Things You Miss About College Post Graduation

Things You Miss About College Post Graduation

“I wish there was a way to know you were in the good old days before you actually left them.”

-Andy Bernard, The Office.

College life has been romanticized for years in movies, TV shows and even some of the best music. We as students often don’t even realize what an integral role college has played in our lives. Not just in education, but they actually mould our personality, our friends, our career paths. Most importantly, they give us a box full of memories that you want to revisit at every moment of your life. So what is it that you miss the most about college?

We asked some of the NMIMS ASMSOC alumni what they miss the most about college, and the response we got was like someone opened that box full of memories.

Every NMIMS student dreams of studying in that magnificent glass building. For the students of SOC, the college campus was right opposite that building. On the 7th and 8th floor lay a corridor of students in their late teens and early twenties having the time of their life. Now, as they graduated, asking them what they missed about college made them take a road down memory lane.

Friends: Of course you miss your friends. These are the people who do not change a bit even years post-graduation. What was beautiful about that one and a half-floor campus was that just by taking a walk through the lobby, you would meet hundreds of familiar faces on your way to class. All of them nearly of the same age as you, sailing in the same boat, having the same teachers and even giving the same assignments. If you have a doubt related to anything, you just call them up and get a solution. In a life where everyone is busy doing something, everyone has their own problems, yet none share a common one. You may have hundreds of friends in college, yet once it’s over, it’s only possible to stay connected with a few of them.

Teachers: They are the heart of your college life. Each and every one of them has its own style of teaching. Some are strict enough to keep the whole class at pin drop silence, whereas some are the avatars of Nikumbh Sir from Taare Zameen Par. You might feel annoyed when they bombard you with the assignments and feel relieved when the questions in the exams come based on those assignments. Nothing feels more exciting than the teacher stopping the lecture to tell the stories from their own journal of life experiences. You may feel the college has put many restrictions, but you miss being tied up by work and assignments as you get the actual freedom. Lastly, nothing felt more savage than getting permission to enter a 7:30 lecture at 7:50am.

The Windy Staircase: Every college has that one spot that is indisputably the best place to hang out; for some, it might be the canteen, maybe the student lounge, but for the students of NMIMS ASMSOC, it was the Windy Staircase. A big window opposite the staircase gushed out air and gave you the perfect DPs for your Instagram. Nothing felt better than grabbing a cup of coffee/tea and sitting on that staircase on a rainy day and enjoy the breeze as you figure out your life.

The 8th Floor Canteen: You get a 5-minute break between the lectures, your class is on the 7th floor, the teacher is punctual and always comes on time, but you want to grab a quick bite. You sprint your way to the 8th-floor, hustle through the long line, get a token and grab those bags of chips and a cup of coffee and get back to the lecture on time. If doing this after every class was an Olympic sport, we all would be gold medalists. That canteen had supplies enough to survive a zombie apocalypse. No one served a better Paneer Panini or Dahi Papdi Chaat than that canteen. Post-graduation, no matter which café you go to, no Starbucks or Di Bella can beat the experience of having that Nescafe while chilling at the Windy Staircase.

College Traditional Day: For a guy who wouldn’t mind coming to college in the same t-shirt every day accompanied with track pants and Crocs, Traditional Day was something we all looked up to. Many outstation students used to ask a month prior as to when the Traditional Day was going to be held. They did so to go to their hometown to get and flex their outfits like straight out of some Sabyasachi fashion show. Some of the best pictures I clicked in college were on the Traditional Day. Although it was just another college day, the entire vibe of everyone in a traditional outfit made it feel like a festival.

Clubs: Probably the reason why our college life was so happening. Every month each and every club organizes some or another event to keep you occupied. Participating in them was fun; what felt more fun was organizing those events. Staying for hours post-college and ideating of what new thing you can do. If you had a skill that you were good at, these clubs would give you more and more exposure to make you the master of that skill. Be it Montage participating every month in various college fests. SRF having their marathon. Sports Club having their sports fest called Blaze. CIC having their corporate summit. E cell and Tech Club having their E Week and Tech Week. Nature Club taking you for a trek. Vaayu planning the cultural fest of the college. Every day was new. Every day had unique challenges. Every day was special.

As college gets over, you miss each and every bit of it. Years later, you really miss that comfort and familiarity that you had back in college. An account from the box of memories of Manav Somaiya, Mayank Khatri, Shivanshi Shukla, Aagam Nandu, Het Shah, Meeral Patel, Nandini Sharma, Rutwik Deshpande, Devansh Garodia, Mishika Berry and Nidhi Surana.