By Amanda Cross, Student at the University of Central Arkansas

Summertime is amazing because you have all the free time in the world, you are not worrying about when your next paper is due and you are just enjoying the hot summer air.

With summer, though, comes a chasm. You can change so much in a summer, especially in college. There are so many things to do and your newfound friends aren’t going to be right next to you every step of the way.

Luckily, there are many ways to keep in touch with your college friends over summer break — no matter the distance!

Make Sure You're Connected With All Social Media Before Leaving

Sometimes finding a friend on Facebook/Twitter/Pinterest can be a major headache. Making sure that you and your friends are connected or that you can find them easily is a great idea because it prevents later frustrations. It’s also a good way to check in on your friends' lives during the summer if you don’t have time for a ton of conversation. Everyone loves an occasional "I miss you" Facebook post on their wall!

Text/Skype/Talk Daily

My best friend and I do this a lot during breaks. Sometimes we will call each other at night and stay on the phone with each other for hours, not really saying much, just to have the same presence of college because we are usually around each other quite often. Snapchat can also be a fun way to keep in touch. It allows you to take silly pictures and send them to one another as often as you like.

Plan Visits With Each Other

Make sure to plan at least a couple of trips to see each other during the summer. Whether you get together for just a lunch date or for a week of vacationing and mani-pedi trips, make sure you see your friends in person a few times during the summer (if possible). Sometimes it's so much easier to tell someone something in person rather than over the phone or over text message.

When communicating with your friends over the summer, remember that communication is a two-way street. If you miss your friend, don’t be afraid to be the first to communicate. Your friend may be so busy this summer that they didn’t think to arrange a Skype video call with you, so shoot them a text or make a call. People have such different schedules over the summer than they do during the school year so don’t take it the wrong way.

Keeping the lines of communication open during the summer is key to a maintaining a great college friendship. Don’t let your amazing relationships become stagnant over the summer!

Image courtesy of imagerymajestic / FreeDigitalPhotos.net