All Posts Tagged With: "socializing in university"

Inexplicable behavior and strange lifestyles develop in the land of Freshmen

The culture that’s been developing over the past couple of weeks would be an anthropologist’s dream. From first years voluntarily chugging blended-up Big-Macs to midnight runs around campus reminding other Colleges why we’re better than them, paranormal behavior is normal here.

It’s somewhat more comprehensible when you remember the context of the situation Freshmen find themselves in. When hundreds of 18 year olds move away from home, to a strange city, with strange people, equally strange social dynamics are bound to develop. The inundation of experiences conspire to form a bubble that surrounds campus: a little world consisting entirely, more or less, of going to class, studying, and socializing.

Even for a relative introvert like myself, it’s extremely easy to find yourself partying every night. I have to remind myself now and then to take some time to myself, to recharge my social batteries and to regain perspective on the bizarre microcosm. Unfortunately, gaining perspective rarely simplifies things. In fact, the opposite seems to be true in my case. When I remember that the main reason I’m going to university is to study and earn a degree, questions inevitably arise as to what I want to study and what I want to do with my degree (no, I haven’t by any means decided yet, and neither have half the people here).

Of course, first year is exploratory, but the courses you choose in first year will limit what you can take in later years. Two days before the last date to change courses, I find myself frantically trying to decide whether or not to keep economics (I hate math but enjoy learning the concepts) and whether I want to take a course that will allow me to major in political science (it looks interesting but is misleadingly unscientific and often degradingly referred to as “soft history”). It’s probably needless stress, because I can always take whatever course I need in later years, but right now it seems unquestionably important. And to an extent, it is important to figure these things out because it allows to form a general idea of the path you want your degree to take.

Next: Tips on choosing courses that are right for you