College/Moving Away From Home

[sapphiratigress]

So I'm supposed to be starting college within the next year. I would love to hear from other people and experiences that you've had. I'm not quite sure everything I might need for a dorm room, and how hard it might actually be. I've heard that freshman year in college is one of the most stressful times for a student, and I'm not looking forward to hearing that. Especially since I'm going to a technical college for computer graphics.

I'm also kind of scared but really excited to be moving away from home. I'm not too happy about living with a buncha girls for 2 years, but hey, I'd rather do it and get it done then wait and have to deal with yippy newbies when I'm 28. Any suggestions?

[joyroos18]

no matter what dont give up. when my son went to college he was not ready for it, he was only 17, he went to a christian school that didnt prepare him for it, they told him the first year you should just drop out, he didnt , it took him 5 years but he did gradurate, and with a 3.36 .... he now has no bills, condo paid off , making 6 digits. doing great.... never let anybody tell you to give up ... and please becareful stay away from the wrong crowd you can tell who they are the ones with no books in their hands.......and always call hom to let your parents know you are doing okay i wish you the very best.... oh and take extra underwear and socks some how they seem to always disappear .

[pcoll]

Moving away from home requires adjusting especially when you are about to live with other people who have  varied personalities, interests,values and characters. I moved into my apartment my freshman year and have rented with roommates untill I graduated...It was a challenge but I would'nt trade it....You learn alot about yourself, and others which I believe is somewhat essential when you venture out into the working world...you are more mature and can handle situation independently and make decisions.....Somedays I wish I was just sheltered at home and didnt have to deal with growing up but in the end it's a plus...............Choose your friends wisely, make wise decisions and enjoyyyyyyyyy

[sapphiratigress]

no matter what dont give up. when my son went to college he was not ready for it, he was only 17, he went to a christian school that didnt prepare him for it, they told him the first year you should just drop out, he didnt , it took him 5 years but he did gradurate, and with a 3.36 .... he now has no bills, condo paid off , making 6 digits. doing great.... never let anybody tell you to give up ... and please becareful stay away from the wrong crowd you can tell who they are the ones with no books in their hands.......and always call hom to let your parents know you are doing okay i wish you the very best.... oh and take extra underwear and socks some how they seem to always disappear .

Wow, that's a huge success story in my book O.O And I'm hoping that doesn't happen to me....at least not with the underwear and socks. I know a lot of guys tend to play a LOT of practical jokes on their roommates. I'm hoping my roommates aren't like that. And I try and stay away from people I know aren't at college to earn the degree. But I do love helping people so I might venture into aiding them get some motivation to WANT to earn their degree, not be there for parties. Since I'm going to a technical school I'm excited because the campus is small so I think I'll learn about most of the people there. Most of them look to be really artsy   which is a good bonus for me!

And thanks pcoll I'm excited to be moving in with other people. The downside is that I've never really liked girls xD Too much drama for myself. I usually hang with the guys. But I'm hoping that they won't be super girly  and want to do my nails all the time  I would drive myself insane if that happened lol.

[LThorn14]

I'm a senior in high school at will be starting college next year as well. I'm extremely excited to see new people and places, but I will miss my old home and family. You just have to look at the long term goal. No matter how hard or stressful college can be you are there so you can achieve your dream job and make good money. Just stay focused! Hopefully I can follow my own advice next year.

[lvstephanie]

Just stay focused!

That is very good advice. When I was going to college, I think that was the major thing that decided whether someone would do well or fail. Once you have moved out of your parent's place, you are definitely in charge of how you spend your days. There are always going to be all sorts of distractions: parties, movies, dating, sports / extracurriculars, talks / presentations, TV, etc. The key is to maintain focus on your school-work without studying so hard that you burn yourself out. The motto my dad told me was to "study hard, party hard", which basically means to focus on school-work during the weekdays but put aside some time over the weekend to let loose, hang out with friends, and just relax. It may help to actually sit down and schedule your week, so that you allow for a healthy balance between school and "you" time. Remember that getting an education should be your main focus during this time -- you don't need to pay thousands of dollars to just go to parties -- so if it comes down to choosing between studying for a major test or going to the 1st screening of the latest blockbuster movie, choose the studying. Also make sure you get enough sleep; although you may feel the need to "pull an all-nighter" to cram for a test, if you have been doing well studying, the late-night cram session will just make you tired the next day and make it more difficult to retrieve the material for the test than if you had just went to bed at a sane time.

I'd also recommend trying to get into sports or some other activity. Going to regular practice sessions can help in maintaining a constant schedule. It also is a great way to meet new people with similar interests. Finally the physical activity can help release stress form your studying. It sometimes helps to clear your head a little, and may allow for "ah-ha!" moments on problems that staring into text-books aren't solving.

You may even need to find your own place to study... My sophomore year our dorm floor had a bunch of students that tended to fool around (TV, video games, etc) so I had to leave my room for serious studying. The library was too quite and I found that I'd get too jumpy; I'd spend more time looking around to see what was going on rather than actually focusing on what I was studying. And if I was reading, the quiteness of the library would lull me to sleep. So instead I found an area in the student center that had enough going on for some background noise but not so much commotion to make it distracting to study. Since you are going to a technical school, there may not be a student union, but a local coffee shop may be something to suit your needs.

Depending on how you learn as well as class rules, you may consider bringing along a micro-tape recorder to tape the lectures. I know I learned best by just listening to the lecture and jotting down just a few notes in class. Then (if I was able to tape the lecture) when I was studying, I could re-listen to the lecture and make more complete notes. It also helps if you start to fall behind; although you may not quite understand the lecture in class as the background material is where you have fallen behind, you would still have the lecture recorded so that when you catch up, you can re-listen to the lecture and understand the material better. Any now with advances in technology, you may consider getting a Flip or some other pocket video recorder to record both the audio and visual of the lecture. If you do want to tape lectures, talk with your professor the first day to see if that would be ok; I've heard of some stories where the lecturer would not allow any type of recording of the lecture and would actually rip out the tape if they caught anyone trying to record the lecture.

[Annella]

Check with the Dorm Admin., and if they permit it, get a microwave AND a hot plate burner. Have one skillet, 1 small and 1 medium sized pot (with lids) for cooking. That's all you need for food preparation. Enough dinnerware for at least 2 people with the cutlery. A cutting board, sharp paring knives and large stirring/serving spoons (only 2 or 3). That will take care of your eating. Oh, and a metal steamer fan to go into the bottom of a pot for steaming veggies, etc. You will be amazed how much you can cook with just this minimum cookware. If your careful, you can eat very healthy. Plastic containers to store in fridge are essential also.

Take hand towels to dry off after showering instead of big bath towels. They do the same job but are smaller to store and to wash. To this day, I still use hand towels to dry off after showering. However, take many wash clothes (for body washing, and others for cleaning). Put all your soap, shampoo, deodorant, toothpaste, etc. in a plastic case all together. That way when you go to shower, you have everything all together in one case. Just grab it and go.

Get a hanging laundry bag with a draw string at the top (don't buy a cheap one as you will be glad you bought a good one that will last). Easy for carrying to the laundromat. Buy soap and bleach in smaller sizes. It's more economical to buy in big bulk, but you will have no place to store it, and it's no fun trying to lug it back and forth to the laundromat on laundry day. Dishwashing soap will work (3 small squirts) for a load of laundry if your out of regular laundry soap. I used it (smaller bottles with a small bleach fit just right in the top of the drawstring laundry sack). That way, your only carrying one thing and not trying to juggle 3 or 4 at a time on laundry day.

Only take 1 or 2 dressy outfits for special occasions. Make sure they are acceptable for ALL season wear. That frees up space for your regular clothes that you wear daily. Get a plastic shoe holder that goes over a door. Saves space and lets you store about 12 pairs of shoes.

Make sure your bedding is not the over fluffy kind. Get a thin quilt to go on top and a good fleece blanket to go underneath that with your top and bottom sheets for the warmer months. In the Winter, a good electric blanket will eliminate the need for more bulky blankets. You MUST get a good mattress pad to go on the mattress. You have no idea what or who has been sleeping in the bed prior. A twin mattress pad (even a thick one) is easily washed in a regular loading machine.

Splurge the extra bucks and get a really good backpack. You'll be glad you did in the long run.  L.L. Bean has good ones as well as Lands End. they have pockets for your laptop, notebooks, books, pens, etc. Everything organized. Keep everything as organized as possible and keep everything in it's place at all times. Believe me, you will make your life so much easier while in college. Splurge on a couple pair of the most comfortable sneakers or loafers (with extra support) for walking around campus. Your feet will thank you in the long run.

Essential:  A good alarm clock (not digital) it will still keep time in a power outage, good reading/study light, fan (desk or clip on), flashlight, hammer, screwdriver that has flat and phillips head (changes). This sounds weird, but you will be surprised how often you will use these tools, and how often everyone will want to borrow them from you. A book light that snaps on your book would be good to have also. Tape recorder as was stated above.

College years are fun. If you prepare beforehand, the rest will come easy.

[jessicak83]

I agree with what Annella said, although the cooking part might be a bit unnecessary depending on if you're paying for the school's meal plan or not.

If you're a heavy sleeper, make sure your alarm clock will wake the dead lol My original one didn't wake me up in time for highschool classes, so my mom and I went in search of a much louder one. So every morning it would scare me to make sure I got up on time.

In addition to the above, I also had a footlocker (from target) and placed it under my bed, in the footlocker would be all sorts of dry goods like crackers, snacks, sodas, waterbottles, etc. And since it had a lock I could keep my roommates out of it lol But they were always begging for something to snack on.
You can restock that either in one grocery trip, or each time you visit home.

As for tools, I also bought a cheap rechargeable drill. This helped us install things like shelves, a bookcase, etc. And when you move out you can either buy something to fill the holes in the walls, or use toothpaste. Also make sure to have a flashlight in case of power outage or night walks.

You might also be required to keep your room clean especially if there is a bathroom attached to it (we had to), so you should make sure that you buy an all-purpose cleaner, and a light vacuum -- we bought a rechargeable one for less than $20 at target.

If you're able to take a tour of the dorm rooms before moving in, it would help you figure out what you'll need. Like, will you need a mirror? Does it come with a microwave/fridge already? Will you need storage space? A way to divide the room so there's privacy? Make sure to take actual notes during that tour of what you might need.

This was 10 years ago for me. Prices of things should have gone down, and most colleges should now be offering virtual tours on their websites of the dorm rooms.

Oh, and make sure that if you're going to/from your dorm room at night that you're either with a friend, or that the path is well-lit. Our college had campus security that would patrol up and down the only path from the dorms to the classes at night on a golfcart to make sure us girls made it back to our rooms safely.

[sapphiratigress]

Okay before I reply to any of this I just want to thank you all. This is really good information for me and I'm really grateful that your letting me in on some tips that could really help me in the long run. I will get to replying to all or asking more questions, I'm pretty sure I'll hit over 30 forum posts before I'm done. I'm already at 27 

[marz32]

I recommend being a teachers assistant, just check out the boards near staff offices. I graded papers and had 20 hours a week at $10 an hour, pretty good money and I could do the work in between classes or on my free time.

[sapphiratigress]

I recommend being a teachers assistant, just check out the boards near staff offices. I graded papers and had 20 hours a week at $10 an hour, pretty good money and I could do the work in between classes or on my free time.

Really? That sounds like a good job. I wouldn't mind doing that, I used to grade papers in elementary and high school. Wasn't that difficult of a job. Of course, since I'm going to a technical school that will probably change lol.

Annella

I don't think I'll have too big a deal with the alarm clock. I have 2 I could possibly use, but nowadays most alarm clocks need either an outlet or batteries. So either way there, I'm basically screwed. My grandmother tried looking for an old alarm clock too, the ones where you just wind it and off it goes! But she even looked at L.L. Bean and couldn't find one. I do have a smart clock that can run on an outlet and switch to battery power if the electricity ever went out. And it resets itself to the appropriate time even if it shut off for a second. That's the only reason I love it.
As for the kitchen supplies, The dorm comes with a stove, microwave and refrigerator and lots of cabinets. So we'll have plenty of space to put cooking supplies and store food. The plastic containers won't be a problem. My family basically COLLECTS them. But I think what I might do is save up and get those Gladware containers that attach to the lids. My grandmother got my mother a set and when she sends food over its not a hassle to try and keep the lid and container together. And the steamer, I can probably just borrow from my grandmother. She doesn't use it much and I only just reminded her of it because I wanted some veggies....FAST. lol I had to use a steamer in Home Ec and I loved it really. Cooked my potatoes in half the time.
The laundry stuff I can understand buying small. But if the beds are what I think they might be like, I think I'll have enough room to store them in, and I can buy a few smaller containers to put what I'm going to use in when I leave for the laundromat. As for clothing? I don't have that much to begin with. Most of it I never wear and plan to rid of within the next month. I basically wear jeans and t-shirts so I could wear one pair and a shirt one day and reuse them for a few weeks before they'll need washing. Gram always told me never to wash jeans, to spot clean them. The denim fits to your body and when you wash them they shrink and you have to rewear them many times to get them back to the way you were and most times they seem not to really fit like the used to. I will be going to a Housing Day down there to check out what the dorms are like in November, so I'll actually be able to see what space I'll be working with. I helped my boyfriend move into his dorm and if its anything like his, roomwise, I'll have more space than I need. I can also see where your coming from with the tools. From my beau's experiences, he's needed a lot of those that he didn't realize he would need. And one most EMBARRASING one that he must go out and get at the nearby walmart. A plunger

[sapphiratigress]

jessicak83

My alarm clock wakes me because I'm quite a light sleeper. I have two different settings I can use it for, radio or beeping. The beeping is irritating but it wakes me instantly. I'm never really a deep sleeper, and in the mornings I'm already half awake anyway. I hate it but it will soon be an advantage.
Hopefully I will be able to do my own cooking, I'd love to take the school's meal plan. But if I cook on my own it will give me more of a reason to make my own creations and create some of my own recipes while being independent. Plus I'll be able to share with the other girls and we can all make a plan to have food ready if we all want or need it. Even if some of us will be paying for the meal plan. There's a walmart nearby so food shopping won't be too difficult.
I give you props for the footlocker thing. That sounds like a really smart idea. I think I'm going to do that, or some version of that anyway. I could always go out and buy a combination lock. But I've got 2 key locks if I need them. Both still in perfect working order. I'm a big grazer, so I don't really eat a ton. I'll nibble on cabbage leaves or crackers or something and it always seems to help my metabolism stay running pretty well. So snacking is a big thing for me.
The tools I'll ask my grandmother to help me with. She knows the best places to get small sizes tools that can do big sized jobs. She's always smart with that. We also have an Army/Navy store downtown that could help me with that. And I don't plan on hanging much, I think I'm just going to invest in a LOT of command strips and just work with that. Then I could just easily pull them off when I'm ready to leave. Some colleges these days won't allow you to put holes in the wall. These dorms are brand new and I don't think they'd allow it. Hence why I want to get a lot of command strips. Also found at walmart. I'm loving the walmart idea if you haven't gotten the hints yet 
I plan on getting Comet cleaner for the sinks and all purpose cleaner for just about everything else. And maybe some Resolve just in case. The dorms are set up as suites. There are 4 rooms in a suite with 2 bathrooms and I would personally like to keep things clean anyway. I'm not a neat freak, but I'm pretty darn close 

[sapphiratigress]

lvstephanie

I've heard that one more than enough times. Staying focused was what they always tell you and its absolutely true. I'm going for computer graphics, so taping lectures would save me TONS of time trying to take notes. Most technology stuff is very complicated and I need to make sure I'm going to be able to keep up with it all. I may miss something they said that could make or break me for studying.
I'm not a big partier, but these day's I'm getting the urge to want to party more. But I don't like dealing with idiots in public so parties or other distractions may not be a big deal. I'd like to NOT keep a television in my room so I don't have that distraction all the time, but I may do it because I like to keep up on the news and such and it could keep me awake when I'm doing homework or what not. It just kind of depends. And I'm not really a big sports person, I've always been more academic with the things I do. But I would love to do volunteer or community work. Plus I'm always open for new things, and from what I've seen there they host a lot of social gatherings so the students can meet one another and make new friends. I've always been quite shy, but when I'm alone and I see someone else just as alone as I am, I usually try to be nice and talk. I'm very open to talking to new people if they approach me. I'm just not one to just go up to a ton of random people and say hi wanna party tonight??? 

[lvstephanie]

A few other things I thought of (esp after reading some of the other posts)...

Depending on the space in the bathrooms, you may have to carry your toiletries in with you when you want to shower, etc. so a small plastic dishwasher basket, esp with a handle, can be used to transport your stuff from the bedroom to the bathroom (http://midwestapplianceparts.com/images/WD28X265.jpg). Also I know the guy's dorm carpeting was notorious for giving you athlete's foot so you may want to get a pair of flip-flops and/or slippers to wear around the dorm. Also, even if your dorm has a fridge, you may also want one of those small "dorm" fridges; you can store cans of pop (or bottles of water, if you're more healthy than I was) in the mini-fridge and open up that space in the regular fridge for your food. Plus the mini-fridge acts as a good end-table. If laundry is coin operated, then quarters are your best friend. Get an empty coffee can and store every quarter you get; if possible, ask for change in quarters (esp if it's only a dollar or two in change; the cashier would mind counting that small amount). Even though you can cook in your dorm, you may still want to get a meal plan, even just a small one; there may be times (esp. during finals week) when everyone is too busy studying to prepare any food. Otherwise I'd suggest making meals that can be made on the weekend, and then stored and easily reheated in the microwave during the week when you have less time. Soups / chilies are great because they usually take some time to simmer (to get all of the flavor to mix throughout) during which time you can be studying or house cleaning, etc. Same with casseroles that have a certain amount of baking time.

When I had mentioned sports or other activities, I knew that sports wasn't for everyone, so I did try to keep it fairly general. My senior year a bunch of friends and I joined a ballroom dancing club where not only was it an activity to get a little extra exercise, but also a way to meet others (esp. of the opposite sex). And the timing was perfect since swing was making a comeback (Cherry Poppin' Daddies; Mighty, Mighty Bosstones; Brian Setzer Orchestra; etc), so we could go out to clubs on the weekend and show off try out our new skills. Volunteering is a great idea; I know a lot of college students join Habitat for Humanity and other volunteer organizations like that.

For your books, you may consider looking elsewhere other than the school's bookstore. Sometimes you can get a used textbook from places like Half-Price Books ([url]www.hpb.com[url]), E-bay, or Amazon for much cheaper than at the school (even if the school also offers used books). The trade-off might be that you can not then go back to the school's bookstore to sell it back at the end of the semester. But for some of your core classes in your major, you may want to keep the textbooks as a handy reference after you graduate. Also some school book buy-back programs won't allow you to write in your textbooks, so if you tend to write notes directly in the book, or highlight certain passages, then you may not be able to sell the book back anyway, so you might as well just get the used book for cheaper at some other location. For major references, you may just want to get new in which case there may not be as much of a difference in price between the bookstore and other shops.

[jessicak83]

glad that helped

if you don't want to spend the money on a footlocker you can get one of those big long tupperware-like storage containers and place that under the bed, but you won't be able to lock it. or you can find a footlocker/trunk on ebay/craigslist. It really helped alot to have snacks around, plus I stored cans/bottles in there too, I also put them beside the trunk under the bed if the trunk was too full of snacks.

As for cooking, some dorms have a central kitchen that you can use in the dorm to cook/bake things. My dorm didn't allow hotplates, only microwaves, but in the middle of the dorm there was a kitchen that we used if we wanted to bake a cake or lasagna. Just make sure whatever cooking appliances you get for your room are allowed and you'll have room for.

Another thing you might want is a small first aid kit, or at least a box of variety sized bandages and some antibacterial cream. So you wont have to head all the way to the nurse if you get a minor cut, a minor burn from cooking, or if you fall and scrape yourself. Walmart offers these in the health area, over in the dorm stuff, and over in the camping section. Walgreens also has some.

Another thing: Power strip with surge protection and possibly an extension cord, outlets are usually in inconvienent places, and if you decide to rearrange your room you might need that extension cord. And if you're using a desktop computer, a cable cord that is 10'-12' (my room didn't come with one and didn't offer WiFi back then).

The only other thing I can think of is hangers. My suitemate (our rooms were joined by a bathroom) forgot to bring some on that first day because she'd folded everything into a suitecase and boxes, luckily for her, my roommate had brought too many and was able to share.