In approximately a month from when this article is put up online I will have finished all of my undergraduate coursework and will be on my way home, never to return to Kenyon as a student again. Wow! Strange! Let’s not think about it! Instead, please enjoy this list of tips and tricks I’ve compiled from a range of my own and others’ experiences.
1. Check your schedule! Not realizing you are registered for the wrong class, the class you thought you dropped, or classes that won’t fulfill your major can (and does) have serious consequences. Don’t spend an extra semester here unless you really have to.
2. Explore the trails beyond the observatory! It’s a magical area.
3. You can request graphic novels from other libraries through the Inter-Library Loan system.
4. If you have a car, check periodically (try for once a week) to make sure it turns on and that the tires aren’t deflated.
5. The seat in the exact middle of the second row in the Bolton Theater is the best one in the house.
6. If you get nervous about finding a table of people to sit at in Peirce, challenge yourself to sit at a table with others at least once a day.
7. Take Title IX training seriously.
8. If there’s nothing going on in the Community Foundation Theater (in the basement of Gund Gallery) go and watch a movie on the big screen with a couple of friends.
9. Go to as many theatrical events as possible! Being at college (especially here, in my somewhat biased opinion) is a great way to see high-quality live entertainment at little to no cost.
10. Similarly, keep an eye out for music majors’ presentations and recitals! While not super well-publicized (unless you know the person involved), these are a great way to hear excellent music.
11. Try warming up cookies in Peirce’s panini presses (chocolate chip are my favorite for this).
12. Annoyed by ambient noise in the library or other study spaces but don’t want to listen to distracting music? Try this ten-hour long white noise video.
13. If you end up living in Mather sophomore year, it’s not the end of the world! The rooms are decently sized, the upper-class area is generally nicely quiet, you’re close to friends in Caples, and you’ve got laundry in the building.
14. Looking for a place to study after the library closes that isn’t Gund Commons? Try lower Peirce or Peirce Pub. They’re well-lit and have nice large tables to spread out on.
15. If you write for Her Campus, don’t start articles after your usual bedtime on the day they’re due. (This applies to all writing but feels especially relevant to me right now).
16. At the beginning or end of the year when the weather is nice, spend a day with friends exploring the Ariel Foundation Park in Mount Vernon.
17. Want coffee and a tasty pastry but are itching to get off campus? Go to Happy Bean in Mount Vernon.
18. Take Phys Ed. classes! Most of them are only half a semester and are a great way to get school credit for working out. You can take up to .5 credits worth, which, spread out over one or two years will help if you want an easier load senior year.
19. Weaver Wednesdays are great! There’s always free food, and if you go enough times you get a free shirt.
20. Want a mocha and bagel from Wiggins but don’t want to pay? Put some hot chocolate mix in Peirce coffee, add some chocolate sauce, and toast a bagel, then head downstairs to a couch.
21. Don’t wait until your last semester to finish that one diversification requirement you’re least looking forward to.
22. If you’re up late working on something, take a moment to brush and floss your teeth! You’ll feel refreshed.
23. At some point, get up to the observatory when they have an open house (or take Astronomy) and look at the moon through a telescope. It’s beautiful and mind-blowing.
There you have it (them)! Twenty-three (my age, entirely uncoincidentally) loving suggestions, and only the tip of the iceberg! Enjoy your time here kids.
Image Credit: Writer’s Own