warn them about guys like that. It sounds silly, but be their hero by being nice and thinking of them. Also, never, ever, ever try a pickup line, unless you're just kidding around. They never work. The only pickup line that works is, ‘Hi, How are you?’ It's a legitimate start to a conversation.” (R.B., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Junior)
“I HATE TO ADMIT IT, BUT FRESHMAN YEAR I learned that when my parents tell me something, they may actually be right, and I realized that I should start to listen to what they say, especially since they have much more life experience than I do.” (Stephanie Kleiner, University Of Delaware, Senior)
“DON'T SPEND TOO MUCH TIME with your high school friends. Half my high school ended up going to my college. I was fortunate enough to live on the other side of campus. They're still hanging out with each other. They've never met other people and they all live together.” (R.S., University of Maryland, Junior)
“CALL YOUR PARENTS EVERY SINGLE WEEK, but you don't have to tell them everything. I call my mother on Sundays and talk to her for an hour and I'll catch her up with the things she will not be judgmental about. And the other stuff, I just don't tell her anymore. Pick and choose what you tell your parents.” (Cate, Brown University, Junior)
“SMILE. IT HELPS.” (Casey, Georgetown University, Senior)