I've learned a lot in the months that I have been in college. Most girls fit into a few categories. Sorority. "Nerds." and somewhere in between. But as I read through a lot of the magazine tips that they offer for going to college, some of them don't seem to fit, at least not my college experience. Everyone is going to have their own experience, but these are some of the things that I have learned.
Take each one of these with you as you go, but expect your own experiences along the way. Remember. College is suppose to be some of the best years of your life. Make some friends and some memories along the way.
10. Get Involved and Find a club that fits your personality.
Clubs are a great way to make a ton of new friends. Most universities have clubs for pretty much anything you could possibly think of. UNL has a club for the upgraded treatment of squirrels. When I say anything, I mean ANYTHING! If it's not out there, you can probably start it.
I know personally I was not interested in rushing. I didn't want to be involved in the Greek Life, which is fine. Joining clubs and going to the meetings are a great way to make a good network between friends. These friends may be in some of your future classes and could possibly end up helping you out quite a bit in the future. It is also good to make some friends outside of your high school besties, especially if your friends chose a different college like mine did.
While I am talking about getting involved, many universities have clubs for each major. Join it if there is one! You will learn valuable experience about what not to do when it comes to class load and may even find someone in your classes that you know to study with. Making a network of people you can rely on always helps!
I went on a spring break trip with Students Today- Leaders Forever. Best decision ever. I made a ton of great friends that I see all over campus during the week. All of them are friendly and fun and I am so glad that I went!
9. Schedule your own classes to your liking.
If you like mornings, and I mean you get up early on Saturdays and Sundays because you can, then go for morning classes. It is a great way to finish your classes for the day by noon and have the rest of the day to do what you want. If you struggle to get out of bed at 8:30 for high school, and sleep til noon on the weekends, afternoon classes aren't always bad thing. 1st semester my earliest class was at 10:30 on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday and at 9:30 on Tuesday-Thursday. But I was often in class until 3:15. This semester I have class at 8:30, three days a week and the other two days are well after 10. It is a great balance because some days I am out of class early, and some days I have the mornings to get stuff done.
I say do what you want, but the biggest thing I recommend is be out of class by 12 or 1 on Fridays. You will thank me.
8. Try to make friends with your roommate.
My roommate, who was very awesome, was a random assignment at the beginning of the year. (Sorry Alie if you are reading this) She was a VERY blonde, Texas, Cheerleader who was rushing in the fall. When I first saw her on Facebook, I knew that we were going to have absolutely nothing in common. I didn't like her. I didn't care to. I didn't want to get to know her. I was very close minded walking into the room on move in day. After about half of the semester, we were best friends. We had one strong night of bonding over grocery shopping and board games and ended up being super close after that. She ended up moving back to Texas after the semester and now I miss her like crazy!
ALIEEEE COME BACKKK!
7. Exercise every once in a while, even if you don't like to that much.
I didn't believe that I would gain any weight when I came to college. I figured that I exercise enough, I can eat fast food 2 or 3 times a week and pile my plate up with pizza in the dining hall. Who cares. That weight comes fast. I gained the freshman 15 and then some in the first semester and I am still fighting with it well into the spring semester. Believe me when I say, it goes on a lot easier than it comes off.
6. Take classes that don't necessarily go with your major.
Don't be afraid to explore classes every once in a while. Take one class a semester that doesn't exactly fit into your normal routine. It helps broaden your knowledge and you may find that it comes in handy someday. My first semester of college, I ended up taking 2 classes for my psych major, an Ethnic Studies class, a Women and Gender Studies class, and a Creative Writing class. Which one was my favorite. Not my major classes. It caused me to pick up a minor in Women and Gender Studies as I was figuring out my degree plan. My ethnics class also lead me to the study abroad trip that I am going on this summer. You never know what doors a single class is going to open up for you.
5. Meet with your adviser at least once your freshman year.
For my major, there was a class called Career Planning in Psychology that was required for my degree. It was a one credit hour class taught on Wednesday afternoons that was taught by my adviser. This was GREAT! If your major doesn't have one, I am truly sorry. This class helped go through the options for psychology majors as well as recommended classes. Your adviser can do most of the same things in a meeting that we did in class.
Good questions to ask about are things that would set you apart from other people with the same major. What are good groups to get involved in on campus and off campus to help build your resume for future jobs that you may be interested in. Always ask if they have any contact information for possible jobs or interns that you could get in the future.
Also, go in with questions about the wide variety of things you could do with your degree, because I was truly surprised by the list of things to do with a college degree.
4. Take your grade seriously from day one of the class.
Be ready to jump right into assignments and material. College classes go by very fast and only meet a few times a week, so professors often jump right in. Don't take the first couple weeks lightly. This stuff will still be on the test and you will kick yourself when it comes time for the test. Once you do poorly on the first test, it is often hard to bring you grade back up to where you want it to be. Many classes only have a handful of grades during the entire semester.
Because I worked my butt off first semester of freshman year, I ended up getting a scholarship from the school for my academic achievement. This scholarship made it so I have no student loans for next school year. You never know what could happen as a result of your good grades.
3. Don't Be THAT girl.
A lot of girls get involved in this as they come to campus. They make new friends and have this belief that there is nothing else to do on weekends, or week nights (Thursdays mostly). Don't be that girl in the Friday morning classes that spend the entire time talking about how she doesn't remember last night. Be classy, because other people who don't drink, find it very annoying to listen to how you lost your shoes, phone, and purse last night. Also, if you do drink, please don't be all over the guys around you. It's also not classy, and no one wants to watch. Please. I beg you.
Also, be safe about your drinking. Pour your own drinks- ALWAYS. Don't put your drink down if you are at a place where there are a ton of people. And don't drink until you pass out or throw up. I, personally, don't understand what people think is fun about drinking until you throw up.
2. Make a friend in every single one of your classes.
This is a tip that someone else gave me and I have found it very useful for many reasons. When you pick a seat on the first day, even if you know the class is going to be hard, sit towards the front. This often guarantees that you will be next to someone who is very interested in the class, or that studies hard. In this case, make sure that at some point in the beginning of the semester, find a way to get their name and email address.
No matter how great of a student you are, there will come a day when you just don't feel like going to class. Or you are sick. Or you have to be gone for some reason. If you do, email that person. If you notice they are gone, email them you note first without them asking. They will return the favor when you need them to. This person also can make a good study partner if you are needing one.
1. Organize, Organize, Organize!
The best way to not forget something is to write it down. My organization is a little overboard and some people (my boyfriend) often mock me. I have a Google calendar of where I need to be and what time. This includes classes schedule, the research lab, extra credit opportunities for classes, and military stuff. (and everything else I do.) My calendar on my computer syncs to my phone so I have it at the touch of my hand if I need to know if I am busy at a certain time. GREAT!
Then, I have my planner. At the beginning of the semester, I take the syllibi that the teachers hand out and write each class in a different color. I fill it out all the way til the end of the semester so I can look ahead to see what assignments will be next week so I can help plan around my schedule. This is super important because it makes sure that I don't forget about an assignment or a class. After the assignment is done, I highlight it.
Now, I know. I sound obsessive, but on top of all of that, I have a notebook that puts the two together. I plan out Monday through Friday on what night I am going to work on what assignment and in a separate column, it has what extra things I have to do that day other than go to class. This way I can figure out the best time to work on an assignment in order to get it done before the due date.
Unless you have a mild case of OCD or are "Type A" personality, I don't expect anyone to do as much as I do, but in your last few months of high school, practice with what works for you. Once your figure out what works for you, there will be no worry of forgetting to do an assignment.
Out of all of these tips, I suggest the most is find a place that you fit in. Do what you love to do. But, don't feel like you can't have friends if you aren't in a Sorority/Fraternity . I felt that way for the first few months until I realized that I just needed to meet the right people. It may take you a while to find a great group of friends, but once you do, it will be worth it.
