I will be moving out for 5 months to ontario, I will be alone. What will it be like?

Question

I will be graduating high school in a month or so, and I'm wondering what it would be like to live alone and go to college. I'm kind of afraid of the big move, and would like some advice to what I should do to get over the nervousness of being somewhere alone and not knowing anybody.

Answer 1

Well, that's pretty normal. You will meet people at college, and some of them will be far from home for the first time too. They might appreciate making a new friend. Make sure to try to make friends--ask a few people(not just girls!) out for coffee or a beer if you're old enough, or for a study session. If there are any clubs at your school for anything that interests you, join a couple. Take time to get to know the place you're living in. Get on a city bus on a Saturday and go somewhere--a movie, a museum, an art gallery, a game, or anyplace just to see what it's like. If the weather's lousy, just stay on the bus and sightsee, it's cheap. Living by yourself has advantages and disadvantages. You can clean up around the house or not, as you like. If you want to watch TV till 3 am, you can do that too. You can cook any old thing you like without worrying if someone else will like it. If you're a half-decent cook already, offer to cook dinner for a few classmates one night. Don't worry, just look at your time at school as a form of travelling and take advantage of the things you can do and see that aren't like where you come from.

Answer 2

There is not much anyone else can say to help you get over the anxiety and fear of a new situation, like moving to a new city and going to a new college.

Remember that feeling of butterflies you had in your stomach on the first day of high school? Or if your family moved and you started school in a new town with no friends? Everything was different...unfamiliar.

All I can offer you is that it will pass and you probably will only feel that way for the first week or two.

My suggestion is to find out if anyone else from your high school is going to the same college. That will help give you someone to talk to or relate to.

You can also walk around the neighbourhood and find the local stores, the pizza joint, the place where the college kids hang out for a drink and to study, etc.

Get maps of the area ahead of time and familiarize yourself with the school and wherever you will be staying.

Find out what bus routes or Go trains take you to designated areas that you will need to go to in town.

Read local news from the area of Ontario where you will be going to school. You can find out important details about the area prior to getting there so you know the parts of town that are known for crime or violence, and the places that may offer you a more safe and relaxed atmosphere.

And of course, you will likely make friends with new people in some of your classes, and can ask them for some help getting familiar, since you are not from around there.

Hope this helps.

By the way, you didn't say what semester you would be attending. Depending on when you come here, you may have to deal with winter weather (when things are much less sociable) or during nice weather when you can be out and around town on a bike, rollerblades, or just walking around.