BY LORRAINE U. MARTINELLE
Keep your door open. Let your mom make your bed. Don’t lose your keys. Get involved. Bring laundry detergent. Smile!
Think back to your first day of college, and the days leading up to it. Many of you must have felt some anxiety mixed with excitement about the unknown. To help incoming first-year students cope with Move-in Day (which is Friday, August 24), we sought the help of our alumni, family, and friends on social media.
What advice do they have for new Bison? (The posts below are in no particular order.)
Here’s our favorite tip, from Nichols Academic Advisor Janet Newman: “I echo all of the comments about keeping your door open and meeting your neighbors when you move in! A ‘smile and a hello’ is the Nichols Way.”
FROM INSTAGRAM
i_squeak: Let your Mom make your bed; it will mean the world to her to feel like she is helping (and you won’t have to do it later).
desiree.riveraa: If you decide you want to move your room around, do it BEFORE you move all of your things in.
wooskee: Contact your roommate to see what he/she is bringing so you won’t have double of things.
bleedblue75: Make a mess group with your roommates. Get all the basic stuff for the room, then work on your personal items. Less is more.
luwest: Buy all your school supplies such as notebooks, folders, etc., at Walmart or Target. The bookstore is expensive.
_catherinemary: Be nice to your parents when they drop you off on campus, this is a big moment for them too! Also, don’t graduate. Stay in college forever
Keaneyeileen: Bring lots of 3M hooks! Give you Mom tissues before she leaves; she will cry all the way home! But they are happy tears!
Dssrdcrafts: Parents, enjoy the moment! It goes by way too fast!
Autumnmeansfall: You “need” about half the things you think you need. Remember, it’s a shared space, and you won’t get to hang up everything you want so get ready to compromise and share
amyy_assad: Make a quick stop at the Bison go-to, Dippin Donuts. You’ll need the caffeine, and your parents will find their new coffee spot for when they come to visit! Start with the basic room necessities. Once you’re all moved in, make a list with your roommates to see what you’re missing, and make that grocery trip after the move in!
steverockydavis: Make sure you pack about a week before you move in, and double-check everything! It’s better to have something and not need it than to not have something when you need it.
Chelsraff: Don’t go home for the first few weekends, even if you are feeling homesick. It helps with making the transition so much easier and smoother. Plus, you’ll make friends who are in the same boat as you!
katieo327: Put two sets of sheets on the bed; when one gets dirty, strip the bed, and you already have a sheet on there! And it’s already made!
llandrews__: Bring friends who lift!
Jbscraps: On Move-in Day, make your bed first! You’ll thank yourself later in the day!
jasbball19: After getting everything into your room and your scheduling set for the next day, take a walk around and introduce yourself to your neighbors, and get your bearings on the campus/building! Who knows, the people you say “hello” to could end up becoming some of your best friends at college!
nsarge4: I agree with the comments about your parents. Be nice to them. It’s a big day for them, too, and yes, your mom will cry the whole way home! Trust me!
Peteyshoe: Keep your door open on move in day. It’ll help you meet the people who will be living around you.
FROM FACEBOOK
Mel Jackson: Get room configuration inspiration from upperclassmen, leave your door open, and meeting everyone you can. Don’t pick Friday 8 a.m. classes.
Martin Fletcher: Bring a Keurig. A $6 Starbucks every day adds up.
David J. Twiss: Find a part-time job on campus or opportunities to volunteer. Get involved with alumni events; you may just meet your future employer or get advice on how to accomplish your goals and fulfill your dreams from someone who already has!
Janet Newman: Don’t forget supplies for classes/studying! Pens, notebooks, highlighters, stapler/staples, paperclips, etc. And I echo all of the comments about keeping your door open and meeting your neighbors when you move in! A ‘smile 
and a hello’ is the Nichols Way.
Jen Solomon Plouffe: Flip-flops for community showers! Hide the “good” candy and snacks under your bed so the rest of the people on your floor don’t know where it is.
Laura Duclau: Don’t lose your keys; don’t forget your room number; make friends with your RA; don’t wait to make friends; you won’t win at Big Prize Bingo if you don’t go.
Bethany Marie Redman: Get there early so you can pick your bed first!
Orlando Rodriguez: Don’t be snitch; you’ll lose friends immediately.
Ethan Godfrey: Get involved! Don’t hold back. Also, don’t lose your keys or ID.
Meghan Kesilewski: If you don’t want bunk beds, it is possible to fit all the beds on the floor.
Dale Brown: Don’t pack all of your clothes if it’s more than a week and a half worth of clothes.
Beth Piuze: Bring quarters and laundry detergent. Don’t wait until you go home to do your laundry.
Dominic Zahn: Get to know your roommates before you meet them; and whoever gets there first gets first dibs on everything.
Isabella Anais: Get there first, and don’t overpack.
Patrea Anderson: Don’t bring too much.
Dave Brote: Don’t lose your keys.
Breanna Pianka: Make sure you’re compromising with your roommates. The three of you will be in a tight space. You’re not going to get everything you want. This goes for where your bed ends up, what time to go to bed, when your door is closed to friends for the night, etc. Make sure you’re not the only one getting things you want, but make sure you’re not the only one compromising, too.
Annie Graves: Leave your door open when you’re in your room—a lot of people will be walking by to say hi, and it’s a great, easy way to meet people.
Amanda Laine: Keep an open mind; command hooks to hang up everything; all you freshmen out there, let your parents help however they want, even if it’s “embarrassing” for you; and smile … it’s contagious.
Liz Horgan: Coordinate who is bring what in advance. No need to haul in multiple refrigerators. Always feel bad seeing parents cart them up the stairs, and then back to the car.
Lynn Mullins: Text your grandparents a picture of your room. They love you more than you know and are excited about this big day in your life.
Amy Sposito: Leave your door open to meet new people, and get involved on campus with clubs/SGA/CAB (it’s a good way to meet new people every year and have a better understanding of what is going on around campus. Don’t forget school, laundry, and cleaning supplies!
Juliana Cecera: Let your parents help you move in. It’s a big deal for them, too. Take risks, get involved, make friends. Leave your door open. They will be lifelong. Oh, and pack a suit; you’ll need it eventually. #BisonPride
Gretchen Carlson: Coordinate move-in times with your roommates so all of you aren’t bringing things in the room at the same time. And definitely walk around and say hello, and keep your door open. It’s a true way to make friends early.
Heather Anderson: Rooms with bathrooms have to supply their own toilet paper. We moms had to do a bathroom supply run as soon as we arrived since our sons either didn’t know, or never told us!
Ashley Marie: Set guidelines right away with your roommates. Go to all events possible to meet and socialize with new people. Shamie is a blast! Enjoy your time there; it goes by too fast!
Adam Berkebile: Unpack fast, and start meeting people. Also make friends with public safety. Just sayin’ it may help someday!
Nicole LaBrack: Get involved right away, and keep your door open in your hall to meet the friendly faces living near you! Have fun, and make some great memories! Go Bison!
Gretchen Santiago: I second “don’t be shy.” Introduce yourself, and make friends! Your friends will be your family for the next four years!
Amy Elizabeth: It is Tax-free Weekend in Massachusetts August 11-12—get all your big-price items then. That is when I bought my TV, etc., when I was there.
Gina Petruzzi: Leave your door open as you’re moving in!
Jonathan Silva: Treat Shamie Hall like it was your home. Make memories!
Stephanie Zaccaria-Clune: Storage containers. They fit under the bed—at least when I lived in Shamie Hall they did.
Thomas Haggerty: Don’t be shy! Walk around your floor and introduce yourself!
Rich Briggs: Be social. Leave your door open. Get involved. Talk room stuff over with your roommates.
Rob Studivan: Bring a large storage container for snacks!
And here’s a tie for our favorite piece of advice, from recent Nichols graduate Joseph Slattery ‘18:
“Enjoy every second of every day. It goes by in a blink of an eye,” said Slattery. “Nichols is a special place with special people; take advantage of every opportunity you get. Nichols prepares you for the future—you have to finish the rest. See you at Homecoming. #ProudAlumni”