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Home > 10 Things I Wish I Had Known Before I Went To College

10 Things I Wish I Had Known Before I Went To College

April 13th, 2008 at 02:31 pm

1. I know you think you want to be a veterinarian, but you don't. You'll realize when you get to college that organic chemistry with 600 other students, well, it kicks your butt. But just think about it, do you REALLY want to be jerked out of bed in the middle of the night to go tend to a birthing cow? (You know how much you like your sleep.)

2. Dorm life isn't all that bad, enjoy it. You'll be itching to get your own apartment as soon as you move in to the 7 x 15 space that you are to share with your roomie, but don't rush. You'll miss alot of good times (I don't want to ruin any surprises, so I'll just say "slip-n-slide", "hobo man", and "electric checks". There will be some priceless, cozy, Sunday afternoons spent with your new BF, too. So when you're trudging down 15 flights of stairs for your first fire drill at 3 AM, remember that it's worth it.

3. Those straight A's you got in high school, they ain't happenin' in college. First of all, get off your pedestal and crack a textbook, because professors don't care if they cover it in class or not, it's gonna be on the exam. And stop laughing at the people walking around with index cards flipping in front of their face, if you were smart, you'd have your index cards, too.

4. Your scholarships will work out, so don't waste a BEAUTIFUL day at the end of your freshman year to re-apply to as many as possible. Even though nobody will tell you that the scholarship you have is automatically renewed for 4 years, it is! So go ahead and go home for a visit that weekend, instead of holing up inside your bedroom with your laptop.

5. As a matter of fact, don't be in such a hurry to move out of your mom's house. They have plenty of extra bedrooms now, and if you feel so independent, then just buy your own groceries. Take the your $265 portion of the rent and stick it in your checking account, you'll need it.

6. If you finally do get that apartment with your roommates, be careful. Jumping on that old mattress in the parking lot probably isn't such a great idea, I don't care who is doing it. Also, even though you know some Spanish from high school, it's probably better not to yell "fiesta!" across the parking lot to the Hispanic population a few buildings over. Oh, and watch your clothes... one of your roomies is a thief.

7. You'll have an array of jobs in college, but most will serve their purpose. That job at the dairy farm, where you think you'll gain priceless experience for your vet school application, will actually turn out to be okay. If you can trudge through getting up at 2 AM to go herd cattle, and then suffer through 3 inches of standing water in the parlor as you milk them, then all your future jobs will seem like pieces of cake. You'll also have some valuable memories and friends from here... including a few with that same BF you've been dating. (Just a helpful hint here - when you two get the Gator stuck at 2 AM in the middle of a dark field, taking off your muck boots to wedge underneath the tires won't work, your feet will just be cold.)

8. Be careful with those credit cards. I know there are times when you'll have to use them, like when the towing company has your truck locked up in their shady parking lot. But just realize that it's not going to be as easy as you think to pay it all back. Even when you're working full-time and making much more money, you're also going to have to move to an area with a higher cost of living. Use them if you must, but try to cut it back to the bare essentials of spending.

9. You will graduate, even early. So don't pull your hair out when your computer locks up scheduling classes. Whether you get into that Advanced Agricultural Economics class this semester or not, it will all work out, and you'll end up very happy with your results. You'll land a great job, and be started on (I hope) a terrific future. You've got good credit, so you'll just have to pay down your debt, and you'll be in great standing, especially for a 22-year-old from a poor family. You're the first to graduate college, and you did it with a full tuition scholarship. So cut yourself some slack sometimes, and enjoy your college life a little more.

10. And lastly, I've mentioned your BF a few times here. The reason? He's still gonna be around 4 years from now. Yep, that boy that's still in high school now, the one that you can't quite figure out, he is a keeper. You'll fight, you'll cry, but in the end, you're good together. I know you don't want to hear this now, but just know that as you stumble through these early parts of your relationship, you'll one day hold his hand and picture the day you'll marry him, and what your kids will look like.

That is all. Big Grin

3 Responses to “10 Things I Wish I Had Known Before I Went To College”

  1. Amber Says:
    1208101462

    You are so rigt when you said "professors don't care if they cover it in class or not, it's gonna be on the exam"
    I love number 5, even though I am well over the college age and living at home...I am saving as much as possible fr a nice down payment. Some times mom drives me crazy but look at all the money I am saving

  2. pjmama Says:
    1208101700

    haha. Living at the parent's house IS so much cheaper, I did it for the first year and a half. I was so much better off when I moved out, personally (that had more to do with my mother though). College jobs are interesting indeed. I dug my hands into raw meat and poultry for 3 years... cant say I got any valuable career experience from it though. lol.

  3. reflectionite Says:
    1208226440

    i loved this entry, it's great. very entertaining Smile

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