So on Wednesday, USA Today College published my article about living in my car freshman year. I seriously didn’t think it would be read and shared so many times. All of my other articles on the site didn’t get super high viewership. So when I submitted my car story, I naturally thought it would follow the other viewership patterns of the other articles.
Well…the article was read a lot. Many people gave very kind words (THANK YOU SO MUCH!). Others got deep into debate about the challenging nature of higher education in the country.
Because of the concise nature of the piece, some people naturally had questions after reading. So I will answer some questions below that were commonly asked.
Where did you shower?!?! Did you shower?!?!
Yes, I showered every day. I used the campus recreation center at Texas State along with some other places.
So how did you eat? What did you eat?
Not having a kitchen was a huge challenge but I got by. I mostly ate prepackaged food. There was a microwave in one of the dining halls at Texas State and I used that to cook Ramen noodles, soup and other microwavable foods.
Did you do laundry?
There are laundromats in San Marcos…and I used them.
This guy is lying! All freshmen are required to live on campus!
I did live in my car for my freshmen year of college. I was able to do it because I classified as a commuter. Go to the Texas State housing website and click on the ‘Commuting from Home of Your Parent/Legal Guardian’. Reading the paragraph, you will notice that if a student lives within 60 miles of the Texas State campus, then they are exempted from living in the dorms their first year. My parent’s house is within 60 miles. So, I was exempted from having to live in the dorms, meaning I didn’t have to pay for a dorm room (remember that dorms are an additional expense that are NOT included in the tuition and fees). I instead lived out of my car.
Texas State University
I freaking love Texas State. I feel so lucky to be able to go here. It really is such a great school. The problem isn’t in the college I go to, it’s in the higher education system. Texas State has given me some amazing opportunities and I love going here. I don’t know what I would do without the Texas State advisors that helped me graduate in 2.5 years or the variety of student organizations they have. I’ve loved my time here so far.
Being a Mass Communications Major
Some people mentioned that I should have majored in something “better” than mass communications-public relations because supposedly I won’t be able to find a job after graduation. I understand the reasoning but I’d like to point out that my degree is more than just some typical liberal arts degree. Through my courses, I’ve been able to learn HTML, CSS, Photoshop, public speaking, news writing, campaign strategy and more.
Some of the jobs TXST mass communication grad’s get include: software engineers, public relations specialists, marketing coordinators, development, web designers, graphic designers and so forth. PR specialists, web developers and graphic designers are some of the fastest growing fields right now (and probably for a while). I feel confident in finding a job after graduation.
