Week 6: Organizations

Hey y'all! So, this week I want to talk about student organizations on campus and the pros and cons of being in them. Before I start, I definitely want to make it clear that I think everyone should join student organizations on campus. I used to be "involved" in many clubs in high school, but I didn't actively participate in them. However, I suggest in college you should join 2 or 3 clubs you are willing to put time into because you have to pay money to be in most clubs and they all require active participation to be a member. But, only join clubs that interest you. There is nothing wrong with picking 6 or 7 orgs and then narrowing them down to which ones actually appeal to you and speak to your personality. They are a great way to make new friends, but they also help you discover what you don't like. I am having somewhat of a hard time right now because I have no idea what I want to do, so I tried to be in a myriad of different clubs, but that did not work out. I tried out for some pre-health orgs, but they didn't work out. However, I am in some orgs on campus that I joined through friends and acquaintances I knew from before, like MSA, UMR, TX Thon and DQCH.

These are various organizations that help in hospitals, pediatric patients, refugees, and a religious organization. I have already met people in these clubs, and I hope to meet many more. But, speaking of the other clubs, some application processes were unsuccessful, and others were too demanding for my liking. School will and always has come first for me, so be mindful of how much time you are actually willing to put in when applying. There is a lot of free time in college outside of classes to be in social activities and events, but those can pile up and leave you no time to complete assignments or study (and trust me, you learn that very quickly), which is why I recommend 2 or 3 clubs. They look great on resumes and leadership positions always boost your standing as well. Many people start clubs on campus, but there are already 1300, so thinking of other unique ideas can be tricky for incoming students. Nonetheless, I encourage everyone to pursue and explore the different orgs on campus, go to the tablings during the semester, attend info sessions, and meet people that may help you in the future. College is a networking game, and being in service frats or reputable organizations definitely benefits people in getting internships, resources for graduate or professional school, and jobs. And if you are like me, someone who does not enjoy parties, student orgs are a great place to interact and learn about new things. You have four years to decide what you enjoy, but that won't happen if you don't try new things in the first place - so be open-minded and cognizant of that while you sign up for organizations. Good luck and I hope you have fun!!

Week 5: Living in a Dorm (1 month update)

So, I've been living in a dorm for a month now and I am SO glad I am not living in an apartment right now. Initially I really did not want to stay in a dorm because of the cramped space, but honestly it was a good choice. My dorm is not that small (I live in Duren), and it honestly feels like a hotel sometimes. It's so clean, nice, and private. I even have my own bathroom that I just share with my roommate, so that's the cherry on top. I posted some pictures of my room in my Week 1 post if you would like to see. Honestly, even though I am not completely living on my own, making my own food, or having to clean everything myself, living here has made me grow up a little, develop some responsibilities, and prioritize my tasks. You don't actually realize the small things you constantly need, like paper towels, when you are at home. And if you're like me, someone who never did chores and luckily had the stuff I needed most of the time, living alone is a wake up call. Making sure your roommate is comfortable, setting boundaries with each other, and dividing up the living arrangements take a lot of work and energy to be honest. However, the most important part is: EATING. Every college student is busy, which is why I am glad I have a meal plan on campus because I don't think I would eat if I had to make my own food. It is so time-consuming, so when you are in a dorm, please take advantage of the dining halls. Many people on campus complain about the food, but honestly there is so much variety. I live across from Kinsolving, and the food there is so good. Also, keep the fridge and snack bars stocked in your room because you will get hungry very often, especially because of the amount of walking we all have to do on UT's campus. Furthermore, having a set schedule on when to clean is important too because the room can get messy FAST. I'm pretty lazy, like I haven't made my bed since August, but I really do make an effort to keep the rest of the room organized. I think my dorm is allowing me to get a good balance between complete adulthood and slowly gaining responsibilities. I have to do a lot on my own, but I have some benefits, like no bills, cooking, and maintenance. Also, the location of my dorm is great too because it is close to many restaurants, in case I do get bored with dining hall food, and it isn't too far from my classes either. Doing research beforehand and planning out where the best place to live during your first year of college is something I highly recommend doing because it really affects your experience. I am glad I tried something out of my comfort zone, and actually listened to my parents for once by opting to live in a dorm. I have friends in apartments who wish they lived on campus because the vibe is just different. I really enjoy it, and I think every first year student should live on campus because it is a good balance; if I had to become a full on adult my first year, I would be such a mess right now. I hope this helped some of you who are confused with deciding where to stay when you come to UT. Trust me the easy accessibility to everything really makes a difference, especially on this campus!

Week 4: Readings

Okay, so this week is really hectic because the first exam season has started, so everything is just crazy. Today's post won't be that long, but I want to talk about reading in college. It is hard. You have to be able to break up your reading, and plan it out because you cannot do it in one go. I literally had to read a 130 page play, an article, and the textbook chapters all in my first week of college. I almost had a breakdown. I got it done, but it took me forever. An important aspect of college that I have heard from many people is that you need to learn how to skim. Skimming does not mean fake reading, but running your eyes over the reading, and noticing important items in the reading is key. A lot of the readings just need you to understand the main idea and concept, but it requires hard-work and skill. In high school I know many people just don't read or look up summaries online, but in college you literally cannot do that. For many classes, reading the textbook is important because professors who teach the course write them (which is terrifying). I just have a few tips for reading and they are:
- Plan it out
- Read a few pages over the course of a few days (sometimes this isn't possible, but when it is use it to your advantage)
- Take notes so you don't have to reread all the time
- Actually read/skim, don't rely on other people
I always did the readings in high school, and now of course in college, but it definitely comes with a learning curve and I have to change the way I work because I am so busy now.

Week 3: Laundry

So this week was pretty hectic and long, even though it was just four days. I stayed home this weekend, it was my first weekend in Austin. Not going to lie, it was pretty boring because most of my friends went back home. Saturday night was pretty fun because I went to the first event for one of the organizations I am in, Muslim Student Association, but I will talk more about that in another post. Sunday was SO boring, I literally stayed in my room with my roommate. Honestly, I was so stressed out with all the work that I had that I was just feeling really blue and lazy. I just went out to eat. I have this annoying urge to always do something productive, and not stay still, so even though I was extremely tired, I decided to do some work. The task that I chose to do was laundry. I know it seems pretty lame that I find doing laundry something worth writing a post about, but for me it was something I had never done on my own before and I had to learn on the job. No, I did not use Google or call my mom for help, I really wanted to do it myself. Doing your own laundry is a part of "adulting," so I knew I had to do it sooner or later. I was running out of clean clothes, so I decided to experience another part of college life and being independent. My roommate and I went to our laundry room, which is downstairs in our residence hall, and we had such a hard time finding an open washing machine because there were so many people in there. Pro tip - don't do laundry Sunday night! After we finally found the machines, the confusion began. I knew that I had to put detergent, but I only had Tide-pods, and of course we weren't allowed to put those in the side-tray. It was so awkward because we were just looking around, and we eventually had to build up the courage to ask someone for detergent. She was so sweet, and told us to use however much we wanted. Another thing about Austin is that everyone is really helpful and nice, probably because we are all in the same boat. Anyways, so after my roommate and I put our load in, we went back to our room until it was time to put our clothes into the dryer. We went back down after 30 minutes, and of course, even more people were in the laundry room. Finding an empty dryer was even more difficult because there was no "window" to see through, so I was carefully opening all the dryers that did not have timers on them, and the amount of random clothes that fell out was quite amusing. Not going to lie, there are some people more confused that I was, so that was comforting because I didn't feel completely incompetent or hopeless. Another tip - make sure you know which machine you are using, so you are not frantically searching for your stuff (yes this actually happens). However, after I got my clothes (they were so warm and cozy, it was incredible), I actually felt a little more organized (I rearranged my drawers) and more accomplished (even though it was a basic task). I feel like something so small made me happy because I actually did it on my own, and felt like an independent person in charge of her own life. Later that night, I called my parents and told them about my experience, and of course they told me there was a simpler way of doing it - I could've just put my Tide-pods in the washing machine with my clothes. I thought that would mess my clothes up but apparently not, but don't worry I will do it next time! College is tough, so the small joys really count :). Oh, another benefit of living in a dorm is that laundry is free - I didn't know that when I came here, so I took coins because that what I've seen on TV (but of course not everything we see is true). Anyways my first experience with doing laundry was pretty good, it wasn't as confusing/problematic as I thought. It was honestly so satisfying therapeutic. I'm not the most organized person, but I felt like I kind of had a small part of my life together afterwards - it was great.

Week 2: Homesickness and independence

This was my first official week of being at UT, and it was really bittersweet. I loved living on my own, being on this beautiful campus, and hanging out with my friends; but being away from home was honestly so challenging for me. I missed my parents, my brother, and my cousins. I did go home over the weekend, but coming back was hard. I felt like the first week was kind of a tester week because it was only three days, and it was for me to get comfortable in my new surroundings; however, this week was where I actually had to start settling in. There was a sense of emptiness, and there would be a couple of hours every single day where I would have anxiety attacks and just panic because I was so overwhelmed. I have had issues with anxiety for over 8 years now, and I am still learning how to deal with it. When I get worried, I start going down this rabbit hole of all the negative possibilities associated with the context. I psych myself out and I really need to be with people I care about to get myself out of that zone. I learned the importance of leaving my room, meeting my friends, and doing new/fun things because they distracted me. Facetiming and talking to my family only went so far because they are not actually here. But, I know I need to be strong enough to actually be able to deal with my issues and help myself. I feel like depending on myself, not others, is a part of growth and development, which is one of the main reasons I wanted to move away from home. Of course it is a process, but I have always been sheltered and I think it is time for me to do things on my own. The homesickness will never go away, but there are so many other things to worry about. Acknowledging your feelings and missing home is normal, but don't get engulfed in that headspace because it takes time away from actually experiencing college and enjoying/building memories. The fact that I am actually alone here means that I am truly independent. No one will control my actions, it's crazy. I have never been stopped from doing anything even when I was home, but the feeling of actually doing everything on my own is new and somewhat exciting for me. Being in charge of my own schedule without anyone to tell me what to do seemed like a pretty cool idea, until the actual decision-making part comes into play. There are honestly no restrictions, like who is going to stop me from leaving my dorm to go to Whataburger at 3 am (I mean that isn't that smartest thing to do, but it's just an example.)? I feel like I am pretty level-headed and try to avoid making silly choices, but I'm still an indecisive person, so imagine me trying to figure my life out. Nonetheless, I have already learned so much. I had to clean my room for the first time, grocery shop, and do all my work/go to classes. Even though I only have four classes, I am so busy! It's hard to keep up with everything because there are so many due dates for each class. Everything happens simultaneously, and no one reminds you of what you need to get done. Don't fall behind, stay on top of everything. Even if you feel like you've done a lot and the semester isn't busy, try to get ahead - trust me, it'll help you later. There is always more to do (sadly). Another problem I had was learning how to manage my time because I have so much free time throughout the day, which is so foreign to me because high school was a routined schedule everyday. I have a habit of constantly needing to work because in high school I would non-stop, it was actually pretty sad. I know I sound hypocritical telling you to get a head-start and/or get ahead in your academics while still interacting with others socially, but both are possible! College has opened my eyes to actually having a social life, doing new things, and still being able to finish all my work on time. I've never combined academics with friends, but even just hanging out in the library can be fun for me. I'm telling you, being alone in college is just not the right move. Figuring out a balance is important, and don't worry - I will definitely cover time management in another post!

Week 1: Moving In

 Sooo, August 24th was when I came to my new home for the next four years. I was really excited, but nervous at the same time. I'm really close to my family, so it was definitely going to be a process adjusting away from home. I remember everything from that day: we left my house after spending two days packing, the drive up from Houston was pretty short (probably because of the mixed emotions of coming to UT), and I remember the overwhelming feeling of getting my keys, going into my dorm in Duren for the first time, setting everything up, and saying bye to my family. My brother graduated from UT in 2016, so he went down memory lane when we drove up to campus, but of course I was so confused with all the acronyms he was using (I'm still trying to learn and become fluent in campus lingo - "UT"). The feeling of independence immediately hit me when I had to go by myself to grab my keys and figure out my ID situation because they separate family and students at the gate of the baseball stadium. After completing the first task on the checklist, my brother and I took a picture at the Moov-In sign they had set up for freshmen. It was surreal because it started to hit me that this was it.

Next, we drove up to Duren and unloaded the car. My roommate, who is a friend from high school, was already there with her family, so the room was pretty cramped (as you can imagine). However, it was much bigger than I expected, not to mention, we had our own bathroom! It was a tradeoff having our own bathroom, but also having to clean our rooms ourselves, but anything is better than a community bath! I recommend living with a friend who is well acquainted with your family, but not someone who you would want to risk losing as a friend. I love my roommate and we have gotten closer, but sometimes there are horrible roommate stories, so to avoid that - don't do random roommate selection. I want to be very direct with you guys and let you into my experience as much as I can. San Jacinto was my first dorm choice, but all the rooms were taken by the time I had to select my room. Duren is really far from main campus, but luckily my morning classes are in Moody, which is right around the corner. Despite the walking, I come to main campus everyday. Anyways, back to moving in. It took my family and I about 1-2 hours to set up the room, but it all worked out quite well. My family was staying the night in a hotel, and my sadness has hit hard at this point, and I decided to stay with them rather than my dorm. I just wanted to spend my last few moments with my parents. I know it may seem dramatic, but I am the baby of the family and I am VERY close to my parents, so I didn't want to say goodbye just then.
Fast forward to the next day, this was it. It was time to do the one thing I was dreading since I got into UT: I had to say bye to my family. After spending the afternoon with them, I reassured my family that I would be okay because everyone was emotional and not ready. We all knew this was going to happen, and just like that, my parents were on their way back to Houston. Of course, as soon as I got into my room, I started bawling because I was holding in the tears in front of my family. Luckily though, my roommate was amazing and very comforting. We decided to explore the campus to keep our mind off of the sadness, and honestly it was a smart decision. I'm so lucky Houston is only 2.5 hours away, but for those who are moving much farther away from home - I want to suggest talking to your family as much as you can when you move away, especially in the beginning because it truly will make you feel better. Don't internalize, distract yourself by exploring, make friends, and talk to people about how you're feeling! Never go through anything alone, it's all about going through an experience that will shape your life forever. There are so many students on campus, you really don't feel stressed or scared. I'm glad I picked UT to spend my next four years!

Welcome to My Blog

Hey y'all,
          Welcome to my blog! I am going to be using this platform to document my college experience as a first semester student at the University of Texas at Austin. However, I also wanted to create a guide for people who are trying to figure out college life, so hopefully this will help people figure out what to do and not to do. College is a difficult time for many people, so I hope that my blog alleviates some of the pressures and stresses students have in moving away from home and figuring out their lives for the next four years. There are many aspects to living on your own, so I want to cover some basics and some challenges most students face. At the end of every week, I will document a new experience/lesson. I think this will be a great way to enhance my personal college life, especially because it will help me remember all the memories and lessons I learned during my first semester at UT. 

I have always been passionate about wanting to help others, so making a guide for new college kids will be a great way for me to impact others in a positive way. I want people to use my guide as a suggestion for making their college years better, but not taking everything I write about to heart because everyone has a unique journey throughout college. People should feel free to make their own decisions when they view my blog, but also think about what will be best for them. One of the values I have is learning from my mistakes and making the most of my experiences, and I really want to prevent people from not enjoying their time in college because they feel lost and have no idea what to do. This project is meaningful to me because I know the struggles people face, and as someone who stresses about every little thing in life, having to make every decision and doing everything on your own can negatively impact an individual’s entire college experience. There is no right or successful way to go through college, but I hope my guide can help people figure it out step-by-step, provide a starting point in their own plans, or just use it as a tool/reference when they are confused. Please free free to share my blog, give me ideas, ask questions, or give me any other feedback so I can work on and improve the blog for you guys!! :)