I don’t know about you, but I can hardly believe it’s summer already! The end of senior year has finally passed, and we now await the beginning of a brand new school experience.
It’s an exciting time, but before you take your pants off and whirl them around your head in celebration, let me sit you down and ask you: How are you preparing for this drastic change? After that, if you’re done celebrating, I’ll probably ask you to put your pants back on.
Being properly prepared for potentially problematic changes in your life is completely necessary. Let’s just say that if you spend all summer on vacation in the Bahamas, celebrating with your friends at pool parties, or (for some of us) locked up in our basements playing Call of Duty, and then show up to your dorm the first week of school, you’re going to have a bad time.
However, rest assured this is no cause for distress! Worry not, for your good pal Soeren is about to, as the kids say, break it down for ya.
1. Get yo’self some decent clothes, ya hear?
If you’re like most high school students you’ve probably kept most of your clothes for the majority of these past four years, and nobody likes worn out stinky threads. I’m not saying you stink – you’re beautiful – just get a few nice t-shirts, please. Your roommate will appreciate it.
2. Tie up loose ends with scholarships and college applications.
The last thing you want is to get a letter in August from multiple colleges asking you to attend their mandatory freshmen orientation. You can only go to one school at a time!
3. Be prepared for all kinds of weather.
If you’re going to school somewhere warm like California or freezing like Alaska, don’t pack only polo shirts and swimming trunks or only an eskimo suit and some bobsleds. For the cold months in Cali and handful of above-zero days in Alaska, bring clothes and other items to fit the weather.
4. Don’t set a house on fire or do anything generally crazy that could result in you being rejected by your college, have your scholarships taken away, or imprisoned.
That’s fairly self-explanatory, and can be taken as general life advice.
5. Pack lots of Ramen Noodles.
Lots and lots of Ramen Noodles.
6. Make some lasting memories with your friends.
If it recently dawned on you, like it did me, that most of the people currently in your life will be gone forever after high school, then you must know how important these last few months are. Spend time with your friends! Don’t let this final opportunity pass you up.
7. Do summer reading!
Just because high school’s over doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll never hear Shakespeare’s name again. Some college English classes require that you’ve read certain books beforehand, so get crackin’!
8. Buy or rent the textbooks you’ll need.
You might not know what courses you’ll be taking first semester just yet, but as soon as you do, make sure you have all the necessary materials for each class. If you don’t want to spend hundreds of dollars on textbooks, there’s this really nifty service called Chegg that will let you rent them for a mighty decent price!
9. Spend time with family.
Friends aren’t the only people worth spending time with. College uses up a lot of free-time, so even if you’re close to home, you’ll probably see your family a lot less than you might expect. Make the summer count and be with your family as much as you can. I promise it’s a good idea.
10. Consider going on a road trip!
Not only will this give you time to spend with a few close friends, but it’ll give you a chance to see places you’ve never seen and have new experiences before you’re stuck in one place again for four more years. It can be expensive, and money is scarce for nearly all college students, but it could definitely be worth it.
College will be an exciting experience, but make sure you’re ready emotionally, mentally, and physically before you begin this next stage of your life. Use this summer as a transitioning period, and try to make the best of your time. ‘Cause once classes start again and you’re back in hyperdrive study mode, almost all of your free time goes straight out the window.
Have anything to add to our summer bucketlist? Please tell us in the comments!