Ah, freshman year. Never once does the grass look greener nor the food from the dining hall taste more heavenly. However, despite its looks, the first few weeks on campus can — and will — be completely exhausting. To help all you new first-years out, we, the Emory Wheel’s Opinion editors, have compiled a few of the best and worst experiences you’ll have during your first weeks at Emory University. We promise that not only will you survive the bad, but you will greatly enjoy the good.
Starting on the bright side, you will get to meet so many amazing people. College is truly like opening heaven’s gate — minus the blinding light. It is where an extremely diverse group of young people coalesce and share their life experiences, personalities and passions.
Unfortunately, you will also meet several of the most annoying people you have ever met. I will not be name calling here, but I am sure many current Emory students can fill in the blanks.
It can be disorienting — ha, the pun — to meet all of these people at the same time, and not know who your people will be. Remember our mantra? Enjoy the good, survive the bad. Many of these characters may not be your forever friends, but, hey, who knows? You will survive that one person in your orientation group, and that will be an experience in itself. Just keep an open mind and remember that orientation does not last forever.
Another experience you are bound to have is an exciting one. Keep your eyes peeled for Dooley — he usually dons to make an appearance at the beginning of each year. Oh, who’s Dooley? He’s Emory’s unofficial mascot, a skeleton that joins students for special events or shows up unannounced and dismisses a class early. In fact, for my Oxford College readers out there, Dooley made his first appearance last year during Convocation … he always seems to be lurking just around the corner.
Honestly, there is not really a bad side to Dooley lest he decides to break tradition and wreak havoc through campus in honor of our new first-years. I promise that won’t happen, probably.
Turning back to orientation, another guaranteed experience is your first Coke Toast. This happens at both Emory College and Oxford, and is meant to ring in the new academic year and celebrate the new first-years joining the community. If you are a Pepsi person, you are not anymore! Emory’s top donor and supporter is Coca-Cola, and the University only supplies Coke products on campus. Welcome to the dark side.
Be warned, however, do not open your Coke too early. I genuinely do not want to see any of you scrambling to find another Coke to crack open before the college president finishes the toast, even though it would likely be funny. And remember, save the bottle! You will be able to get it engraved at events later during the week, preserving it as a nostalgic keepsake for years to come.
This next warning is for my Oxford friends: OxOlympics can be the best part of orientation. Show up and bring your energy! Do not make the mistake that I did and completely demolish your knees on the pavement, however. There is definitely a happy medium between excitement and tragically embarrassing falls. If you are not excited and ready to participate, then it will be miserable and you’ll have no one to blame but yourself.
This advice goes for most orientation events in general (ahem, Songfest for Emory College folks): yes, you will be exhausted, but you should make the most of it. Does it feel embarrassing or anxiety-inducing? If the answer is yes, then dive headfirst into it.
Orientation is not the end-all be-all for your first year nor your time at Emory. Nevertheless, it can be full of wonderful memories — and some embarrassing ones. If you feel like your head is spinning around on its axis, then you are probably doing it right. It will not feel like this forever, so let yourself get acclimated, and enjoy the disorientation while it lasts. While you may or may not meet amazing friends during it, you will be sure to walk away with some sort of tale (and hopefully unscathed knees).
Ellie Fivas (23Ox) is from Cleveland, TN.
Ellie Fivas is from Cleveland, Tennessee, and is double-majoring in political science and English & Creative Writing. Outside of the Wheel, she serves on the Student Government Association, edits for the Oxford Phoenix literary magazine and writes for the Emory Political Review. In her free time, you can find her reading historical fiction, enjoying the outdoors or doing crossword puzzles.
