The school year has begun! Whether you’re a freshman beginning your college experience or a fifth-year ready to finish your last year of undergrad, it’s important to start off the semester on the right foot to set a preface for until finals season. Here are five tips on how to nail the Fall 2017 semester:
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Get organized
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In college, my planner is my number one hero. Invest in a high-quality, weekly planner where you can layout exactly what’s going on this semester. As soon as I receive the syllabi for my courses, I go through each class with my planner and write down the dates for any exams/midterms/finals. This allows me to look ahead and make sure I don’t schedule any conflicts around the days when I know I’ll be stuck in my room crying over that upcoming Physics exam. Your planner doesn’t have to be limited to just school. Use it to also note any club or social events so you can be that girl who has all her stuff together.
2. Go to office hours
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I seriously cannot stress enough how important going to office hours is. During the first week of school, visit your professor to introduce yourself. Not only will this make a good first impression, but it’s more likely than not that your professor will remember you for the rest of the semester. In my opinion, it’s way more ideal to be known as the teacher’s pet by getting on your professor’s good side than being known as the slacker who just plays games on their laptop in the back of the lecture hall. For those who are also planning on going to grad school, this can be a great way to plant the seed for a future recommendation letter.
3. Make friends!
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We’ve all taken that one course that’s a requirement for our major, but just seems to be completely past our mental capacity. Especially for those extra-tough courses, it’s so important to have a strong mental and social support system. Make the effort to gain an extra friend or two and form a study group! Believe me, when you’re struggling with that difficult problem, it’s nice to know that you can ask someone who’s going through the same situation for help rather than searching through Chegg or Yahoo Answers for the solution.
4. Don’t skip class
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As someone who loves sleep more than anything else in the world, I know there’s nothing harder than waking up for an 8am. I’ve been there. I feel your pain. But it is so important to wake up and actually lug yourself to class, even if it means attending class in PJs with a large iced coffee in one hand. Lectures are so important because professors condense two textbook chapters worth of material in an hour and a half, so it makes review that much easier. Plus, sleeping through school is a waste of money. I don’t pay $60k a year to sleep all day! TL;DR: Go to class first, sleep after.
5. Take a breather
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After five weekdays of nonstop grinding and killing the game, it’s important to know how to take it easy once in a while. Remember that college is a social experience as well, and that part of experiencing college life is having fun! #Treatyoself on the weekend, whether it be going out with friends or having a chill night inside. Working too hard and overstressing yourself is a bad thing, so just remember that college is all about balance.