I wish they'd develop a plastic shield that has a matte texture, I'd definitely be all over that. The glossy look doesn't appeal to me(well, anyone on this forum), and certainly takes away from the beauty of the MBP.
I also wish the Hardshell was a little easier to take off, sometimes I'd think I had the sequence down, but the next time I do it, I have just as much trouble.
Again, since you are in the college environment, I'd recommend you to get the HardShell, it'll save you from a lot of little mishaps. It definitely saved me from a couple of hard knocks on my MBP, I'm still in the stage where I want to keep my MBP specklin'.
the product I mentioned from uniea is an easily removable hardshell case with a leather covering.
sometimes I swear if people don't post pictures no one pays attention =D