It’s crazy to think I’ve been here for almost three months! VCU has definitely been one of the best decisions I’ve made in my life thus far. As an incoming freshman, I had all sorts of expectations for college. I am by no means a college-expert, but here are a few things I have learned so far:
Prioritize your time
It’s really easy to lose track of time in college. There is so much free time that many students think they can just push their assignments until the last minute. Before you know it, it’s a Wednesday night and your 5-page paper is due the next morning! Where did the time go? It sucks when your GPA goes way down just because you didn’t do well your first semester of college. Learn to organize your time before coming into college and your first year will fly by smoothly.
Coffee (or caffeine, in general) is God’s gift to college students
Coffee is almost a necessity in college. I didn’t even like it before I came here! Now, I’m completely hooked. At first it started out as an innocent little drink to compliment my Einstein Bros bagel, then after only a few weeks of being here, it turned into my main source of energy to keep me up during the day since obviously, college students barely sleep.
Nap time is even more glorious in college than it was in high school
In college, you must choose between a good night’s sleep and good grades. Being that it is college and the foundation for our futures, we choose good grades. This entails staying up late into the wee hours of the morning studying or doing work. Thank goodness Cabell Library runs 24/5!
The night before an exam=no sleep
The night before an exam is usually spent cramming and crying because you spent most of class playing candy crush instead of actually paying attention. I didn’t even know how to study coming into college, but I quickly learned to change those habits. It’s important to spread out your study times prior to the exam. However, even college students who actually do that, still end up at the library the night before the exam. It’s a really stressful time!
College Wifi sucks
…which is another good reason to not procrastinate. It really sucks when you’re doing an online assignment a few hours or even minutes before it’s due and you lose wifi signal!
College students live at the library
The library is where it’s at, especially on Sunday nights and during exam week! At VCU, one of the biggest college struggles has to be getting a booth at the library. I swear, it’s like some people camp out just to get one.
Walking in Richmond is the struggle
The streets of Richmond have been the cause of my multiple near death experiences. Clumsiness and Richmond streets are not a good combination. You’re walking down the street thinking you look all cute and what-not, then all of a sudden, you trip on one of those random bricks popping out of the ground that you see all over VCU’s campus.
Never do laundry on a Sunday night
I don’t know why, but Sunday is deemed laundry day. It’s the most frustrating thing ever dragging your bag of dirty clothes all the way to the first floor just to find out that all the machines are full. It’s even more frustrating when you see that most of them are finished washing/drying and people still haven’t come down to pick up their clothes (Brandt residents know what I’m talking about).
Go to class
In college, it can be so easy to skip class. It’s a big lecture hall, the professor doesn’t take attendance, and you’re bored out of your mind. The easiest solution is to just not come, but it isn’t the smartest. I’ll be the first to admit, I have skipped a few classes just because I didn’t feel like going. Big mistake! My professor ended up doing a pop attendance check that affected my grade. Plus, by missing class, you could be missing important information said by your Professor. Not to mention, you’re wasting a lot of money!
Wake up early for class registration
Getting the classes you want/need can be a real pain in the a**, especially for freshmen! We’re the last ones to register which means if you don’t plan your classes ahead of time and wake up early on registration day, you’re going to have a difficult time.
Put yourself out there!
High school is done and over with it and you can be whoever you want to be. It sounds a little cliché, but it’s true! It doesn’t matter who you were back then and what you’ve done. Everybody starts new. Nobody comes to college and boasts about what they did in High School. Coming in to college, I told myself I wouldn’t be that shy little girl anymore. I made a promise to myself that I would be involved on my campus and reach out to others instead of waiting for them to come to me.