Keep your faces fresh, minds open

This Tuesday, international and other early move-in students will be joined by many more new arrivals to bring a larger-than-ever horde of 1,750 first-years to East Campus. The day begins with Freshman Advisory Counselors running minivan-load after minivan-load of possessions up and down dormitory staircases in a massive act of controlled chaos. Similarly, many new students find themselves thrown into a week packed with events, their heads abuzz with all the new stimuli of life at Duke. For some, however, the adjustment puts their minds in a kind of fog, one that bewilders them almost as much as it welcomes them.

These early days are full of excitement, of course. The presentation of our University’s many resources, the honeymoon period of freely talking to every other freshman in Marketplace and the general thrill of newfound independence are enough to give anyone a boost. For all their forward momentum and opportunities, however, these days can also be some of the most difficult to navigate properly. Everybody gets through them, but not all first impressions are as good as they could be.

To best engage Duke in these first days, there is more to say to incoming first-years than fits in the space of one editorial. With that in mind, a timeless piece of catch-all advice is to keep an open mind. Many students arrive on campus with high expectations of having good times all around, thanks in part to college’s promises of near boundless independence. But in taking full advantage of a newfound range of freedom, sometimes the opposite happens and they end up closing themselves off too soon. With respect to extracurriculars, keeping an open mind means trying new things. That does not mean to go on an exhausting marathon with every Orientation Week open house and information session, seeing everything but taking in nothing. What it does mean is to go to good fits but then to continue to be willing to take chances on other possibilities when they present themselves.

Additionally, any first-year student’s transition to college would be incomplete without the anxiety of socializing and making new friends from scratch. Though some students start off with friends from pre-orientation programs, every student needs to understand the importance of authentic relationships. Instead of latching onto calcifying friend groups, we hope that students get to know every new face in their dorms and remain open to striking up conversations before class. Capitalizing on the small sizes of seminars and Writing 101 classes can make the difference between “the girl with the red backpack” and “one of my closest friends.” Many students fear their peers have finished meeting new people, but that is almost never the case.

Whenever you feel that you have moved on from being a newly-arrived first-year student to one who knows the ropes, recognize the path that is your first year at Duke will not be smooth. For everybody, there will be easy times, and for everybody, there will be hard times. No matter what impressions of veteran comfort or effortless perfection others may exude, everybody is together in having questions, so ask away.

Editor’s Note: This editorial was written by members of staff rather than The Chronicle’s independent editorial board.