Most college students have had their own experiences with their Resident Assistants--whether good or bad-- from the blinded perspective of the resident. But what does an RA really do? What does it take? And who are the men and women who help freshman transition from high school into the real world.
Experience the dorm life of freshman college students from the perspective of a Resident Assistant– who struggles to find the balance between friendship and authority-- and illustrates that for most R.A.’s, free room, board, and meals are not enough to sustain oneself through the tribulations of dorm life.
Most posts will explain just that: a story that I was caught in during my time as an RA. But those stories won't begin for three more weeks, when I begin R.A. training!
So, before then, I feel compelled to give incoming frosh a few tips that they should be aware of before entering college life in Philly:
--Be cheap. At school, a lot is already paid for: housing, food (if you have a meal plan). But a lot isn't, like books. Although books seem fundamentally necessary, they haven't been used at all in half of the classes I've take thus far.
--Be very careful and thrifty about the books you buy and always buy used. At first it may feel gross, but you'll learn to appreciate that weird odor the book give off after you save potentially hundreds a year. School bookstores know students are poor, yet with inflated prices, students are constantly being robbed. Try buying books online. BookFinder.com is an awesome website that searches half.com, amazon.com, and other for the cheapest books.
--If you're going to have a fridge in your room, and if that fridge is going to hold bottled water, reuse the plastic bottles. You don't realize how much bottled water you drink until you have to start paying for it yourself, and everything adds up. Most floors in dorm buildings have at least one water fountain, which, by the way, is probablycleaner than the water you drink, anyway.
-- Stock up on Septa tokens and take the subway. I was scared at the subway at first, but it's the second best way to get around the city, and half the point of attending school in Philly is too explore the city! Philadelphia happens to be small enough to walk through, but taking the subway is not only really easy (you can either go North, South East or West..Temple is in North Phila.), it's fast and inexpensive. Tokens can be purchased at 7-11's, or most subway stations. I'm telling you to stock up on tokens, because it's really annoying (and more expensive) to pay $2.00 cash to get on the sub when you don't have a token on you.
--The subway is useful, but not as useful as having a bike in the city. There's so much to do in the city that it will probably take most of your college time in the city to do half of it all! The subway can only take you so far, but the entire city is accessible by bike.
-- Make sure your meal plan comes with Diamond Dollars if you go to Temple. Most meal plans will give you x-number of meals as well as a couple hundred dollars that are only spendable on school grounds. At Temple they're called Diamond Dollars. Drexel has "Dragon dollars," and so on. They're automatically put onto most college I.D. cards. The more the better, because you can buy things without spending money from your own wallet.
-- Philly does have better shopping (i.e. South Street and Old City) but worse hours. Stores close typically around 7PM. If you plan on adventuring into Center City to shop like a bunch of high school mall rats, I'm happy to disappoint you: you can't.
-- Having your own computer (and printer) is not necessary. While it is super helpful and even more convenient; if you're really looking to save money, you don't need one. At Temple, every dorm is equipped with a small but efficient computer lab, and most schools have at least on Super Computer Lab.
--College's purpose, however, isn't to explore the city. It's to earn a degree. To do that you have to (pay your tuition and) do a lot of work. Make sure when writing papers, especially long-ass 10 pages papers that compares Sharpay Evans with popular culture, you cite your work. The more sources, the more work it seems that you put into your paper; although without a proper works cited page, your paper means nothing. A works cited page is the last thing a professor looks at, so it must be perfect. If your too lazy to learn how to cite, Ottobib.com, among other cites, will do the work for you!
--Another helpful tech-hint: If you have a cell phone, make sure that you have unlimited texting. When you're trying to tell a dozen people you can't go to fourth meal because you're in a computer lab working on a ten page paper about Sharpay Evans with barely any phone service, a text messaging is always useful. And I hear texting makes you smarter, too!
--One-and-a-half last tips: Microsoft Office (which includes Word) is expensive. Many colleges can give it you for a discounted price, but there are other cheaper options. I am currently using Google docs to type this, which has the same functionality as Word, but is free. There are other free software that you can download to replace expensive suites as well. If you already have Word (or another typing program), however, make sure you invest in a flash drive. And when I say, invest, I mean: they're really inexpensive and you better buy one before college because they're super useful!! Flash drives allows you to carry documents on the go and to easily transfer files from different computers. Of course, as long as you have the Internet, Google docs does the same thing. For free.
Most importantly, as an RA, I am telling you all: DO NOT leave the popcorn in the microwave for too long. Because it will burn. And the fire alarm will go off. And the entire building will have to go through an annoying fire alarm for burnt popcorn. And everyone will hate you.
Make sure to leave a comment if you have any other tips!
Oh, one last thing. I can bet one of your friends are bound to drop out this year. Don't be that friend. College can be super fun, but the main reason kids go to school is to get the hell out of their houses. And you can't do that if you don't do well in your classes.
