More Questions!

<p>Hey!
I am going to be a first-year this fall and I have some questions for you parents and students:
1) What kind of computer system is recommended? Is a printer needed? Are tablets useful?
2) What type of lofting is offered and what is recommended?
3) Is the freshman 15 common at Grinnell?
4) What type of work study is best?
Thanks!</p>

<p>1.) Most people have their Macbooks. I personally think they are overrated and overpriced and am pretty happy with my Windows XP but to each their own. Get what you want. Printers are convenient but tbh there are printers everywhere and since printing is (still) free I don’t think you need it. Tablets well I don’t know why you would get one if you have a laptop with you (or even if you only have a desktop); tablets seem to be incredibly useless and just a waste of money to me, but if you have the extra money…
2.) don’t know
3.) It is common if you don’t exercise/ don’t pay attention to what you eat and stuff yourself in the Dining Hall/at the free-food study breaks and binge-drink every weekend. You are old enough to go to college, you should be old enough to manage your own nutrition.
4.) Well the college will give you Dining Hall. It depends on the person; a lot of people say it sucks/isn’t the best (me included) but I think working for Phonathon is worse. If you get hired as a Technical Consultant that’s a good job to have. The Mailroom always has some openings for first-years and I really like working there. The library/BEAR/Security are also not the worst places to work at, especially at the latter two you will sometimes have time to do your homework but they will most likely not have any openings left. Once you are a little bit older you can apply to be a tutor for some departments or similar. ACE Security is a great paying job if you don’t mind being the only sober person at a party, but you won’t get hired until your second semester.</p>

<p>What exactly is wrong with Phonathon? I was actually enthusiastic about applying for it?</p>

<p>It depends on what type of person you are.
If you have no problem calling random alums and asking them to donate and risk having awkward conversations it is a good job to have and I would suggest applying for it. And as far as I am aware you get a raise every semester until you are at 8.85 (I think). On the downside you start at 7.25 (might be 7.50 now).
But I know quite a few people who worked there and were originally enthusiastic about working there but quit after 2-3 semesters because they just didn’t feel like it anymore.
I don’t like talking on the phone and even less asking people for money (even when I have a script) so I never considered it.
There are some people who get really into it and Phonathon is the only place, other than the Dining Hall, that is always looking to hire new people (and typically takes everyone who applies).<br>
Like I said, it depends on what type of person you are.</p>

<p>1)Printing is free, but you have to install crap on your laptop now that may or may not work. My roommate had a printer of her own and loved it, so if you’ve got the money no reason not to.
2) All east campus (Rose, Rathje, Lazier, and Kershaw) beds are pre-lofted. If you’re not on east campus, you can rent a metal loft. You’ll get a “welcome to the town of grinnell” packet later this summer which will include a lot of ads and coupons, one of which should be for lofts. I think it’s about 100$, and they deliver to the college.
3) It depends on how much you like the d-hall, how often you exercise, and how you snack. If you do sports, it probably won’t happen. If not, it depends a lot on your body type.
4) You’ll automatically be assigned to the d-hall, which is nice because it’s really flexible. At the beginning of the year, you go on a website and choose a few shifts, picking the time and what you’ll do. You’re stuck with those all semester, so choose wisely. I had absolutely no desire to work there, so I went with catering. You have to e-mail and ask for an interview during NSO (someone should mention during training for the d-hall where you go). It’s awesome because the shifts change every week, so you pick whenever you’re available, and you get to eat whatever you serve, which is about a million times better than anything you can get in the d-hall. You do go through periods where there aren’t a lot of open shifts though.
After your first semester you can apply for ‘homework jobs,’ like the library or the writing lab, where a lot of your work is just being there and doing a few computer things. That means you can sit down and do your homework during your shifts. I got one of these and I gotta say, they are really, really awesome. Tech support hires first-years though, and after the crazy training I think you can do homework at some stations.
Post first-year, there are a lot of cool jobs tutoring and giving tours and stuff available. </p>

<p>See you in August!</p>

<p>I’ll have to keep Phonathon in mind if they’re easy to get into. It doesn’t sound like a <em>great</em> job, but I’m determined to get out of dining services any way I can.</p>

<p>Dining hall tends to be pretty unhealthy, although they do have a salad bar and vegan options that just tend to be less on the weight.</p>

<p>I had a printer first year and it ran out of paper and ink so quickly because of all the reading I needed to print out, so I generally didn’t think it was worth it. whether or not the college is going to charge us for printing is an ongoing controversy now, but I would suggest using the computer labs is just fine. </p>

<p>I would say that being a tech consultant is the best job. I repeatedly tried to get this job, but ultimately failed (you can’t apply anymore as a third year and above). But I’m pretty content - I worked in d-hall since first semester and now I’m a student leader. D-hall jobs tend to suck just because of the nature of the labor (other jobs on campus are more relaxed, sit down, and less dirty), but they start at a pretty nice pay grade compared to other jobs.</p>