Dear Collegiettes,
I’m not going to lie— college can be a scary place. You’re surrounded by people who you don’t know, going to places you aren’t familiar with and basically living a life that you’ve barely had any prep for. It’s an adjustment to say the absolute least. You may think that you’re leaving your high school self behind completely, but sadly, life doesn’t work that way. She’s following you to college, and if you aren’t careful, it could be in a pretty awful way. Because if you didn’t party in high school, you might not be prepared for all that college has to offer.
Maybe you didn’t go out in high school because of strict parents or maybe it was because of your own values. Whether it was a choice you made yourself— or not— doesn’t cancel out the fact that it can leave you stinted as to how to navigate the college social scene. You definitely don’t want to be the clueless freshman at a frat party! So here are a few hard and true guidelines to keep in mind as you stumble through the first couple weeks (hopefully not too drunkenly!)
Buddy up.
Always. It’s rule number one. Never go alone, never leave alone, heck, don’t even go to the bathroom alone! The best party conversations happen in line at the bathroom anyway! Find a friend who you can trust not to bail on you and stick with them. It’s safer and a lot more fun that way.
Test your limits.
If you’ve never had alcohol except for that one sip of champagne at your cousin’s wedding, you do not want to dive all the way in without care. That’s how people get hurt, and nobody wants that to happen. Use your head above all else. Take breaks between drinks to acclimate to how they’ll affect you, make sure to eat before hand and try to drink less than what your first instinct is (at least at first). You can always get more after if you think you can handle it, but once you’ve downed that fifth shot, you have to live with the consequences.
Have a backup.
Sometimes we do everything right and things still go wrong. That’s college for you, and that’s especially college parties. Maybe you lost your group, maybe you’re getting sick, maybe your feet are killing you and you just want to go home. Always make sure you have a way to get yourself out of a situation if need be, whether that be calling an Uber or having a designated friend on call to save you if you need to GTFO. (Pro tip: if you’re not sure where you are exactly, share your location with a designated friend from the details menu. They’ll find you. GPS is a magical gift.)
Know there’s time.
Everyone is guilty of this at some point or another in college, but we get into a habit of thinking there isn’t enough time for everything. It’s easy to try and load up on every party, especially when you haven’t had any. It’s practically like eating a cupcake after a cleanse, you want it very badly. But know that you have plenty of time. Four years in fact! Four years of parties await you, there’s no need to try and pack them all in the first semester. More cupcakes will come, don’t worry.
Think.
You’re brilliant. That’s why you’re here. And no one will ever know your life or your body like you do, so ultimately, every decision is your own. That means you need to make those decisions wisely. Even when it’s hard, it’s important and you can do it.
So maybe you didn’t party in high school, but this is college. You can be as independent as you want to be now. Just be safe and be smart. You’re going to do just fine and you’re going to have a lot of fun!
Sincerely,
Someone who was in your shoes