Name: Sumir Pandit

Email: srp39@pitt.edu

Hometown: Hollidaysburg, Pennsylvania

Interests: NFL (Steelers!), Soccer, 2008 Presidential Election, Will Smith movies, Taco Bell

Major: History, Biology, Psychology

Year: Freshman

Favorite Quote: "I want what all men want. I just want it more." -Achilles, Troy

Finals: The main thing about finals is the planning required beforehand-not about what to study but where. The library will be packed, as will the Cathedral common room, and just about everywhere else. Scout out a few secluded places beforehand and hope you get lucky that nobody else finds them. Otherwise, you'll be studying in your room and that's never good. Still, between the late nights in the library and midnight snack runs, the Finals experience is a great way to make friends.

Food at Pitt: Luckily, I got here just as Pitt finished constructing its new multimillion dollar dining facility in Towers, which has as good gourmet dining as you'll see anywhere else. You can also mix it up with the Union's Schenley Café, the Cathedral Café, the Pete, and the other places scattered over campus. It's all really good and you'll find your favorites pretty quickly. As an added bonus, you can make upperclassmen friends very quickly since the freshman meal plans are way too huge for just one person to use.

Thanksgiving Break: Thanksgiving break at Pitt is very complicated; at least it was for me. As a freshman, you see the finals looming ahead and feel like you should use the week off to study. But if you're like me, you haven't been home in months and you feel guilty about not spending more time with your family. Your friends are calling you to hang out. And right about at this time, the Steelers are turning it on and preparing for a deep playoff run. By the end of break, I had not opened by backpack at all and had spent 90% of my time watching the NFL. Ah, college.

Living in my dorm: I live in Forbes Hall, the Honors dorm, which is slightly more tame than most others, but not by a lot. It's a great place to live, with huge rooms and a few balconies, but it is a little bit removed from the middle of campus. Just a general note about dorm life: having your own bathroom sounds great on paper, but having to clean it yourself (or suffer through a year of not cleaning it) is no fun. Get the communal bathroom that gets cleaned daily-it's the best deal, trust me.

Weather: Buy waterproof shoes, a heavy parka, and a strong umbrella. For most local Pennsylvanians, Pittsburgh weather only slightly extreme. For those of you out-of-staters, you'll get to see one of the most temperamental climates in the US. I think it gives the city character and the campus a definite uniqueness. Other might say otherwise. But as Ron Burgundy once said, "Agree to disagree."