It’s that time of the year again: Welcome back to the fall semester!
I know. It's great. Personally, as a sophomore signing on 21 credits, I'm pumped for this school year to begin. Crying myself to sleep, having less time for social gatherings and getting more and more responsibilities are three of the things I wanted to have on my sophomore checklist (and dare I say, I've completed all of them).
But as we all readjust back into the school year, here are some ways ASU has made this transition so much harder for not just you or me, but for everyone!
Starting off the semester with a bang!
If you're anything like me, you walked into your first class and were assigned a 10-page paper to read AND take a quiz on. It has a fancy name too — the "syllabus." I never thought I'd be required to know a grade breakdown, which requires numbers, for my English 105 class. Then my professors had the audacity to make us sit through a 75-minute class explaining the entire report they compiled. I mean, I'm proud of you for sitting and writing all of this out but personally I'm good.
It's tough out here. What's a better way to get the heart racing than to throw a surprise exam on the first day? Especially with everything else going on, I love having something I didn't expect to be stressed about.
The urge to leave during welcome week!
The insane swarm of freshmen on campus can only mean one thing: it's welcome week. From orientation at InfernoFest to tabling events at the Memorial Union, this special week of activities is meant to bring about a sense of "welcoming" students into ASU's culture. Yet, little do they welcome students.
READ MORE: Burning up: Flo Milli headlines InfernoFest
The amount of clubs and activities to join on campus is insane. Why would you ever want to check out all of them? Walking around, I could just tell that half of those are college students finding another activity they can talk about to their future family members. It’s something "cool" and "fun" they did to alleviate "stress."
On top of that, the AUDACITY of students to encourage each other to join clubs is infuriating. As a college student, the only thing you should be dedicated to is your major. That is why it's called a major. It takes up the majority of your time. I would highly advise against exploring these nuanced, interest-specific organizations out in the future as it may end up taking away from a potential 400 or 500 level class you could enjoy instead.
Flo Milli was the highlight of ASU’s InfernoFest this year. But unlike her major banger "Never Lose Me," ASU lost me with its choice of how to kickstart the year. Let's consider how ASU chose Flo Milli to perform. Honestly, the fact that the University chose an up-and-coming rap artist to perform at the annual opening concert is devastating. Why go with someone new and up-and-coming when another option would be someone more experienced — like Bob Dylan or Keith Urban? Now those are singers that accentuate the experience of what it's like to get down in the desert. Not some rap artist that most of the audience, being mainly freshmen, loved and enjoyed.
Goodbye summer, hello FALLing into a spiral!
And, of course, the beautiful Tempe traffic begins long before the dreaded first day of classes that starts on Aug. 22. The amazing car jam begins all the way to Aug. 6, when Community Assistants start moving in. ASU's long move-in process allows students to get adjusted to their dorm and decorate before classes and the workload starts.
In hindsight, this is just time-consuming. My favorite part about college stress is being able to come home after starting my classes and seeing a mess of my dorm so I have projects both in and outside the household to work on. I feel like it would be best if all move-in was conducted on Aug. 20 and 21, so that summer could be extended. Leave it up to everyone to figure out how to adjust during the first week, so that welcome week is a literal welcome into the college lifestyle.
READ MORE: Dorm away from home
Overall, the first week in college is relatively super easy and quick. The things ASU does to "help you" are unnecessary. So as this first week of college continues to unravel into a full semester, try to figure out what it is about this college that keeps you here. The hard syllabus classes, welcoming events, student exposure and extended move-in times are all reasons to stay away. But for some, it may just be the reason why they continue to choose to be a Sun Devil.
Edited by Senna James, Sophia Braccio and Natalia Jarrett
Reach the reporter at gachatht@asu.edu.
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Gokul is a sophomore studying actuarial science. This is his third semester with The State Press.
