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| How to Survive at College; Or "Why I don't eat Pizza Hut" | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: Jun 24 2007, 09:15 AM (601 Views) | |
| Heidrun | Jun 24 2007, 09:15 AM Post #1 |
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Sartana
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...All my topics have started with "H". Weird. Anyway, on to business! I noticed a while back that a few of the people here are graduating and going onto college after this summer is done. So... I'm compiling a list of things I've learned from hanging around the college. Feel free to contribute if you have anything. Some things will be sillier than others. Oh! And one last thing! This isn't meant to scare off people (as I've apparently had that effect on at least one person)! I'm just reminiscing/venting and hoping that someone else will learn something from it. As you can see, I'm still alive and attending next year. DORMS: If you lack a car, make sure your dorm is within walking distance of your classes and preferably, some grocery stores and restaurants. Take foul weather (blizzards, flooding, etc.) into account. If you do own a car, parking can be a pain and traffic jams can result when people are rushing to classes. You'll need to buy a permit, but at least you can get around town. There is no such thing as quiet hours. Even less so 24/7 quiet polices. Ignore those right now. (It is however still possible to ask someone nicely to be quieter, who'dve thunk it!) XD Only possible exception to the above is when it is midterms or finals, in which case it will be very quiet and then grow full of much cheering and making out as people begin to finish their classes. Sooner or later, the people next door will be making out/love to their significant other. They will be very audible, especially if they think you are asleep. Deal with it. If at all possible, get your roommate to be someone you know and someone you can talk to and won't kill. Your sanity will thank you. Pack light. You won't need a ton and you'll be coming back with more at the end of the year. Pack for upcoming months if you aren't going home to fetch anything. Like snowpants or boots. =) FOR GOODNESS SAKE, LOCK YOUR DOOR WHEN YOU SLEEP AND KNOW WHERE YOUR DANG KEYS ARE. Sooner or later, every year as I've heard, we get someone who just waltzes in when the people are sleeping and it's simply because they forgot to lock the dang door or they lost their keys and didn't say anything. I know that's what happened this year and it frankly ticked me off. We were warned at the beginning of the year... Have some cold medicines or any common medicines or painkillers in your dorm. You won't be wanting to go buy them when you're actually sick. FOOD If you have to buy some pre-set meal plan where some of your food is already paid for, get the lowest amount allowed. Believe me, you will be sick of any and all campus food by the end of the year Pilfering fruit as you walk out of the buffet area is a good thing. You can eat it later. Bananas are nice as you don't have to wash them and have a wrapper. Try not to eat only one food. You'll be very sick of it. EAT OFF CAMPUS IF POSSIBLE. Heck, eat somewhere nice once in a while. Paying for one person ain't too bad, it'll also be a treat and you'll want it after much school food. If you have food money that must be spent on campus (for random snacks and stuff) DO NOT WAIT TILL THE FINAL DAY TO SPEND IT. My friend did this and more or less gave the school $400 because the stores removed EVERYTHING from stock. All they could do was buy all the sweets in the coffee shop. Consequently, you don't have to spend it all at once. Just make sure you are spending it at a good rate in the final weeks. Continuing the part above, if you find yourself with loads of campus money and got absolutely nothing else to do with it, buy giant packs of soda or canned food or something non-perishable. If you can't take it home, the shelters could probably put them to use. =P If you have extra food money, treat friends/teachers/classmates or find someone who actually needs it. Don't make all your plates and utensils washable. You won't want to do it in a dorm. CLASSES/TEACHERS I hope this you already know, but show up on time and just show up. Despite what some people say, most professors do care about whether or not you are there and will mark down your grade for being absent. It also just puts yourself in a bad cycle of trying to avoid your classes. GIVE YOURSELF FREE TIME IN YOUR SCHEDULE. I made this mistake, hence the caps. Make sure you have time for jobs, work, sleep and freetime. Bundle your classes into a certain part of the day, rather than having hour or two-hour gaps. Also, as tempting as it may be, don't force yourself into a bad schedule, especially if you can wait on some of the courses. Don't let the advisors totally push you into a schedule. If you want/need a class right then to stay in touch with a subject, tell them and be firm about it. Some majors may stretch into a fifth year thanks to stuff like that, so you'll have to decide which is more important to you, getting done "on time" or learning the things you want. If a class you want is supposedly full, just show up and sit down for them at the beginning of the semester. Talk to the professor about getting into the class/override forms. Some people who sign up online drop the class without officially dropping it. Also, the professors are much more likely to take a person who shows up for their class rather than a person on their list who doesn't. If you find you don't like a class, there's no shame in dropping it. Especially if you don't work well with the teacher. ratemyprofessor.com can be helpful with this, but not always. (Lacks some teachers) Keep in mind that some professors that are teaching a subject you are currently in may also teach the next class you must take for it. Hopefully this prof is one you like. There's no shame in asking a professor or tutor for help. That's what office/center hours are there for. MISC. Please, don't go out binge drinking. I've been told by a professor I know well that he can tell when his students do this because they've gone and killed a few braincells. Seriously, they don't remember anything in the class that occured yesterday. No fun for anybody. Besides, most of you are under age anyway. :lol: Falling asleep while studying? Try some mint. It won't make you wake up totally, but it should keep you from dozing. I've tried it and it worked. Rosemary and citrus are also supposed to keep one awake, I haven't tried it. If worst comes and you have to pull an all-nighter on a project, don't look at the clock. In my experience, it makes me sleepy. Have a social life of some sort. The school website tends to have club lists if you really can't bring yourself to ask around. College towns also have some performances by random people (including your classmates) in cafes and clubs and other places around town. Just make sure you have some sort of friend you can lean on in person. No car? Bum a ride with someone or figure out the bus system, assuming your place has one. I didn't acutally do either of these (except on-campus bussing), but it's out there. XD Buying textbooks used or borrowing them can be helpful for costs. Just make sure the books aren't ruined to the point of not being usable. There may be coupon books that your college gives out. They can in fact have really good deals at times, so look through them. :3 There are classes that Colleges set up to get freshmen acquainted with the campus and each other. Total garbage. :lol: Most advisors will try to make you take this class, but I have yet to see them be any sort of graduation requirement (make sure though :x). On the upside, they generally don't even last a semester, so your schedule frees up a little more later. If I could have gone back, I would have probably replaced that class with some sort of exercise class, like karate or dance. Yes, they can offer those. :3 If there's a summer reading, don't fret over it. For me, the only time that book is ever touched upon has just been in the above class for a few classes at most. Read though it if you actually want to be nice to the students (sometimes teachers) volunteering to teach those classes, but as I said, try to avoid those classes in the first place. I literally did ask around some and can't say I found another person who had read it. (For anyone actually curious on what our book was, it is "The Curious Incident of the Black Dog in the Nighttime"). There's probably tons more I could say, but I'll leave it at that for tonight; I'm losing my ability to type. If I do think up anything more, ye'll see it later.
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Red Joker=sketch phase Alt, click, drag. Alt, click, drag. See how they alt! See how they alt! | |
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| Sabby | Jun 24 2007, 09:58 AM Post #2 |
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Unregistered
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Cool. I'll try to remember this all in 5 years. Thanks Heidi
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| Heidrun | Jun 24 2007, 10:19 AM Post #3 |
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Sartana
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You're welcome. =) Even if you forget, you'll find the important stuff out for yourself sooner or later... >:D Another one I just remembered before going off to bed: There is no shame in switching your major. If you find that the major isn't at all what you thought it was going to be and you know for a fact that it won't improve after a year or two quit torturing yourself over it and get a major that you will enjoy and that you will also still love to do once you have left college! Art majors, I'm looking at you especially on this next one. ;) Don't quit your major just because you have to start out with all the beginners "all over again". Don't forget that at one point or another, you were right where they are now. Don't be a hotshot either; it could cause you to miss something important simply because you think you know all of it already, not to mention it's just not appealing. I can almost guarantee you that you will pick up something from taking the mandatory starter courses all over again, even if it takes you a few years to realize what that thing was. Oh, yes, and learn to do your laundry. XD |
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Red Joker=sketch phase Alt, click, drag. Alt, click, drag. See how they alt! See how they alt! | |
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| Paracelsus | Jun 24 2007, 12:17 PM Post #4 |
What
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This is this best thing written that I have seen on this forum. All of this is IMPORTANT to read and with great respect I humbly request it to be stickied. Even if that sounds ridiculous, it'll save the sorrow/frustration. Now back to sleep for me and to turn this PC off. |
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| Death_Blade_182 | Jun 24 2007, 05:32 PM Post #5 |
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Ex-emo Extraordinaire
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My school doesn't have dorms, and most of the food served is composed of potato chips and soda
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| Kinx77 | Jun 24 2007, 06:19 PM Post #6 |
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Moonlight Scarf
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Im not going to collage soon, but good advice! I read the curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time and it was a pretty good book. |
]Click Here To Feed Me A Rare Candy!What? Everyone was doing it! >_> | |
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| DarthNemesis | Jun 24 2007, 07:15 PM Post #7 |
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BoktaiOnline's Secret Project Master!
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I just got my degree, and I can confirm that Heidrun's advice is excellent. Here are a few more pointers from my own experience: Once you've decided on your major, plan ahead. Figure out which classes have which prerequisites, and take the bottleneck classes early. Most colleges have academic advising programs geared specifically to help you with this. Try to take an even course load each semester/quarter. If you're taking three writing classes or three math-intensive classes, you're more likely to burn out than if you pick a variety of classes. On the other hand, be flexible. Your General Elective requirements usually let you choose from a list of qualifying classes, so if you can't get the one you wanted, be willing to settle for what's available when you register. Especially keep an eye out for classes that satisfy multiple graduation requirements. Don't buy the recommended textbooks at first. Often the teacher will cover everything important in the PowerPoint slides and you'll have lost 50 bucks after buyback. You can always go out and get the book later if you find that you need it for homework/studying. Show up to class! The number one reason I see people failing is because they either miss classes or neglect assignments. The teacher is telling you exactly what they consider important for tests, and you'll have a much better chance of remembering it if you're reading, seeing, and hearing the material than if you just read the chapters in the textbook. On the night before a test, get to bed early. If you still need to study, do it in the morning before the class. You don't want to be one of the unfortunate people who slept through their alarms during finals. |
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| Lake Hikari Asakura | Jun 24 2007, 07:16 PM Post #8 |
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Trinity
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imma not going to college soon neither =\ but good advices... too bad ALL colleges in my city are at least 1 freaking hour from my house x____X |
![]() ![]() ![]() NEXT TIME ON DRAGON BALL Z, NOW THAT VEGETA KNOWS GOKU'S POWER LEVEL, IS THE WHOLE UNIVERSE GOING TO DIE? ARE THE BALLS REALLY INERT? CAN GOKU'S BODY TAKE IT? FIND OUT NEXT TIME ON DRAGON BALL Z: I HOPE MY 9000 BALLS CAN TAKE IT OR THE WHOLE UNIVERSE IS GOING TO DIE | |
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| django6389 | Jun 24 2007, 08:05 PM Post #9 |
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Bok
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I'll keep this list in mind when I go to College later this year, thanks for the advice. I think it's very helpful. |
![]() Currently Playing: Shadow of the Colssus, Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess World of Warcraft, and Guilty Gear X2 Anar'alah belore! (By the light of the Sun!) | |
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| Inarabitta | Jun 24 2007, 08:44 PM Post #10 |
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WOOOOBBUFFET!
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.....and your point is....? Gah, my main concern is being able to stay awake. I normally just chew on some gum but then I get tired of chewing on it and doze off. I've never thought of using a mint. I guess the fresh feeling could help out. |
![]() Like some sort of Daft Punk.... | |
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| Heidrun | Jun 24 2007, 10:56 PM Post #11 |
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Sartana
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In regards to the alcohol, good point. I remember a bunch of the freshman guys in my old dorm (freshmen only) got drunk, stole whiteboards and then broke them and pissed on them. They were then kicked out for it. So... it's easy enough to get alcohol, but I wouldn't advise it anyway. X3 ...I never did get my whiteboard back. Not like I'd want it anyway. :lol: As for the mint, I like to look at the effects that certain herbs have on stuff. Unlike coffee, it's supposed to wake a person up without agitating them... or going straight to their bladder. XD *opens book on scents* ...It says it's a powerful stimulant occasionally used help combat shock and is also supposed to help stave off headaches. On the flip side, Valerian root (tea) is supposed to make a person sleepy. Mint, rosemary and tea tree oil also have antiseptic qualities... the mint can be sprayed as an essential oil and way back, French hospitals would burn rosemary like incense-*shuts book* I'll stop now. Getting off subject. Thanks Darth. I totally forgot the "sleep well before a test". Not to mention, it's nice to know your take on courseloads. =) To add a little more... If possible get anything that must be done, finished a day before it's due. If you're unlucky enough to be like me, you'll sleep better. Even if you have the class late in the day, it doesn't mean you should have your final project sent to printers and such at lunch time just to get back to the dorms and realize it's not quite the right size. Yes, I'm speaking from experience. x_x; ...And a common sense one. Mostly for females. Try to avoid the less trafficked areas at night, on or off campus. Even if nothing happens, it's still horribly unnerving to have a few guys following you and not knowing why. Again, this should also be taken into account if your dorm is a far walk from the main areas of campus, believe me, it was a pain! I'm also seconding Darth's advice concerning books. Don't buy them just because they are on your list of required books. Even if you do use them, but use them sparsely, you are probably better off splitting the cost of the book with a classmate and sharing it. I got through the second semester without buying any books because I could either borrow it or through asking the teacher, found that we were not going to use the new book at all. Off campus used bookstores will occasionally carry a textbook you need, but I generally saw those books pop up towards the middle and end of the year. However, the prices, in my experience, are a little better at the used bookstores than at the campus store used. Oh! One more for now. For important reports, speeches and whatnot that require a person to stand in front of the class. I suggest that the person dress up a little. Wearing the clothing will hopefully make you feel less casual about your mood towards the speech. Even if you can't fool yourself, it's still good for making other people believe you are taking this seriously, regardless of whether you are or aren't. ;) That's all for now. *falls asleep at desk* |
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Red Joker=sketch phase Alt, click, drag. Alt, click, drag. See how they alt! See how they alt! | |
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| Shadotterdan | Jun 25 2007, 03:27 PM Post #12 |
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Smith and Sumire
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Good stuff. I'm not in a full time college right now, but I do have a general tip for when you are living on your own and have a wierd sleep schedule. REMBER TO EAT! After I got my nightjob I was sleeping through breakfast and lunch, I went down 1 and a half pant sizes and was starting to get jittery from lack of vitamins before I realized I should make an effort to eat some breakfast before hitting the sack. |
| Up to floor 96 on the AST, once I get all those emblems, one more run to go :) | |
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| Paracelsus | Jun 26 2007, 02:26 AM Post #13 |
What
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I'd like to add some pointers I've learned. Socialize but don't go overboard: It's all fun and games til someone falls out a window. So if you're gonna drink or whatever, don't binge like the world is ending. Be smart and know your limits. Wouldn't encourage underage stuff either cause you can get some heavy consequences from that I heard. Some people are a**es: 99% sure you've already met one, likely you'll see more that think they're still in High School in college. They usually weed themselves out due to stupid choices and High School ridiculousness. (My loungemate is borderlien on gettign his rear kicked by the other dorm mates for his actions as of late.) Also, don't be an a**. You'll make more friends without being one. |
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| Heidrun | Aug 12 2007, 04:22 AM Post #14 |
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Sartana
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Just doing a quick bump since people may be signing up for things around this point in time. Can't think of much in any new tips to add... Well, this was probably said in some form or another (maybe even by me) but if you know you want a much different space to live next year, start looking early. :P |
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Red Joker=sketch phase Alt, click, drag. Alt, click, drag. See how they alt! See how they alt! | |
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| Beeg | Aug 20 2007, 03:49 AM Post #15 |
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SIMON, TAKE IT!
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sounds like good advice, mainly everyhting that mmy parents ahve told me or i figured would be important myself is on that list nice job with the advice! |
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