“They say nothing lasts forever; dreams change, trends come and go, but friendships never go out of style.” – Carrie Bradshaw

A little less than a year ago, on my first train ride home from the FIT Precollege Program, I found myself standing in the middle of Penn Station completely confused, alone, and not understanding why everyone was running each other over to get to their train gate with fifteen extra minutes to spare (which I later realized was normal behavior at Penn Station). I walked to my gate and saw a girl with fiery red hair and it turned out that she was going to be on the same train as me! I sat down next to her and saw that she was wearing a “FIT Precollege Spring 2015” badge. We immediately started to talk. She said she had taken FIT classes before and then let me ask probably ten million questions about FIT. Her name was Maddison and to this day we are still best friends. She soon introduced me to her great friends in our class, Becca and Cynthia, who quickly became my best friends as well.

Our friendships grew both in and outside of class.  Soon we were meeting before class for lunch or after class for dinner. (Note: we all agree that GiGi’s Café, which is across from FIT, has the best cheese quesadillas in the city.) My FIT friends and I continue to travel to the city whenever we get the chance to see each other for the day. We shop in the Flatiron district (where we had a class field trip) and walk around Union Square. We recently ventured to the Upper East Side where I lost my wallet and my friends and I looked for hours until we realized it was in the other pocket of my purse!!!!

Main Tips on Making Friends at FIT

• Don’t be afraid to talk to someone new.
• Always ask questions about them.
• Find similar interests and things you have in common.
• Share funny stories about your experiences that they can relate to.
• Don’t wait for them to talk to you, go and talk to them!
• SMILE always be approachable!!!!

The lesson here is not only to keep track of your wallet while on the Upper East Side, but also to reach out to people in your classes. Make the effort to talk to someone new, and you could end up with a lifelong friendship (and someone to join you in nearly getting run over by suitcases at Penn Station.) I have learned so many new things from my friends: how to hail a cab, take the subway, and which sidewalk stands I should NOT get a hotdog from. My FIT friends are ones I can go to for everything; they understand me and I hope that Precollege students in this session will find the same lifelong connections.