Wow! College is half way over. The last two years have gone by so fast. I feel like I only graduated from high school yesterday. Classes have gotten tougher, professors have expected more, and more work and effort is necessary to get good grades. But I wouldn't trade it for a world. College is such an important experience. You find your friends for life, you figure out what you want to do with your life, and you learn lessons that you never would have learned without the challenges you face while in college. Here are some tips on how to survive your first two years:

1. Find what works for you and stick with it.

Finding a way to keep yourself organized and on track is extremely important. Try different kinds of agendas, bullet journaling, or create something new that works for you!

2. Step out of your comfort zone.

Though it is sometimes easier to stick with what you know, stepping out of your comfort zone might help you find something new that you really love. Get out there, look into greek life, clubs, teams, or even just ask someone you met in class to get lunch with you or to study. You never know what might happen.

3. Don't be afraid of the dining hall.

I know the reputations that dining halls have, but you can always make the most of it **cough, cough, Brower, cough, cough**. If your dining hall has a sandwich station, try making a grilled cheese or a quesadilla. Want a burrito with chicken? Use the grilled chicken and put it into a tortilla with some cheese and salsa. There are always options if you're willing to put in some effort and experiment.

4. Go to office hours.

Professors have office hours because they want to help you succeed in their class. No professor wants you to fail. Have a paper? Ask them to look over it. Didn't get the notes on a section? Go ask for them to fill in the blanks. If you put in the effort to ask them for help, they'll put in the effort to try to help you succeed.

5. Don't leave things for the last minute.

Plan. Plan. Plan. Make sure you know when you need to start your assignments and plan on being interrupted or needing to do something else. Leaving things for the last minute just leads to stress and panic. If you make sure you have plenty of time to do everything necessary, there's less of a change of anxiety when it comes to assignments, papers, and projects.

Whether you're waiting for sophomore year or moving forward, I hope you take this advice with you. Good luck!