5 Things I Wish Someone Had Told Me When I Was a Freshman

By Amy Wagner on September 12, 2012

1)      Don’t stay up until 3 AM studying for a class, no matter how hard it is. I learned this the hard way, while taking a near-impossible math class from a teacher who taught the material as if we were all math majors (which we weren’t). I was convinced that if I studied for hours on end, it was possible to get an A in the class. What resulted was not only not an A, but also a severe case of sleep deprivation. Bottom line: study as much as you can, and work hard. But at a certain point you have to cut your losses. You’ll probably do better on that difficult quiz or test if you’ve had a decent night’s sleep.

Photo from Flickr.com by Sterling College

2)      Buy Emergen-C®. Preferably in the biggest package you can find. Dorms are close quarters, and germs tend to spread like wildfire. One person gets sick, and next thing you know, half the floor is coughing. As soon as cold and flu season starts, take some Emergen-C®(or other vitamins of choice). It may not have the best taste, but it will supercharge your immune system in the face of those evil germs, and you won’t have to worry about missing multiple days of clas or that ski trip you’ve been planning since before the first snow.

3)      You won’t be best friends with your roommate. You fill out a ten-question survey about things like cleanliness, preferred bedtime, and the like, and somehow your college is supposed to pair you with a veritable dorm soulmate based on this incredibly generic information. It’s really no surprise that most roommate pairings aren’t flawless matches. In fact, here’s an experiment: ask your roommate how they filled out their housing questionnaire, and chances are that it’s nothing like yours. That being said, it’s obviously optimum to have a civil relationship with the person you’ll be living with for the next year, but just don’t expect to be in each other’s weddings.

4)      It’s very unlikely to get out of your first year with a 4.0. Many people were perfectionists in high school, myself included. And while these same people may have graduated with a perfect GPA, or even above it thanks to AP classes, they may find that things change in college. Classes get harder. Standards get higher. The subject you loved in high school reaches a level of difficulty you didn’t know existed. Simply put, college can be hard. Don’t beat yourself up if you get a B (or even a D) for the first time in your life. It happens.

5)      Do laundry more than once every three weeks. There’s a lot to deal with in college: social life, tons of homework, jobs, and various extracurriculars, to name a few. But just don’t let your laundry pile up! You’ll end up with a heaping basket of dirty clothes that require three washing machines to handle, and you will find yourself wishing that you had simply done it at more regular intervals. This one may seem obvious, but trust me – keep it in mind!

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