A Survival Guide for Stockton College Freshmen

The Richard Stockton College of New Jersey is an odd beast. It's a school in transition, a place that doesn't have a clear definition of what it is anymore. Indeed, that whole area of South Jersey is in transition-from sparsely populated Pine Barrens to suburbia. I was present before the construction overhaul began and left before it was completed (assuming, of course, that it ever is).

For simplicity's sake, I'm going to beak the Stockton student body into two categories: commuters and residents. Obviously, there is a difference between these two groups, and certain advice would only apply to one and not the other. My first three years at Stockton were as a resident and my final year was as a commuter, so I understand the different challenges and needs of both sides first hand. But first, and most importantly...

For Everyone:

...I'd like to start with some general advice about college (and, indeed, life). The cliché "it's not what you know, it's who you know" applies well here. I'm not saying that the Stockton administration can be bought-though, given the school's foundation was a corrupt land deal, there is precedent-but rather that it's important to get to know the right people.

And those right people are your professors. Stockton is a small school. It's growing, yes, but there are only two or three "auditorium" classes. Your professor has an office, office hours, and is accessible. With only one glaring exception in my four years, all of my professors were incredibly receptive and helpful. If you have a problem, chances are you'll be able to work it out with them.

This leads me to a thoroughbred handicapping theory known as "Horses for Courses." In short, this theory states that certain horses perform very well on certain tracks-Who's the Cowboy, around one turn at Monmouth Park, was unbeatable. Similarly, if I had a class with GT Lenard, chances are I was going to get an A. It wasn't because her classes were easy or because she liked me as a person. She liked my writing style and sense of impropriety-so I wouldn't be graded negatively for putting an analogy to handicapping in a paper about Gulliver's Travels.

You're the horse. Find the professors who "get" you. Their classes are the "Course." I apologize for the pun, but I really do like the analogy. Whatever it is about you that they "get" is important: nothing is worse than having to change how you do what you do to suit someone else's system. Your work will suffer, you'll be unhappy, and you'll probably get a lower grade than otherwise.

The piece of general advice I have is to make use of the Writing and Math lab, located in lower J Wing. Unlike other schools, Stockton doesn't require that you set up an appointment in advance-it really is open to everyone and easy to get help. If you need help on a paper or with math, use the labs. The staff knows what they're doing.

For Everyone, Courses Edition:

There is a pair of courses that everyone should take at Stockton. They've become an institution almost as much as the school itself. And they're both "auditorium" courses.

The first is "Courses, Majors, and Careers." It's taught by Professor Bill Daly, a truly marvelous man. Despite being an auditorium class, he will learn your name. If you run into him a few years later, he'll remember it. I know this for a fact, because I ran into him a year after graduation and he knew who I was. The course title is self-explanatory and it's the ultimate freshman course-whether you know what you want to do for the rest of your life or if you haven't the foggiest, you will learn something about courses, majors and careers.

The second course is "Atom, Man, Universe." It's taught by Yitzhak Sharon, another truly marvelous man. While Professor Sharon won't learn everyone's name, he does the other impossible. He makes physics (and other sciences) interesting, interactive, and accessible even for those adverse to math.

For Commuters:

There are no two ways about it: with all of the construction at Stockton, parking sucks. If you're arriving on campus in the middle of the day, chances are you're going to have a decently long walk to get inside. If it's raining, bring an umbrella or be prepared to get wet.

So, in turn, don't cut it too close to the bone on getting to class on time. Chances are you won't find a spot near where you class is and you'll have to walk across half the campus to get there. Unless, of course, you have to park in the North lot-in which case, you'll have the entire campus to walk across. Alternatively, you could ride the shuttle, but that might set you back even more time, depending on when the next pick up time is.

As commuters try to cram the most amount of classes together in the same few days (to reduce headache of having to find a spot to twice a week), chances are you'll be bringing your own food or be eating on campus. If you're eating on campus...well, good luck. I didn't find the Chartwells'-a provider for some of the nation's largest prisons-food too appetizing, although the coffee shops in lower B and lower F wings are passable. So bring a sandwich. It'll be cheaper and taste better.

For Residents:

In your first year, you'll be stuck in the dorms that do not have a kitchen. Therefore, you'll be stuck with a meal plan. Again, there isn't much in the way of good food at Stockton. However, your meals won't be governed on want; they'll be governed on need and time.

Have an early class and the time to eat before it? Chances are an omelette at the N-Wing cafeteria is your best bet. They also offer a buffet for each major meal. Need lunch in-between classes and don't have time to sit down? Then either the sandwich cart in lower J or the G-Wing food court are your two options. Dinner is less hectic-although your best on-campus food comes from the late night options. Both the Osprey's nest and Lakeside offer pizza or hot subs.

Of course, if you have the time to go out, you should. Jiang's is the best local Chinese food. The Corner, located in the Shoppes of Galloway, is the best bar for lunch. They have a 2 slices of pizza, 2 mugs of beer for $5 deal. Next door to that bar is a decent Italian place-I abused their eggplant rollatini when I had the spare cash. If you get out to Route 30, you have options: Five Guys, Denny's, a Burger King, a McDonalds, and a selection of Shop Rites, Food Towns, a WaWa and other assorted chain stores.

Again, if you can manage to get bread and some lunch meats or good old fashioned peanut butter and jelly, you'll eat better and cheaper. Tough it out through that first year in the dorms, get yourself in either the Old Apartments or the New Apartments-both have full kitchens. That way you can dump the meal plan and live entirely on your choice of foods-assuming, of course, you know how to make something other than a sandwich.

And if you don't? Well, make a sandwich. It beats the pants of Chartwells.