Being an out-of-state isn’t as glamorous as you think. Sure, your family can’t randomly surprise you by showing up to campus unannounced or guilt trip you when you don’t come home for a long weekend, but it also has challenges that no one prepares you for.
1. Living at the mailroom
This is something people often overlook when preparing you for going far away for college. You will get an insane amount of packages and letters, to the point where the staff will recognize you. Also, if you leave anything at home that you can’t just wait for because that could be as late as the next semester, you and your family end up getting pretty friendly with the post office.
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2. You don’t know where anyone is from
Whenever I ask people where they’re from and they’re from Virginia, they proceed to give me their county, town, high school they went to and the street they grew up on. (As if I know what to do with that information) When I tell people I’m from Connecticut, they look at me like they just remembered Connecticut was a state.
3. Homesickness
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Homesickness gets the best of us regardless of how close or far you are from home, but out-of-state homesickness is different. I don’t just miss my family but I miss the state I grew up in. It’s hard to watch all your friends go home for a long weekend while you’re left to mope and rewatch your hometown friend’s snapchat stories.
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4. Out-of-State tuition
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To be fair, this is probably the biggest struggle of being out-of state. Rest in peace my bank account.
5. Everyone thinks you know everyone in you state
As soon as I drop the information that I’m from Connecticut everyone has to ask if I know their Cousin/Mailman’s dad/ 3rd grade pen pal and the answer is always: No.
As difficult as it is being an out-of-state student, it still comes with some pros such as: living in a new place, always having a conversation starter, appreciating your family more and never running into people from high school. I guess it’s not as bad as it could be.