Although many colleges and universities boast about an absolutely scrumptious menu on their dining plans, students often choose to abandon school-made food and instead prepare their own. It’s a big change, especially for those students who are typically not as self-sufficient as their more independent classmates. Yet, it is a worthwhile change, and one that, ultimately, will leave college students feeling like happier, healthier adults.
I decided that I no longer wanted (or, really, needed), a university-designed meal plan after my freshman year. Don’t get me wrong; coming into college, I was excited about the array of options presented to me. I had not researched them extensively, but I knew that there were at least 15 different chain and college-exclusive eateries where I could swipe my student ID and be presented with much needed sustenance. The promise of a quick and ready-made meal was enough for me, and with my busy class and work schedule, I didn’t have to worry about what I would eat from day to day.
Yet, as first semester came and went and second semester freshman year reared its ugly head, I became overwhelmed with obligations, constantly tired and was consistently searching for any opportunities, no matter how small, to change my monotonous routine. Although I did not eat the same meal every day, the restaurants themselves never changed. The atmosphere and quality were always the same, and I found myself settling for certain foods on the basis of hunger rather than actually wanting to eat them. I was worried that eventually I would simply start skipping meals due to my lack of enthusiasm, so I instead decided to make a change.
I applied and was hired for a job teaching drama at a local performing arts studio, which meant that I would have ample funds that would support me on what I anticipated being a challenging endeavor (spoiler alert: it wasn’t); cooking my own food. As soon as I got my first paycheck, I wrote a grocery list to last me through the week and hightailed it to Kroger. I ended up only spending about $30, which is the same price as about 3.5 meals on my university’s meal plan.
After my grocery shopping adventure, I ate like college student royalty. I made pasta, burritos, Chipotle-esque veggie bowls, lasagna — anything with relatively simple ingredients and a fairly short cook time. The possibilities seemed endless, and still do to this day. In addition to being less repetitive, cooking for yourself is a lot healthier. Now, I can control how much sodium and sugar goes into my food and cater to my dietary needs. I am a vegetarian and find quite often that university restaurants do not have an overwhelming amount of veggie-friendly options. Additionally, I am lactose intolerant so the ability to substitute regular milk with almond milk in certain dishes is a Christmas miracle.
Overall, not having a meal plan is a fairly inexpensive way to insure that you can eat and prepare food that you actually like. It’s a bit more work and takes more time than simply swiping a card, but I can promise that it’s worth it in the end.