Name: Josh
Age: 20
Hometown: Mukwonago, WI
Major: Mechanical Engineering
Minor: Certificate in Kinesiology
Extracurricular activities: Society of Mechanical Engineering and IM basketball (as well as other IM sports)
# of roommates: 5
# of classes: 6
Josh, College Life's handsome jock with a heart of gold, was given a camera after his relationship with ex-girlfriend Andrea began to dominate the show. In most of his scenes, Josh is seen pining over Andrea or hatching a plan with his couch-potato roommate to try to make her jealous. So does all the girl drama and struggling with whether to stay a virgin for the girl of his dreams end up ruining his freshman year?
Have things changed since College Life started?
J: There’s some more stress, but not as far as what I do everyday. At the beginning, people didn’t believe me, I showed them the papers to show it was real.
How did MTV contact you?
J: Well, actually, my ex-girlfriend Andrea was on the show and I was on her camera a lot and once our story got complicated they asked me if I wanted one.
What was your main reason for doing the show?
J: I’m pretty lax about everything, and it basically helps to pay for my tuition, so it's an easy way to not give up what I like to do. Also, I’m not too scared about what other people think of me.
Did you feel like you needed to represent your side of things?
J: Need too? Not really. Because I knew Andrea would never really trash-talk me, but it was nice to share my side of things, because Andrea didn’t know what was going on with me all the time and I didn’t know what was going on with here all the time, so it was nice to try and balance things out, and to have there be less of a chance of potentially making things look bad.
MTV has historically shown a lot of what college kids do down South, going crazy on spring break and everything. Why do you think they did College Life at UW-Madison?
J: The person who came up with the show was from Madison, so he wanted to do it here.
Do you think they do a good job of representing Madison?
J: I would say we represent the town to a point, but because we can do anything on campus (can’t show going to class, showing going to the library, can’t show the major stuff involved getting a career).
According to MTV, students do their own filming. How did you manage to film yourself while you were out? Did your arm get tired? Did it suck filming during the winter?
J: During winter it was really hard to film outside because it was so cold outside. But, when filming at parties it helps to have a good crew around and it helps to have friends around. So having them around is a big help. Filming yourself before going out is really short and stuff.
Did you carry the camera with you all the time?
J: Besides when I go to class, yea. Everyone thinks I’m carrying alcohol in my backpack, but it’s just a camera.
How often did you ask your friend(s) to film you? Were people psyched to get on camera? Did they act differently around it?
J: There’s definitely, like, a bunch of mixed reactions. I know, like, a lot of people when I first started filming at parties and they were, like, ‘oh look, the MTV camera,’ and then they got used to it. Once people started finding out about the show then it got better. At the beginning of the year that was different.
Did the MTV crew ever interrupt filming or do the filming for you?
J: They uh, all they do is pick up tapes. The only thing they ever do is to capture something to make sense of something. They give us guidance but do not tell us what to do at all. Make sure when we’re going out to say what we’re doing for the night. To say, “I’m about to go to this party,” that sort of stuff to give context. Most people just leave the house and go out.
Did you film a lot during election night?
J: Not really, I didn’t really film anything about the election.
Did you receive any monetary compensation from MTV?
J: It’s decent.
What do you think when you see yourself on camera? On national TV for that matter.
J: I think it’s kind of funny, personally. It’s interesting to see myself—what’s used and not used. You know, you film a lot and then they use like 5 to 10 minutes, just editing it down. Also, sarcasm doesn’t really come through on the camera, so I can’t be sarcastic on the camera.
What’s your one favorite thing about college so far? What’s one thing you can’t stand?
J: Best: The freedom that you have of living on your own and doing everything for yourself. I like being on my own and doing my own thing. Least: Lack of hands-on things to do in class. Lectures are kind of boring to me.
What are your favorite Madison spots?
J: Well, for a typical weekend, starting on Friday me and my friends go play basketball for a couple of hours. A lot of people do that, actually. Then we go out for the night, usually at a couple of random house parties. Saturdays are similar, and if its fall then game days are really fun.
What would I find in your refrigerator right now?
J: Pork chops, eggs, asparagus, vegetables, but I guess those are in the freezer.
Got any big plans for the future? What’s up this summer?
J: This summer, I am doing a painting and landscaping job in Madison. Last summer I did an internship that was all inside and I really wanted to be outside, so this summer I’m trying to get a break from the indoor climate.
I’ve been inside the UW dorms before. I’m not a fan, especially for the freshmen. How would you describe the dorms?
J: Well, they only let them film in their rooms, so you don’t see the rest of dorm life really. I like the dorms, but I kind of miss ‘em. I like the social atmosphere that the southeast dorms on campus had. It’s very nice for doing homework, just having people around. You can say, "help me with this, how do you do this," all that.
How is it having the camera off?
J: A good stress relief. I hope the show makes it to a second season. Yeah, I’m excited to have the summer off, but I think that’ll be long enough. I'm open to it again.
Any advice for next year's freshman class?
Freshmen year people want to have fun. My freshman year I did, and then this year, Andrea’s freshmen year she wanted to have fun, and so that was different. I guess I would say not to put your relationship on the back burner, but be open to the fact that new things might come up. Be prepared for that.
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