Starting college soon, any advice?

[Shadow0X3]

So, as of three weeks from now I'll be starting my first semester of college/university. Curious if anyone here had any tips or advice for a first-time student, as the obvious answer to social ineptitude is to ask the internet. Any and all advice is helpful, because the first thing on my note to self list is to not lock my keys in my car, because I've already done that once

[hatter]

Hmmm, well I'm a sophomore university student so I'll tell you all that I know at least, so I'll focus on social side and academic side:

--SOCIAL SIDE--
For social ineptitude, I'd recommend you actually put yourself in situations that require conversation, since the only way to conquer that barrier is by breaking it. So I ended up doing volunteer work, which helped me a lot, I ended up making a lot of friends in my 1st year. Also, you've probably heard this a million times, but be yourself as always, and I'll add to it that don't reveal all bout yourself, mystery will attract people.

--ACADEMIC SIDE--
Probably obvious, but complete assignments on time, try to participate in class and show up if that merits marks (some do, IIRC), never miss a core course. When midterms/finals come up, GO PREPARE FOR IT GUNS ABLAZE. Forget social life, video games, MUGEN, use those solely as breaks from that stuff. I remember I was my first semester was terrible, I ended up getting into failed standing, and had to go all out in the second one, which ended up fine. Also, when you don't know something, don't ask a question in class. GO to your professor's office hours, and ask him/her everything you want, since in class it'll be more than one, and the professor won't have the time to tackle them all. Better to make an appointment with them so you wouldn't have to wait in line (sometimes during prof office hours, I would see legions of students standing to ask a professor a question).

Another piece of advice, and this may sound racist or offensive (that is not my intention. Not in the slightest), but if you have a professor that speaks broken English, change classes immediately if there is a replacement available. All colleges/universities have the option to swap,drop or add classes, so if you do happen to find a professor with terrible English, change. I had a few professors like that (I'll be nice and say 1 or 2), and I couldn't find a better class, so I got like Cs in their classes.

That's all I can think of. If I can remember anything else, I'll post here. Good luck mate.

[Thagr8test]

Dont share socks with your roommate

[Griffin JAGElroy]

Don't ever put off any assignments that have been issued to you.
Get your work done as soon as you can.
Make sure to fact- and spell-check any essay assignments.
If quoting another person in an essay, always make sure you give proper citation.
Keep backup copies of assignment instructions.
Some time for leisure is good, but don't get too comfortable.
If the opportunity for extra credit arises, always take it.

[Zemilia]

Social:
-When going to group conversations, always find a group who take interest to the same things you like/love. I've been around a group of friends who are into fighting games (and well, gaming in general), and I had a great time with them. Besides, you'll learn a thing or two from them.

Academic:
-The obvious: Go to class early. Don't be late.

-If you feel like you want to study for something during break/before class, it doesn't hurt to be a loner at times.

-Always take notes. Always. Don't miss out on a single note. You'll never know when you need that for the test.

-In case you want to listen to your professor's lectures again, bring a tape recorder and ask if they want to be recorded.

-In case if you're thirsty af, I guess it's okay to bring water to class. Just as long as it's in a bottle.

That's all I can think of on the top of my head.

[-Whiplash-]

This is all good advice.

I'm going into University this September as well. Studying sounds scary because I've never really done it.

What course are you taking?

[Foobs]

Don't buy any book until you're 100.00% sure there's no .pdf floating around the net.

[Zemilia]

Don't buy any book until you're 100.00% sure there's no .pdf floating around the net.

That's unless the classes allows laptops to be used as notes (since you might want to "bring" your textbooks everyday to class), or they say "you don't have to bring your textbook to class. You can leave it in your home/dorm, but you can bring it if you want to".

Otherwise, unless there's none of the ones avaliable for you to rent, renting textbooks will save ya some money if you need a physical textbook for class.

[XANDERAC]

Having recently graduated from college myself, here are some mistakes I would definitely suggestions for you.

1) Do your best to not get discouraged, sometimes you may do your best and the mark may not reflect it, don't take it personally, but as a way to improve yourself for next time.

2) Procrastinating can always be tempting, but for your own health and sanity just try and stick to a schedule, and avoid distractions when you're doing school work. Having pulled many avoidable all-nighters in my program, believe me when I say you'll be a much more happy and healthy guy if you can stay on top of things.

3) Try and join some after school activities, this is especially a good one if you're a bit nervous about making friends, join study groups, clubs and that way you get to know both the people in your program and from all around the different programs in your school.

4) Don't be afraid to ask for help from your peers and profs, sometimes you might feel a bit nervous but honestly everyone is pretty much in the same boat, so you may as well help each other out if you're stuck, teachers are your greatest assets too.

5) Just try and enjoy the experience, it's a fresh new experience for you, enjoy it while you can, you can definitely make it some of the most memorable times you'll have, and because you invest so much time and money in it, do your work, but remember to have fun. I know you're probably a bit too young, but college's and uni's normally have pub nights and things like that, take advantage of them if you can, they can be a good way to meet people and unwind.

[Kirishima]

Don't sign any loans presented to you as college class payment.

[Keku]

get all of da プッシー

[Aldo]

Don't buy any book until you're 100.00% sure there's no .pdf floating around the net.

This. 300% this.

Everything else has been said.

[Big Dick]

If this doesn't have .pdf version of it, if you have facebook, go join a college/university textbook black market and ask/look for some good deals. It helps.

[Foobs]

Another piece of advice:

That's unless the classes allows laptops to be used as notes (since you might want to "bring" your textbooks everyday to class), or they say "you don't have to bring your textbook to class. You can leave it in your home/dorm, but you can bring it if you want to".

You can avoid all of this if you learn the ancient art of checking your smartphone/tablet in a subtle way.

[vgma2]

Sure this is obvious, but definitely make sure you're well rested and wide awake before you go to your class.
You'll barely absorb anything from lectures if you're barely awake.

Even if you don't have any questions to ask, hanging around the professors while they answer other students' questions can still be helpful if you're able to hear what they're saying.

[Gennos]

my  college operates very differently from other colleges so i don't if these are gonna be useful to you:

1- summer courses can be very exhausting, but they're very useful. they may save you an extra year if you take everyone you can. if you have a choice of courses you can take in the summer, choose easy courses or Uni electives at first, those really don't deserve a full normal semester.

2- if your grades are shit at a course and you're 100% sure that you won't do well in the final exam, pull the course, cancel it. why? because if you score an F at a course it will drop your grade point average considerably. and i can't stress enough how important the grade point average is, if you graduate with a low one your chances at getting a job are gonna be very slim so keep you GPA high by getting good grades and if you can't, cancel course before you fail at them. i actually know people who were forced to take courses they already passed with D's just so they can bump their GPA before they graduate.

3- find yourself a good friend that's on your level and take courses with him. if your plan has a project, taking it with competent people will make it much easier.

[S.D.]

Worry more about making connections and doing something portfolio worthy/you enjoy (even if you have to be late or ignore other assignments)
A competent professional won't care that much about your GPA.

[XGargoyle]

During classes, never sit in in front row, that's reserved for nerds and short-sighted folks. Also, never sit in the last rows, they are for troublemakers or bullies. You don't want to beling to either group.
3rd and 4th row are ok because it's close enough to the teachers (they will spot your face and know you) and it puts you in a neutral safe zone.

Don't try to be friends with everybody in your class. It is better to focus only on 10-15 people that you can relate to and have similar tastes or hobbies and stick with them throughout all your College years. If you try to be froends with everybody you will be in risk of not belonging to any social group, and this is the worst that could happen in College.
Keep in mind that the friends and connections you make in College are the network you will use for getting your first work or postgraduate courses, this is why it's important to choose carefully and nurture these connections

[DNZRX768]

I have but one piece of advice:

If you must party in college, please do not post yourself drunk or acting stupid on social media. That is a good way to wreck most future prospects when getting a job at a respectable company later in life. In fact, if you have anything that might compromise your job-seeking efforts on your social media (i.e. Facebook), take it down immediately.

I know that this piece of advice might be more appropriate for someone older, but it is never too early to secure your future. And most stupid stuff that people post on Facebook happen in the college years.

[ROS]

As an upcoming college freshman, this is very helpful. As a guy like me who never really used his textbooks in high school but managed to get a 3.2 GPA, how important is using one now?