You may think you’re college to-do list is getting thinner as you start to take care of the obvious errands, but with all the excitement that goes along with coming to school in September, make sure to get vaccinated for meningitis.

Meningitis is an infection often caught by college students living in dorms. It is caused by either a virus or sometimes bacteria affecting the brain tissue and spinal cord. In deadly cases, the blood is infected. The most common symptoms are fever, headaches, a stiff neck, a rash and sometimes photophobia – an increased sensitivity to light.

Brad Moore, an associate professor of medicine at GW Medical Center, said meningococcal, the bacteria that can cause the more dangerous bacterial meningitis “is most common in people who live in close proximity, such as in barracks and college dorms.”

Though getting the meningitis vaccine is mandatory by state law before attending school in some states, this vaccine is not one of the inoculations required prior to living in GW housing. It is strongly recommended, however.

The virus and bacteria that cause meningitis can be airborne or spread through direct contact. This means that activities consistent with college life, such as living in dorms with others, sharing drinks and smoking, leave college students more prone to contracting meningitis. As a result, freshmen in college dorms are up to six times more likely to get sick from meningitis than anyone else, according to the Centers for Disease Control.

“Meningitis is so dangerous, because it can strike healthy young people and progress over a matter of hours to death,” Moore said. “While this infection is most prominent in children under the age of two, the second most commonly-affected are the young, previously healthy college age group.”

Moore added that meningitis affects between 2500 and 3500 people annually in the U.S., with between 10 and 15 percent of those cases ending in death.

If students are unable to get inoculated for meningitis prior to coming to school but would like to, Student Health Service offers vaccinations for a fee.