Making a campus of 40,000 feel like home

USA TODAY College

Sara Yelich is a sophomore at Purdue University majoring in organizational leadership and supervision with a concentration in sports management. In other words, she wants to be the race director for the Boston Marathon.

On my first day of class at Purdue, I had second thoughts about whether life at a Big Ten university was for me. The culture shock was extreme: there were more people in my first lecture class than were in my entire high school. After two years of being a Boilermaker, I’ve found an identity beyond my student ID number. I’ve learned that there are ways to stand out, times to blend in, and opportunities to make a campus of 40,000 people feel like home.

After that first day, I was overwhelmed by what would become a normal day of school. I had no idea how I would turn such a large campus into my new home. My worst fear was that I would just be another number. Thankfully, an advisor made me realize that, despite being only one of 40,000, I was anything but a number. She welcomed me and my fellow classmates with open arms and eased the transition from a small high school to a huge college. Even though I have since changed my major, my new professors and advisors know who I am. They know me — not because I spend my free time going to office hours every week — because I am the reason professors and advisors are here. They want to get to know their students, and encourage us to stop by and say hello.

I have developed great relationships with the people who teach the classes that have proven most important to me. If you love what they’re talking about, let them know. I guarantee that seeing them in a hallway two semesters later and having them ask how you are — and sincerely care about your answer — will make your day.

Though it’s always nice to have a professor or two know your name, sometimes it’s all right to stay in your own little box. It’s OK to sometimes be a number because honestly, sometimes it feels good to walk into a lecture hall of 400 students and know that the professor will never know my name. In fact, I went a whole semester without speaking to my biology professor.

If I can give you one piece of advice to students struggling to fit in, it would be to immerse yourself in campus culture. Learn your fight song, attend a football game, and sing it with as much zeal as you can possibly muster. Try out as many clubs as you can until you find one that feel welcoming and right — and don’t feel guilty about living off free pizza for the first few weeks of school! Read More

I'm Ron Denaro and thanks for joining College Campus Chatter today!

Ron Denaro is the president of College Campus Trips, a tour company providing high school students with tours of college campuses, nationwide. For more information, call (954) 567-5751 or e-mail: ron@collegecampustrips.com