When I was a freshman, my upperclassmen friends warned me of the loneliness associated with junior year. They spoke of a depressing school year in which one had no choice but to wallow in the absence of best friends and classmates. It would be a year spent in resentment of said friends as they provided unsolicited updates on their glamorous adventures abroad.
Well, two year’s later and here I am – a junior stuck studying in South Bend while many of my friends have abandoned me for European adventures. While I can find no fault in their decision to travel abroad, as I did myself over the summer, I have learned that the social routine I developed throughout my first two years of college is due for an update.
Already a month into the new school year, I have resorted to renovating my social habits in an effort to not resent my friends for seemingly having more fun than me. Having found success with some of my initiatives I feel obligated to share them with my fellow classmates who also chose to stay home and study “abroad” under the dome this semester.
If you have previously studied or traveled abroad, get prints of your photos to frame or hang up in your dorm room. Keep the memories of your trip abroad at the forefront of your mind, as these photos will serve as reminders that, even though your friends are abroad right now you’ve had the same experience. My roommate and I studied abroad in London and Dublin, respectively, this summer and our walls are filled with photos from our travels. These photos also give us license to brag about our summers when our friends visit our room.
I find that this first step prevents feelings of deep jealousy towards your friends as it helps you to realize that although the timing is off, you all get to have, what is for many students, the time of your lives. However, these memories are not ones you should keep to yourself. Be sure to share your study abroad “do’s and don’ts” with your friends who are traveling outside the states. Advise them on what’s worth seeing once and what they should do every week. You’ll quickly find that when they do post those glamorous Facebook pictures you’ll find yourself happy that they had fun because of your tip rather than feeling resentment that you’re stuck under the permacloud of South Bend.
Be sure to stay in touch with your friends. Although our generation is more than capable of handling social media, I have discovered that we are better at keeping track of status updates than we are at using it to contact our friends. That being said, utilize Skype or Oovoo’s video chat and start using email again for snail-mail like updates rather than keeping current on your favorite clothing stores’ promotional deals. You might be jealous of your friends’ adventures, but I can assure you they are also jealous that you’re back on campus as well. Everyone wants the best of both situations, so by sharing your experiences with each other you can reach this goal by living vicariously through each other.
Don’t be afraid to branch out and expand your social circles! Your friends abroad are making new friends, so why can’t you? Make the extra effort to introduce yourself to your classmates. Do a group project with people you’ve never met before, and chances are you’ll meet somebody who needs another friend as much as you do. The good thing about this whole melancholy junior year is that everyone in your grade is affected by the study abroad phenomenon in some capacity. There will even be students who have just returned from study abroad willing to share stories and gush about the beautiful scenery that they miss, and students missing their friends as much as you miss yours.
Take up a new hobby or join a new club you’ve had your eye on since freshman year. Writing for HC is one of my new outlets along with the Irish Club I signed up for at activities night in homage of my summer in Dublin. Not only can these additions to your schedule improve your resume, but they also give you a chance to rub elbows with people who share your interests. It’s easier to enjoy your on-campus semester if you’re doing something you love.
Hopefully these tips can help you avoid the “bitter train” this semester and the next, as you ride out the rest of the lonely months of junior year. There is no denying that college is different when your friends study abroad, but that certainly doesn’t mean it has to be any less fun. Being adventurous isn’t confined to European countries and exotic locales, so start embracing the advantages of studying “home under the dome.”