Heading to college as a first-year student is scary enough as it is. Now imagine moving to a college campus where your class contains over 4,000 students when you came from a high school where your graduating class contained 36 students. I knew I would have to transition to a large campus, but I didn’t realize just how big the transition would actually be. Moving from a small town to a large college campus, these are the top 10 things I have had to adapt to.
10. Noise
Before making my move to Iowa City, I didn’t realize just how quiet my hometown really was. I took how relaxing the quietness was for granted until I moved to here. In Iowa City, you walk outside and you hear the constant hum of cars, shoes hitting the pavement and conversation coming from all directions. It’s not a bad thing, but it sure is an adjustment.
9. Unfamiliar Faces
Back home, I couldn’t leave my house without running into someone I knew and being greeted with multiple hellos. Here in Iowa City, there’s way too many people to know. I didn’t realize I would miss that until I moved. Just remember, adjusting to not having so many familiar faces around is normal and not weird at all.
8. Shopping & Restaurants
Back at home, if I wanted to go shopping or eat (and have more than one or two restaurant options) I had to drive at least 20-30 minutes to get there. I grew used to planning an hour of drive time, along with how long it would take me to shop and/or eat. I grew so used to it, I would plan an hour of drive time just to go get an iced coffee every once in a while. Here in Iowa City, I am overwhelmed with how many options there are within walking distance or a short bus ride away.
7. Directions
I have always been a directionally challenged person, but I rarely use my GPS when I’m driving back home. There’s not a lot to learn and figure out, so when you’re from a small town, you figure out directions rather quickly. I feel like I have barely made my way around campus and downtown Iowa City in my two months here. When going anywhere new, which is most of the time, I tend to rely on Google Maps for directions and approximate arrival time.
6. Diversity
There’s not much diversity where I am from. Most of the population consists of white Americans that grew up in that area their entire lives. In Iowa City, especially the University of Iowa campus, it is quite the opposite with a ton of diversity. There are so many different people here and I have learned so many things because of it.
5. Public Transportation
I had no experience with public transportation before moving to Iowa City. It is not provided where I am from, so I have always driven myself everywhere. Understanding the public transportation system is fairly easy with the Bongo app, but it’s still a difficult adjustment. I’m just not used to relying on a schedule, that isn’t my own, to get me somewhere.
4. So Many People
Adjusting to having so many people around is difficult. There’s someone around me nearly everywhere I go. I’m constantly running into people. On campus, there’s more people in my classes and more people I’m sharing a living space with. I guess I didn’t realize how there were fewer people around back home.
3. Little Personal Space
Like I said before, there’s a lot of people on campus. Back home, when I went to class I sat in a desk that’s positioned 1 foot away from all desks next to mine. In college, I sit elbow to elbow in most of my classes. There’s rarely lines for anything back home, and if there is a line, it’s easy to avoid most of the time. On campus, and in larger cities in general, there just isn’t as much personal space. I’m not saying that the University of Iowa Campus feels claustrophobic, but it is an adjustment for people from small towns who aren’t used to being so close to strangers so often.
2. Walking vs. Driving
I learned how to drive at the age of fourteen and could drive with my school permit at the age of fifteen. Ever since I could drive, I drove literally everywhere. I didn’t rely on buses, and walking would take too long since I lived about five miles from school and work. Driving is the only way to get from place to place in a small town. Moving to campus without my car has been an adjustment. I became so reliant on my car, that it feels weird to walk a mile to go to a club meeting. On a side note, not having to spend money on gas is a huge relief.
1. So Much to Do
One of the biggest complaints people from small towns have is that there’s almost nothing to do. Here on campus, there are so many things to do all of the time for little to no money. There’s always signs everywhere and flyers constantly being handed out. There’s something for everyone!
There’s no doubt that being a first-year student coming from a small town moving to a Big 10 campus is scary. There’s so many things happening, many of them being new experiences that we have to take time adjust to. I hope this list comforts other small town first-year students that you are not alone in this adjustment, and also prepares incoming students on what to expect!