Adjusting to College Life at Santa Rosa Junior College

I vividly remember the night the fire alarm went off for the first time in our brand-new dorm. It was the very beginning of my semester at Santa Rosa Junior College. I'm not quite sure about the exact date, but it was during the first week of the Fall semester. Like other new students, I was excited to attend my first college classes in the United States and eager to meet new friends and professors.

It had been a normal evening

After finishing all my classes for the day, I returned to my dorm room, ready to rest deeply and prepare for my upcoming classes. As I got ready for the next day — making breakfast, packing my backpack, checking my room keys — it was around 11 p.m., with the fall night feeling perfectly cozy under a warm fuzzy blanket. After a while, as I was peacefully falling asleep, a very loud, sudden noise startled me. I was shocked and terrified upon hearing it. It was the fire alarm. Shortly after, I heard doors opening and closing, and footsteps echoing through the halls. Thankfully, I remembered to grab my phone and coat and exited through the emergency exit.

The alarm was blaring

Most students were shocked, visibly shaking like leaves. The persistent buzzing continued as Resident Assistants and directors instructed us to wait until the fire trucks arrived. While waiting, I wandered around to see what other important items people had brought. I noticed some students had cards games and snacks; I was surprised to see how some could manage to play Cards Against Humanity despite the blaring alarm. Others were eating pizza, playfully chasing each other, and a few even had light saber sticks, engaging in mock battles as if nothing were amiss.

Part of the college experience

Eventually, the fire trucks arrived with flashing lights, and firefighters in their suits went up to the dorm. The noise finally ceased. Once we were allowed back into the dorm, I realized I had forgotten my key. I had to return to the first floor again and wait for the RAs to let me in. Once inside my room, I tightly clutched my key, flopped myself onto my bed, and took a deep breath.

As I tried to sleep again, I couldn't help but notice how calmly the students handled the fire alarm and how they passed the time so casually despite the chaos. The next day, I recounted the experience to my friends, and we shared a laugh about it. When I told my parents over video-chat how scared and confused I had been by people's reactions, and how we laughed about it later, they said it was all part of the college experience.

Thu Aung from Myanmar is studying humanities at Santa Rosa Junior College in California.