Moving away for school is a big point in someone's life, and a hard one. I've compiled a short list of my top 6 pieces of advice on how to make coming to college a little easier for incoming freshmen, all from first hand experience. As my first year of college is (slowly) coming to an end, I've realized I've learned a lot this year, about myself and the relationships I have. Congrats to anyone making the choice to attend a school next fall - no matter the school - I'm very excited for you!
1 || You don't need to buy all your dorm items right away. My school is one of 93 college campuses left still on the quarter system, meaning I don't start classes until late September. I put off buying items for my dorm, like a little ottoman, a bunch of plates, bowls, and cups, and small decor items, until September and bam! Everything was discounted. Places like Target and Fred Meyer that release dorm room specific items will put everything on sale at the end of August. If you can, wait until then to buy what you need.
2 || Hand sanitizer is your best friend. Despite wanting to think otherwise, there are people who don't wash their hands. Keeping hand sanitizer in your bag or backpack is handy for those times you accidentally get some sticky coffee on your hands during a lecture or you've been touching door handles, desks, and chairs all day. These Bath and Body Works small sanitizers are my favorite, aren't they everyone's?
3 || You will be emotional, and that's okay! Moving away to college, even if it's close to home, is a very emotional experience. You're in a whole new place you've never been before, surrounded by people you've never met! It's natural to feel a little homesick, to cry, and feel out of place at first. Hopefully that will change as your year goes on and you settle in and get comfortable. And if you're not homesick or feel out of place at all, that's great, too! Remember you're never alone in how you're feeling.
4 || The perfect phone case can change your life. Seriously. I've had a bad habit of never buying a phone case (oops) until the phone I have right now. That's ended with a lot of broken phones and frustrated feelings. Hands down the best case you could carry with you (as long as you don't lose your phone often) is a wallet case. I bought mine off Amazon, similar to this, and couldn't be happier with it. Walking around campus with a full wallet can be both annoying and can take up a lot of space. This solves that problem! Plus, if you're someone who likes to go out, this is the perfect solution to not carry a purse around all night!
5 || You don't need to buy full priced bedding or designer towels. Let's be real: buying full priced bedding for a college dorm is kind of a waste of money. Realistically, we'll all only use our twin-xl bedding for one year if we can help it. It's a financially smarter move to buy bedding or towels from places like TJ Maxx or Marshalls: I bought a Kate Spade comforter for under $50 at TJ Maxx and a Tommy Hilfiger comforter and two sets of Tommy Hilfiger sheets from Ross for under $75! Towels are the same: a towel is a towel, and you can still buy really big, soft, and colorful ones from TJ Maxx for a reasonable price.
6 || Try not to be hard on yourself, especially your first quarter/semester. At my school, the only students who aren't put on academic probation for not making a 2.5 GPA are first quarter incoming freshmen. It's known that a student's first quarter or semester can be really rough, being that the students are still adjusting to a college atmosphere and learning how to study. College is a lot different than high school, so it's important to remember that just because you didn't need to study in high school or got really good grades, that could (will most likely) change when you go off to school. Don't be hard on yourself if you don't get a 4.0 your first quarter or semester: so many other students are in your position.
I hope you all found this list useful and enjoyable! College can be really amazing, but like all great things, can have some hard points. Making the transition as easy as possible can really make a difference!
Do you have any pieces of advice?
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