5 Rules About College, Due To Experience.

by Spencer Page


“Boulder might be the closest a college town is to heaven - and not just because it is located at 5430 feet of rocky mountain high altitude. It is 27 square miles of relief from reality." Sports Illustrated said it plain and simple, and I have been lucky enough to live in this “Heaven” for three and a half years now. During these years, I have experience what I believe to be a very successful college experience. While at our recent Parent’s Weekend, I finally met Stacy Geisinger. Now I have heard a lot about Stacy and Stacyknows through her son, Alex (Ali-G), one of my good friends and fraternity brothers. After a few beers, some delicious sliders, and chit-chat with Stacy for my love of her blog, she blessed me with the opportunity to write a post and become famous in my eyes! So without further adieu.....

5 Rules About College, Due To Experience.

1- 21 Means 21

Party smart. Don’t be the son/daughter who as soon as your parents drop you off you forget their are rules in the world and go wild. You will get caught and that sets you back for the rest of your college experience. -- When I was a freshman, I forgot that 21 meant 21, and also that no drinking in the dorms meant no drinking in the dorms. This ended up with my ten best friends and I receiving M.I.P.’s (Minor In Possession) the second week of school and putting us on probation with the school for a year. We cleaned up our act and learned not to get caught during this probation period, but if we were to get caught, possible suspension from the school could have been imposed. So be safe and party smart. Party where there are no restrictions on noise and drinking in the house/apartment/facility where you are. And to the parents who’s children haven’t received a drinking ticket before, they are a slap on the wrist. With a four session alcohol class and five hours of community service, they are completely off your child’s record. But, if they were to get a second one, that’s a different story.

2. Keep Your Digital Profile Clean

Don’t take pictures that you don’t want to be seen. -- With Facebook and other social networks becoming a part of everyone’s lives, if something is posted on the internet that you don’t want to be seen, it will be. Taking pictures with alcohol or while being highly intoxicated can lead to trouble with not only your parents, but now with employers. During interview processes these days, interviewers will check your online profiles to see what you are like while not at the job. So if you have pictures with drinks in your hands while at a party being intoxicated, your chance of having a job may have just ended. So if you don’t block your photos, either do it, or make sure you take smart pictures. While pre-gaming for a CU Football, my friends and I were videoed will partying, needless to say my parents weren’t to happy when the report was on the news. Thank goodness I was only drinking a beer.

3.Learn to  Budget

Don’t think that your money supply is endless. -- When coming to college it is the first time the you are “Financially Independent.” If you are coming in with summer earnings alone or along with a weekly allowance from your parents, set a budget and spend your money wisely. Set a budget that allows you to spend money for alcohol, food, and other things with out going over your budget because you never know what other expenses might arise. When I was a freshman I had a monthly allowance from my parents, but one month I blew threw it with purchases of alcohol and food to get away from the dorm food. Of course I didn’t know that I would get three parking tickets in my buddies cars and explaining why I needed extra money to pay these made my parents double think if an allowance was a benefit to me or teaching me bad spending habits.

4. Freshman Grades Count

Don’t screw up with school your freshman year. -- Although there are a lot of extracurricular activities to do in college, college is your number one priority. If you don’t perform well academically your freshman year, it will set you back for the rest of your college experience. A low G.P.A. is extremely hard to raise. I had a buddy who failed a few classes his freshman year. His G.P.A. was extremely low going into his Sophomore year of college, and due to this he dropped out because he was trying so hard to bring back up his G.P.A. that he became burnt out on school. He still hasn’t returned back to college and probably will not. Starbuck’s manager is in his sights.

5. Expand Your Social Network

Even if you have a group of friends that you are going to college with. It is important to expand your social network. Whether this is with joining a fraternity or sorority, club, sports, or intramurals, the more people you become friends with, the better college experience you are going to have. No one wants to be alone on a weekend when you know that there is something going on that you could be attending. In my case, I came to college with 5 of my closest friends. Due to conflicting schedules and priorities, we became distant by the second semester of my freshman year. I did join a fraternity though, and this turned out to be one of my best college decisions. I have made so many new friends though my fraternity and most of them I know I will keep in touch with for a long time. Also, it has helped me network with alumni and help me with job searches and other resources. Now don’t get me wrong the parties and other actives that we do are a plus, but the extended social network is definitely  a must have so no Saturday night will go sober (unless there is school work to be attended to)!!

Now,these are just 5 rules, that I think are the most important. Are there more? Yes. But I don’t want you to come into college terrified of everything, so I’ll let you figure those ones out on your own

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