Wednesday, May 23, 2001
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Wednesday, May 23, 2001 |
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Advice for the college bound By MICHAEL
BOYLAN Graduation is this week. So, to all of the graduates, congratulations and good luck. Here is some advice for the college bound. Buy some shower shoes. They look like flip-flops and they will keep you from getting nasty bacteria on your tootsies. There were some incidents with some unhygenic people on my floor during my freshman year at college and shower shoes became necessary. Try to be clean when it comes to food. You will undoubtedly have food in your dorm room and you will almost certainly not eat it all every time. It is therefore important that you dispose of it in a timely fashion, otherwise milk becomes cheese and bread becomes the early stages of penicillin. Pizza boxes may make a great end table, but if they still have cheese inside them it will eventually turn. Make an honest attempt to manage your time wisely. You will stay up late on some occasions and you will sleep late more than once, but it is important to not make a habit of either. The key to this is naps. If you have longs breaks between classes, nap. It will become your greatest ally in your quest to have a fulfilling academic and social college career. Meet new people. There will be friends and acquaintances from high school with you at college and you will hang out with them at the beginning, but familiarity breeds contempt and eventually you will meet other people from other circles. This is not saying that you should ditch high school mates or that you can never remain friends with them, but don't choose them over new experiences. You may regret it. A year in the dorms is probably enough. Use them to get adjusted to school and your colleagues, but get out as soon as you can. You don't need dorm-sanctioned events (or the people who attend them on a consistent basis) to have fun. College is time to grow up and nothing says grown up more than sharing rent and other bills with friends. This will most likely mean getting a job, which, contrary to popular belief, is not such a bad thing. Now, some random bits of advice. Party, but never too often or too hard. You will break that rule, but you'll wish you hadn't when you do. Never go anywhere alone at night and don't let others go anywhere alone at night either. There are ways around it and people willing to help so that nobody gets hurt. Keep your books in nice condition to sell them back at the end of the semester. Do the same with your CDs, which can be sold for quick cash when you need it. Be careful of maxing out your credit card. It can be your best friend or your worst enemy and, trust me, you'll want it to be your friend. Study hard and do well in school. It's not as hard as you think and good grades are really their own reward, as is the money you will most certainly get from relatives when you make dean's list. And finally, be true to your school. If you think your high school has school spirit, wait until you get to college. If you like that sort of thing, it will forever link you to everyone else who has ever attended the university. (Go Dawgs!) Have a safe summer and a great time next year. I had a blast in college and you will too. |
