Friday, December 9, 2011

Top Ten Ways College Has Changed in 10 Years

I started my undergrad years over 10 years ago (oh, gawd) and in that time quite a bit has changed for a college student. Since I am a college student again now, I have been thinking about these changes and since I am a blogger, a post has been swirling around in my head...

Oh, c'mon, I'm not the only blogger that does this. I am constantly writing possible blog posts in my head. Aren't you?

Anyway, I digress.

When I think about these changes in life for a college student, I don't know how I got through my undergrad years (ok, not really serious here. But, it is weird to think about).

Here are the top 10 things that have changed in the past decade for a college student:

10. We had to walk 3 miles each way to class uphill in the snow. Just kidding. Just making sure I have your attention!

9. No Wikipedia. At least I didn't know about it if it did exist.

8. No Blackboard. ISU had something sort of similar, but nobody used it. At least they didn't b/w 2000-2004. If we wanted to know our grade, we emailed the prof... or... get this... we asked!

7. Flip phones were the coolest thing ever - remember Razrs?? Everyone wanted a pink Razr. (Well, girls did.) But, really any flip phone was all the rage.

6. Hardly anyone had laptops that they carried around. If someone used any kind of device to take notes in class, they were "weird." Oh, and the colored Macs? Super popular at this time. My roommate had an orange one.

5. No iPods or any other mp3 device. I don't remember what we used... maybe a discman? I guess that must be what we used if we wanted to listen to music on the walk to class.

4. No texting. It's true. I didn't start texting until about 2004, around the time I graduated.

3. We may not have texted, but we had a nifty little messenger system called... AIM. As in AOL Instant Messenger. AIM = todays texting (but, yes, you had to be in your dorm room/apartment to get the IM)

2. DVR was nowhere near existence. My friends and I scheduled our classes around the soap opera Passions. No, I'm not kidding. The soap Passions. It was all the rage and it was on everyday at 2pm...and we would not take a class at that time. Our priorities were totally in check...

1. Facebook was not around when I was in college. MySpace was just getting to be big the year I graduated in 2004.

Did I miss anything???


And, just because I can't go without posting a picture...

Here's us about ten years ago. Nope, I wasn't always blonde! ;)

And our shirts - are fake. There's no such thing as Gamma Gamma Gamma. We rebelled on the Greek system and made our own sorority. No joke.

10 comments:

Jen said...

I can't believe I just started texting and it's been around that long. Geez.

Marisa A. said...

not gonna lie, I was like I didn't know she was in.....wait....I don't recognize those letters. Haha. No worries though, I too wanted a pink razr (I ended up with the Sprint version of it) and AIM was my whole existence. Although facebook came out my sophomore year. Then that was all the rage.

Kara said...

Let's see - 10 years ago I was in Grade 10/11! No "cool" cellphones (I think Nokia was the #1 phone of that time), no iPods (CD's and discman's all the way!), and we were big fans of MSN Messenger! And texting/Facebook? What on earth is that?

It amazes me to think how far technology has come in the last 10 years!

Becky said...

Hahaha oh my gosh, this took me back! I say that AIM is what made me a fast typer in college b/c I'd have four different conversations going at once - and I used to be so proud of myself at the clever away messages I'd come up with - ha!

I too remember, ipods were just starting to get big near when I graduated. In fact my now husband (then boyfriend), got me a video ipod for graduation (December 2005) and it was a BIG deal.

Plus I definitely never used blackboard or anything like that - I wouldn't even know what to do with myself in school these days! :)

Lisa from Lisa's Yarns said...

That is a very comprehensive list! I didn't even get a cell phone until I was a senior in college and did not text until I was out of college! I had a desktop computer and no one I knew had a lap top. Wireless internet was UNHEARD OF.

Anonymous said...

I love how we both blogged about college and how things have changed in the last decade today! AIM was the bomb. Sometimes I miss it.

No one had laptops...We all had those big computers that took up our whole desk. But we also didn't have wireless internet, so what's the point of having a laptop then??

Oh...MEMORIES!!

Shoshanah said...

Oh AIM.... I used to love coming up with the most witty away messages. Not only do I still remember some of them, but I even remember some of my friends'.

Kyria @ Travel Spot said...

OMG the diskman! I remember trying to run on the treadmill and NOT bounce the thing so the CD would not skip. It did not work very well. Also, I remember having not the razor, but that little oval shaped one that came before the razor. I don't remember the name of it. Do you remember when phones went to color screens!? That was the coolest thing ever!

Lesli said...

I had a pink Razr and I watched Passions too--ha ha!! I loved that there was a witch on the show and I loved the whole Ethan - Theresa story line.

Jenn @ Bliss to Bean said...

I graduated in 2003---everything you said I totally remember!! :) I wonder what college life will be like in 10 more---crazzzzzzy.