Posts Tagged ‘cuny’

My Experience with College FOMO: Choosing Studies over Parties

Monday, June 3rd, 2024

Not being a part of the action is one of the worst feelings for me–that I admit now. I am guilty of finding every excuse available in the book to study over hanging out with new friends, finding free events in the city, and getting college student discounts while at it too. You obviously don’t have to sacrifice one over the other, but I did think so the moment I started college. I partly blame high school for this.

Senior year of high school was stressful. We had to do presentations of our career choice detailing everything from the average annual income, work responsibilities, to the everyday work environment. Out of the 25 or so of us, only two students including myself did our presentation on journalism. I was so excited until I was met with cynical looks and comments like “That won’t pay much.” I felt so defeated because what this meant to me was that I was unprepared for college. I didn’t want to imagine my future was one HUGE question mark.

I felt even worse when I didn’t meet the deadline to register for early college courses to earn credits as a high school senior. It seemed like everyone already beat me to it. When the time came to declare what college we would each be going to, I had no answer. I had applied to about five different colleges—two SUNYs and three CUNYs. My first choice was SUNY Purchase, and I did get accepted. Until my father told me it was too far from home and couldn’t go. I felt betrayed by this decision because it could have finally been my chance to find my crowd. Every other college rejected me, and there came that lack of certainty again. 

I have to give myself credit for knowing how to handle the rejection considering I was basically a social reject all throughout grade school and high school. I found it hard to relate to my peers–-probably had a lot to do with being sheltered and socially awkward. I ultimately found myself going the community college route as my ex-boyfriend advised me. While it wasn’t my first choice, I was relieved to have found someplace to go to college. And I ended up loving it there, too. It was like a second home.

I knew going into community college that I wouldn’t see many familiar faces. Many of my high school classmates practically followed each other to upstate New York for SUNY colleges. Many seemed to mainly want to go for the college parties. While I never considered myself a party girl, there was a part of me that wanted to feel “normal,” as much as I dislike that word now. Bronx Community College did have the occasional party, but it wasn’t the hottest place to be–-not in College Land nor in New York. After a while, I realized that I kept finding myself in unpopular places, and that had to be for a reason. This didn’t mean that I wasn’t a party girl (at least not publicly), just that there was a certain crowd I preferred being around. And certain places too. Like bookstores, cafes, libraries, or public squares. And call me weird, but I never used these places as personal study corners. 

Putting studies over parties during college has its benefits for sure. But you don’t need permission, especially not from your parents to let yourself enjoy a social moment for the sake of it. Stay on track, but also let yourself breathe. A party doesn’t have to mean the end of your studies. 

#JustPartyTings


As a final note, you might genuinely like going the route less taken like I did; no shame in that. Join the “weirdos,” for a change. And stay smart!


Save big and enjoy yourself at this Blue Man Group event using this students special offer!

By Daeli Vargas

Daeli is a recent graduate from the City College of New York with a BA in English and a publishing certificate. She is from the Bronx and is very passionate about all things literary. She hopes one day to publish many books of her own and share her passions worldwide.


For over 20 years, the Campus Clipper has been offering awesome student discounts in NYC,  from the East Side to Greenwich Village. Along with inspiration, the company offers students a special coupon booklet and the Official Student Guide, which encourages them to discover new places in the city and save money on food, clothing, and services.  

At the Campus Clipper, not only do we help our interns learn new skills, make money, and create wonderful e-books, we give them a platform to teach others. Check our website for more student savings and watch our YouTube video showing off some of New York City’s finest students during the Welcome Week of 2015.

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College Savings Experience by Studying Abroad

Saturday, September 13th, 2014

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Photo op with some monks my friends and I met on the Great Wall of China.

I like chicken soup. Wǒ xǐhuān jītāng.

It’s probably one of the only phrases I learned to say correctly in Mandarin while studying abroad in China and it still makes me laugh one year later.

No matter what college you go to, even if it’s only a few psychology courses online, everyone should go on a study abroad program at least once in their lifetime. Study abroad is a rite of passage and the college discounts you get is worth the experience. It’s the ability to say that during your young adult life you did something different and learned about a new place. It doesn’t matter what you do or where you go. What’s important is that you get out, see the world, and learn about a country that isn’t America.

One of the best benefits of studying abroad is that your early 20s is the best time to travel. Besides school, and maybe a part-time job, you don’t have that many obligations. Once you’re working the 9-5 grind you’ll find it’s extremely difficult to snag any vacation days right away. Studying abroad provides you with a way to get college credits without sitting in a classroom for an entire semester. Study abroad programs usually offer a variety of courses that range from common core classes to specific credits that can be used towards your major.

Studying abroad through your school is a great way to make friends that will be there after the trip. Most of the people that go on study abroad trips go to the same school. It’s very easy to form close friendships in a short amount of time on these trips. Walking across campus and seeing a familiar face is always a nice surprise in the middle of a hectic day.

 

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New friendships only grow stronger after hours of hiking the Yellow Mountain (Mt. Huangshan) in the southern Anhui province in eastern China.

People don’t just travel because of the boredom from living in the same place. People travel because they thirst to see something new. It’s one thing to see a picture of a famous landmark; it’s quite another to actually see that landmark with your own eyes. Ask anyone that’s ever traveled anywhere, or ask anyone with a smartphone camera; no photo or Instagram filter can truly ever beat the real thing. When you go home and change your profile picture on Facebook to a picture of yourself standing on the Great Wall of China—that’s something to brag about.

To learn about a culture that is foreign from your own is a truly important experience. There are so many different cultures in the world that it is impossible to count. To go through life ignorant of the world around you is a foolish mistake. Hear a different language slide past your lips. Eat a food that you can’t identify. Engross yourself in a way of living that you’ve never experienced.

A study abroad trip is more than just a trip. It’s a chance to take an adventure, fill a scrapbook with memories, and tell stories to your loved ones that will last a lifetime.

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Group picture of the 2013 Summer CUNY China trip in front of the Monk Xuanzang statue in Xi’an, China.

Sam Levitz is a graduate of Brooklyn College and went on the CUNY Study Abroad trip to China the summer of 2013. Follow her on Instagram: slevitz

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The New Museum: Free for NYU, Columbia, and CUNY Students with Student ID:

Wednesday, June 12th, 2013

Utilize the Freeseums program at NYU, Passport to Museums from Columbia, or Cultural Passport from CUNY!  There are a ton of museums accessible through your student ID card’s college discounts. New York City is a cultural center, and its universities know that students experience much of life outside of school, so they often give free passes to expensive places. Going to a museum can be a workout for your mind as well as a relaxing experience. You can contemplate an artist’s work or the historical context of a piece without worrying about homework attached to it!

Keep in mind also that these museums are almost certainly air-conditioned! In the heat of summer, museums are a great way to get out while staying inside so that you don’t melt. To top it all off, guided tours at many museums are free.

About the New Museum:

The New Museum is “New” because it exclusively houses contemporary art. It exhibits works by living artists from around the world and serves as a center for new ideas and reflection on the current time period. It is the place to view art from individuals who have directly experienced the pressures of the era you live in.

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The New Museum displays an array of exhibitions simultaneously. Currently showing are the After-after Tears exhibit on the fifth floor and Adhocracy (watch 3D printing in action!), both available until July 7. Multimedia installations from Erika Vogt and unsettling paintings by Llyn Foulkes are showing throughout the summer and into September.

Up until July 31, the experience truly begins before you even enter the museum, thanks to a 28-foot-tall rose on public display on the second floor balcony. Rose II is a sculpture by Isa Genzkin, a Berliner with a love affair for New York. Interested in integrating sculpture, nature, and architecture, Genzkin originally created this rose in 1993 as a symbol of tribute and love to the city.

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Isa Genzkin’s rose is installed on the New Museum, viewable from below as well.

As students of any subject, we are scholars of life. No matter what you study, whether biology, urban planning, music, or otherwise, there is sure to be something at the New Museum of interest to you. Practice thinking about the art you see through the lens of what you already know. You may be inspired forever, or maybe just for the day, or you may just keep the experience in the back of your mind for an essay or two later in your schooling (professors eat this kind of thing up). Either way, a visit to the New Museum is an inexpensive way to experience culture, and, since the exhibitions are constantly changing, no visit is ever the same.

The New Museum is on Bowery, just below Houston. The closest subway stations are the Prince Street N and R Station, the Bowery J station, and the Second Avenue F station.

Check out the New Museum’s past, current, and upcoming exhibitions: http://www.newmuseum.org/exhibitions

Plan your visit to the New Museum: http://www.newmuseum.org/visit

Nearby:
Housing Works: A charity bookstore cafe. Follow Prince Street to Crosby Street, and take a right.
Cafe Habana: Stop by for a torta or some tacos! On the corner of Prince and Elizabeth Streets, one block to the east of the museum.
SoHo: The New Museum is a short walk from Broadway, for all of your shopping needs.

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Claire M., NYU.

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Interested in more deals for students? Sign up for our bi-weekly newsletter to get the latest in student discounts and promotions  and follow our Tumblr and Pinterest. For savings on-the-go, download our printable coupon e-book!

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