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9 Survival Tips for College Freshman
Posted by: Auzigog in College, Life, University of Oregon
These days, It seems like I meet a new college freshman every couple of weeks. I always wish I could pass along all the lessons I accumulated during my first year of college. And thanks to the wonders of the interwebs, I can! My experiences were at the University of Oregon, but I think they are applicable anywhere. I suspect that some of these lessons need to be experienced first hand to have any effect on you, but I still think they are worth sharing. Here’s my advice (in order of importance):
#1 The first week defines the rest of the year
I feel like this is the most important piece of advice I could offer, but I also know it’s the hardest thing to control. During the first week, be more outgoing that you normally would. Over the first couple days, meet and talk to every person in the dorm for at least a couple minutes. The best way to develop a community is to do everything as a group for the first week.
Let me give you a breakdown of how things went in my dorm for the first week and how I heard things went in every other dorms:
My dorm:
- Every time we had to go to some mandatory orientation thing, we went as a group and invited every single person on every floor to join us. Whenever someone wanted to go out to get food or go to 7/11, they gathered a bunch of people to go with them.
- The second or third night we were there, we all found ourselves in the lounge just sitting around sharing cool stories for that summer and from our varying pasts. We all told something about our town or our lives.
- Everyone always had their door open (when they were there) and didn’t mind if anyone walked in and started a conversation.
Other dorms:
- Almost no one left their door open when they were there.
- Those who did leave their door open would get offended if you walked into their room without permission.
- Most people would be lucky to know the names of half the people on their floor.
Every time I heard another story like that about other dorms, I was shocked. It just made me more and more thankful that we had developed a great community during the first week we were there. People from other dorms loved our dorm because we were such a tight group. As time went on, people separated into cliques as you would expect, but the friendliness that everything started out on was always present.
#2 Organize Study Groups!
Study groups are amazingly helpful! Find two, three, or four other people who you have class with and get together before assignments are due. You assist one another, make suggestions and help motivate one another. I can only begin the name the numerous benefits! Here are a few:
- You can’t procrastinate your assignments or skip them entirely. If you have a set meeting time to do you homework or paper with the rest of your group, then you have no way to put it off.
- For math/science classes, it’s easy to get stuck on a problem and want to give up, but when there are others there to help you, you have no reason to stop.
- For writing intensive classes, brainstorming works wonders. Come to the study group with a few possible thesis statements ready and bounce them off your partners.
- Helping others on their homework helps you solidify your knowledge.
Here’s what you need to do: During the first week of classes, introduce yourself to the people around you in your lab or discussion classes. When you receive your first assignment, talk to anyone you’ve met (or just random people who look friendly!) and arrange a date a few days before it’s due to get together and do it as a group. After that, it’s easy! Now you know them and can continue organizing study groups!
#3 Study for tests!
This may seem like an obvious one, but it’s also one of the most important. It’s easy to procrastinate anything when you’re in the dorms. There’s always someone to hang out with or somewhere to go. I don’t know about you, but I never studied in high school. That bad habit followed me into college. As I walked into my midterms and finals, I became really anxious and I realized what a bad idea it had been to only study for 15 minutes.
It wasn’t until finals of Spring term that I realized how extremely helpful it was to put a sincere effort into studying. I got an A on all my tests that term. Midterms and finals are worth a majority of your grade in most classes, so that’s where your efforts should be focused. I studied a few hours for each test (with my study groups *nudge nudge*). When I walked into each test, I was no longer anxious because I was confident that I knew most of the answers. Part of the reason I was so confident is because I knew what kind of tests the professors were going to give, so I knew how to study. Some of my finals were just a combination of the questions from the midterms.
#4 Get involved
I spent most of my freshman year giving free hugs and it was fantastic, but I sometimes wish I had done more. Obviously the opportunity to join clubs and attend events will always be there, but freshman year is the ideal time to start. There are always tons of events on the bulletin board in your dorm. Some are specific to your dorm/complex, some are specific to a certain club and some are for everybody. Find some that interest you, grab some friends, and go to them!
#6 If you don’t like your roommate, switch
You may come across as rude, but I watched people suffer for nine months with a roommate they despised, and it’s not a pretty sight. Don’t be too hasty to switch roommates though. College is about new experiences, so if you think you could learn something new from staying with your roommate, then tough it out. If you know you’ll never be able to stand them, then switch right away.
#7 Go to sporting events
I’m not into sports and I didn’t go any of the games last year. In hindsight, I really wish I had. I definitely plan on going to some this year. Most colleges will give you tickets for free if you are student (U of O does!). The only catch is that you usually have to wake up early to stand in line to get tickets for the good games, but that’s half the fun!
#8 Figure out housing for the next year
Decide if you want to have a house or apartment for the next year. Start looking for people you think you’ll want to live with. After you get back from winter break, ask people if they want to room with you and start looking for the place you’ll want. That’ll give you plenty of time to make arrangements with your future landlord. Don’t wait until the last minute.
If you’re looking for an apartment, check out this nifty tool that searches craigslist and displays the results on a map for you.
#9 Don’t buy books until you need them
Every term, you will usually need to buy $50-$250 worth of books. At the end of each term, I realized that there were some books that I hadn’t even opened once. During my last term, I decided not to buy any books until I needed them (I already had the math book that I needed). I waited until the professor required (not suggested) a reading out of the book. I ended up only buying one book that term and I split the cost with one of my dorm mates who was in the class with me.
Take this advice with a grain of salt. Obviously you need to buy math books to do your assignments. Some books sell out and are hard to get a hold of, so you might not want to wait on all your books. Also, I don’t do as much of the reading for classes as I should, so my definition of needing the book is probably different than someone more studious.
When you do have to buy a book, split the cost with someone in your dorm and share the book when you have to use it. This will save you a bundle of money. Always buy used books when you have the option.
That’s all I have! If you find this useful, leave a comment and let me know. If you have some of your own tips for dorm life or for college life, please share them!
Be on the look out next year for a Sophomore version of this blog about how to live in a house or apartment and deal with bills/rent, parties and neighbors.
Update: I’m as perplexed as the rest of you about where #5 disappeared to. Perhaps it’s absence is just another lesson: Don’t write papers at 4 in the morning the day before they’re due (because that’s about what time I wrote this blog).
Entries (RSS)
August 24th, 2007 at 7:29 am
Obviously not for everyone, but the best thing I ever did in college was to drop out.
I had started out as an aerospace major, dropped out, started working in computers. By the time my classmates graduated with a piece of paper, a ton of debt, and some already outdated C programming know-how, I had 3 years of industry experience under my belt working with Fortune 500s, developing and architecting server-side Java solutions, a six-figure salary, and a giant pile of stock (bubble-era).
If you want to become a doctor though, maybe not the best course of action.
August 24th, 2007 at 7:43 am
This is great advice… I’d agree with almost all of it. A few more good ideas:
August 24th, 2007 at 8:01 am
[...] Any other seasoned co-eds have advice for freshman just starting out? Let us know in the comments. 9 Survival Tips for College Freshman [eyeRblog [...]
August 24th, 2007 at 8:52 am
What about #5???
August 24th, 2007 at 9:21 am
I believe that you forgot the most important thing for studing for a test: TAKE GOOD NOTES.
Most professors will tell you what will be on their test as they lecture.
After midterm test, Iwould go through my notes and hilight as much as I could remeber that was on the test.
I only had one class that my notes failled me. The professor never lectured on the two books required for the class, so I quite reading and took good notes. The finial was not based on any of the lectures. The finial test was fron the required reading.
August 24th, 2007 at 9:26 am
You forgot #5!!
August 24th, 2007 at 9:29 am
Students interested in working in groups should check out http://www.notesake.com which has a collaborative aspect of the site that allows students to work on the same note. As a group of students usually have very different schedules this is a huge help.
Ian
- co-founder of http://www.notesake.com
August 24th, 2007 at 11:12 am
This is just common sense for every other university out there I guess. In the UK we call them halls but it’s all the same - I ended up here from lifehacker and I can say this has been great advice although I’m not sure about the socialise with everyone part in the first weeks, seems a bit hectic!
Thanks for sharing nevertheless
August 24th, 2007 at 12:21 pm
One thing I always emphasize when speaking to incoming freshmen is go to office hours. Don’t be intimidated. Professors are usually thrilled to have students who take a real interest in the class. They will happily answer questions and discuss lecture material. If for some reason the professor isn’t very receptive or hard to understand, go talk to their assistants who are helping with the class. This is extremely helpful if you’re having a hard time with your homework or don’t understand what’s going on in class.
I basically got free tutoring from professors and TAs that took the time to go through things step by step for me. It made a difference in my grades so don’t be afraid that they’ll think you’re dumb or slow or anything like that. You’ll most likely do better with their help. Even if you don’t need help, drop by from time to time and get to know them. If they know who you are and that you’re a hardworking student, they will be more willing to cut you some slack later on in the semester like an extension on your assignment, some leeway with test answers for a few extra points, even curving your final grade up a little to get that A (it’s happened several times for me). So get out there and talk to them!
August 24th, 2007 at 2:49 pm
I’m also wondering where number 5 went, but I do agree with you, especially about not buying your textbooks for at least several weeks. A lot of people say to buy everything early before the shops get too busy, but that is exactly the wrong thing to do. When each book could cost $100, it is vital to try and save as much as possible.
August 24th, 2007 at 7:16 pm
Buy earplugs! Foam earplugs were a god send when I found them my sophomore year of college. I would have had a much better freshman year if I would have had them. They’re great for sleeping and studying if the room your in is noisy. Also, an eye mask is great, too. So that if your roommate stays up later than you with the light on, or gets up early and turns the light on, you won’t be disturbed.
I advised these two things to my brother as he entered college last year. He laughed at me, but by Thanksgiving he was singing my praises! Earplugs and an eye mask!! You won’t regret it.
August 24th, 2007 at 8:18 pm
[...] at a new university is a daunting time for any student, but there are ways to avoid any problems. eyeRblog has provided 9 (actually 8…) tips for this, but I could think of 3 more. There is only one [...]
August 24th, 2007 at 9:57 pm
Going into my second year at SUNY oswego, I would have to say I agree with just about everything. Though I got my books early, just in case, but that’s just me. The only thing I would really add, would be to number one. I did make friends with the other guys in my section of the floor, but I also ended up making friends with random people within the first week. If you see someone interesting on the side of a path, or in the student union, talk to them. Unless they’re completely ridiculous, or too “busy”, they’ll usually talk to you. That’s actually how I got “dragged” into my first club, where I met most of my friends.
August 24th, 2007 at 10:01 pm
I’d love to go to college wherever you’re going. I’m spending almost five hundred dollars this semester, and that’s buying used on amazon.
August 25th, 2007 at 12:20 am
BigWords.com is really great for buying textbooks, just thought I would point that out, I saved over 200 dollars for this semester. I guess I didn’t follow that piece of advice but I get a littled worried about professors assigning something and me not having the material.
One question (I’m an incoming frosh)… I am not the most shy person but I am not sure how I should approach the open door thing. I will leave mine open of course, but when approaching others rooms, well, lol what should I say? Especially if I don’t know if they are freshman or older students…
August 25th, 2007 at 9:25 am
OK, Devon, you win the thread. Sort of. Every time somebody posts an article on how to get through college, or what college to pick, or how to get along with your professors, or whatever about college, some wiseacre has to post some idiotic nonsense about how college is a waste of time. It isn’t.
So you managed to get into a lucrative career track without a university degree. Big whoop. For most people who aspire to the middle class (or hope to stay there), that B.S. is the entry ticket, without which they wouldn’t even get an interview, let alone a job. How about those of you who are still in school try a little experiment. Run over to your career services office, get the names and addresses of all the tech companies they have, and send them all resumes. Under education, put that you (barely) finished your second year (with a 2.11 GPA), but don’t have a degree, and don’t plan to return. See how many interviews you score.
You know what, Devon? I don’t even believe you are even employed in the IT industry, and haven’t since about 2001 at the latest, that is, if you were ever employed in that capacity. I bet you are working at Sears selling washing machines for $11.90/hr. and living in your parents’ basement. Guess what - just because Kenmore sells washer/dryer sets with electronic controls doesn’t mean you work in high tech. So bugger off until you have something useful to add to the discussion.
August 25th, 2007 at 9:27 am
Advice: Buy a stapler and bring it to class. You will be a god.
August 25th, 2007 at 9:30 am
Socializing is OK, but science and engineering students should put more weight towards
forging friendships with like people. Not to say friends with other majors are important for personal growth, but there study priorities do not have to be as rigorous, and as a result, they do not understand your devotion to solitude, concentration and detail the too numerous hours you must apply yourself to succeed or at least keep your scholarship.
August 25th, 2007 at 9:38 am
These are the things I would do differently:
1. I would bring as little as possible to my dorm, from home. I don’t know why but I brought the most absurd amount of stuff to college with me. Within hours of moving into my new dorm it was packed. I wasted immense amounts of time trying to reshuffle and fit everything in. If I did it again I’d approach it in a much more minimalist manner and try to fit everything into a pair of steamer trunks or some other small moving box. To really stress this: I’ve been out of college three years and I just recently found a box I packed to take with me as a freshman that had never really been emptied of its clutter. 7 -years- I’ve carted that box of random shit around.
2. Ditch the long distance girlfriend. I wasted a large portion of college with a neurotic clingy girlfriend back home. It all ended well… I eventually broke up with her, met a wonderful girl and ended up married to this wonderful girl. But I still wasted a couple years with a relationship that would never have worked out. They rarely do. I can’t even tell you how many times I passed over doing something fun out of some sense of guilt over not being able to bring that ball and chain of a girlfriend. Pretty much ruined my freshman/sophomore years.
Now here are things I -did- do and am thankful for:
1. Don’t treat college like it’s high school. You’re a friggin grownup even if you don’t act like one most of the time. Don’t be an ass in class. Don’t treat college like its some sort of adversarial Saved By the Bell game where you have to try and skip class, sneak in late, weasel through assignments, etc. Be an adult. Talk to your professors. Ask them about classes that might interest you, readings that you might enjoy, etc.
2. NEVER, EVER buy the books you’re told to buy until you need them. I went through entire semesters without buying half the books most of the time. I had one class where I only -needed- one, and avoided purchasing all the other obscenely overpriced books. Oh yeah, buy online. College bookstores are a rip off.
3. Be social. See my above rant about the clingy long distance relationship. If you’ve got one of those… ditch it. Fast. Go make new friends =)
August 25th, 2007 at 10:29 am
I say not only take good notes, but type them up and organize them. it doesn’t take that long, and while you are doing it, you’re already studying. when you encounter things you don’t get, flag them. be very organized about your information and you will see results.
when taking written tests don’t bullshit. if you don’t know how to answer the question with relevant material, fill it out with other true stuff from your notes, pack it. often it works. won’t hurt.
get exercise! just cycling between partying and grinding at books doesn’t keep you at your best.
if you see someone you think you’d like to be friends with, make it happen. most of your efforts won’t work out. there are a lot of wonderful overlooked people, make some synergy.
research the best teachers, and don’t avoid tough ones. this is probably the most important thing you could do.
don’t pick majors based on appeasing your parents. find something you could really love.
rigorously assess yourself and make changes for the better. probably in ten years from now you won’t recognize yourself. what you do now determines who you become.
LEARN TO WRITE WELL!!! if you can’t write, you can’t think.
take good psychedelics! be informed first. BLOW YOUR MIND!!!
August 25th, 2007 at 10:34 am
All great pointers. The single best piece of advice that I got was from my Aunt. Basically all of the adult figures in my life at the time were pushing me to study, study, study and warned against the dangers of “over-partying”. My Aunt took a different approach, telling me to “Party as hard as you study!”
So the better I did in school the more I rewarded myself, if I got a grade that I wasn’t happy with I would cut back on the parties. Just a piece of rare common-sense, really.
August 25th, 2007 at 10:48 am
My advice is actually don’t study too hard. I studied quite a bit my freshmen year, and I wasn’t too happy because I missed out on the social stuff. By all means, don’t slack off - it’s important to get good grades - but you don’t want to lose focus of the college experience.It’s the best four years of my life. By my sophomore year, I decided to make having fun my focus - not getting good grades. It worked out well. I had the time of my life, and because I was able to relax often, I was pretty stress-free when those times did come that I needed to focus. And by the way, my grades started to soar once I relaxed and focused on having fun instead of school. I graduated Phi Beta Kapa, and grades were never a priority of mine. You only have four years, and for the rest of your life you’ll wish you could go back to them. Make it worth it.
August 25th, 2007 at 11:08 am
August 25th, 2007 at 11:21 am
These are great tips. Here’s a few from my *ahem* 6 years at a 4 year college.
1. GO TO CLASS! Even if you’re still drunk, hungover, too tired to function. Like the above posts, groups are great, take notes, and talk to the profs during office hours. These aren’t hard things, and AT BARE MINIMUM, the prof will probably at least round you up a grade. If you’re getting a D and did all of the above, ALMOST GUARANTEED you’ll get a C. The prof will know if you’re taking the class seriously.
2. Balance the good times with the books. Both ways! If you’re getting straight A’s and haven’t met a friend yet, you’re missing 50% of the college experience. It’s great that Devon was able to drop out and do well, but I never would have discovered myself physically, emotionally, and spiritually without my awesome stay at college. There isn’t a price that I could put on it. (College grammar FTW!) One the flip side, it’s obviously EXTREMELY easy to forget about classes and enjoy the “college” experience. See my tip #1. You’ve got to do well enough to stay and have more fun.
3. Try to get a part time job along your career path. I worked in the computer labs for beer money, and it equaled real world experience toward becoming a network admin, which was NOT my major. You’ll get money, meet people, get leads towards a good job! Just about ANYTHING related to your career path can be a bullet point a resume.
4. Leave the cliques and prejudices at home. You’ll meet so many cool people from different walks of life, don’t miss out. Don’t blow off the chance to meet someone who’s a different political persuasion, religion, sexual orientation, or race than you or what you’re familiar/comfortable with. Try to seek out people who are radically different that you are. That’s what I did, and it was amazing. You’ll never be anywhere else in such a melting pot, with people with so much spare time.
5. You don’t need a lot of money to have a good time. You don’t need to become a boring intellectual, but check out the free lectures and events that are happening on a regular basis. At college, I was able to see the real Joe Clark (see the movie Lean on Me) and sit on a live video conference with Matt Groenig from the Simpsons (where we were able to ask him questions!). Both of these events were free and almost unattended. I joined an ROTC class on the suggestion of a buddy and got to repel from the top of our stadium, and would have been able to go to the military firing range, if I would have been more willing to wake up early. That’s one that I regret that got away!
6. If you need to get in shape, you now have the best resources that you’re EVER going to get! I went from 280 lbs to 207lbs. (6′2″) I swam, ran, did martial arts, played racquetball, and ate smarter than I ever had before. If you have access to the “all you can eat” meal plans, notice that there ARE healthy options! If you have no idea how to get into shape, talk to the gym employees and see if you can hook up with a student looking to be a trainer. They’ll know all the basics, and you can help each other out.
Good luck to all the students heading off this year! I’m jealous! You might be nervous now, but it’ll be old hat in 2 months, and it’s going to the time of your life!
August 25th, 2007 at 11:28 am
If you are having a tough time taking notes fast enough. It is easy to buy a tiny little tape recorder and tape the lecture. Then go home and type up the notes that you want and if someone has missed the lecture for some reason and you wanrt to help them out you can let them use the tape and take there own notes. I know a guy and this is what he did and he could type fast enough that he made copies and would sell them to people that wanted them and this is how he helped to put him self through school.
August 25th, 2007 at 11:45 am
Thanks for the advice.. I don’t go to college as of yet, but I’ll try and remember all of this, ‘cos just reading through it, I can see the wisdom
August 25th, 2007 at 12:01 pm
Also, depending upon your program, the first year is the one year you won’t pay attention but really should. For my first year, I just scrapped by. Come second, third, and fourth year, I realized everything I was doing was built up from the first year courses (in my case, Math and Physics) and had to relearn much of it.
August 25th, 2007 at 12:06 pm
Take a Philosophy class in Critical Thinking and apply it to everything you read and observe.
Use all the long line ups to practice patience, even meditation.
It may seem obvious, but when doing assignments, give the teacher what they want. Regardless of what you think about something, or some creative angle you may have, if you don’t meet their requirements, you won’t get the grade. Basic information presented clearly will often do far better than an original, creative angle that challenges the observer. Odd, perhaps, but I found it to be true unless you are in a creative specialty.
KEEP ONE THING IN MIND: those first midterms come up FAST and if you do the work, you will see lots of students who didn’t drop out rather than becoming one.
August 25th, 2007 at 12:10 pm
I managed to procrastinate my assignments to the night before (every single one), barely studied for my test (hours before the actual exam), never did my readings, skipped several lectures, didn’t pay attention during the lectures I attended
..and not only did I finish university in 4 years (never failed a class), I managed to get dean’s list to one of the most acclaimed universities in North America/World. I can’t stop laughing at how hilarious this is because it’s insane.
August 25th, 2007 at 12:16 pm
First thing, be sure to buy textbooks from fellow students that has been the cheapest route for me often saving me half of the cost of a new one.
Second, although this may not be for everyone be sure to investigate joining a fraternity of a sorority. I consider myself an introverted book worm but by being introduced through a friend I came out to Rush events and eventually joined and never looked back. If you don’t like the idea of being involved at least you’ve gotten your name out there with them, and next time there is an event or party happening at their house you’ll most likely be contacted about it or have an easy in on it.
August 25th, 2007 at 12:50 pm
$250 for books?
My average is $400-500
August 25th, 2007 at 1:29 pm
Well one thing I found invaluable was to tape record lectures. Of course it can add some additional time to studying if you rely heavily on the recording and neglect taking notes while in class. Take great notes while you record the lecture. Sometimes you just can’t write down everything the professor is saying AND what he’s showing via slides, whiteboard etc. Sometime you’ll write some notes down that you may not even remember what they are in reference to, until you listen to the playback. If this is too much for you then at the very least record any review sessions a professor or one of their TA’s hold. This was amazingly effective for me and their were times when I took an exam and didn’t even need to finish reading the question to be able to properly answer the questions. I suffered from attention issues in college so I can only imaging how well this would help someone without any learning issues. Good luck.
August 25th, 2007 at 1:32 pm
Go to class. I don’t kow if I could give a more obvious and less followed piece of advice to college freshmen. Do not sleep in, do not skip just because you’re not in the mood or feeling lazy. I find that if I go to class with minimal preparation, I am still better off than those people who don’t go at all and just read and cram before exams.
But maybe that’s just me
August 25th, 2007 at 2:29 pm
Hey everyone here are my tips from living in residence and being a 12st year college student
Res tips
1) Get to know your RA’S : there so helpful with telling you events or if you are really good with being a talktaive girl or guy then get to know the RA better then he or she might give you extra res points or whatever they call it there. I got without a lie 800 points from helping with cleaning the ra office, and doing some other things
2) Get to know other people in other programs , since if someone is taking a tech or computer course they could fix your computer problem and save you loads of money if your computer crashes or need updates or whatever(i had my boyfriend for this)
3)Get to know those from your classes.So you can do assigngments catch up, or get help or being asked for help and getting something from that(i got paid money and usually 10 dollars for a unit of notes)
4) Find random things to do to occupy your free time
5)Get to know your reisidence and college better on nights ur bored
6)find random people to hang out with they become good friends fast
7)help as much as possible
‘8) share food cost with roomate unless they have a different diet or plan
9) offeryour services in notes, studying or anything your good in
School
1) take good notes it helps (or find someone who takes super notes and proabaly has a laptop) they can email the notes to you and it helpful for tests
2) talk to your professors they love it when students come for help, my teacher let me borrow ehr 3rd edition book for me to get more itnrested in the topic for the upcoming term
but i have to buy the 4th edition but got it for 60 then 130
3) buy used txtbooks or find ur friend sibilings that go to the same college or school and if there in the program u are ask for their old txtbooks
4) offer note taking and other services like typing a report for someone who cant typer as fast for a small charge or if the person decices the rates,. my friends or classmates paid up to 20 for a report that they handwrote but needed someone to type for them
5) do all your homework-might get u bonus points like me
6) look at ur college email it helps
August 25th, 2007 at 2:41 pm
don’t get too drunk
don’t sleep around too much
don’t worry about impressing people, chances are they are as insecure as you are anyway.
remember NOBODY ends up hanging around with the people they met in the first week, you will eventually find friends you get along with in the weirdest places.
join a few clubs and go regularly.
go to all the introduction meetings for the clubs, it’s fun, you can take a friend or two, and there is usually a free drink in it.
August 25th, 2007 at 2:54 pm
“developing and architecting server-side Java solutions”
Wow, what is this java language you speak of? Correct me if I’m wrong but as a consultant working with these fourtune 500 companies you speak of all I’ve found myself primarily working with is .net. Hope your still doing allright
August 25th, 2007 at 2:59 pm
to Devon (first commenter): Those are a great set of credentials you’ve got, and perhaps you are better off, but is your only goal to become rich with these skills,
you dropped out, learned a whole lot but also missed out. You missed some great years, college parties, tight friends, the crazy stuff you do in college.
As Frank Zappa Said, “If you want to get laid, go to college, but if you want an education, go to the library.” Well you went to the library”
You went to the library
August 25th, 2007 at 2:59 pm
[...] Posted in Education, Daily life at 2:59 pm by LeisureGuy Seems to include some good ideas. [...]
August 25th, 2007 at 5:15 pm
“Every term, you will usually need to buy $50-$250 worth of books.” Seriously, where do you go to school that you can get your books that cheap every semester?
August 25th, 2007 at 8:25 pm
College is a joke… Its exactly what you learned in high school just retold with a class full of drunks and stoners. I cant believe im sitting in college now… The only reason im going is to get the piece of paper that says you went. Thats all college is: not a learning experience, not an adventure. Its a shame the diplome costs 100,000 gs.
August 25th, 2007 at 9:07 pm
My daughter may recognize this: When I got my masters at Cal Tech, it was the first time professors expected me to be smart AND work hard. As an undergradute, either one was good enough. But if you’re smart and don’t need to study, find a project with a professor, a club, or some classmates to really challenge yourself. The party’s were important and they were also planning opportunities for scuba diving, desert trips or mountain climbing. I did more in that one year than any year as an undergraduate. There are lots of challenges you can set your sights on, be it building a robot (be a usfirst.org or battlebotsiq.com volunteer), a business, a movement, a school. Seek others to encourage, teach and inspire you and do the same for them. No one is an expert in everything, its ok to learn in and out of class, and teach what you can.
August 25th, 2007 at 9:07 pm
For some of the more expensive books, check Amazon. My son’s Management book was $120 at school, $100 Amazon, and $12 used via Amazon.
If you have a meal ticket but get hungry outside of the normal feeding times, grab a few extra boxes of cereal in the morning, or a couple of pieces of fruit. We’d also bring in a water bottle to fill it with OJ, which then went into the little fridge in our room.
August 25th, 2007 at 9:45 pm
[...] survival tips :) A pretty good list, [...]
August 25th, 2007 at 10:47 pm
[...] Nine Survival Tips for College Freshmen [...]
August 25th, 2007 at 11:10 pm
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August 26th, 2007 at 11:12 am
[...] I thought this was a very good and useful article for all. Basically, it’s a list of survival tips for college freshmen. Example: #1 The first week defines the rest of the [...]
August 26th, 2007 at 2:31 pm
one more thing with the books. when you do buy or sell back books on’t use the book store. go some place off campus, it made about a 50-75 dollar difference for some of my friends
August 26th, 2007 at 6:51 pm
My school’s bookstore allowed you to return books withing the first two weeks for a full refund. I’d go and buy all my books, then wait and see which ones would need returned. Just make sure to save your receipt and to never open the shrinkwrap or packaging on any bundles or do anything to let the bookstore refuse your return.
For the first two weeks, you can *gently* use the non-wrapped books, or borrow a classmate’s books as your cheaper Amazon or eBay copies are shipping.
Some other tips for textbooks are to check which versions are OK. Lots of professors allow several older editions to be used which are often 1/3 the price.
Last tip is to check the library for books, especially classic literature. Those little, overpriced paperbacks really add up when you have 7 in one class. And you’re only likely to cover them one each for a couple of weeks, so library borrowing is fine. In one class where the book was obscure and even the old editions were expensive, my professor had old editions for our use in the library.
August 27th, 2007 at 11:17 pm
[...] eyeRblog » Blog Archive » 9 Survival Tips for College Freshman Dead on, especially #1. Not that a lot of college freshmen read my blog, but it’s sorta nostalgic. [...]
August 28th, 2007 at 12:31 am
Heartily agreed about the textbooks! I went through my college years buying only the bare minimum. Libraries sometimes have the textbooks you need. Friends who have taken the course are likely to let you borrow their old books. Also, half.com. Sometimes I would buy the previous edition of a textbook I needed, which are dirt cheap (think $2) because people think they need the newest edition. In textbooks with many editions (5+), rarely is there significant difference besides the page numbers.
I aslo agree with above poster Jason’s comment about the clutter. Don’t buy into the “Back to School” hype. 99% of the things on Bed Bath and Beyond’s “Must have” list are completely unnecessary. Bring what you have and what you need. If you don’t use a clothes iron on a daily basis, don’t buy one to bring to your dorm. If you don’t use white-out, highlighters, and index cards in complex study regimes, don’t stock up thinking that college is going to change that. You’re probably going to do everything on your laptop anyway. However, it is good to have a stockpile of instant food available (oatmeal, cereal, instant noodles, peanut butter) for occasions when you sleep through breakfast (or dinner!), and it will cut down on your late-night trips to the convenience store which = $$ and empty calories.
Another thing to add, take advantage of their free stuff. The socials, casino nights, international film screenings, hell, even the free condoms at the clinic. That’s where your tution money is going to, so you should take advantage of it. The school-organized events may seem cheesy, but it’s a great way to meet people and gain new experiences (and at the very least, score some free snacks).
August 30th, 2007 at 1:52 pm
Hey all! I just found this great blog on 18 Overlooked Things to Bring to College. I agree with all of them. Check it out!
September 3rd, 2007 at 9:28 pm
[...] was doing some research for another article when I came across a post on eyeRmonkey called 9 Survival Tips for College Freshman. It’s full of great advice for any first year student. I’ve decided to expand on those [...]
September 25th, 2007 at 9:02 am
All college freshman - FREE the FROGS!
If you don’t get the reference, pick up WALDEN by Michael Dolan while you’re getting your textbooks - it’s a must “survival guide” for college freshman!
September 30th, 2007 at 9:13 pm
AS a first year student attending a university I felt that all 9 of the listed ways to survive our first year are true. I mean time management is the largest part freshman struggle to stay atop of and people will say that its the schoolwork, but if you properly manage your time to do homework and such you shouldn’t have much trouble with doin all that should be.TIme management also will allow you to attend the extra-cirricular activities and to meet new people and enjoy the experience while also succeeding.
October 20th, 2007 at 10:40 am
You offered some great tips (although you did forget number 5).
I posted a link to it on our forum at:
http://www.collegecolosseum.com
November 10th, 2007 at 11:01 am
[...] read more | digg story [...]
November 11th, 2007 at 5:57 pm
Here’s some advice from a college veteran. Get your books you will need for the next semester, in particular the ISBNs. This way you can buy them on-line. Do not buy them at the bookstore, as they will charge insane markups. When buying on-line using a book price comparison search engine. The one I like the most is http://www.smartbookfinder.com. In particular what I find useful is there have a feature where I can find books I can get under a week (1-7 Days). So I can still order my books even if I am lazy and forget to get my ISBN list beforehand. One more thing, take your education seriously, as your GPA will forever be on your resume!
December 2nd, 2007 at 11:22 pm
[...] you learned a little something, and maybe won’t make some of the mistakes I made my freshman year. If your year turns out to not be as great as you expected, don’t [...]
January 12th, 2008 at 1:22 pm
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January 30th, 2008 at 3:45 pm
Here are a couple stories I read recently that I found useful, especially the procrastination one.
http://www.keybankcollegenotes.com/08-winter/tips-for-procrastinators.html
http://www.keybankcollegenotes.com/08-winter/make-the-most-of-college.html
March 14th, 2008 at 11:33 pm
March 19th, 2008 at 2:44 am
Adware Alert - No Spyware…
I suggest you to take a free scan and remove dangerous spyware and adware from your computer. Even if you think your computer is clean, you should scan and you will be surprised….
May 19th, 2008 at 1:22 am
Wish these tips could help us in school.
July 8th, 2008 at 12:04 am
avandamet…
losing weight on avandamet…
September 17th, 2008 at 1:37 pm
Great advice! I’m moving into the dorms this weekend and I’ll be sure to keep those things in mind!