Arriving for my first day of college at a large New England University was spectacular. It all went
so well:
- The weather cooperated; it was not quite 80 degrees but it was dry.
- The bed lofting exercise was a bit more complicated than the video had shown it to be.
- But there were plenty of family and neighbors still around to show me how it was done.
- My roommate was nice and he brought a micro-fridge (a fridge and microwave combo)!
- My mother didn't cry in front of me, thank God, but I did see tissues.
There is a ton to do in the next few days of freshman orientation. I had come for New Student Orientation in the summer; you'd think there wouldn't be more they'd have to tell me. My mom didn't really help with my move-in, though. Having been dropped off at college by her brother, no parent in sight, she says this is the result of over-parenting. I pointed to the little plastic shoebox size bins with labels "office," "health," and "beauty" on them. Mom laughed and said, "What? So, maybe I am over-parenting."
At orientation this summer, we learned that the university is much more crowded and that my freshman class has the highest test and academic scores of any arriving class ever. Apparently they tell this to every incoming class. 30 years ago my mom roomed in the dorm right next door. Weird, right? She says it was a lot different back then. Most significant was the fact that she could drink at 18. My mother says she was able to party, pay for school through loans, and get a job that paid it all back. So, what will this mean for me? My original room on campus was a lounge converted to a room for four students. Four male freshman in one room. the second my mom found out, she flipped a lid. She made me immediately switch to a double. But the fact is, there are a lot of quad rooms and many forced triples here because more kids chose to come to the more affordable state schools. That means I'll have smarter classmates that help me excel, right? I hope so. I know the cost was certainly a part of mine and other students' decisions. Private colleges in Boston cost more than twice my school. When looking at rankings for my area of study, it seems my school is the better choice. I hope it is because even paying back the nearly $100,000 I will owe when I'm done, when I probably cannot even get a job, is a frightening prospect.
I am a computer science major and my roommate is an engineer major. Across the hall, Laura introduced herself as "one of the few humanities majors left." She is studying Chinese and she is right. I don't think I know anyone who is a History, English, or Art History Major. It seems college has become more vocational so as to help us ensure we get work. Joblessness for young men like me is over 18%. So, if I don't make my number-one focus on graduating AND getting a job, I'll be in such debt that getting a car, saving for a house, even marrying all seem like dreams. I wonder what this will mean for this country four to 8 eight years from now. No one will be getting married. No one will be buying houses. And scarier still -- we'll all have to move home! I wonder what my mom would think of that (says sarcastically)? My mom, a European History major, never moved back home after leaving for freshman year of school. She said she barely worried about finding work or paying off loans. She was married at 25. I wonder if the next decade will see homes being built to accommodate not only elderly parents but returning adult children. Wouldn't that be a sight?
Okay, so that's my reality in four years. Today, however, is eating, team building, bonding, and meeting new friends. I feel like there's a massive horizon before me and I will make this all work out. I've biked to see friends who are here from high school. I've checked out this large campus. I'm pumped to start classes, get my books, and start learning new things. I've even signed up for a short course on bumblebees, so I won't lose my touch with my humanity! Who knows, maybe someday after a few semesters on the dark side, I'll join Laura in liberal arts.