1. Check with professors to make sure you need a textbook.
More often than not, you will hardly use a textbook for your class. Professors will require certain chapters and pages to be read, but rarely the entire book cover to cover. In some classes, you might even be able to make it by sharing with a friend. Play it safe by waiting until syllabus week to ask if the textbook is required, or email your professor to ask.
2. If you do need a book, rent it.
Are you really going to look back at your thick textbook 10 years from now and remember what information was in it and what chapter it was in? Probably not. You will more than likely be able to Google your future questions and your books will gather dust on a shelf. Just rent them.
3. Make at least one friend in every class.
Odds are you will skip at least one class due to illness, lack of motivation, sleep deprivation or Netflix. A friend makes life 10x easier when you need to make sure you didn’t miss anything important.
P.S. If you make friends with the smart kid, you might not ever need to do your homework.
4. It is better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it.
Here’s a story to explain this one. I have a friend who we’ll call Chad. Chad made fun of me for bringing a manual can opener to school. I never used the can opener, but guess who needed it and came knocking at my door for it. Can openers are cheap, Chad, get one.
5. Naps are essential.
The stereotypical college student stays up until the crack of dawn studying for finals and writing papers: this is no joke. Cherish every ounce of sleep you get. For every long sleepless night, there is a nap waiting.
6. Two words: time management.
College includes but is not limited to exams, studying, homework, clubs, friends, family, sports, jobs and internships. Attempting to balance these factors while maintaining a positive state of mind, good health and a regular sleep schedule can become difficult.
7. Two more words: money management.
The other stereotype of the poor college student also holds true. Pizza after a night out will drain your bank account. If your college or university offers flex dollars or another type of university affiliated currency, do not blow through it in the first week because you will then have to pay out of pocket.
8. Find a time and place to be alone.
You will be on a college campus surrounded by other students, a classroom surrounded by classmates and a bedroom surrounded by your roommate(s). A bathroom stall becomes your heaven. Alone time is rare and is also key to maintaining sanity.
9. Join clubs and be involved on campus.
Joins clubs that are and are not related to your major. You’ll be surprised with who you may meet and become friends with. You will meet others you may not have met otherwise.
10. Don’t procrastinate.
I know you will, but this is me trying to be a Good Samaritan and spread a helpful word. Just understand you will hate yourself and shove ice cream down your throat as your stare blankly at a paper at 2:54 A.M.
11. Take advantage of events with free stuff.
Free is your new favorite word, especially when discussing T-shirts and food. You will not be considered a freeloader, but simply a college student.
12. Experience is everything.
The college experience is not just living in a dorm room and attending college classes. Make friends, join campus organizations, make connections, explore your new surroundings and create memories. Also, experience outside the classroom is much more beneficial than textbook information. Real world experience can teach you much more than a PowerPoint presentation.
13. Don’t be afraid to ask for help.
You’re in a new environment with thousands of others. It is not shameful to ask for a helping hand or lend a helping hand. What you are learning now is what you will be doing for the rest of your life; misunderstand it now, misunderstand it later.
14. Call home often.
Homesickness hits hard in the first month as you transition from being daddy’s little girl to independent college student. Call your parents and tell then you love them. Call your little brother and ask what kind of shenanigans he’s getting in to without you.
15. Find a healthy way to cope with stress.
Whether you read, run, write, box or watch Netflix, stress relief is important. Bottling up stress will only make your workload that much worse.
16. The Freshman 15 is real, say hello to the gym.
I can say this from experience. The gym is your new best friend. You don’t have to lift heavy weights, but something is better than nothing. The adjustment to new food, the stress and the environment will ruin your body, so you must learn to take care of it.
17. Don’t wish this time away.
It’ll go by faster than you think.
