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Alright, give me a common sense crash course

J

JustAnAverageGuy

Diamond Member
Heading off to college, so advice welcomed

Obvious things like

[*] Don't carry more than $30 in cash
[*] Keep valuables in a safe
[*] Don't procrastinate until the last day to post stuff like this
[*] etc

Also, any amusing stories you have about randomly assigned roommates would be interesting 😀

- JaAG
 
I screwed up my first year, so pick your friends wisely. Also, just have fun, its going to be a great experience for you, but don't be an idiot and irresponsible either. GL
 
If you have any sense of intuition you will figure it out.

Why wouldn't you carry more than $30 in cash?
What valuables do you have that are worth putting in a safe?
Procrastination is part of college life.
 
Um:

Don't drink or do drugs before a midterm
Get plenty of sleep before a midterm
Study for finals as early as possible
The dorms suck, you might get a bad roommate. If possible, transfer your roommate with someone down the hall who gets along better with you, if necessary.
Don't accept an already open beer from someone.

Umm... don't drink and drive?
 

If a girl you just met at a frat party is willing to sleep with you, she probably slept with a lot of other guys too.

If a girl says it's a safe time of month, don't believe her.

The bathrooms in the admin building are always nicer than the dorms.

Learn when the showers get cleaned and go right after unless you like the smell of sploodge more than ammonia.

Don't spend all your time playing games/downloading pron/surfing the internet. My dorm floor the first year all played network games against each other constantly, several failed out because of this.

Sharing apartments is almost always cheaper than living in dorms.

It's never too late to change majors.

Take the time to actually talk to your professors. They are some of the smartest people you'll ever meet in the field you are going to be working in.

Talk to the deans and other staff when needed. A lot of the deans I've talked to are 1) nice people and 2) willing to exert power to fix problems.

Be sure to take advantage of internship and coop opportunities. Even if you don't get an after graduation offer from the companies you worked with, the experience helps getting a job elsewhere enormously.

Do not waste time working anywhere outside your field. You are better off taking out student loans and making the most of your college time than blowing it working retail, etc..

If you are pressed for time, just ignore some of the more boring assignments. Getting perfect grades simply isn't worth the time it takes from other things.
 
Originally posted by: JustAnAverageGuy
Heading off to college, so advice welcomed

Obvious things like

[*] Don't carry more than $30 in cash
[*] Keep valuables in a safe
[*] Don't procrastinate until the last day to post stuff like this
[*] etc

Also, any amusing stories you have about randomly assigned roommates would be interesting 😀

- JaAG
Click to expand...

I think I'm in trouble, because I almost always procrastinate till the last possible moment and usually have $200-$1000 cash on me. 8-(
 
Originally posted by: JustAnAverageGuy
:thumbsup: sunase
Click to expand...


Good adice on the teacher/dean stuff but not the rest.

You will not marry any girl you hook up with your freshman year. It doesn't matter, just wrap it and hit it. Also, don't spend time in your room your 1st year. Get the heck out there and meet people, it's what makes college so great. And yes, an apt. is cheaper but not a great suggestion until after your 1st year. Living on campus, which was required of freshmen at my school, is the best way to meet people.

Oh, AND GO TO CLASS!! It's so simple but gets so many people.
 
You won't actually need the book for many classes, at least a couple anyways. However if you do need the book, DO get the book, and not just before the midterm.

And you may need to know how to swim, but you probably already know if you do or do not need to.
 
Originally posted by: pray4mojo
people will think youre the weird paranoid guy if you bring and keep stuff in a safe.
Click to expand...

My apartment roommate thought I was paranoid because I wanted him to keep the damn front door locked when nobody was there. This is after the fact that his roommate in the previous year was robbed after someone came into the unlocked apartment. By the end of the year, based on the considerable amount of evidence, I had arrived at the conclusion, that my roommate was simply a moron, and it was likely uncurable.
 
buy your books prior to the start of the term. The first couple days of the term there's usually long lines in the bookstore. You can always return books you don't need. (books are listed by course id [the number you use to register the course]).

Register for classes early.

You'll end up with an advisor specific to your department/major, but still go talk to the general/lower division advisors from time to time.

Experiment, but avoid any permanent damage.
 
Originally posted by: JustAnAverageGuy
Heading off to college, so advice welcomed

Obvious things like

[*] Don't carry more than $30 in cash
[*] Keep valuables in a safe
[*] Don't procrastinate until the last day to post stuff like this
[*] etc
Click to expand...

Are you going to college in Nigeria or something? I don't think you're going to get mugged on most college campuses...college students aren't renowned for their great wealth, as a whole😉

Go to your classes, because otherwise you wasted thousands of dollars to go to college.

Take classes that interest you, but be sure you also take the core classes. No one wants to go to college for 7 years and not have a degree to show for it.

Get a job. Part time, of course. It will improve your financial situation twofold, by providing you with more money, and by providing you with less free time in which to spend money. Trust me, you'll have PLENTY of free time. Probably more than you will have at any other point in your life. It's almost like being unemployed, but without any sort of guilt about being lazy.

On the financial note, try to get a scholarship. Fill out the FAFSA and try to get a grant. Snag all the free money you legally can.

Wear sandals in the showers.

Dorms are worth it, at least for the first couple years. Almost everyone who goes off-campus to live in an apartment reports a significant decrease in their socialization.

You are morally obligated to perform pranks while in college, but check your rules since some colleges are run by the Nazi party when it comes to these things. Remember, don't get caught.

This is kindergarten for adults...play nice, but have fun!

Originally posted by: Theb
buy your books prior to the start of the term. The first couple days of the term there's usually long lines in the bookstore. You can always return books you don't need. (books are listed by course id [the number you use to register the course]).

Register for classes early.
Click to expand...

Don't buy your books at the bookstore if you can help it...overpriced, and they'll rip you off on the buyback. Half.com or Amazon.com.

Plus, a lot of classes say they require the textbook, but not all of them really do. For your core classes, like basic math+science and such, buy the book. For other stuff, you can probably wait it out a few days before deciding whether you need to. Your first year, though, buy all the books, you need to learn how to tell the difference.
 
If you have to fill out a form for the college to select your roommate for you, do NOT put down a religion. I made the mistake of putting down "Christian" (even though I'm more of an agnostic) and I got the biggest Jesus-freak roommate ever. He was constantly trying to get me to go to church with him. Almost every day of the week.
 
you probably won't need 90% of the stuff you bring, so pack extra light and bring stuff back from home as you need it (assuming you live close enough.) I had SO much crap that I never used just sitting around taking up valuable beer storage space.
 
Originally posted by: JustAnAverageGuy
Heading off to college, so advice welcomed

Obvious things like

[*] Don't carry more than $30 in cash
[*] Keep valuables in a safe
[*] Don't procrastinate until the last day to post stuff like this
[*] etc

Also, any amusing stories you have about randomly assigned roommates would be interesting 😀

- JaAG
Click to expand...
experience is the best teacher. 😉

good luck in college 🙂

 
1. Not that you have a choice (most likely), but dorms are a great place for at least the first year. You will be surrounded by others in the same boat, and it really gives you a chance to meet people.

2. If you plan to rent an apartment the following year, start looking after winter break. If you plan to share your apartment, you had better have a great read on the people you want to live with. Take advantage of #1.

3. Learn to be self-sufficient with respect to studying. Most posters here probably have no trouble with looking stuff up on the internet, but know that there is a wide, wide gap between info gleaned from Wikipedia and from peer-reviewed journals.

4. DON'T PROCRASTINATE when it comes to studying. You will have more freedom and free time than you have ever had before, and than you will ever have again. While you definitely should (and will) enjoy yourself, know that you are now playing on a totally different level of academia. You might have been hot stuff in high school, but be prepared to be humbled. At the same time, don't be discouraged- everyone else is going through the same process.

5. GO TO CLASS. And pay attention. Once you know what you are up against, and provided that you are very motivated and proficient at teaching yourself, you can afford to miss a class here and there if you feel that your time would be better spent studying on your own/for another class/catching up on sleep for a final. But do not make a habit of this, and definitely do not do this during your first year.

6. Getting a part-time job on campus can be beneficial depending on your situation. If you are excellent at managing your time, and can make use of free time productively, by all means continue to do so. However, a part-time job can be a great opportunity to make connections, get to know people, make good use of time, and if you work the same job through all of college (and do it well), you have a potentially valuable resume-booster, and at the very least, a solid letter of recommendation from your employer if necessary (i.e. grad school). Getting a job to make money should be a secondary motivation, unless you absolutely have to.

7. Get your butt in the gym. You will be surrounded by food, parties, alcohol, stress, and the germs of thousands of peers who do not necessarily care about personal hygine as you do. You will find it much easier to cope if you regularly work off stress. The gym can also be a great place to meet like-minded people (but don't be that guy who goes to pick up girls. And for the love of god don't curl in the squat rack). Along the same line, make it a habit to do laundry regularly.

8. Find a place to study. Your dorm room will almost definitely be a poor choice. Crazy roomates aside, chances are there will be too many distractions. Discover your libraries and find an ideal setup for yourself.

9. Portect your valuables. You will be living with people from all over the place. Most will be trustworthy. Some won't. Use common sense and don't leave your laptop lying unsecured with your wallet on top while you go outside for some fresh air.

10. Pack lightly. The less stuff you have, the more space, and less you will be weighed down and inconvenienced when it comes time to move. Do pack cleaning supplies, because it is almost guaranteed that no one else will.

11. Be considerate of your roomate. Yes, there are a lot of psychos. But most people are more or less normal, and will remain that way so long as boundaries concerning personal space, cleanliness, noise, etc. are observed. Don't hesitate to voice your concerns.

12. Have fun! Remember, everything (academic and social) in moderation. College will almost definitely be a time of your life you look back on fondly, so enjoy it for all it is worth!

P.S. Call your parents a few times a week for the first two weeks, as they will be concerned. After that, keep in regular contact, but neither you nor they should be excessively clingy/intrusive.

P.P.S. Mind the two-floor rule: avoid relations with anyone closer than two floors above or below you.
 
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