Two years ago, I was a wide-eyed, anxious first-year, stuck in a cycle of thoughts and predictions of how my Union College experience would turn out to be. The summer before I began my Union College journey, I only had my imagination to envision the type of person I would become throughout the next four years of my life. However, those entertaining imaginations were immediately shattered by the harsh reality- I knew I had a disadvantage even before I stepped foot onto campus.
The summer before my first year at Union, I was stuck in a plethora of conversations, which consistently had the same repeated topics; How should I decorate my dorm room? I wonder who my roommate will be? I’m so excited to get away from my parents. While I enjoyed listening to my high school friends’ conversations, I immediately realized this topic would be yet another aspect of our lives which I wouldn’t be able to relate to. It didn’t take long for me to connect the dots, and I eventually came to the conclusion I wouldn’t be able to relate these common experiences to my new friends in college either.
As my orientation experience began, I tried not to let being one of the very few commuters on campus get into my head. I tried to think of the advantages- I was still living with my family, I would still have all of my high-school friends that decided to stay local as well, I am all set. However, seeing people immediately make friends day by day, was astounding to me. I kept wondering how people were making friends so quickly? It then dawned on me that living in a dorm room had several advantages. Everyone was constantly meeting people on their floors, buildings, and other residential buildings on campus as well.
Throughout my first year of college I was met with the same set of responses to the fact I am a commuter. You’re a commuter? Lucky. Or to switch things up, you’re a commuter? Why would you want to do that? I eventually became used to the shock and confusion from my peers.
I can’t lie, being a commuter does have its downsides. Having to wake up extra early to make it to class on time is a real pain. Now, waking up extra early and driving through unpredictable weather conditions such as the rain or snow makes it ten times worse. Additionally, there have been several times in which I had to miss out on exciting campus events, because I had commitments outside of my campus life. That constant nagging feeling of feeling excluded from certain events would always follow me around. On the other hand, having my family and friends outside of campus as a constant, and close network of support has made my college experiences all the more enjoyable. Whenever I needed a break from stressing out because of my classes, being able to have that sense of escape has always been a great help.
Throughout my Union College journey, I’ve come to discover being a commuter on campus means living two lives. There’s my college life, and there is my “outside” life. While Union is my home in a sense, and is extremely important to me, my life isn’t centralized around it like those who live on campus, and that’s something I can’t exactly relate to.
While navigating through the first year of college as a commuter was difficult, I’ve learned to embrace being a commuter. One thing I would recommend to all commuters is to immerse yourself into campus as much as you can. Try to get involved in clubs, or don’t be afraid to step out of your comfort zone and reach out to people. The more I involved myself in campus activities, the more people I have gotten to know throughout the past couple of years. While that sense of FOMO is still there, it is not as prevalent after immersing myself into the Union College campus.
