Picture this. You wake up to your alarm blaring at 7:00 a.m. This feeling of dread just seeps into your mind, making you wish that you lived right on campus so that you could have these two extra hours of sleep back. But instead, you have to commute and drive your way to campus.

Living off-campus will make a simple six-hour school day feel like a 10-hour business conference. Multiply that by two times a week in addition to writing for the school newspaper, and you will be begging for any free time you can get. 

As a commuter, it’s tough building relationships and having an exciting time in college because of the time constraints of others. When you are only there for class, you don’t have that time to socialize with other students outside the classroom or even make new friends.

During my freshman and sophomore years at Rowan, I was the type of commuter who would just attend my classes and go right back home once they were finished. I was not a social individual, unless I was around people I already had prebuilt experiences and relationships with. 

This new college atmosphere was different from what I was used to back in high school, to say the least. Back then, there was a sense of comfort in the fact that everyone was social with each other, obviously largely due to the fact that we saw each other on a daily basis. 

This fear of being uncomfortable during a major transitional period in my life started to dissipate at the end of my sophomore year and into my junior year. The main reason for this was that I started to finally take some classes that were required for my major. A majority of those classes had the same faces in them, so I gained that sense of comfort back within myself. Even though I didn’t talk to these familiar faces outside the classroom, I had the feeling that we were all somewhat comfortable enough with each other. 

After I tackled that huge fear of being uncomfortable, another one reared its ugly head again, which would be introducing myself to “complete” strangers. During the first half of my junior year, a professor introduced me to Rowan’s independent student newspaper, the one you’re reading right now, The Whit. 

Ultimately, this conversation with him helped me unlock a whole new element of the college experience. This new element in my life made me more social and helped me better understand the future that I sought, and what it might look like for me. 

At first, I was a bit nervous about joining because this was completely new. I am stubborn when it comes to changes in my life, big or small, so this was a huge shift in the way I would operate daily. My mind was contemplating joining the newspaper because I was worried about what others would think of me. 

Over the last year and a half, my introduction and participation with The Whit ended up helping me to better myself, both as a person and as a college student. The opportunity presented was a great way to develop me for the future when it comes to communicating with others, regardless of my occupation. 

My scenario is one of many different ways you can stay engaged with your college community while being a commuter. I share my story to show everybody that you too could also participate in college activities, regardless of any external factors. This goes to show that you should strive to find anywhere you fit in, no matter how uncomfortable you may feel.

As I reflect on my time at Rowan now that I am in the final stretch of my college career, I have grown to appreciate the fact that even people who have limited time with their days can still have a fulfilling and meaningful experience while not living on campus.

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