A College Student's Guide to Living with their Parents - Part 2

A College Student’s Guide to Living with Their Parents – Part 2

Continued from A College Student’s Guide to Living with Their Parents – Part 1

With so many Universities sending thousands of students home a week into their new semester, we thought it couldn’t hurt to add some more at-home-survival tips to our guide. Remember, cooperation is key and while your parents should bend their rules a little, these tips really focus on how you can make your life at home easier.

Do your chores

By now you’re not only an adult who should be able to clean up after themselves, but you’ve also been around long enough to know one of the quickest ways to get nagged by a parent, guardian or roommate is to leave a your mess wherever you go. If you don’t want mom knocking on your door asking for her twenty dishes back, bring the dishes back before you create a dish cemetery on the side of your bed. If you don’t want Grandma or Aunt Pam telling you to clean up the dirty pans and leftover pasta in the kitchen, clean up after you make yourself something to eat. Sick of being told to take your clothes out of the dryer or to pick up after yourself in the living room? Oh gosh, everyone is so annoying…when you do nothing but make a mess everywhere. I know you have a lot going on, but if you keep up with your chores, those you live with will remain content and out of your hair when you’re desperately trying to get schoolwork done.

Practice Good Personal Hygiene

This one is so easy. No one likes a smelly son or daughter wafting through the house, and no self-respecting adult likes when their parents tell them to take a bath. Class may take place at home, but be considerate of those who still must be around you. Wash up and brush the teethies. It will conjure that fresh & ready-to-conquer-the-day feeling and put you in the mindset you need to tackle a class project or dive into a study session.

Get a Part-Time Job

You don’t have to spend every sleeping and waking hour inside your family home. Not only a good reason to escape, a part-time job can help you pay rent, buy the groceries you really want, save for future student loan bills, or treat your parents to a nice delivery dinner now and then. Think there are no jobs available during the pandemic? There are actually a lot of part-time jobs with flexible hours available for students right now, and we have a list to help you find one.

Chill

Deep breath. I know it isn’t easy being back at home when you had dreamt so much about endless curfews, independence, new friends, or pre-gaming and (responsibly distanced) partying, but here we all are. And there is nothing anyone can do about it. If you want to come out of this on top and not seething in a corner every five minutes, hissing at your parents like a vampire from What We Do In The Shadows, you’ve got to chill a little.

When mom or dad starts to remind you of the rules or they interrupt you during some crucial last few minutes of study time, don’t lash out. Doing so will only waste more time or escalate everything into an even lengthier, more hostile situation. A simple “You’re right, I’m sorry.” can work wonders on rule-bending (even if you don’t mean it). And a (gentle) reminder that you’re in the middle of something really important for a class will usually do the trick and have them backing out of your room in no time.

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Remember, attending college at home is a learning experience for everyone involved and (hopefully) everyone is dealing with it the best they can. But if being back at home is proving extra difficult for you, and if you’re feeling any amount of stress and anxiety, never hesitate to talk to a therapist or peer counselor at your University.

About the author

Phil Smyres
CEO and Founder of TextbookRush.com
I graduated from Ohio State University, and I’ve been in Columbus, OH ever since. In 1994, I started buying and selling books on campus with two brick and mortar stores. Those stores have since closed but TextbookRush.com has remained a premier online retailer for all your textbook needs. During this time, we’ve also added two additional online retailers, Bookstores.com and K12BookServices.com.

My interests include spending time with my family, traveling everywhere and watching Ohio State football.