As my senior year of college (yikes!) approaches, I’ve become seasoned in the art of college survival. There are things I’ve learned that are absolutely necessary to facilitating a successful academic career and some things that are just plain useless. Follow these five tips and I can guarantee you will be fine.
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DO have a planned sleep schedule:
Now I know this sound stupid and against the common narrative of caffienated sleep-deprived college student, but it really works. Go to bed early and wake up early enough to have time for yourself. I go to bed at 9:30 PM (grandma hours, I know) and wake up at 5:30 AM. That is a bit extreme but if you have a 10 AM, you can wake up at 8 AM to have two hours to yourself. Creating a consistent schedule can really ease any physical manifestations of stress and allow you to be clear-headed for the rest of the day.
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DON’T waste your money on outside food
What I mean by this is if you have a dining plan, try and stick to that. This tip doesn’t include any dietary restrictions or specialty foods needed for specific diets. I know I’ve wasted lots of my own money on groceries, despite access to the dining halls. Try and go to the dining hall two times a day minimum, so you get the most out of it.
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DO bring a first aid kit/ medicine box
I know I’ve prepped this extensively each year due to my chronic illness. But chronically ill or not, having a medicine kit on hand is essential. Stock it up with allergy meds, pain meds, fever reducers, heartburn meds and general wound care. You’ll never know when you’ll bust your knee on some uneven bricks and you have to spend $15 on a pack of Spongebob band-aids. You can get a variety pack of bandages at most drugstores for cheap.
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DON’T commit yourself to tons of clubs
I know as a freshman it seems appealing to go to the activities fair and sign up for every single club that you think you’ll fully participate in. I was a culprit of this and to this day I still get listserv emails from clubs whose interest meetings I didn’t even attend. Committing yourself to too many clubs is a waste of your time and the club’s. Find one or two that you’re super interested in and stick with it. That matters way more than the quantity of clubs.
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DO stay up to date on campus politics
Many organizations on campus have instagram accounts where they post updates. Staying involved with current events that affect you and your peers is essential to being an involved member of society. It also sets you up for adulthood and staying involved with elections. Now more than ever, the country needs involved young adults to fight for what’s right.