How does a college student survive their first day of college? The answer is to be as prepared as you can be. Your first day experience can be daunting and stressful, or it can be fun and easy. The best way to plow into your first day is to grab the attitude of ‘the survival of the fittest’ and just take the deep plunge, the first step for mankind.
‘Life as You Know it’ The First Day
It’s finally here, the day you’ve been prepping for, for possibly over a year. So, congratulations on your making it to one of your celebratory first days. Starting a new day is an everyday occurrence, but you only have relatively a few ‘first’ days in your life. Life as you know it just got a whole lot better; you will survive your ‘first’ first day of college. You got this!
Make It A Great First Day
I know that you are as nervous as a cat in a room full of rocking chairs, bless your heart. Here are some tips and tricks to ensure that you as a college student survive your first day. Let’s make the college transition life as easy as possible.
First
A day or so ago you were moving your things into your dorm room or apartment. You probably had your door wide open carrying things in and meeting and greeting new people. Keep that open-door concept going; live with an open-door policy it’s the quickest way to get people to introduce themselves.
You could also meet someone who is OCD and they’ll start unpacking and putting away your things. Tada! Before you know it all your things will have been put away during an enthusiastic conversation. The point is that talk to everyone, you never know who could be right beside you!
Second
Get yourself situated the night before by unpacking all your things so that you don’t start feeling overwhelmed. Living out of boxes, suitcases or tubs for a few weeks will end up creating nightmares that you don’t want to be dreaming. Not to mention that all these packing containers will take up what small space you are going to be living in over the next few months and years. Just because you’re in Dallas, Texas, doesn’t mean your dorm room will be the size of Texas. Having pictures of family or your fav home décor displayed will help make your new surroundings feel more like home.
Third
Hopefully, you arrived a day or two early, if so, you should have taken a tour of the campus either with a tour group on your own preferably with a campus map in hand. Map out your obstacle course for the day. Know where you are going and take the shortest way to get there.
Fourth
Grab a roommate, dorm buddy or someone you just met and find something to do. This will help ease that home sick feeling that you may get. When in Dallas, TX do what Dallas people do, have a come to Jesus meeting; gather up several people and have a party, watch a movie or engage in a fun game like charades. Make yourself busier than someone in a butt kicking contest, it will make the day go by faster.
Fifth
If you decide on gathering up several people then do make a point to meet as many people as possible. Be open minded and don’t judge by physical appearance because here in the southern states we know that some peoples’ cornbread isn’t done cooking in the middle.
We look at those people and share with them a genuine smile and know that they are going to need your love and help in order to survive college life. You never know who’ll end up spending most of your time with or who’ll be the most valuable in your networking circle.
Sixth
If after you meet a lot of people and they don’t turn out to be good friends, it’s ok. You’ll have four years to make friends, good or bad. And if it takes you awhile to make friends then form a study group, no one says that you must have all the feel goods to help someone out.
Seventh
Family is going to be family, so let Mom, Dad or Grandma fuss over you and do all that they want for you. There will come a day when you’ll be expected to do the same for them and you should.
Let Mom or Grandma call you, bless her heart; she just wants to hear your sweet voice. Let them rattle on and talk to you whenever they want, after all this is a time of adjustment for them as well.
Eighth
Everyone, all the other college students, are just as nervous as you are. People show this in different ways; some are quiet, some are goofy, some are in near panic mode, and some won’t stop talking. I’m sure they are just as worried about not making friends the same as you. They’re possibly just as homesick as you are. It takes a strong individual to up and move away from everything that they have known and start anew. This is an entirely new experience for all those other students that have just moved into your dorm room also.
Ninth
Why not pass out some good old, Dallas southern hospitality; most everyone loves a cookie. Whether you bake them or open a package, it will let other college students know that you are a thoughtful person. A little bit of kindness can go a long way. You never know who is having a worse day than you, so help spread your smile.
Tenth
Your dorm hall will quite possibly be one of the noisiest places on campus. Unless you have a loud family with lots of rambunctious siblings, you’re not going to be used to the noise. Earplugs will come in handy for study time and bedtime. You may even want to pay attention to when it’s the quietest time so that you can plan a short nap. When studying, consider wearing headphones and listening to your favorite songs. If you find yourself singing along instead of concentrating, then find some classical music that will help you focus. They have some great music that is made just to help people concentrate while studying. (3)
Eleventh
Don’t freak about what to wear; be comfortable. Wear your favorite pair of ripped jeans, sneakers, t-shirt and a hoodie. Yes, you’re first day of college will most likely be in August. That’s ok, wear the hoodie; you can always take it off, but you can’t always go back to the dorm room and get it.
Besides, you don’t know which college professor will bump that thermostat down into the freezer zone. Another reason to wear your favorite apparel is that you want your body language to show your confident, comfortable and up for any challenges. You’re gonna want to feel finer than a frog’s hair.
Twelfth
So, what if it’s not the best day ever, you’ve had bad days before and you’re still going out and looking forward till tomorrow. Many college students don’t love their first day at college but still look forward to having a great four years at college. Don’t put too much pressure on the first 24 – 48 hours because tomorrow is a new day. As a matter of fact, the whole first week is Welcome Week and it’s a stressful, busy week.
Lucky Thirteenth
Carry a backpack with a pen/pencil, a notebook, a small first aid kit, chocolate, your favorite snack and drink, your phone (text your best friend, they’ll put a smile on your face), a campus map, some small change like a couple of dollars (vending machines may end up being a lifesaver if you have appropriate change), and earbuds/headphones. These are pretty much the essentials for the first day of college.
All will be OK! Yes, you’ll be overloaded with course information, figuring out your classes and schedule, possibly having to make changes in this schedule and set up a new one, and there will be financial aid issues that may arise. Make the most out of this day, take things with a grain of salt and add a teaspoon of sugar to it, and don’t panic if it isn’t perfect. Tomorrow is the first second day of college.