Wow! Wow! Wow! Everyone should be back to school at this point… unless you’re one
of the lucky ones, but I guess that’s subjective. Being a college student these days is a full-time
job to an ungodly degree. Anyone who is in the shoes of a student like myself or really any girl
doing the majority of her college experience alone without parental support or a trust fund may
align with the same struggles I have encountered. With all that said it’s time to discuss the Ugly
Truth. What we’ve all been dreading coming to the light about university- Moving into school.
Move in day is literally the worst shit I’ve ever experienced with the exception of my freshman
year move in, nothing else compares. Sunshine, rainbows, and outside support all trying
desperately to get a young high school student to college. It is every student’s dream (moving
into their college dorm) yet no one talks sophomore year, junior year, or senior year and
suddenly the students are supposed to have everything figured out that’s ludacris to the nth
degree.
Specifically, at HBCUs students like myself face financial hardships. The office of
financial aid, an office built to help others, is exceptional at doing the complete opposite, not
answering phone calls or returning calls. My relationship with financial aid looks like a bad
breakup and me (the obsessive ex-girlfriend) is banging on their front door in a rain storm
desperately. This isn’t a low budget romantic comedy, this is my fragile financial system that I
11111000% rely on to attend school and not become a statistic. When it comes down to the
baseline financial aid holds up so many students and sometimes it takes weeks- the desperation
surrounding it all is cruel. Students need more control as well as universities need to have a talk
with their aid workers so that students don’t always feel like they are getting the insanely short
end of the stick.
In addition to the added financial burden, can we get real about the burden of not being a
commuter and living thousands of miles away from our college. In my case I don’t live close to
my university at all, and I’m car-less. Not having a vehicle in college is a literal scam and all
parents need to go to jail for it… just kidding- but seriously why am I not driving the car of my
dreams right now. Media set me up with that one because, why was I under the solid impression
that a car would just magically appear out of thin air on my 16th or 17th birthday just by the
grace of the universe or a god? Unfortunately for me there are no car gods because if there were
I’d be a devoted and loyal worshiper. Since I’m not giving communion to a big white SUV with
shiny rims and a pink interior then there is no car god at all. Transportation costs for low income
students of color who never had access to personal vehicles definitely add up to catastrophic
levels. Let’s look at the numbers: if I were to take an uber home round trip for every holiday
including move in and move out costs, it’s well over $1000. The sheer cost of moving my
personal items into a storage unit via lyft and uber costs over $150 and taking the Greyhound bus
is roughly $100-$110 a trip, all added to about $500 in transportation costs, this doesn’t include
grocery trips and paying friends gas money to take you places. When third parties get involved in
the moving process things get unnecessarily complicated, my advice is simply, though it may be
less physically taxing to ask a friend to drive you to and from school in exchange for gas money,
it’s sometimes the better deal to work harder and use transportation like the Greyhound bus.
Including “friends” within your moving process will show everyone’s true colors. If you aren’t
prepared to face the music, then please leave it for another time- stress on top stress isn’t ideal
when it comes to moving and transportation.
Finally, class is in session and the next hurdle we all need to face is Professors. Before we
expand further I present my thesis statement on Professors. Humans have exsited for millions of
years, therefore a Professor a paid human being shall not give a single fuck about your individual
grade or existence. It’s easy to build a repertoire and liking for a professor, especially one who
specializes within your major and teaches multiple classes that you will take. Never get your
hopes up or create an expectation for how you feel a person much less a professor should be
treating you. Okay, story time, at the beginning of last spring semester I had all four wisdom
teeth removed- it was an extremely painful recovery that took about 3 days before I wasn’t in
constant pain every day. My heal time aligned with the transportation time and situation (via
Greyhound), it was going to place me at one week starting school behind from its original start
date. Because of this I had to message my new professors. I sent them my doctor’s note and other
documents provided to me by the medical professionals who gave me care during my surgery.
The additional document detailed my recovery period and the medication I was on that may
interfere with my alertness in class. All my professors emailed me back and agreed to be
understanding amid my rocky transition back into the school year, but the one professor that I
had a history with (a positive one I may add) replied angrily that I was making excuses and being
dishonest about my circumstances. The shock I felt was unparalleled, I had this man as a
professor on at least 4 occasions- he was an advisor and friend… or so I thought! So, to my
surprise I was betrayed, this was more heartbreaking than the “Top Five Worst Anime Betrayals
of All Time.” I had been a great student with only B’s and A’s in every class he had taught,
always adding to the classroom discussion and making meaningful commentary- I felt like I had
done my part but it was all for nothing. This ultimately put me behind a semester he made an
impact in my life deeply simply because he felt like it, isn’t that cruel? Take my advice and
remember trust can only be earned, and never easily achieved.
Back to school is a stressful time period for all of us. Learn from my life and don’t let
outside forces bring you down. Remember that professors are not your friends, and friends will
show their true colors when it comes to helping you in dire times. As a student of color it’s
important to put your academics first and though school isn’t everything it can be the first step
towards goals and aspirations outside of your current situation. Life is a continuous cycle and
even when our world is falling apart the rest of the world keeps spinning. It’s not a rat race but
don’t let yourself get stuck in the collateral motions.
Peace out Sugar Plums!
xoxo, KailyMarie