What are some tips to being a Freshman in University?

1. Always go to class. A lot of bloggers will debate this one, but I think it’s essential. You never know when the professor will drop a crucial test hint, or give out extra credit for attendance.
   — jakenmark


2. Academically: If you were "the smart kid" in high school, you'd better drop that persona immediately. Ask questions even if they make you sound stupid, not necessarily just to the professor either, asking or cooperating with classmates can be just as helpful. Also be open to other people's ideas. Do not be the guy who asks a question just to show how much he already knows. A lot of high school "smart kids" hold onto that identity because it's tied up into their self worth. In doing so all they're doing is holding themselves back. Not being afraid to get help when you need it and admitting you suck helps a lot more than you might think.
   — moop162


3. School: You need to go to class. You're there for a reason, you're going to have fun, but you need to put in the work also. Home: Quickly have the awkward/weird talk with roommates about setting some house rules, and stick to them. Once you get that weird/awkward moment out of the way, take all of your roommates and go out and party for the night. Social: Make friends! And stay friends! This is the last time it will be easy to meet and make friends your own age. Health: I had no idea students had health services provided by the university. Didn't find out until my last week. Take advantage.
   — haysus25






4. Study a lot more than you think you should. And find other kids in your classes to study with!
   — Perfect5Outta7


5. don't commute the first year but live on campus,dorm. Freshman year no one knows anyone and you make alot of friends. commuting you miss that experience. After the first year everyone already made their friends. Also many universities treat commuters like shit.
   — darksull


6. Okay so I am a senior and I'm semi-successful. GPA is okay but could be better due to some personal issues. 1. Join a club or at least go to the activity fair. You'll get information on things available and if you do decide you're going to continue your education- JOIN A CLUB. 2. Don't wear lanyards after orientation. Please just don't. 3. Don't use all your meal plan in the first 2 months (if you have one) 4. If you have a roommate and you aren't bffs then it's fine. You're a freshman and it's a random roommate most likely. But if you are good friends, go with it. 5. Call Mom and dad at least once a week. 6. Go to class. I've gotten xc for showing up. And teachers will always say to study things. 7. Your main goal is to study. You are not there to party, to drink or to waste time. Yes, you are there to figure out your future but really use this time to find yourself. 8. Also don't be ashamed of changing majors or withdrawing from classes. 9. Mental health is very important as well.
   — beckie_ann






7. Do NOT waste your time on a new girlfriend/boyfriend the first few months. I'm not saying don't get a new girlfriend, I'm saying dont spend 90% of your time with her. You'll regret it when it doesnt work out and your halfway into your semester without any friends.
   — rondowasgood


8. Use shower sandals. Athlete's foot sucks, yet is very easily avoided.
   — KnoFear


9. Go to every class, unless you have a legit reason to miss one. Another poster said: > You never know when the professor will drop a crucial test hint, or give out extra credit for attendance. But in my view, the more important reason is that missing one class doesn't seem like a big deal (and it typically isn't). But the more you get in the mindset of "it's just one class, what does it matter", the more it becomes a habit. Instead, make it a habit to go to every class, unless you absolutely have to miss one.
   — Leucopternis






10. Do your assignment as soon as you get them instead of having them hang over your head.
    — LD_in_MT


11. Arriving a little late to the thread, entering sophomore year as someone who was the first in their family to go to American college: 1) You don't have to be best friends with your roommate and you don't even have to like them, but try to have some kind of working relationship otherwise it's gonna be miserable. Freshmen should probably have their housing assignments by now so try and get in contact with your roommate, at the very least figuring out what to bring. If you can meet up with them that's amazing because I find that in person your roommate will be different from online/texting. If you can't then a Skype call is good too. Decide who's bringing the heavy stuff and who's bringing the essentials. Lastly, try and find something you two have in common, so that those late long nights in the room won't seem so lonely or awkward. My roommate was the polar opposite of me: he was outgoing, outdoorsy, the popular kid, class president of his high school while I was a little more towards the stereotypical redditor (although I like to think I'm on the skinny side), but we both found a common love in Grey's Anatomy and Hawaii Five-O, which helped us survive freezing winter nights. He ended up transferring out but we still update each other on all the latest news for those shows (rip Chin and Kono :[) ALSO ESTABLISH ROUTINES FOR LIGHTS OUT, BATHROOM, LOCKING YOUR DOORS AND MOST IMPORTANTLY, WHO'S BRINGING A PARTNER BACK TO THE ROOM FOR SEXY TIME. I CAN'T STRESS THAT LAST ONE ENOUGH. SERIOUSLY. 2) Go to class. Every self-respecting redditor will tell you this in this post so I'm not gonna elaborate too much. One side note: try to establish some kind of relationship with your professors. It sounds like ass kissing and it is, but that's how you get anywhere. If your professor knows who you are, then they will absolutely be more lenient in their grading or their office hours. And when you need a recommendation for that internship, they'll be that much more likely to pull out their pen to sign it. You might not have needed to do this in high school, but if you haven't figured it out already, you are not in high school. 3) It's OK to not get drunk. It's OK to not want to get absolutely plastered. If you're planning on drinking and never did it in high school, find a group of people--at the beginning of the year, everyone is new to this scene so no one is gonna be super douchey and if they are, you didn't wanna drink with them anyways. You'll find that as the year goes on you'd rather be drinking in a friend's room watching a TV show or movie instead of puking in Delta Theta Gamma's basement. 4) Don't do what I did and leave your door closed on move-in day. I was really tired because I hadn't slept the night before and took a 4 hour nap after getting my stuff in, which led to no one knocking on my door (my roommate had moved in early and was out with his parents) or me introducing myself. And like with your roommates, you definitely don't have to love your floor mates but getting to know them is good practice for when you have your own house/apartment and new neighbors. Basically, open your door and force yourself to talk to at least 5 people on the first day (unless talking isn't a problem for you, in which case go forth and prosper, my friend) 5) Join organizations. I know in American high schools, you have to pay (occasionally BS) fees for some organizations, and for some schools they might not have them. Well in college, you don't really have to pay for many organizations (outside of beer fees) and they have so many. Doing them will fill up a lot of time you might have otherwise spent huddled in your dorm room. Just don't let them catch up to your work! 6) Sort of following off that point, Greek life is completely an option. Of course, you should always consider the potential costs, financially and otherwise. Are you ready to pay your dues monthly in addition to your regular college expenses? Are you ready to do whatever weird shit the frats and sororities will make you do? If you are, then feel free to sign up. Your non-Greek friends will judge you, of course, but I've rarely if ever heard bad experiences from those who were chosen (unless the frats in question were the shitty kind, like Fiji). 7) Always always always keep an eye out for financial aids. Dig through every potential scholarship offer you can find. It seems like a waste of time, especially when there aren't many that might apply to you, but every dollar you earn that way is a dollar you aren't loaning from a bank, or worse, Sallie Mae. Edit: some more stuff I thought of: 8) SLEEP. I know that now your parents are gone it's tempting to stay up all night watching House of Cards. But sleep recharges your body after a stressful day of class, relaxes you before that big test, and most importantly, keeps your immune system strong. Most common college illnesses can be kept at bay if you sleep consistently (and do other healthy things, LIKE WASHING YOUR FUCKING HANDS, DYLAN) And if you do have a sleep schedule, it's easier to go back to it if you have a night out or something. 9): This is definitely something I wasn't told, but bring business casual and formal outfits to school (easier if you get a separate bag for them, but they can be folded if necessary). Colleges will hold job fairs and even if you don't get a job, it's important to look clean and professional. Also, have a resume ready and be ready to add whatever experience you gain in college to it. 10): If you're not international, meet international people! The stereotype (at my college) is of a rich fucker who doesn't go to class or speak English, but some of my closest friends are from Canada, Sweden, Germany, France, and the Philippines, from all income levels and backgrounds, people that my middle-class New Jersey ass might not have had a chance of meeting otherwise. Part of college is broadening the type of people you meet. If you're an international student who's never been in the states before, try and find someone who knows their way around because depressingly, college offices for international students are complete bullshit. 11): Depending on your career, it's not the end of the world if you don't get a summer internship freshman year. But if you're serious about trying, I advise starting to apply at the beginning of November and having all your major targets done by January. And if you don't get one, get a summer job (start applying for those early, too). Basically, don't sit on your ass all summer when you're done with freshman year. That's an easy trap to fall into and a potentially damaging one for your resume. 12) Pack early and get your storage sorted early for when you have to leave. Housing departments everywhere will charge you damage fees for messy rooms and belongings left behind. If you have something large that you can't fly back with, either sell it or dump it in storage. Many colleges have a storage service affiliated with them that you can use. Try splitting a unit with your friend so you're not absolutely boned by the costs. 13) Take advantage of free stuff and discounts when you can, especially if you are responsible for your own finances. To start, use a family plan with friends for Netflix and try out Spotify Premium's Student discount, as well as free Amazon Prime for students with a college email. But if things are tight, those should be the first expenses cut--find alternative streams for shows, use vanilla Spotify instead, and leech off your dad's Amazon Prime if you can. Look for copies of textbooks online that you can download (unless your professors are strict about print copies). There are lists of online resources on reddit and I'm pretty sure I have one saved, will try to find it. 14) Get help from everybody. If your advisor is being difficult, talk to your professors for class advice when planning out your courses for upcoming semesters. Talk to upperclassmen too--everybody goes through the same struggle and nobody's too proud to help out a freshman, as long as you're not a dick about it. Upperclassmen are also nice for job and internship recommendations, but try not to act like you're completely leeching off them for it. 15) Last thing (I swear): Don't compare yourself to people even in your own major. Some kids are gonna come in on a full scholarship and need it, while others can drop 4 years worth of tuition and still be rich enough to have a summer home in Malibu. Some will have so much AP credit that they can graduate early and some will have to take remedial courses you've never heard of. The only grades that matter are your own. At the end of 4 years, employers will be considering you on the same weight as the guy who came in with 5 AP courses, and if you've done enough during college work- and experience-wise you will be fine. Expect to be in the middle of the pack, but work to be top. This is just a random hodgepodge of things I wish I'd been told before I went to university. I'm sure there's way more useful advice in this thread, so keep reading through. If you play your cards right, college can honestly be one of the most fun times in your life, so work hard, play hard, and enjoy it. Best of luck to you!
    — skywardsword596


12. **Social** It's common to have a group of girls to scout out a party. Use that to your advantage as 5 dollars to get into a party for a kicked keg is one way to ruin your night. Carry around a lighter. Someone always needs a lighter. If you never drank alcohol before, then take it easy the first time you do it. The amount of freshmen who get carted off the first week of school is startling. **Academics** First impressions in a class is really important. Syllabus week (which you should never skip) determines whether or not the class is worth staying. Search for your textbook online first. I found all of my math textbooks online and haven't had the need to spend a lot of money. You're gonna procrastinate. It's gonna suck to do work last minute. Try to mitigate the damage of procrastination as much as you can. **Misc** Fingers crossed that your roommate isn't crazy. Situations vary from person to person. I hope your problem solving skills are on point. Before classes start, go explore the campus so you know where your classes are. It sucks being late on the first day of school. My favorite tip to do is to have my class schedule as my phone wallpaper. I know when and where are my classes and how long it'll be for my break. Speaking of breaks, if you have an hour or more break between classes, try to avoid going home/dorm. Use the time to go over your notes you just took or prepare for your next class. I hope these tips were useful. Freshman year was really interesting and exciting for me. Best of luck surviving
    — PornChampion