If you're an upperclassman, having no Friday classes might be old news to you by now. If you're an underclassman who can't yet fathom the idea of not having classes one entire weekday, you're in for a treat, because many college classes do not meet on Fridays. Though I've heard that if you're pre-med or in engineering, this may not be true, so take my words with a grain of salt. In any event, having the whole day off before Saturday may seem like an overwhelming amount of freedom, but especially at UVa there are so many wonderful opportunities to take advantage of with this free time.

1. Attend a one-time lecture outside of your major area.

One aspect of UVa I definitely intend to take fuller advantage of this year is the myriad of one-time lectures happening all over grounds in different subject areas. UVa professors are all doing fascinating research in their respective fields, from politics, to world languages, to English literature, and I'm always interested in learning more about the current state of affairs in the world. With my Fridays off this semester, I'll definitely be looking to do more than just sleep in, and this is one area in which I intend to be more productive this year.

2. Explore a new area of Grounds.

If you've never walked over to Arts grounds, or you've never walked through a building in the engineering department, Friday might be a good day to take a brief adventure into a whole new world. This way, if anyone ever asks how to get somewhere that normally you'd have no idea about, you'll be better prepared to alleviate their worries and make their first weeks on Grounds that much easier.

3. Get a job or internship where you can work mostly on Fridays.

I've heard through the grapevine that one of the reasons there are not many UVa classes on Fridays is to give students the opportunity to schedule internships or job interviews on Fridays. Both in downtown Charlottesville and on grounds at UVa, there are a plethora of start-ups and work locations that need student interns and employees. Since it's unlikely that you'll get much of a head start on your weekend homework anyway, you may as well use this free time to earn some money and beef up your resume.

4. If you're a team leader in a CIO, schedule meetings for your committee on Fridays.

I really wish more clubs or organizations had meetings on Fridays. I may be in the minority here, but I never have much going on on Fridays, and work is much less urgent on Fridays than it is on Sunday afternoons and evenings when most meetings take place. There's also way fewer other things scheduled on Fridays as opposed to other days of the week. I don't see many others going for this change, but one day I'll convince someone that a lunch meeting on Friday while getting dumplings is in fact the best move.

5. Visit the Career Center to ask questions or get your resume reviewed.

Though the actual Career Center in Bryant Hall AKA the football stadium is about a 10 mile walk from Central Grounds, the Career Center has office hours in Newcomb every weekday, and I believe they also have pop-up hours in 1515 during the week. If you're looking for a way to pass the time on an idle Friday morning, these are extremely convenient opportunities to ask those nagging questions about internships, on-grounds jobs, resumes, cover letters, or your murky future.

6. Pop by your professor's office even when they don't have office hours, just in case they're there.

Though I've found that very few professors schedule office hours on Fridays, sometimes they just so happen to be in their office on a Friday morning or afternoon. This is a great chance to ask them some pressing questions without the inevitable time crunch of a midweek meeting, and could also lead to a more lengthy conversation about mutual interests, current events, local food options, and the like. It never hurts to take an extra few minutes to let the professor of your 150 person lecture know that you exist.

7. Sign up to participate in a study through Darden and make a few extra dollars.

I discovered this avenue of quick, easy money during my first year, and it has paid for my subsequent order at Bodo's several times. All you have to do is google "Darden Sona Systems" and put yourself in their participant pool for their behavioral research experiments, then check the portal for studies taking place at either the JADE Lab at Madison House, Darden itself, or sometimes Monroe Hall. Personally, I've only done the studies at the JADE Lab and Monroe because they're generally more convenient, but the ones at Darden do pay more, so you decide which matters more in the end.

8. Get lunch with a friend you haven't seen in a while.

I've found that Fridays are generally convenient times to meet up with friends who aren't in your closest, immediate social circle, but who you still want to keep in touch with. Friendships, like all relationships, take work to maintain, and scheduling the occasional lunch with a treasured friend on a day you're completely free is a great way to catch up with whatever hot gossip you both have to share, or to rediscover how much you missed Rising Roll over the summer.

9. Indulge in a beloved hobby that you tend to neglect during the school year.

Whether it's reading, blogging, or playing the piano, everyone should have something they enjoy doing that isn't academic or UVa affiliated at all. Taking some time on your class-free Fridays to re-engage with this treasured activity is a wonderful way to decompress from the week, check in with your internal happiness, and express yourself in avenues other than papers and assignments.

10. Offer to help someone you love with something important to them.

Though this may not have anything to do with your own productivity, it can feel really good to take time away from yourself to look over a friend's email that needs proofreading or help your sister at home with an essay. It is certainly important to prioritize your own activities and workload during the school year, but it is fulfilling and satisfying to dedicate yourself purely to someone else, just because you care about them and have the time to devote to them.

UVa has plenty of ways to keep yourself busy, even when there are no classes to attend that day. To me, getting the full university experience means having a productive plan of action even on your days off. First and second years, if your class schedules don't yet agree with this list, don't worry. Soon enough, you'll be looking for ways to savor every minute of free time on Grounds that you have.