I had no idea what college held for me in the Fall of 2011. I did not know what to do or where to go within my community to prepare myself for college. How should I present myself? What kind of relationship could I have with my professors? I was friend-less in high school, could I hold the same title in college?
So what did I do? I went to my teachers; some of the greatest people I know. What did they tell me?
1. Stay calm and know who you are
2. Do not be afraid to ask questions.
3. Do NOT use Sparknotes for class assignments and projects.
4. Do NOT plagiarize. My professor had this written in his syllabus, “Do not plagiarize. I will find out and I will do everything in my power to get you kicked out! Do not mess with me! Now, lets have a great semester!” Guys, do not do it.
5. Do not attribute your worth to your grades. You are not your GPA, honors certificate, or class rank.
6. Make friends. If you do not know how, fake it until you make it.
7. Call your parents! They want to hear from you. They love you!
8. Make friends with your professors; you’ll need someone to write a letter of recommendation one day.
9. Try and attend school events. You’ll have a great time and it’s a nice way to meet people.
10. Let yourself take a break from time to time. The semester is hectic and you will burn yourself out if you do not give yourself a break!
Now, this is my advice!
1. Take naps! They will refresh you. Generally, stay under 2 hours or you’ll wake up worse than when you fell asleep.
2. Know your limits. One day you will be 21 and if you enjoy drinking and partying– know your limits. Pretty drinks still produce an ugly hangover.
3. Do your freaking work. That one day you decide to watch “Cake Boss” instead of reading an article for reading, will be the day your professor calls on you. Ooops!
4. Know your professor’s office hours and use them. Your professor is not amind reader. He will fail you based on what he sees. Go talk to him, he’ll be more than happy to help you.
5. If you have a public laundry facility: Do not leave your clothes in the laundry room for more than the required time. People will steal your favorite shirts, pants, and cute pink socks.
6. Do not worry if it takes you a semester to make friends. People suck when they don’t give people a chance to show their amazing personality. I know you have an amazing personality. You’ll make friends.
7. Do not worry if you do not have a major the first day of class. You have two years. Calm down. Breath. You’ll be fine.
8. Don’t spend above your means; Ramen gets gross after your 7th bag. Spend wisely and you’ll be able to have peanut butter sandwiches! Yum!
9. Do not worry about what people have. If someone has a Mac and you have Dell– who cares. If your computer works, there you go.
10. Take a bath during finals week. I know you’ll be studying every day and night but please, take a shower! 🙂
Well, that’s all the advice I can come up with! Well– for now!