You do it every year without fail. There’s a string of weeks where you’re nice and organized with all your notes in the right folders, laundry done as soon as you’re running low on undies and putting everything where it belongs. And then, you forget your planner and decide you don’t feel like really carrying it, or you’re too tired to do that load of laundry…

Okay, it might not happen to you, but it happens to me.

Barely two weeks into the semester, and my room is still pretty navigatable, but far from clean. I can’t see the desk calendar where I put all of my due dates and meetings down anymore. I just don’t have the patience to be neat. I’m sure it’s a problem – I’ve been messy all my life – but I don’t really feel like fixing it. Read More »

The building looked like any other corporate office building in America. As I pulled into the parking lot, my eyes scanned the area and I prayed I was at the right place. The innocuous sign on the door said “Prometric Learning Center, Suite 100,” as though it were any other suite in any building in corporate America. I parked my car, took a deep breath to prepare myself, and walked inside. A sign informed me that everything on the premises was video monitored and that by stepping inside I was giving my consent to appear on the footage.

Stepping inside, I couldn’t tell whether I was in a doctor’s waiting room or the locker area of a gym. To the right were chairs arranged in a tight circle, magazines scattered about the area; on the opposing wall there stood a row of rusted lockers.

A sign directed me to the front desk where a young man asked for my ID, and upon being certain that I was who I claimed to be, offered me a clipboard. I signed the honor code, promising that I would not use any forbidden study materials or divulge the contents of any question on the test. The specific rules for the GRE and testing in the center were stated on a piece of paper behind the one I’d signed, reminding me that nothing was allowed into the testing room with me, that study materials could not be used at any time after the test began, and that during my 10 minute break (if I wished to take said break) I could not leave the facility. Read More »

During college, I had bad luck with roommates. I also lived in dorms or campus apartments for all four years, so I always had to have a female roommate. Which may have been part of the problem.

That’s why, when I moved halfway across the country for grad school and had to find a random stranger to share a new apartment with, I decided to look for a male roommate.

Via Craigslist, I found a guy who was looking to sublet his apartment because he was leaving the state. The three-bedroom apartment was about five miles from campus, fully-furnished, and coed-friendly, though the guys had never lived with a girl before me. Since I was scarred from several traumatic roommate encounters, I was hesitant at first, but really had no other choice. I met all of the guys for beers one night, and they seemed nice enough, so I moved in. Best decision of my grad school life.

Before I go into detail about why living with two guys ROCKED, let me first mention that it wasn’t all sunshine and lollipops. These guys were slobs. I was usually the only one who did the dishes, and I cleaned up after them a few times a week. I also frequently woke up craving leftover pizza from the night before, only to find that the boys had eaten it. And left the empty box in the fridge. But, that being said, it was more than worth it, because we had a fantastic time. Read More »

Part of the excitement of moving up to college is meeting that awesome roommate and becoming BFF for life: you party together, study together, laugh together…stand up at each other’s weddings and throw each other baby showers down the road. It happens for some people.

And it couldn’t be further from reality for many others, which is why many students opt for the sweet, glorious single.

At Princeton, singles are rarely occupied by freshmen, but they’re the absolute hottest real estate for older, wiser sophomores, juniors, and seniors. I’m surprised by how many freshmen claim they would never want a single and then end up wishing they had one by the end of the year. Here are a few reasons why you should consider the sweet single life for next year.

Odds are your roommate will not be your BFF.
While my roommate and I didn’t have any major clashes, we were from different worlds and ended up parting ways at the end of the year without staying in touch. And this was the case for most of my friends. Don’t worry about missing out on a close friend by gettin’ your own place; your closest friends will be the people who share your interests and activities, not your sleeping space. And there’s no chance of having those worst-case scenario roommates you so often hear about. You know the ones: the guys and gals who leave moldy food under the bed, get in crying fits on the phone at 3am, want to hold wild room parties every weekend, or leave their alarms set for five in the morning and just. keep. hitting. the snooze. for hours. Read More »

With football season off and running , I’m hoping everyone reading this is as excited as I am!

(Editor’s Note: Wooo! DE-FENCE! GO TEAM!!)

Call me a tomboy, but I love me some football. I personally blame my parents for being hardcore Packer fans, and the fact that I HAD to go to every football game in high school because I was on drumline. But I’ve come up with my favorite parts of football season that everyone - even if you aren’t a sports fan - can enjoy.

1. School Spirit: Who doesn’t have it in college? There’s just something about a stadium full of thousands upon thousands of people screaming chants along with the cheerleaders that get’s everyone’s blood pumping. Everyone on campus seems to be happier on game day, especially nearing a rivalry game. And since we’re on the subject of school spirit, I’d be remiss if I didn’t say HOOK ‘EM!!!! Read More »

Another year in school, and that means another year away from your parents. What a glorious concept. Breathe in that new year of college air. Do it fast though, because it’s the first week of classes (and parties) and pretty soon the air’s going to smell like burning couches and puke.

Now, college can be the greatest place on earth… that is, until the cash starts running low. And since right after you read this you are going to head to Urban Outfitters “just to look around”, and you are bound to find that rug/lamp/’80s drinking game/hip wall art, and you just “absolutely have to have them all because they are all so cute and will go perfect in your room,” you might not be the most frugal shopper on campus.

College can become a pretty expensive place for a lot of different reasons. Now, we know you aren’t paying for drinks at the bar (ahhh… to be a girl in college…) but next week is your BFF’s b-day and then your MFF’s HY b-day (most favorite friend’s half year birthday) and you are way past making them a friendship collage. Also I’m pretty sure season one of Gossip Girl comes out on DVD soon so there are some big purchases in the near future you cannot avoid.

With all these costs racking up, the 300 person line to that cheap franchised burrito place isn’t looking too long anymore (even though you know it only tastes good after 7 Slippery Nipples) and the Golden Arches seem like the right option to squeeze every penny. But we are here to convince you of another option. It’s called cooking. For yourself. With real ingredients.

Wait… wait. C’mon, at least let me explain before you go check Perez and go watch Lauren Conrad make yet another terrible BF selection (will she ever learn?). Read More »

Welcome to college, freshmen!

You may have made it through Welcome Week without any run-ins with the campus police (congrats!), but you still have plenty of opportunities to meet them up close and personal.

There are going to be many times this year and well into your college career that you will find yourself surrounded by alcohol. And, naturally, you are going to want to partake. Just beware–while you are navigating the university party scene, your RA’s, Campus Police, and Public Safety units are gearing up to bust underage revelers.

Here are some tips on how you can avoid getting written up before your first semester is over.

1. Don’t act like ‘The Freshman.’

Just because you suddenly have access to alcohol, it doesn’t mean you need to consume ALL of the alcohol at once. Even if the cops are out and about, they don’t have the manpower to hunt down every single underage boozer. So, they’ll zero in on the kid stumbling around with a trash can on his head before thinking twice about the passive mingler. The same goes with your RA, who really doesn’t want to walk in on you peeing in the corner of elevator. Read More »

OK, so you’re running late for your Monday morning class (again). You would have been on time, but you spent all Sunday watching TV (again), and had to stay up extra late to get your assignment done (again). Now, where the heck did you put that assignment? You tear through the pile of papers on your desk until you find it, crumpled and stained with last night’s coffee.

Sound familiar?

Now that you’re in college, you don’t have parents to bug you about keeping your room clean, or to tell you to turn off the TV and do your homework. As Spiderman says, “With great freedom comes great responsibility,” but when you’ve got no one to help you out, how do you stay organized?

You may not like it, but you’re going to have to make a sacrifice or two to get truly organized, starting with your precious weekend. Cancel your plans and put away your going-out top. It may suck now, but in the long-run, it will be worth it.

The first thing you need to stay organized is the right set of supplies. Get yourself up at a reasonable hour on Saturday morning and get your butt down to the school bookstore, or your local Staples or Target. You should buy:

-A notebook for each class - Or, even better, one large notebook divided into sections, so you can keep all your notes in one convenient, not-as-easy-to-lose place.
-A two-pocket folder or small binder for each class - to store all of those pesky class hand-outs that always seem to go missing
-A day planner - Each day should have enough space to write down your class schedule and any assignments you get. My personal fav is the Moleskin Weekly Planner, because it has an extra blank page next to each week, but whatever works best for you.)
-Lots of your favorite kind of pen (or pencil) - Don’t deny it. You know you have a favorite.
-A stapler - Especially if you write a lot of papers—your teachers will thank you.
-An accordion file Read More »