For the New College Student

A lot of my friends are headed off to college, and about to live away from home for the first time, so I thought I'd make a post for them.  If you are a returning student, you may also find this helpful.

So here's my advice for college life:

1. Go to bed at a reasonable hour.  You may not have classes as early as you did in high school, and Mom's not making you go to bed at nine, but maintaining your usual bedtime is still a good idea.  It keeps you healthy, and it helps keep balance and consistency.
2. Get up at the same time every day.  This also is healthy and fosters consistency.  You probably will not have your first class at the same time every day, but morning routines are crucial.
3. Don't get involved in other people's drama.  It's none of your business, and it's not worth your time.  Everyone wants to help in some way, but it's not your job to solve your friends' problems.  They are adults, and they can do that themselves.  You have your own responsibilities to tend to.
4. Do your homework.  I mean it.  Make academics your first priority, and don't go out with your friends before your paper is written and your reading for the next day is done.
5. Don't be offended if your friends don't have time to do fun stuff with you.  They sincerely would love to go to coffee, go shopping, or come to the arts festival, but they have school and work responsibilities.  That constitutes a legitimate conflict.  Take after their example!
6. Try to hit it off well with your roommate.  The two of you are going to live together for the whole year.  It will go better if you are best friends than if you are enemies, or just a couple of strangers who are sharing space.  That being said...
7. Set boundaries with your roommate from the beginning.  Work out who's stuff goes where, what things you're okay with sharing, and who takes out the trash which week.  The sooner you work that out, the less tension there will be.
8. Don't split the cost of things that will ultimately be kept by one person.  If your roommate asks you to contribute to a mini fridge or a TV, remind them that it will have to be one person's at the end of the year.
9. Have lunch and dinner with your roommate as often as possible.  It will help you get to know them better, and it will be fun.
10. Meet people.  Find people who will be good to hang out with, study with, and be friends with you for life.  College is where you form some of the longest and strongest relationships!
11. Have a mentor.  Find a buddy who's a little bit older than you, but studying a similar topic, and familiar with the school and the department.  They can help you when you don't understand something.
12. Talk to your teachers.  Even when you're not struggling in their class, ask them questions, participate in class discussions, and say hi to them outside of class.
13. Call Mom!  Even if you don't miss her yet, you soon will, and she misses you.  Call your parents at least once a week, and tell them everything that's going on.  And if you're doing something that you wouldn't want them to know about, you should probably stop:)
14. Go to study sessions and tutoring.  You will get to know people really well if you spend an hour each week going over your homework together.  Go to tutoring if you need to.  There's no shame in getting better in your worst class.  It will only make your life easier, trust me!
15. Eat healthily.  You will look and feel way better.  It's not easy when you're eating in the cafeteria, but it's not impossible.  Find the fruits and vegetables, the dairy products and the grains, and avoid the heavy fats.  It's not a bad idea to have one unhealthy food that you just don't eat(ie. pizza, fries, hot dogs).
16. Don't think that you can avoid the Freshman 15.  Obviously, do your best to follow #15, but don't be discouraged when you put on a few extra pounds.  It happens to everyone who eats in the school cafeteria.
17. Apply for every available job.  Everyone on campus is trying to get a job, so if you apply for just one, you are not very likely to get it.  But if you apply for everything, not just the jobs you think you'll like, you might end up really enjoying something that you wouldn't have otherwise applied for.  Don't be afraid to apply for the less popular jobs.  There will not be much competition for them, and the employers will know that you're serious about the job, and you're not just doing it for fun.
18. Learn how to do laundry.  It is a time-consuming process, but it's not hard.
19. Designate a time each week to do the laundry.  Saturday mornings tend to be rush-hour in the laundry room, so be strategic.  Set aside at least two hours(including time to fold and put away), and have it in your calendar.  While the clothes are in the washing machine and dryer, do homework or other cleaning.  Machines were not invented to make us lazy, they are meant to help us multi-task!
20. Don't overbook yourself with extracurriculars.  You don't have time to be chairman of the hospitality committee, VP of the student government, a volunteer at the local animal shelter, and a student missionary in Peru.  You'll have to pick one.

Hopefully this gives you a good start.  Good luck with college!