1. Life Management
Moving away to college usually means that you're gonna have to make some changes in your life. Whether you move into a dorm or an apartment, time management is going to be more essential than ever. If you live on your own, you will be responsible for cooking all the meals throughout the day, studying, homework, cleaning, laundry, and paying the bills (most of the time).
All of a sudden, managing and taking care of things become a requirement that you're probably not used to after living with Mom and Dad. Having a job while away to college also makes things more difficult to keep up with. I know some people who got it pretty easy with all this stuff, but a lot of them said it took some getting used to. Continue reading for the rest...
2. Social Benefits
No doubt, moving away to college can be a rewarding experience when it comes to meeting people of all kinds. In life, networking (aka, who you know) is probably one of the most important things. On top of making great friends that can help you in all sorts of things, they may be beneficial in the future, especially if you share similar interests.
In life, there are always people who know things you don't. That means that the potential to learn and expand your knowledge and connections is superb. On top of all this, making friends with similar interests will probably keep you from getting bored, too. Oh, another thing to mention; When you have a group of friends, getting things you need through borrowing becomes a whole lot easier.
3. Money, Work, Financial Support
Yes, money is going to be biggest issue when moving away to college. With it, you'll be able to eat, pay bills, put a roof over your head, pay for general life things, and more. So it comes down to this; your parent(s) (or some rich relatives) would have to provide you with these finances, and/or find yourself a job. What a lot of people end up doing is start living on cup noodles and other junk food which puts their health at risk. Nutrition is a big part about living alone. If you get sick or injured, somebody is gonna have to pay the bills.
Getting scholarships and financial aid may or may not be an option for you, but every penny helps. Integrating work with your academic studies, plus general things in life (like health), things will start to get complicated. If you're planning on moving away, make sure you prepare yourself for a whole new experience.
Things to remember...
You might not like it, even after giving it a long fair shot. Always have a place to go back to when all else fails (ie; home). When moving into a dorm/apartment, you'll have to do a lot of shopping. Home supplies aren't magically provided to you. Be prepared to start taking care of yourself - some people don't properly grasp this idea and go through a withdrawal and get homesick.
Personally, I made the choice of staying local. The advantages are great; saving money, keeping my old friends, city familiarity, less stress (in some cases), and so forth. The choice may be a hard one to make for some of you, but a breeze for others. Which path are you gonna make? I'd like to know.
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Moving away into rez
i moved 45 minutes away from home.. not to far if i want to drop by the house
I'm moving 5 or 6 hours away to go to school and I'm pretty nervous!
I'm moving a days drive worth away from home. Counldn't be more ready to get on my own.
I'm moving three hours away from home tomorrow for school. I'm so nervous! But excited all the same, I'm gonna miss my family but I will meet new people where I'm going.
I need advice .. I'm planing on moving to Florida for college. I live in new York now but I have no family down there so I'm scared, I need advise..oh and I have my old best friend that lives there, he said we should move into an apartment but the thing is we are still juniors. I don't know if that idea is going to last in his head, 🙁 help !!! I need advise please
Hi Jenna,
As I mentioned in the post, you should always have something to fall back to if things don't work out – a backup plan, of sorts. If moving in with your friend, even temporarily, is going to save you money, you should do it, but only while keeping in mind that things could go wrong and you'll need to be able to fall back to that backup plan.
Another thing you can try doing is to discuss this matter with your friend and acknowledge with each other what would happen if things were to go wrong. Moving away and living with a roommate can be a very good experience, but everyone involved has to put in equal effort to make it successful. Are you confident that you'll be comfortable living with this person for an X amount of time?
I want to go away to university, because what I want to do (journalism) is not offered anywhere close to home. I would be going to a school 8 hours away. By doing so I will be about $80,000.00 in debt by the end. Is it worth it? I could settle going to school for something different, but for the past three years all I've been wanting to do is journalism. I would be living in residence (in the beginning). Also if I stayed at home I am almost guaranteed that I will be getting a part time job while at school, but it would only pay for the car I would to get to school with, by staying at home. Is staying out of debt worth potentially going to school and being stuck in a job with a field I could potentially be unhappy in? My parents want me to stay home, only because they an unable to emotionally detach themselves, but I don't believe that staying home and being miserable is worth it compared to some debt. I would appreciate your advice ASAP.
Thank you
Jacob,
Hi Jacob,
I'll get straight to the point. $80,000 is a lot money, especially when you enter your field to start your career. While you can and will be paying this off little by little, you have to ask yourself if your income/salary is going to support the lifestyle you will/want to be living. Have you done the market research in your field and location? Will you be able to easily find a job in journalism right out of college to begin supporting yourself? I ask this because, these days, what happens is that kids go back to living with their parents since they can't find jobs right away, due to economic difficulties that our generation has inherited.
I would advise that you also look into some internship programs to gain experience before going out into the real world – that way you'll have an edge over those starting with a clean slate. Some other things that would probably help is prior involvement with writing and journalism when you're looking for work, such a being part of your school newspaper, having stories published in local papers, or maybe even online publications/blogs. I guess it all depends on what kind of journalism you want to get into. Hope this helps!
Hey Jacob,
As a recent graduate from Journalism school, I can admit its a tough field to get a break in. So here is my advice:
1. Consider a local school or public university: Request info from their program/department, take a tour, sit in on a class, talk to advisers and students. See if it meets your expectations and if you can handle the stress of the program.
2. Consider freelance: Since most media companies are facing cutbacks, it a main way most up and coming journalists are getting into the industry. Many news organizations are also looking at freelancers to one-man-band; which means, write, edit, shoot, and produce their pieces. Ask yourself if you can handle that type of pressure, and most importantly can you handle juggling multiple projects.
3. Network, Network, Network: Join a professional organization that fits your liking (i.e. American Society of Media Photographers), attend events, make contacts. This way you can tap into these groups for job listings, fellowships, career advice, and internships.
Hope this helps.
I live in Tennessee and I'm probably moving to portland, Oregon
I live in California and I will be moving to North Carolina for university in exactly 100 days. I am already nervous about it, yet excited.