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Show up for class. Professors like to see your face.

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Not only that, but going to class and taking notes is in fact much easier way to learn stuff than having to sit there hunched over a book learning it yourself. Having some professor tell you the stuff is easy, even if you have to actually get off your behind and leave the room.

Talking to your teaching assistant and professor and getting them to know your name is a good way to boost your mark or at least your knowledge and ability to talk to people, unless you're obnoxious.
 

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Posted by Shigosei (Member # 3831) on :
 
Good luck! What will you be majoring in?

If you live in the dorm, leave your door open when you can (when you're in the room, of course!). It encourages people to come by and talk to you.

Don't skip class, at least until you know what you can safely skip. And you probably won't have a good idea about that for at least a few semesters. I disagree with Teshi about listening to a lecture being easier than reading, because I think that depends on your learning style. However, it's good to get to know your professors and TAs, and sometimes you're told stuff in the lecture that isn't in your book.

Do try new stuff! Remember that college isn't only about what you can learn in the classroom. Try new foods, join a few clubs, and be sure to balance schoolwork and the rest of your life.
 

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Posted by pH (Member # 1350) on :
 
Don't put plastic bowls in the microwave.

It seems like most freshmen are pretty eager to make new friends, which should make meeting people easy. I'm always surprised every year when the new freshmen come at how many people start conversations with me while waiting in line at the campus store and such.

-pH
 

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Posted by Lanfear (Member # 7776) on :
 
Majoring in Business, with an entrepreneurial emphasis.

I plan to attend Law School.

I don't know yet what I want to do with the rest of my life, but being an attorney is definitely my fallback.

I've always been interested in writing, but I know that can't sustain a family (exceptions obviously). And having my own business startup also sounds incredibly exciting.

So, I guess I need to get out there and start experiencing.
 

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Posted by Shigosei (Member # 3831) on :
 
Of course writing can sustain a family. Journalists and technical writers make livings, and other people work in professions that involve a lot of writing, such as science.

It might be harder to make a living writing fiction, but if you're interested in writing in general, don't rule out all the other ways to make writing your career.
 

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Posted by Diana Bailey (Member # 8313) on :
 
Congratulations! You should have a great time.

Take as many challenging courses as possible. That doesn't mean they need to be 'relevant' for some future career, but they should make you think and re-examine your assumptions and actions. There's never enough time to take all the courses that look interesting, so resist the temptation to take a light load in order to go skiing in the winter. The slopes will be there, but your college time is ever so short. I loved the opportunity to study topics I had never considered before, and I have wonderful memories of weird professors and assigned books and papers that actually sharpened both my writing and thinking skills.

That said, look for the "J" factor too. Without joy, nothing really comes alive.

I'm sending my last child to the University of Chicago this fall. I'd trade place with him in a second. Enjoy your first quarter!
 

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Posted by Jhai (Member # 5633) on :
 
Where are you headed? Big university or smaller liberal arts college?

I just graduated from my undergrad (and am headed into grad school...), so I have a fair bit of advice.

The first few weeks are great for socializing - be sure to get out and meet all sorts of people, not just people who look like your friends from home. Go to the events fair and sign up to be on the mailing list for any clubs or activities that sound even somewhat interesting. Being in clubs also gives you access to upperclassmen, who will know about all the good professors, classes, and random loopholes in the rules. Read the university catalog from cover to cover to get

Finding a job or volunteer activity that takes you out into the local community is a good way to keep from getting into the "college bubble" mentality.

Try to get some sort of schedule for exercise, regular meals, and studying/homework. Exercise and healthy meals will keep your energy levels high and keep away the freshman 15. Be sure to take advantage of that 30 minutes or hour between classes - if you can use that time to study then that's 30 free minutes to hang out or party in the evening.

Be aware that college has become a time for resume-padding that will allow you to get a good first job. Don't worry too much about getting that awesome internship or job for next semester or summer, but keep your eyes open for opportunities for future years. Tech skills are always useful, as are math skills, and the ability to write well.

Finally, keep your options open, and audit or attend classes that are outside your major. If you want to go to law school, consider taking a few philosophy classes, for instance - it'll teach you to write arguments well.
 

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Posted by EmpSquared (Member # 10890) on :
 
Half the people you will dorm with won't know how to do laundry. Teach them how to wash; disappear and leave them on their own to dry.

But seriously, I just graduated with a B.A. in Creative Writing. I'm going to segue into a Library Studies degree in graduate school, so remember, sometimes it's about a compromise between what you love and practicality.

Being an attorney is one hell of a fall back, though.
 

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Posted by Little_Doctor (Member # 6635) on :
 
I'm in the same boat you are Lanfear! I'm leaving on the 2nd for school, and I'm just starting to pack now. It's crazy. Most of my friends have left already though so I never had to make rounds saying goodbye to people. The thing I'm worried most about is not bringing enough clothes. Collegeboard recommends 21 pairs of underwear but I think thats a lot, no?
 

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Posted by Happy Camper (Member # 5076) on :
 
You might think so, but many, many people (esp 1st years) don't have that much time to do laundry (read: won't do laundry till it stands up on its own), and while that may be okay for shirts and pants and whatnot, doing such a thing with underwear is... well, not appealing. This way you won't absolutely have to do it for 3 weeks.
 

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Posted by Shanna (Member # 7900) on :
 
On the subject of clothes and laundry, my philosophy always was to bring as much as I could fit in my dorm closet but no more than would fit in my car. Those trips home with the trunk filled with dirty laundry is not only a cliche but a necessary truth. I lived four hours from my parents so I didn't go home every weekend to do laundry, but I certainly dragged all my clothes home on holiday.

For me, it wasn't that I didn't have time to do laundry (its an easy thing to do while studying) but it was a nightmare fighting people for washers/dryers. I did many loads of laundry at 3 o'clock in the morning. The first lesson we all learned was that you have to set a timer for your washing because when its done, the person waiting for that machine will throw your newly cleaned or dryed clothes on the floor just to make room for theirs.

As for friends, I didn't know a single person at my school and I made the mistake of settling in with my roommate's "circle of friends" because it was easy. It was a nightmare when a year and a half later we had a big falling out and I found myself without a group. It took me another year to realize that being shy and quiet wasn't going to get me anywhere. College is a good time for breaking out of your shell and putting yourself out there.
 

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Posted by Shigosei (Member # 3831) on :
 
I generally take as much as I can to cut down on laundry loads. Saves time -- and money, as most dorm washing machines require payment. If you're lucky, it'll let you swipe your student ID card. If not, get ready to hoard quarters.
 

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Posted by pH (Member # 1350) on :
 
I STILL do laundry at 3 in the morning, and I have my own place.

Also, I learned that all the laundry rules (whites vs. colors) are not really necessary. Unless you have some really, really dark wash jeans or something, you can dump it all into the same machine and save effort and quarters.

If you end up wanting to get a job, look for one on campus. They usually pay pretty decently, the hours are extremely flexible, and a lot of undergrad student jobs are pretty much paid study time (sitting in the computer lab making sure the printers have paper, etc).

-pH
 

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Posted by Phanto (Member # 5897) on :
 

quote:

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sitting in the computer lab making sure the printers have paper, etc

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That's a job? Sign me up!
 

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Posted by pH (Member # 1350) on :
 
Yeah...undergrads at my school make $7 an hour (minimum wage here is $5.15) for sitting in the computer lab to make sure the printers have paper and generally "monitoring" students...I guess to make sure no one is pouring Cokes on the keyboards or something.

-pH
 

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Posted by breyerchic04 (Member # 6423) on :
 
Our lab monitors wouldn't care if we poured coke in the keyboards.
 

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Posted by littlemissattitude (Member # 4514) on :
 
Another reiteration of "go to class". Even if you are told that attendance is not mandatory (doesn't happen often, but will happen occasionally). The instructors/professors will remember that you showed up anyway.

Keep up on your reading. There will be a lot of it, and it could well look intimidating. Believe me, it looks more intimidating when it is two weeks until the end of the semester and you have half a semester's reading to catch up on.

Don't be afraid to ask for help if you need it. If an instructor holds it against you for asking him or her extra questions, he or she isn't a very good teacher. Office hours exist for a reason. Also, schools have tutorial programs (when they do have them) for a reason.

Seek out study groups, but don't hang around if they turn into exclusively social get-togethers or if you end up being the one doing all the work.

Don't put up with it if you have to do group projects and you end up being the only one in the group doing any work. Don't let slackers guilt you into handing over the work you do, and if it gets really bad don't hesitate to rat them out.

Get involved in a campus organization. Resist the urge to get involved in too many of them. Even though you are in college now, the day still only has 24 hours and you have to spend some of those hours sleeping.

Which leads me to...get your sleep. An occasional late night is fine, but too many of them can be a very bad thing. Make that A. Very. Bad. Thing. Not only is it harder to concentrate when you are tired, it lowers your resistance and you will start getting every little bug that comes along.

There's probably more, but I'm in the real world of work these days and my break is over. Enjoy school while you can.
 

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Posted by Tatiana (Member # 6776) on :
 
It took me until senior year to figure out how to do well at college, and guess what? The answer turned out to be never miss class if there's any possible way you can make it, and do all your homework. Imagine that! <laughs> Yeah, I was a slow learner about some things.

Other tricks I had included finding study partners for the classes I was in. I could help them figure out the tough problems and they could motivate me to begin. That was a win-win situation. Plus it's a great way to make new friends.

Another method I had was just to stake out an 8 hour "work day" from whatever time my first class was until 8 hours later. Any time during that time of day I was "at work" and either had to be in class or doing homework or assigned reading. The rest of the time I was off. This worked fairly well but usually broke down toward the last few weeks of the term, when I'd be desperately studying all hours.

For problems courses, like math or physics (or most engineering courses), I'd make myself a one page synopsis of the material covered by each test. This would include any equations I needed to memorize, or any other crucial information. I would make that up as I prepared for the test. It's important to make it yourself, I think. The ones you can buy or borrow don't help that much because you have to understand exactly what they mean and how to use them. Then I'd save those, along with the graded tests, and use those to study for the final.

Finally, when I got hooked up with the (legal) system of old test copies kept by our EE honor society, it helped a lot to let us figure out what sort of questions were important to that particular teacher, so we could focus our studying better. That was extremely useful. Study old tests! They are very helpful.

Set your goal to make all A's every time, and work diligently toward that goal. Don't except less for your money than everything you can learn.
 

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