Benn Johnson
High School Graduate of 2010
Attending University of North Texas
Trends Editor 2010, newspaper
College 101:
One of the most common dichotomies I found when arriving at college was that between students who made friends and flourished, and students who floundered and drowned in a sea of people and opportunities. Through very academic observations, I have discovered that there are a several steps to ensuring that you will be in the first category:
1. Don’t worry about comfort; there is time for that after college. If your experience is even remotely similar to mine, you will find that college life inherently results in late nights, difficulty in proper nutrition, loud sleeping environments, and long walks or bicycle rides along journeys which in Decatur, you would have simply used a car. Deal with it. Learning to cope with demanding situations is all part of your learning experience, and it is these tough times that make for great stories, give you many chances to “Carpe Diem,” and teach you that personal comfort should not be your goal in life. This tip is one of the biggest ones I can give you, and if you follow this advice, many of the others will follow without much second thought.
2. DO NOT LIVE WITH A HIGH-SCHOOL FRIEND, AND DO NOT LIVE ALONE. This is a huge mistake, and I have seen it happen quite often; the issue here is not that you keep ties to people you have always been friends with, but that rooming with someone you are used to exponentially increases your probability of not forcing yourself to get out and meet new people. Many students also opt for private or semi-private dorms their first year, but more often than not, the people I have seen who roomed privately made no friends, or very few, and a lot of the time these are the people who end up dropping out or switching schools after the first semester or year.
Your best bet is to ask around in order to find the most active dorm on campus, and room with someone you have never met. Since your roommate will be involved in different spheres of life, she or he will be able to involve you with activities and people you are not used to. Make sure you attempt to make friends with your roommate, even if the person seems like somebody you would otherwise never hang out with. This is one of your most important connections in college.