10 Things Every UMass Amherst Student Asks Themselves
As a student here at UMass there are many things we ask ourselves every day! As UMass is a very diverse place with many different people, academic opportunities, living communities, buildings and places to eat you you might find yourself a little overwhelmed or confused when you first arrive. Hopefully these 10 common things every UMass Amherst student asks themselves give you a little more knowledge about the campus, eases your fears, and allows you to understand the mind of an average UMass student!
1. “Why must I be blown over by the wind when passing the library or walking in between the tours in southwest?”
I believe it would be hard to find a student at UMass who hasn’t experienced the extreme levels of wind that exist by the library or in between the towers in southwest. This is Massachusetts after all and in the winter its going to reach freezing temperatures. When walking past the library be sure to zip up your jacket and get ready for you hair to be blown in all directions all over your face.
2. “How is it only the 3rd week of the semester and I’m almost out of dining dollars?”
Every UMass student knows the dining dollars the university gives you on the unlimited meal plan go very quickly. Most students like myself are addicted to coffee and buy it from Peets in the ILC or Starbucks at the bottom of Hamp. This alone makes your dining dollars go very quickly then indulge in the amazing food at blue wall, roots, pita pit, baby Berk or the procrastination station and your dollars will be gone before you know it and long before the semester ends
3. “Why must I walk so far and up a huge hill to get to health services?”
As a UMass student you get used to everything being a far walk. This is especially true for the University Health Center which seems like its in Timbuktu especially when your not feeling well and you have to walk up a huge hill to get there. Why UMass thought it was a good idea to put health services so far away from everything else we will never know.
4. “Why do I always give into going to late night and erase long hours spent at the gym?”
Late night at Berk is the greatest invention to ever be implemented on a college campus especially with UMass #1 dining. Every night there is an amazing special you can get on the main line just as long as your willing to wait up to about an hour or more on a busy night. This week some of the specials include hot dog bar, taco salads, loaded waffle fries and fried Oreos. While these foods might be delicious, eating them between the hours of 9 and 12 probably isn’t the greatest idea for those trying to keep a fit body. Oh well guess i’ll just have to go to the gym more often.
5. “Why are there always so many people at the bus stop and why do I have to push my way on to be packed in like a sardine?”
Getting on a bus at UMass, especially at peak hours or when its raining or snowing is almost impossible. With the large crowds of people that waiting at the bus stops and the already large number of people on the bus, shoving your way through the crowd and being a little bit aggressive is always necessary! If your one of the lucky people to actually make it on the bus know that you will be standing, holding on to the straps on the ceiling, trying not to lose your balance and be thrown across the bus into other passengers.
6. “Why are sunsets in Southwest always so pretty and perfect for Instagram or your snap story?”
Every student here knows we have the prettiest sunsets in Massachusetts which can even make cement city Southwest look picturesque. Also every student knows when they get that perfect picture of the sunset they have to share it on Instagram or their snap story to show everyone what an amazing school they go to and how pretty UMass really is!
7. “Why are there always so many ducks in the campus pond and why do they make the loudest noises so early in the morning?”
The UMass campus pond is famous for the extremely large amounts of ducks also known as water chickens that live there. On your way to the ILC, blue wall or the campus hotel your bound to see large amount of these birds sitting in the pond, flying overhead and being as annoyingly loud as possible.
8. “Why is there so much snow but almost never any snow days?”
While the snow on Umass’s campus is very pretty especially when its falling, getting to class with large amounts of snow on the ground and frozen black ice everywhere is extremely difficult and causes many students to go flying to the ground at least one or two times during their undergrad. It would just be easier for Chancellor Subbaswamy to cancel classes when there’s more than 8 inches of snow on the ground and do everyone a favor.
9. “Why do I choose to go out on a Tuesday or Thursday night when I have classes, exams and projects due?”
After your first week or two here at UMass you will get to know what everyone calls thirsty Thursday. These nights out on Thursday will be your best friend Thursday night and your worst enemy before your 10 am class Friday morning. Your likely to make the mistake of going out on a Thursday and regretting it the next morning when your not feeling well, haven’t done the readings for your class or have an exam in your 9am class.
10. “When did I fall so in love with this school?”
With 22,000 undergraduates at UMass your going to meet a lot of people with differing interests, talents, backgrounds and experiences but what they all have in common is that they love the school they go to. No mater what your reason for coming to UMass was, whether it be the in state tuition, its party school reputation as zoo mass, its #1 dining or its stellar academic rating you can be sure to fall in love with your new home, find your best friends, overall have an amazing college experience!
