I felt unprepared when I moved into my first apartment. Living alone has been challenging, but also incredibly rewarding.

During my last year of college, I moved into my first apartment alone.

Carrie Berk

• After living at home for most of college, I decided to move into my own place senior year.
• I thought living alone would help me foster independence and allow me to become a "real adult."
• Although the move was overwhelming at first, it's helped me learn to embrace chaos.

I'll be honest — when I moved into my first apartment after graduating from college, I didn't know the difference between Tide and Cascade pods...