Living Abroad

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Packing

Two more important tips for packing:

• Only pack what you absolutely need!! Make a list of things you definitely need/want for college life and anything that doesn’t make the list leave behind. If you end up needing it when you get there your family can always send it to you or you can buy it.
• By the time you leave school, you will definitely have accumulated more stuff. Make sure to factor in a little extra space when you pack to go to school because you will need that room when you are packing to leave school.

What to do if I am home sick in the US

The first few days, and even weeks, of college are super exciting. You’re meeting new
people, making tons of new friends, and you’re living all on your own! But, college is a huge adjustment period for most students. It’s totally normal to feel homesick when you’re at college because it’s true that “there’s no place like home.” If you do get homesick, don’t be embarrassed by it at all! I can assure you that there are plenty of other students feeling the same way, so don’t be afraid to talk about it. Peers can be a great resource. If you don’t want to talk to other students about it, then you can always talk to an RA or counselor. Most campuses offer completely confidential counseling services, and talking to a counselor doesn’t mean something is wrong with you. It’s good to be able to talk to people about your feelings. Another way to eliminate these feelings is to talk to your family! Schedule times for calls so that you can look forward to them while you’re getting through your classes and homework. Feeling homesick can make you feel alone sometimes, so it’s most important to remember that many others around you are feeling the same way. And it’s even more important to remember that there are lots of people ready to help you through it.

One more important thing to know if you’re feeling homesick is that there is no “normal”
time limit for your feelings. Like I said before- college just isn’t home. So, if you are feeling
homesick longer than your first semester at school, that is totally fine! I have completed two years of college and still get homesick all the time. So remember, it is normal to miss home and you have lots of resources available to help you deal with those feelings.

Roommate Conflicts:

Roommate conflicts are a pretty common part of college life. They happen between new
roommates and even the best of friends who chose to live together. And, they happen for all kinds of reasons. Maybe your roommate is sloppy and your very neat and organized. Or maybe your class schedules are complete opposites and your roommate is inconsiderate of the time differences. Maybe they take your stuff without asking, or their significant other is always coming over or sleeping over and it makes you uncomfortable. Whatever it may be- living with other people in small spaces is difficult and roommate conflicts are a somewhat normal part of college life. So don’t stress about them! There are plenty of ways to overcome them. Here are some helpful suggestions in case you find yourself in the midst of a sticky situation with your roommate(s):

TALK to your roommate(s)! They make not know there is a problem.
If that doesn’t work set up a mediation session with a Resident Assistant or another member of the college’s Residential Life staff. Sometimes it helps to have an outsider present.

If a solution still can’t be reached then talk to the Residential Life office and see what your other living options are.

Resident Assistants:

if you plan to live in a dorm, Resident Assistants and Resident Directors can be very useful Resources. I know from personal experience that it is difficult to think of a Resident Assistant or Resident Director as a friendly, useful resource in college life. It is more common to think of these people as the ones who will get you in trouble and enforce all the rules you don’t really want to abide by. Having been a student and a Resident Assistant myself, I also know from personal experience that enforcing rules and getting people into trouble is not the main objective of a Resident Assistant or Director’s presence on campus. The Residential Life Staff’s main priorities on any campus are to keep students safe and to help them have the best college experience possible.

The Residential Life staff members in your building can be more helpful than you could imagine. First of all, RA’s are students on your campus, too, so they are going through experiences very similar to your own. And Resident Directors were there at one point in time, too. So, they could be really good people to talk to about troubles with classes or roommates or being homesick or whatever else. Residential Life staff also know a great deal about the whereabouts of any office on campus, how to contact them, and what they do. If you are having
a problem but don’t know who could help you with it- ask them! They could possibly help or would know of where to direct you for the proper help. The same goes with clubs and other extracurricular activities on campus. If you are looking for a way to get involved on campus, but don’t know how to they can help!

One last important thing- as I said before, the Residential Life staff on campus wants you to have the best experience possible while on their campus. In order to do so, Resident Assistants plan programs for their residents to do. If the programs they are putting on don’t interest you or aren’t helping you learn something then don’t be afraid to voice that. Resident Assistants love to have their resident’s feedback and ideas when it comes to programming.

I am a firm believer that college is what you make it. But you are not the only person that can influence that. Your Resident Assistants and all the members on the Residential Life staff want to help you make college memorable and exciting, so use them to help you do so! You will find that these people are much more friendly and helpful than they are stereotypically thought to be and I mean that as a student and as a Resident Assistant.

Getting to Know the Area you live in:

It is super important to be familiar with the area in which you will be attending school. You’ll definitely want to know where grocery stores and doctors offices or urgent care facilities are. It’s also a good idea to know where bus stations, airports, or train stations are for traveling purposes. Last, but not least, it’s also a good idea to know where restaurants, malls, and other fun activities are located! The best way to research these kinds of things ahead of time are by visiting your school’s website or the town/city’s website. University websites usually have a link to some popular places and things to do in the community. If they don’t, visit the website for the town/city. There should be a website that has a map, places to eat and shop, things to do and events going on, etc. It’s a good idea to glance over those things before you move and begin college.

Once you are on campus, get a couple friends together and explore! Walk around or hop on the local bus route and see what you can find. You are sure to come across a lot of great places to eat, some places to go grocery shopping, at least one other transportation method, and the local hospital or urgent care facility. And who knows – you may even come across a great park or come cool hiking trails or something of the sort.

One more element that falls into getting to know your area is definitely getting to know your campus! It’s helpful to sign up for a campus tour as soon as you arrive so that you can get a general idea of where all the buildings are and what they are for. You can always find a campus map online, and they will be posted around the grounds as well. Take some time apart from your classes and studies to just explore your campus. The more you become familiar with the setting and the surrounding community, the more you will feel at home.