It seems like just yesterday I was an awkward freshman getting ready for the big move in. Before you take the plunge into the best four days of your life, pretty much everyone from older siblings to family friends reliving their frat days has some advice to offer you. Sometimes you receive gems, like tips on how to navigate a gross cafeteria or where the best study spots on campus are, but sadly that’s not always the case. Here is a round up of the worst advice incoming freshman receive. Read More »

The mere thought of shopping for college fills me with a great deal of excitement. I picture myself hopping from Bed, Bath and Beyond to Target to Harmon Beauty Supply, loading up a shopping cart with the essentials, some indulgences, and those must-have cutesy items to make my dorm room feel like home. My mother and I are all smiles and giggles as we go from aisle to aisle, looking like we walked straight out of The Donna Reed Show (except with up-to-date outfits, of course).

And then we actually go shopping.

You see, my mother is the Jewish mother. She makes all other Jewish mothers look negligent. Although it is purely out of the kindness of her heart, when we go shopping, she seems to be stocking up for an underground bomb shelter. She goes for the ultra-massive-enormous bulk pack instead of the three or four I’ll actually use during the school year. She does not seem to understand that I’m not going away forever; there will be times during the year when I’ll come home with an empty suitcase, only to fill it up with more supplies for my room. Plus, every store I could possibly need is within walking distance from campus. Read More »

You’d think that receiving the coveted package in the mail on December 15 (for which my mom hunted down the mail truck like a lion chases a gazelle) officially kicks off high school senioritis. Yes and no; while getting into my dream school early decision helped alleviate my college process-related stress, I didn’t consider myself a victim of full-blown senioritis until Tuesday at 1:05 p.m., when the last midterm exam of my high school career ended.

And I have to say, this is one disease that I know I’m going to love.

All throughout high school, I was your typical gunner/overachiever type, pushing myself to get A’s and throwing a fit when I received anything lower. There were unfortunate times, usually around exams, when I sacrificed my social life in order to study. Looking back, I realize that my obsession with grades was unhealthy and I am not proud of it, but since I achieved my goal of getting into my number one college, I choose not to have any regrets about high school. What’s done is done; now is the time for moving forward.

In that very spirit, from here on out I plan on letting my hair down and doing all the things I never had time to do. My first order of business, of course, is sleep. I’ve also got a lengthy list of books to read, some TV shows to catch up with, a guitar to jam on, and – most importantly – some witty writing to crank out on Microsoft Word. Read More »

Ok, the first day of class is always a bit daunting. Everyone is looking at what you’re wearing, where you are sitting and if you have any breakfast stuck in your teeth.

It’s worse when it’s your first day of college: you’ve never stepped foot into these rooms before, your classes are ALL OVER THE PLACE, and there are so many upper classmen in there…staring at you (and the breakfast stuck in your teeth).

I could tell you it’s not that bad (because it isn’t!), but you wouldn’t believe me. So in an effort to help those of you who are stepping into the lecture halls for the first time, I’ve come up with some ways to survive…and avoid looking like the lost freshman. Read More »

In a little under two weeks, I am going to college. Between the time I received Wellesley’s acceptance envelope and this very moment, I seemed to go through two basic emotions: excitement and terror. Excitement for the obvious reasons—no more telling my parents of my every location, no more taking classes just to make my college application look good, and no more dealing with the social drama of public high school, especially being around fourteen-year-old freshmen who think they know it all.

But wait.

Now it’s my turn to regress back to being a freshman, to leave the comfort of seniority to once again be pushed into a world where I am at the bottom of the ranks. This drop in status happened in middle school. It happened in high school. And I have no doubt it will happen in college. Read More »