Right now a college freshman is probably lost on the quad, while another is taking his first bong hit, and another is trying to decide if she should stick with medieval literature 101. The struggle is real, and freshmen year, in all its awkward glory, is being captured with the hashtag #RightNowAFreshman.
#RightNowAFreshman is deciding between the Jim Morrison poster and the inspirational "Footsteps" poster to put on their wall.
— ℝ𝕒𝕔𝕙𝕖𝕝 ℝ𝕠𝕓𝕚𝕟𝕤𝕠𝕟 𝕍𝕠𝕚𝕔𝕖 (@larynx_lynx) September 3, 2015
The hashtag was started Thursday afternoon by Jenny Jaffe, a New York University Class of 2012 graduate and founder of Project UROK, an online community for teens struggling with mental health issues that the Daily Dot profiled back in May.
“I started it [the hashtag] because it’s NYU welcome week and thinking about how wonderfully earnest freshman are acting right this very moment, and Tweeting exactly what I suspected they were doing was really tickling me,” Jaffe told the Daily Dot on Thursday.
She began tweeting freshmen experiences of her own with the hashtag.
https://twitter.com/jennyjaffe/status/639466800204382209
https://twitter.com/jennyjaffe/status/639468836195041280
https://twitter.com/jennyjaffe/status/639473199063932929
Once her close friend and Project UROK collaborator Mara Wilson retweeted it to her 215,000 followers, it took off like wildfire. The Project UROK Twitter account also got in on the fun.
Some people talked about a freshman’s search for meaning and identity.
https://twitter.com/KyleDodsonFunny/status/639492891639857152
#RightNowAFreshman is thinking about becoming a vegetarian.
— Diana Dee Light ☮♥️🌮 (@DianaDee16) September 3, 2015
#RightNowAFreshman is looking up how to spell "Heteronormative" so he can include it in an email to his mom
— Zach Schonfeld (@zzzzaaaacccchhh) September 3, 2015
https://twitter.com/agentallie_/status/639493997535358976
Others touched upon the struggle to live independently for the first time.
https://twitter.com/PatrickHiggins/status/639532829806714880
https://twitter.com/exmachina00/status/639540570587840512
#RightNowAFreshman is finding out people do other drugs besides smoking weed from a water bottle pipe. Or the real pipe Derek got at a 7/11
— sensitive pencil (@Mrzack123) September 3, 2015
While some of the tweets touched on more serious subject matter facing new students on college campuses.
#RightNowAFreshman is listening to a lecture about sexual assault on campus from professionals who believe it doesn't happen at THEIR school
— Rachael Berkey (@bookoisseur) September 3, 2015
https://twitter.com/erinprovolone/status/639538230962982912
Jaffe made sure to say that the hashtag was started from a genuine place of empathy for college newbies, and also to perhaps help them realize that they’ll fit in soon enough.
“It definitely came from a place of total love and support for what a confusing and exciting and emotional time it is!” she said. “I don’t mean to make fun of anyone—they’ll be in on the joke soon enough—I want to give all incoming Freshmen a hug and reassurance that they don’t need to try and impress anyone and it’s gonna be OK. “
Meet you on the quad for frisbee in 15?
Photo via Matt Nazario-Miller/Flickr (CC BY 2.0)