As students, we pay a lot of money for our education. We also get a lot of stuff for free or thoroughly discounted, and who doesn’t love free stuff? Taking advantage of all of the free things that we get as a student has become somewhat of a hobby for my friend group. At a school as big as UMass, there are always events that are either free or give out free things!
Building your network in college is a great way to catapult your future success. You’ve probably heard it over and over again: “Your network is your net worth.” This didn’t make much sense to me until I came to UMass and started to garner my own network of professors and students.
As a freshman at UMass, I lived in Van Meter. As far as freshmen dorms go, it was a pretty nice one. Central Residential Area, where Van Meter is located, was, in general, really nice; it had a lot of green space, lots of trees, and a pretty laid back vibe. It also had Frank. Otherwise known as Franklin Dining Common,
Studying abroad is an amazing experience (and was definitely my peak). This time last year I was living in Amsterdam and studying at Vrije Universiteit. I lived in an apartment complex with a look and feel much like Southwest Residential Area at UMass. My apartment housed twelve people, a mix of international undergrads studying abroad and masters students. We all shared one kitchen, living room, and bathroom. It was an experience unlike any other.
One of the best aspects of college is that you get to see your friends every day. However, it can be tricky to keep in touch with everyone when you are no longer living right next to them! During summer break, everyone retreats back to their hometowns, and it can be strange to no longer see your best friends all the time. For this reason, it is important to have a reunion at some point over the summer. The cause? A surprise party! Odds are, somebody in your friend group has a summer birthday, and there's no better excuse to see everyone than a secret birthday-palooza!
Currently, as I write this blog post, it is way too nice out to study. The sun is shining, birds are chirping, and the sky is an incredible shade of blue. How am I supposed to stay inside and continue my homework and job applications when it’s 65 degrees out? With final exams and presentations quickly approaching, I am at a crossroads with my head and my heart. One says do your work and the other says frolic in the sunshine!
Your living arrangements in college can have a massive impact on your overall experience. I personally loved living on campus, as I had easy access to the dining halls, and my classes were only a few minutes away. However, as the years went on more and more of my friends started to live off campus. Upperclassmen can live on or off campus, but my friends and I were determined to have our own house senior year.
Applying for admission to the Isenberg School of Management can be a daunting task, so I wanted to provide some insider tips that will hopefully make the process as simple as possible! I applied into Isenberg at the end of my freshman year and was accepted into the BBA program that very summer.
The picture you see above is me on my very first day of college in Sycamore Residence Hall. I was nervous, anxious, excited, and definitely a little nauseous about being away from home. I am lucky enough to have a tight-knit group of friends from my hometown and I was nervous how the distance between us would change our friendship. We had been inseparable since the sixth grade and had never spent more than a few days apart! With most of us attending college in New England, we knew that we would see each other for most school breaks and long weekends, but that seemed so far away at the time!
This morning I submitted my application for a position as a Resident Assistant, or RA, at UMass. The duty of an RA is to manage the residents who live in your hall and facilitate a welcoming environment that people can thrive within. I want to be an RA because during my freshmen year, I probably learned more about college and post-high school life from my RAs than anyone else. Like every other college freshman, I was extremely nervous in the first few weeks. But, my RAs helped alleviate that tension by reaching out to me and my fellow residents in a very personal manner. They’re like a friend and mentor built into one. They taught me everything from how to navigate the academic environment and study hard, to how to make friends and step out of my comfort zone. I want to give back by potentially becoming an RA myself and having my own set of residents to help.
