A new semester (especially a new school year) means more chances for friends, more options of erasers, and most likely more stress than this summer. There is a bright side to an impending semester...preparing to make it memorable. From late weekend nights to cramming for that math quiz, each opportunity can be just a little bit easier to accomplish when organized.
A great start to organization comes weeks before school even starts! Look up the books that you need and have enough time to find the best ones for the right price. I love looking up books on at least two to three websites in order to find the best price and find better ways to spend my money other than on books that might be opened during the final week of the semester, depending on the class. After finding books for courses comes finding supplies and that means looking for deals and taking a few minutes out of each trip to the store to look over the school supply section. Finding deals can be easy when you stock up throughout the summer on special deals and random items from rulers to note-cards.
Get in touch with your friends before the semester starts so you already have a few set ideas and adventures. Yes, spontaneous plans tend to be the best ones, but a few set anchor plans around the semester allow for great events to look forward instead of tests to worry over. Also, even if planning events is a bit out of the question, it always helps to reach out throughout the summer in order to keep up to date and avoid an awkward situation.
Check in with your roommates to make sure who will bring the printer. More frustrating situations have happened than both buying a printer or both forgetting a printer altogether, but buying two coffee machines. After sorting everything out, then life can be a little simpler and less chaotic before the first assignment even arrives to your desk. A simple text or Google Doc spreadsheet can help depending on the amount of people you will be rooming with. So far, texting and Snapchats have worked for me, but each roommate situation is different so be sure to stay aware of how everyone feels about buying a television.
Keep up to date with your university. I know it sounds silly, but logging into your school email or keeping up with athletics when out of season can make life much easier when school starts. Sometimes there are small school changes like cafeteria redesigns that may be helpful to become aware of before choosing where to eat dinner. Its great to see improvements that have been made over the summer and keeping up to date with these changes can also make going back to school feel more realistic.
The most important way to become organized before the semester is to just make the most of the semester and not stress about the future. Live in the moment and stop worrying about the fall- it will be here soon enough (sigh). Living the summer to the fullest makes a great motivator and way to look forward to an even better one next year.
