Advice from a Junior: Random Tips & Tricks

Hello, everyone! In this post, I am going to give you a mini guidebook of random but helpful opportunities/events to take advantage of as a student at Furman. All free!

Furman’s RLC, or Furman Residential Life Council, is a student organization that hosts a number of events, giveaways, and free handouts to students on a regular basis throughout the academic semesters. Every Friday, during your first fall semester as a Freshmen and every fall semester after, RLC sponsors “Furman Fridays,” which is an event where they sit outside the front of or inside Trone Student Center with a table of free goodies (i.e. Furman stickers, socks, candy, and more) if you are wearing any purple-colored clothing item or Furman merchandise! They also hold several other free events to attend, where they provide food items such as cupcakes, coffee, candy, and donuts, or fun games to play and potentially win for a small prize. Be on the lookout for their logo either on their shirts or on the table where they’re sitting at (usually located near the Trone Student Center, Library, or Dining Hall).

Shown above is a picture of RLC’s discount card given to students at the start of the academic semester and updated every year with new restaurants. Make sure to grab this card from an RLC table or student member for discounts at Downtown Greenville and TR’s stores! This is great for students who like to go off campus and hangout with friends or study in a different environment.

If you are a big sports fan, then these next tips are for you! First and foremost, since Furman is a university with a smaller student body, on-campus football games are free of charge as long as you have your Palacard (purple student identification card) with you! Additionally, if you attend certain sporting events (i.e. basketball, football, or soccer games), there are frequent giveaways to members of the audience (either upon arrival, during the game, or on Twitter). These prizes range from major discounts at restaurants or even Apple AirPods!

Another amazing event to take part of is Furman’s dog day! At the end of every month on Thursday, a local organization will bring in several dogs to meet and greet with the Furman students as a way to provide stress relief for students and overall increase mental health on campus. The dogs are safe and adorable, including all different types of breeds! If you’re like me who is a dog lover and misses their dog when away from home, then you’re sure to love this heartwarming experience!

On a more specific academic note, one of the General Education Requirements that you must take at some point in your four years at Furman is the Mind & Body GER, which pertains to either the Meditation class or the more popular Health and Wellness courses. As an incoming freshmen or prospective student who wants to take a Health and Wellness course to fulfill the GER, you should highly consider taking it some time during your freshmen year (especially if you live in South Housing). The PAC is only a five minute walk from the South Housing dorms; whereas, during your upperclassman years, your living situation places you 15-30 minutes (by walking) away from the building. Likewise, from my own experience, I took Health & Wellness my first semester as a freshmen and don’t regret it one bit! I was able to establish a solid workout routine, and it helped create a foundation for maintaining a healthy lifestyle during college.

Last but not least is a general piece of advice for the Trone Student Center! Within the Trone Student Center is the Barnes & Nobles at Furman as well as the Paddock, our very own restaurant. Both places accept Furman “points” which is part of our bigger meal plan on campus. Located within the Barnes & Nobles is our Starbucks which accepts these points as a replacement for actual cash. However, an important note for the Starbucks is that it does not accept orders or payments from the Starbucks app or Starbucks gift cards. If you want to buy using anything other than cash or points, you have to buy a Barnes & Nobles gift card. The Starbucks in the bookstore also has a special deal: If you purchase any Starbucks drink, you can combine it with a food option and chips for only $7-$8.

As a final note, thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed these fun facts about Furman!

-Makena Song