Here's a few more pointers for you guys- just in case you were hankering for some more.
For those of you who haven't schedule your classes, make sure to note WHEN they are. Particularly in conjunction with one another. Now, I'm not implying that any of you will be registering for two classes at the same time (unless you've managed to get your hands on Hermione's Time Turner, in which case, feel free to FedEx that to me ASAP). But the "ten minutes walking time" you think is enough to get you to classes will NOT be enough. Sure, you'll have a couple back-to-back classes that are conveniently in the buildings next door to each other, but for the most part, the schedule kings of the world will probably make you sprint across campus. Now, don't be afraid to do that half-walk, half-sprint-for-your-life thing that we do when we're trying not to be late while simultaneously trying not to look like an idiot. You will look like an idiot, so just sprint. At least you won't be late.
And if you think it makes you look like a total Freshman, well, you're right. But it's not the sprinting to class that makes you look like one. It's the fact that you're sprinting to class because you didn't know to think ahead and not schedule all of your classes like this.
When you have class at 9:00, don't show up at 9:00. Use what I've learned as Theater Time. "If you're early, you're on time. If you're on time, you're late. And if you're late, you're dead." Pretty much also college time. A 9:00 class usually means the professor starts at 9:00, so if you want a seat, get there ten minutes early, I'd say. And again, keep track of your scheduling. If you have a 9:00 class, want to get there ten minutes early, and don't leave your dorm until 8:45, you're dumb. It doesn't take five minutes to walk to class, I'm pretty sure. More like an hour and a half.
Have a doodle pad with you. I'm serious. I don't know if you're like me, but if I'm not doing something, I get bored very quickly. And for the first week, 85% of teachers decide to go over the syllabus they assigned as reading over the summer. It will take the full hour of class- multiple days. You will be talked AT, and not even in the lecture notes kind of a way. In the I-know-you-just-read-this-but-let's-do-this-again kind of a way. Not because the teachers don't have anything to teach you or anything- they've got plenty of material. They just HAVE to go over all of this stuff in detail, so we as students can't come back halfway through the semester and try and argue our way out of something that was clearly written in the syllabus we all signed. They're probably not in love with the syllabus either, but they've got to do it. So back to the point. A doodle pad. Don't let it distract you; just mindlessly use it. It'll help keep you awake and at least a couple neurons firing as your teacher talks about how cheating is usually frowned upon for the umpteenth time.
Lastly, just know that you will be tired. You will be running around all day, you'll be doing homework in the afternoon, and then you'll go out with friends. I don't care if it's the beginning of school, and you've got barely any homework, and it's only 7:00, and you were planning on going to bed early. You won't. You will probably go to bed anytime between 11:30 and 1:30. Count on it. You will be up all night looking at Cracked articles (am I the only one obsessed with this website?), Skyping anyone you remotely know online, dredging up status updates on FaceBook from a week ago for a reason you've yet to identify, or just wandering around the dorms at night because, well, let's face it, you live in a Freshman dorm, and there will always be shenanigans going down. Count on it. All I'm saying is invest in a stock in Starbucks and get some great undereye concealer, because the Freshman 15 stands for the fifteen minutes of sleep you will get each night.
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