Finishing high school and making the decision to head off to university is a terrifying and exciting experience. You go from essentially depending on your parents for everything to living by yourself... with about 30 other people in a college dorm. You're now fully responsible for your own actions and the decisions you make are now fully your own. No running back to Mummy and Daddy now. This is the REAL beginning of life. Whether you're fresh out of high school or you decided to take a year off from studying to travel or work, moving into a university college is something you won't have experienced before.
At the beginning of 2016, I moved into a college at my university after taking a gap year, where I swore to myself (and my parents) that I would make enough money to afford rent the following year but in the end spent pretty much all of it and went on a holiday. I was fully freaking out a few nights before I moved in about how I would cope not being with my parents and friends and what I would do if I just wanted a cuddle from someone to make me feel better. After all, I had moved roughly 300 kilometres away from home. Mum couldn't just drop everything and drive down to hug me. Time for Jacqui to be a big girl. While I was extremely ready to leave my small town life and begin my journey of independence in the city, it was excruciatingly hard to leave my family, my friends and my pets behind. I was also going from a double bed to a single bed, my own bathroom to shared showers and toilets, cleaning everything myself, shopping for myself, paying my own rent and so many more "adulty" things that I had really never done before. I was prepared for the worst but hoping for the best.
Move in day was hectic. I got lost on the drive there and got really anxious and stressed in the car. It wasn't a great start. But I eventually found the car-park and the college I was moving into. After checking in and getting my key (which was a "lovely" fluro pink wristband), I began moving my belongings into my room which was to be my home for the next 9 months. This process for me was quite easy because I was on the ground floor and I sneakily moved my car close to my building. However, if this isn't the case for you, prepare for a lot of stair climbing and trips back and forth to the car. This was honestly take you an hour just to get your stuff into the room. This isn't including general unpacking. That we take you even longer and you probably won't be fully unpacked for a week.
Saying goodbye to your parents will be really hard so don't underestimate that. I didn't want to cry because I knew it'd make my Mum cry but alas, it happened. I remember hugging her for what felt like half an hour but it really couldn't have been more than a minute. I walked her to her car with my sister and Grandad and waved goodbye, still crying, as they drove away. That night is going to be really hard and in fact, the next few days are going to be tough. You can hear every noise in the building so sleeping isn't going to be easy. You do get used to it though and soon you'll be able to sleep through the parties that happen on a regular basis.
Making friends won't be hard. You're forced to live with these people 24/7 so unless you hide away in your room, which I HIGHLY discourage, you'll get to know your floormates pretty fast. Find out what you have in common with them, even if it's trivial. "You like Geordie Shore?! I love Geordie Shore!" "You're addicted to makeup too?! OMG let's look at each other's collections!" Bond over anything and everything. The deeper connections will come later. Drink alcohol together. Nothing brings souls together than the bond of pure elated drunkness. Play drinking games like "Never Have I Ever" and learn more about each other. You'll find out who the loosest players are and who you'll need to get drunk throughout the year to make them experience the world.
O-Week will kill you. If you don't at least come close to vomiting that week, you haven't done it right. You should be laying on your back, pouring $8 goon down each others throats until you gag. It's tradition Goddammit! You'll dress up a few times, dance like a Dad at a BBQ after too many XXXX Gold's or a stripper. Take your pick. You may end up making out with some random people who you've never seen before in your life and will probably never remember after that night. This drinking will occur almost weekly. Whether you choose to take part in it every week... well that's up to you. Personally, I couldn't do it every week but a lot of people did. You'll become extremely close with the people you've met in O-Week and if you're anything like me, that's who will become your college family for the year.
Living with 30 other completely different people will be challenging. You'll have to wait to use the toilet, the shower, the washing machine, the microwave etc. It'll be a lot louder than you're used to so either invest in earplugs or tough it out until you're better at ignoring it. There's no way to stop the noise. If you're a guy, some of your friends are going to do stupid things which will either get them in trouble or piss you off so try to keep calm and don't punch his head in. That ends in being kicked off college and the end of all the fun. For some reason, you'll probably end up naked in a room with other naked blokes so prepare to see a lot of dicks. If you're a girl, or a guy who hangs out with a lot of girls, prepare for DRAMA. The bitching will be almost constant. You'll have arguments, well probably. People will bitch about you more than once. I have found the best way to deal with it is to just ignore it unless it's REALLY bad. Girls bitch about each other all the time and it doesn't necessarily mean they don't like you. As long as they aren't rude to your face, just carry on. It's not worth it. Living with females is going to be hard for everyone. It is almost guaranteed that someone will be on their period at all times so if you suspect that it is someone's time of the month, just be extra nice and maybe avoid them for a few days.
In your first year of living on campus, you will make some of the most amazing friends you'll ever have. They'll be the ones who make you laugh because they ask "What's a clitoris?" or tell you how deep their love for butter chicken really runs. They'll be the ones who give you a hug even when you didn't ask for one when you're upset and missing home. They're the ones who'll encourage you to leave your room and hang out. They're the ones you just relate to for no apparent reason but you just love them. They're the ones who will stick up for you and look out for you, no matter what. They're the ones who will pick you up in the middle of the night or in the early hours of the morning, just because they want you to be safe. These people will be a part of some of the funnest and best experiences of your life and you'll grow up tremendously with each other over the time you live together. They'll come from all over the state and country and possibly even the world. They're the people you're going to miss the most at the end of the year when it's time to say goodbye and you'll miss them until you see them again in the New Year. Your floormates will become more than just people you live with and more than just friends. They'll become like a family to you. That's what college can do.
So here are the 10 lessons I've learnt in my year living on college.
1. You actually have to adult now.
2. You will miss home like crazy to begin with but it gets easier.
3. Make sure you have people to help you move in because it's going to be physically and emotionally draining.
4. It's going to be LOUD.
5. Don't hide away in your room. Isolating yourself will make your time on college a living hell.
6. Alcohol and partying in a huge part of college culture so if you're not a drinker, it's going to be hard for you. Sorry.
7. Follow in college tradition.
8. Arguments and bitching is just part of it. Try not to get involved but if you do, don't hold a grudge.
9. Living with a lot of people will get really stressful.
10. You'll make so many friends and memories in one year that none of the bad stuff even matters.