It is hard to imagine a college campus without students having books in one hand and a cell phone in the other.
Cell phones have become a way of life for the majority of college students. The cell phone craze spread across college campuses about three years ago, and if a person who does not have one belongs to the minority.
Students look to cell phones as a form of comfort for many reasons.
First of all, most of them are at least one state away from home and the security of friends and family. Students feel that having a phone at their finger tips is reassuring.
The cell phone can also be convenient as a way to keep in touch with roommates when everyone has a different schedule.
“I am obsessed with what is going on throughout the day in all my friends’ lives. I never want to miss anything, therefore I always have my cell phone on me,” said freshman Rachael Schlenk. “I feel like the day I leave my cell phone in my room will be the day that something bad will happen.”
Many college students are also convinced they are saving money by using their cell phones rather than the phone in their room.
Some college students do not even bother to pay for a regular phone for their dorm room.
With the large number of long-distance plans for cell phones offered to college students, it is easy to find a plan that can save you money and give you the conviniences of having a phone 24 hours a day.
“My cell phone offers me a better plan for long distance, so I rarely use the phone in my room. Being that my parents’ schedule does not match up with mine, it is convenient to call them on the go, rather then having to go all the way back to my room to call them,” said junior Jennifer Myers.
With the tragic events of 9-11, many students feel much more comfortable having a cell phone because this makes them accessible at all times to friends and family.
Being so easily reached can become a nuisance when in class or doing work. Students sometimes forget to turn off the ringer in these instances.
“It is disruptive when a cell phone goes off when I am showing a movie to one of my classes. Everyone loses their train of thought and looks around the room saying, ‘Who’s phone was that,'” said Professor Rebecca Abbott.
It seems a college student can never have a moment to his or herself, if a cell phone is constantly ringing to interrupt them. Some students find a ringing cell phone a constant annoyance.
“I only turn my cell phone on when I am expecting a call or am not doing school work. Being that I am a pre-physicians assistant major, my course load is heavy and I cannot be constantly bothered by a ringing cell phone,” said Colleen Farrell, freshman.
Cell phones are especially attractive to younger college students and high school students because they have grown up with the accessibility of having a cell phone.
Most of these students have never been stranded with a flat tire, because they have had this handy tool with them.
But while cell phones are handy at times, they can also create problems. Going into a ‘dead zone’ and not having reception or forgetting to charge the phone before leaving home or the dorm room are some of these problems.
As college students it is important to realize that a cell phone is not always dependable and can be more annoying than helpful in many situations.
Although it is a convenient tool for fast communication, cell phones can interrupt the pattern of every-day campus face-to-face communication as well as the regular learning process.