College Shopping List

I’d like to start this post with a story just to get the point across that everything on this list is necessary. Once upon a time, there was a frugal freshman named Betty. She didn’t see the point in wasting money on a bathrobe for college when she would be buying towels. “What’s the use in a bathrobe when you wear it for like, 2 seconds,” she questioned. One day, Betty was walking back to her room in a towel after taking a shower. She was surprised to see two male students arguing outside her door. She was even more surprised when she dropped her keys…right next to them. Needless to say, Betty went to Target the next day and bought a bathrobe. On the up side, I, I mean… Betty, got matching pajamas for free. The moral of this story? Stick to the list! I know it can be daunting, but a lot of places have big sales for college students when it gets closer to move-in day.

• Storage
• Shower caddy (complete with shampoo, soap, toothpaste, toothbrush, etc)
• Q-tips/Cotton balls
• Laptop
• Paper towels
• Rug
  

What to Expect on an Overnight Visit

Overnight visitors and their hosts enjoying cheese sticks from Mad Mushroom (a local favorite late-night snack here) on an overnight before Premier scholarship interviews in February.

High school seniors, you’re probably in the narrowing-down phase of your college search process. You’ve applied everywhere, done some campus visits, and as financial aid packages come in the mail, you and your family are starting to make the most important decision you’ve probably made so far. No pressure, right?

Picking a college doesn’t have to be scary but it should be taken seriously. So how are you ever going to pick just one?!

My recommendation — do an overnight visit to your top few choice schools. If your overnight experience was anything like mine was, your decision will be made for you! (Read a blog I wrote last year about my own college search process here.)

A Community I Love

Here at Transy, the word community seems to get thrown around a lot.  Although words sometimes lose their meaning when overused, this is a word that keeps “building” on itself (pardon the pun).

One of the reasons I chose Transy was to surround myself with this concept. For incoming freshman, I know this can be a deal-breaker (or maker) for choosing a college or university. To help your decision, here are a few of the things I am grateful for and ways that Transy builds community:

1) Resident Advisers: My own experience with my RA (and RAs of friends) has been very positive. The talk circulating the topic of the resident advisers I hear always proceeds my own encounters with them. The Residence Life office has done a remarkable job at choosing students who have innate abilities to: solve conflicts, build community among residents, keep up with schoolwork and ultimately set great examples of what a Transy student looks like.

The Box I Live In: Part 2 – Don’t Let Your Fridge Go Naked

Picture of my room, with me kind of in it, haha!

Caution: Discussing decisions with your roommate prior to large or spacious purchases is recommended. However, you do not need to ascertain whether they like Maroon 5 in order to bring along a poster. Your taste as a whole does not need to merge with whom you reside.

That aside, I certainly advocate bringing posters, but there are also other clever things you can do to make your space unique to you. For one, bring magnets for your fridge. I see so many naked fridges, it makes me shudder. Dress them up a bit! On mine I have quote and painting magnets, a letter from a Transy classmate and friend, and no less than 13 Mad Mush (a pizza place downtown) mushroom-shaped magnets parading around the edge of my fridge – among others. My fridge has character. Yours should too.

Footloose

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The end of your senior year can be an exciting and scary time all at once.

But, before you begin to worry about what’s to come after graduation, focus on enjoying what’s left of high school. For me, there is one thing that I began to get excited about right around this time in 2011: Prom!

I know that many of you are figuring out what you’re going to wear, who you’re going to go with, where you’re going to eat beforehand, etc. I also know that many of you are getting sentimental and perhaps a little worried that this is the last time you will be able to do anything like this. However, that isn’t true!

The Box I Live In: Part 1 – The Basics

When you get to college there is a process you may or may not choose to follow when moving into your designated box i.e., “dorm room.”

This is the box a great deal of your college life will orbit around. Think of it as your personal source of gravity. Essentially, everything pulls you back at one point or another. So, with that said, I wanted to take a moment to tell you a little about my box.

I currently live in a single, which means I have to furnish all the items that you will probably split between yourself and your lucky roomie. So I have a fridge, with lots of magnets on it, microwave conveniently placed on top. I chose not to bring a TV. That was a very personal decision since I love TV, and I have lots of shows that I wish I could watch regularly, but if I had a TV in my room that would totally be my academic downfall. I have known of peers who watch way too much TV and their academics suffer. It’s something to consider, whether a TV is a good idea for you.