Congrats, grad! You finally graduated high school and are excited to go start your freshman year in fall? Welcome! In this post, I will share 10 things to do the summer before college.
Included are things to do for fun, it is your summer break after all, tips how to prepare for college, and also what else to think of.
Let’s get started!
Things to do the Summer before College
1. Prepare for your first year
Going off to college can be a scary thought, but if you are prepared, there is more excitement than anything else!
Here are a few ways to prepare for your first year of college:
- Research about your major
- If you are undecided, look at your options
- Take personality tests
- Look at the options of clubs your university offers
- Look at the sports they offer
- Stalk people from your college on Instagram and see what they post most about
- Research the housing options and pick your residence hall
- and much more!
These are just a few things to do the summer before college to prepare for your freshman year.
Knowing what to expect (even when it’s best not to have many expectations) will help you be more prepared.
Also, you can make a packing list to prepare for the packing. If you need one to check off, here is mine! (it includes every category and is super detailed!)
2. Make Money
We all know that college in the US is expensive, so why not make it easier on yourself and make some money before you start?
There are various ways how students can make money easily. Here are some of my posts that will give you ideas!
- 15 Ideas to make money from home
- 10 Ways to make money in 2020
- Websites that pay over $20/hr to students
- 15+ creative ways to make money as a student
Those ideas to make money include things such as starting an etsy shop online, transcribe documents, social media manager, house sitting, selling crafts, and many more including the payment and where to find the jobs!
3. Save Money
This goes hand in hand with making money, because you need to save it up in order to reduce your student loans or other costs.
There are lots of ways you can save money before college, but here is my ultimate guide to saving money and budgeting as a student!
The best way to save money in summer would be to do more free things and save the money you make into a savings account that you use towards either your tuition, or emergency spendings.
4. Declutter your room
This is one of my favorite things to do the summer before college.
Decluttering your room and organizing the things you have will make moving out so much easier, and gives you something to do as well.
To declutter most efficiently, you should only leave things in your room that you LOVE or NEED.
This post from “Making My Way” has some great tips about how to organize your room!
5. Research the Area
Have you researched the area your university is in yet? If not, summer is the time!
You could look up your college on Google Earth and take a look at what’s around campus.
Tip: Write down what you can find about things to do in the area, such as popular bars, bowling centers, water parks, hiking trails, etc.
6. Visit your old friends / family
If you haven’t seen your older friends in a while, how about visiting them before you move further away?
Spending time with your friends before your new chapter starts can make you feel better about your friendship and motivate you to keep in touch.
If you have family members that you don’t see as often, consider visiting them as well!
Make sure you spend time with the people you love this summer.
7. Travel
It’s summer, go travel!
I know in these times of the pandemic it is hard to know when you can travel again and where, but even just taking trips within your country or state can be a good way of spending a few weeks of your summer before college.
I personally love to travel, and you should take advantage of the time you have to make great memories and learn new things about yourself.
Need some inspo? Here are some trip ideas for students!
8. Volunteer
Volunteering is a great way to spend your time in summer while also gaining experiences for life and improving your CV!
There are various places you can volunteer at. Consider your own community and also environmental organizations such as helping with plastic pollution, ocean clean ups, or planting trees. Remember it’s your planet too!
If you are interested in further improving your footprints, here are 15 ideas to be more sustainable as a student!
9. Plan your Move
Moving into college is like moving out of home!
To make the most of the adventure and be smart about it, consider planning it in advance to make it faster and more efficient.
For example, decluttering your room is a great way to get started with preparing to move out.
Other things you can do is have a plan when to pack what, when to leave, when to arrive on campus, etc.
It will make moving out of home much easier and less stressful if you do it step by step.
10. Write a Bucket List
Having a bucket list is essential to knowing what you want to do and achieve during both, your summer and your first year of college.
I also love making them because it just makes you excited to do all that’s on it.
To find inspiration, I usually brainstorm first to really set goals or items on the list that I really want to do. Then, I search for ideas on Pinterest to get more inspiration.
Need ideas for your summer bucket list? Here is my ultimate list of things to do in summer!
If you need inspo for your college bucket list, this post has 50 things to do before you graduate college.
You can find more bucket list inspiration in these posts:
- Winter Bucket List for College
- Fall Bucket List for College
- Study Abroad Bucket List
- 50 Things to Do in Quarantine
Wrapping up
These were my 10 tips for things to do the summer before college!
I hope you know more about how to prep for college and what to do to make the best of your summer and freshman year!
What do you think is important to take care of before moving out of home? Comment below!
Until soon,
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