Advice to pnms beginning their College/University experience…

[Kasis-anon]

We give tons of advice about recruitment. What to wear/what not to wear.
But if you are a woman interested in joining a sorority it stands to reason you are a woman of some motivation and energy. Those qualities should not be wasted and there are a myriad of ways to ensure your college experience is the most varied and interesting it can be. I’m not sure if this is the correct forum for this and I know there have been similar threads, however I’m going to try this here and see what happens.
I hope other alumnae and actives will post their tips and recommendations for beginning your experience.


My recommendations for the very beginning of University life are:
A. Get a day planner or calendar. It’s not necessary that it be a blackberry, I still just use the paper kind and this works fine. Start writing down each event, class, lunch, studying. You’ll get a picture of how much work versus free time you have. This is so important in gauging which activities you want to add to your schedule and how much of a commitment you can reasonably give.
B. Find the library. I know that sounds funny, but I’m serious. Go now while it’s filled with only grad students. Figure out how to find it and use it. At larger Universities they offer tutorials on how to use the Library system. Be humble enough to take one, or simply say hello to the staff and ask how their system works. Don’t depend simply on your facility with the internet to do all of your research; books actually have some rather good qualities. Many outside materials for classes can only be found within a library. Also, scope out a good study spot and make appointments with yourself to be there at least 4x a week.
C. You may have received a Student Activities booklet, if not the list of your college’s various clubs and organizations will most likely be on their website. Pick three organizations you are interested in; contact them and make a date to go to their first meeting of the year. Were you president of the French club in High School? Well then go to the French Student Club on your campus. Did you write for the paper, make a date to go to their kick-off meeting. Do it now, as a freshman or sophomore. May people will tell you to wait and see and adjust. But I am saying get out there and get involved now! There is no reason to wait. Use your skills; meet people who have similar interests; this is what college is for. If you wait too long you’ll never go and check it out. Semesters fly by, I promise, and the thing you think you’re going to check out in August seems too hard to try and do in October and not worth it at all come next March. Do the things you are interested right now!
D. Go to office hours. You will find on your syllabus for each class that professors have office hours where students can go and ask questions about the lectures. No one uses them until right before the exam. Go the first or second week. Go in introduce yourself and ask 1 or 2 questions about the lecture and about what the professor’s expectations are. Keep going, at least twice a month. This pays off in ways you cannot imagine. Professors know your name, know you are interested. They see your paper and remember the conversations you have had. And when it comes time to obtain recommendations from a professor (and yes, there will come a time) you will have your choice of men and women who would be happy to write you a recommendation for grad school, a job or for homecoming queen.
E. Do your homework the very first week. Do all the reading. Don’t skip anything. You do not want to have to play catch-up right before the first exam. It is the worst feeling. Give yourself time to understand how much time you need to study and where on campus is the best place. In your room, the library, the local Starbucks. Give yourself some choices.

Okay, I’m sorry I’m so verbose but I get passionate and wordy when I think about all those women who are getting the opportunities of a lifetime and will fritter it away watching Full House repeats in their room. Or women who believe that getting a bid is the end of any effort on their part. There is so much else to do!
Okay I’m slowly climbing off my soap box. Whoo, it’s high up there.

[honeychile]

-If possible, buy your books prior to your first week of classes. I was behind from the very first day of school, due to not heeding this advice.
-Get a map of the campus, and have a vague idea of what is where. The larger your school is, the more important that is!
-Even if you're not taking Phys Ed, know where the gym is, and when non-majors are allowed to use the facilities. You can work off a LOT of frustration there!
-Having one pen or pencil is never enough - always have at least one spare. If yours doesn't work, you have a backup. If yours does, the person sitting next to you may need to borrow one. It's well worth the investment!
-Work at NOT becoming the "I'm so drunk!" girl at parties. Seriously.
-If you fall behind, find a tutor. I don't care if you've taken Advance Placement classes all through high school, it's a new ball game. Learn to play it!
-Call your family at least once a week. They won't admit it, but they're probably worried sick that you're homesick, struggling, or partying too much.

[WCUgirl]

Go to class.

[emily2228]

If you want to save some extra money you can do so by buying your textbooks online. Some websites where I have saved a decent amount of money include:
half.com, amazon.com, barnesandnoble.com there are probably others too.

If you do your research on textbook prices, you can save yourself a hell of a lot of money.

Good luck!

[sigmaK619]

Originally posted by AXiD670
Go to class.

That is the one thing that people asked me in college is, how can you be so involved on campus and SK and still get such great grades?

I FREAKIN' WENT TO CLASS EVERYDAY!! It's just that simple

[adpiucf]

New to Campus?

1) Print out your class schedule and get to campus a few days early to find your classes.
2) Got a car? Don’t speed on campus or park illegally—the campus police will find plenty of other reasons to cite you.
3) Buy your books before classes begin. Books sell out quickly on and off-campus. Better book deals are available online or off-campus than on-campus, usually.
4) Buy school supplies—binders, notebooks, paper, pens, pencils, etc. You do need these.
5) Buy a planner and USE it. It doesn’t have to be a blackberry—paper and pen work well enough for a college student!
6) Cell Phones are turned off when you’re in a classroom. Period.
7) Go to class. Be on time. Be a few minutes early, in fact. Being late is very rude and can mean the difference between pass/fail if you’re on the edge.
8) Don’t cram all your classes over two days so you can have a 5-day weekend. Sounds good in theory, I know...
9) Go to office hours to introduce yourself to your professor. Even if it is just to say, “Hi, I’m Suzy and I’m in your 11:30 Bio 101 class. Just wanted to stop by and say hello and introduce myself!” It can be a 20 second conversation. Just do it. Relationship building is an important part of college and can sometimes mean the difference between pass and fail if you’re on the edge. Get on their good side. Email them relevant articles about their field or clip them and bring them to office hours. It’s called networking and finding a mentor.
10) No make-up tests means no make-up tests. Don’t expect your college professor to make an exception for you. (S/he may if you’ve gone to office hours for help or to say hello a few times and they know you… but don’t count on it.)
11) In a lecture class, there may be a sign-in. Don’t sign-in your friends if they’re not there. AND don’t sign them in if they are there. Let them do it themselves.
12) Plot out your week—social and study time. You’ll get more done.
13) Talk to your adviser about classes to take.
14) Are you on financial aid? Get your FAFSA in as soon as legally possible. The earlier you turn it in, the higher the chance of getting FREE money you don’t have to pay back. The later it is, the less FREE money is available. The early bird catches the worm. Also, make sure your financial aid went through. You may be taking classes that were dropped because the school didn't get paid!
15) Are you a sorority member? Go to your mandatory sorority events and put yourself on a “fun” allowance. DO go to mixers and socials, but you don’t have to go to all of them—after all, you need time to study and time for yourself, too! But DO come around to the chapter house, the occasional intramural football game, etc. It’s a great way to meet your sisters.
16) Have friends outside the sorority.
17) Join at least one non-Greek related campus activity.
18) Internships and school come first.
19) If you have the opportunity to join a pre-professional society, do it. Schedule classes around their meetings during class registration. These clubs can help you network your way into an internship, provide mentors to guide you through grad school selection, and carry weight on your resume to help you land that first job.
20) If you’re not doing well in school, get a tutor and shrink that “fun” allowance.
21) Don’t go home every weekend. You’ll never get settled at college if you’re always going back to high school.
22) The Internet is one research tool of many for your papers and assignments. Use books, newspapers and magazines, too.
23) Go to at least one school football game. Even if you hate football.
24) Learn the Fight Song for your school!
25) If you join a sorority, don’t discuss sorority internal “drama” with anyone who isn’t a member of that chapter, especially on the Internet. Bad new spreads and spirals—making the original problem 10x worse and harder to solve, not to mention the bigger hole you are digging for your chapter’s reputation on campus.
26) Don’t hook up with random guys or go home/bring home random guys. You WILL develop a reputation.
27) If you develop a reputation, it 1- hurts your chances of getting into a sorority, 2- injures your relationship with your sorority or the image of your sorority and its members and 3—hurts you! Don’t act like a hooker and then wonder why you he didn’t call. If you act like a hoochie (do people still use that word?) expect to be treated like one.
28) Safety in numbers. Don’t allow friends to go off with strangers when you’re out on the town, even if they’re a casual acquaintance. This is especially true of Spring Break trips.
29) As a sorority member, your actions, academic performance, personal appearance and treatment of others reflects back on every other woman in your chapter. AND to non-Greeks, this also reflects on the entire Greek System. Act like a lady and help your sisters to do the same, because their words and deeds also reflect back upon you.
30) Be nice to others.
31) Look presentable in your letters. Don’t ever smoke or drink in them.
32) Don’t talk to the press about your sorority, even to the student press.
33) If a sister or group of sisters behave in such a way that you don’t agree with, talk to them. Or talk to the Standards Chairman, the President or your Adviser.
34) If a sister or group of sisters try to coerce you, harass you, hurt you, or do anything that smacks of hazing, SAY NO AND WALK AWAY. Call your new member coordinator, chapter president, or adviser as soon as possible and tell them everything.
35) Think before you act.


Can you tell I’m not in the mood to work today?

[Little E]

Shower (yes I'm serious, and this really goes for people w/co-ed showers) If you aren't comfortable with the showers, find a time of day that you are comfortable using them. If that doesn't work, talk to your RA, but for the love of everything and your roommate SHOWER!!!!!!

Find the laundry room and don't forget to wash your bed sheets. Learn how to do laundry BEFORE you leave.

If you move from Hawaii to Wisconsin they do have stores up here, you can buy winter stuff here. A Hawaiian sweater does not cut it in Wisconsin. Find someone who has been through a winter to help you find the apropriate weight jackets and sweaters. If you go w/others freshman Hawaiians, it is the blind leading the blind (I love my hawaiians though)

Be careful if you are eating snow...

Don't sleep w/the first guy to hit on you. I swear there will be others.

Do NOT, take open drinks from strangers. (well you shouldn't be really drinking underage but if you are going to) If someone is getting a beer or drink for you, watch it get poured and keep you hand over the opening to prevent stuff from being put in.

Don't let others pressure you to drink, sleep around, or do drugs, you have to live with the consequences later.

Say Hi to people,

Enjoy it, college is an amazing four years and you'll never experience anything like it. try new things, figure out what you like and don't like. You'll never have so many things at your fingertips again in your life. Don't letb your friends deter you from doing what you are interested in.

[AOEforme]

Originally Posted by Little E

If you move from Hawaii to Wisconsin they do have stores up here, you can buy winter stuff here. A Hawaiian sweater does not cut it in Wisconsin. Find someone who has been through a winter to help you find the apropriate weight jackets and sweaters. If you go w/others freshman Hawaiians, it is the blind leading the blind (I love my hawaiians though)

tee hee. Where'd you go to school?

My best friend's roommate busted out her "winter" jacket the first weekend in October. We immediately took her to the North Face Store, because she thought that jacket would last her all winter.

In all seriousness, if you're in a different climate than you are used to, it's really important to make sure you have the proper clothing to be comfortable. You can't make friends/study/enjoy college if you're constantly too cold/hot. If you're moving from the south to the north, a good pair of socks will honestly make the difference between skipping class when it's cold and being able to go.

Other advice:
1) Take the syllabus on your first day of class and write ALL your due dates on your planner. I can't tell you how many times that's saved me. Professors WILL NOT remind you you have a paper/midterm in one week.

2) On this same planner, WRITE THE DROP DATE. It SUCKS finding out you failed your calculus exam and can't drop the class.

3) Find out all the free things your campus offers: health care, safe cabs, gym membership, tutoring, etc. These things are awesome and your tuition pays for them. My campus has a program avaliable to all students that does a paper's bibliography for you. Barely anyone knows about it.

[twhrider13]

Originally posted by adpiucf
<snip>21) Don’t go home every weekend. You’ll never get settled at college if you’re always going back to high school.<snip>

This is sooooo true! I went back home every single, solitary weekend my freshman year (I wasn't a DZ then), even though home was an hour and a half away, and I only had like 3 or 4 friends there. (There were a whole lot of reasons for this, none of which I'm going to get into.) Finally, I came to my senses the summer before my sophomore year and realized that I needed to make some friends in college. That was one reason I decided to rush!

One more thing--if you go to class and try hard (or even if you don't), and you still find yourself doing badly in a class, for the love of God, drop the thing! One class that you can take again with a different professor some other semester is not worth ruining your entire college GPA over. If your grades start out badly, it's very hard to improve them. However, if you're failing all your classes, maybe it's time for some soul-searching....

[JenMarie]

Take at least one fun class during the semester. Be it a ballroom dance class, self defense class, Rec and Leisure class... whatever. It doesn't matter if it's only one unit and not part of your major requirement... it will keep you SANE! And you will meet lots of people.

Alcohol on a Tuesday night=no sleep=not a good idea... especially if you were a person in high school that would require a minimum of 8 hours of sleep.

Walk everywhere! If you have a compact campus, walking will help with that Freshman 15. I swear... after that dorm food, you WILL gain weight. And it can cut back on gas spending.

And good lord... stay away from the campus advertised credit card scams!

[alum]

Originally Posted by ucfpnm

Actually, I don't necessarily agree with this. You need to build credit. Find one that's from a reputable organization- Visa, Mastercard etc- take the application home next chance you get (and if they try to pressure you into filling it out right then, just walk away) and look it over with your parents or other knowledgeable adults, and decide if maybe it's for you.

If you get it, DON'T use it all the time, or, really, even ever. Buy one expensive item with it, something that's like $300-$400, I don't know, a TV or something, and pay it off, in installments, on time, to establish credit. As long as you're not stupid with it, having a credit card should be no problem. Just only spend money that you know you have.

If it's a bank credit card, it probably will charge a high interest rate unless you pay your balance in full every month. Read the fine print and make sure you understand it. Paying your cc balance in full every month gives you a much better score than paying the minimum balance.

[adpiucf]

Keep in touch with your parents. They haven't slept a wink since they dropped you off at State U. Seriously.

Oh and remember how incredibly dumb they got while you were in high school? Like, they didn't know anything? Amazingly, they have straightened themselves out and are a great resource for things like teaching or telling you about coupon clipping, saving money, credit cards, balancing check books, installing a light bulb and doing laundry.

Also, they're getting older and tend to be a bit forgetful. Hound them about getting their taxes done early so you don't get ripped on the FAFSA. I promise you that both you and your parents will be glad that you stayed on them when you're getting merit-based scholarships early in the financial aid cycle instead of receiving only loans.

They will also be good for helping you plot out classes. Use them as a sounding board. I doubt mom is using Calculus as much in her daily life, but she may be able to suggest some classes that may help you get ahead.


Also, now that you've picked a major... are you 110% certain you will be in this field your entire life? I didn't think so. Stick with the major, but take some courses outside of it to get a more liberal range of electives. If you're an English major, take Statistics and an Economics course. If you're an engineering major, take a non-technical writing course.

If you're pre-law, don't major in pre-law or poli-sci. Go with English or philosophy or liberal arts-- something more theory-based than vocational. The law schools see a ton of pre-law majors. Stand out. If you're going to get an MBA someday, you don't nececessarily need to major in a business-related field right now (much for the same reasons.) I've done my fair share of research on both of these professional degrees-- a unique profile stands out. Just make sure to earn high grades, get involved in a few meaningful activities/community service (excluding Greek Life) and work for a couple of years post-college. Then kick butt on the GMAT or LSAT.

Take one night a week where you do nothing with the sorority. Just kick back and chill. Sometimes it is good to have a girl-free day to put things in perspective. Oftentimes, whether you live in the house or not, living on top of so many women can stress you out. This can also be true of living in an apartment or dorm. Find your getaway spot.

As we've all been hammering home, don't make a mockery of yourself by fooling around with boys and wondering why they don't call. Here's a tip: you put out (or came close) and they got what they wanted. It's not 1956, but boys do still want a bit of chase. And guys in college tend to not be quite so relationship minded as they were in high school. Don't be one of their conquests. Respect yourself.

Go to bed at a reasonable hour.

[LionTamer]

Take time putting your schedule together.

If you're not a morning person, don't fool yourself into thinking you'll be up and at 'em for a 7:30 class. If you fall asleep around 4 every afternoon, don't take a 3:30 class where they're going to be showing films or PowerPoint presentations in a darkened auditorium.

Also - if you are hopeless in a particular subject which is required to graduate:
This may only work at schools with huge sports systems, but when I failed Calculus at Giant State U (in spite of tutoring and intensive studying), someone suggested I find out when the football team took Calculus. Huh? Well, it turns out that some classes are way over-subscribed with sports stars who may not be the sharpest knives in the drawer. They're popular with the Jocks because the person in charge of team scholastics (and keeping the Big Dummies eligible) has discovered that they may be paced or graded so that even Mouth Breathers can stay in school. I was the only female in the class, (and the only person who weighed under 250) and I kid you not, all the CALCULUS tests were all true/false, and a 51 was a passing grade.

And yes, I passed (barely - thank God for the matricies chapter at the end of Calc, where I got 100%, because that pulled me up to a 52% and a barely-passing D.)

[tunatartare]

Originally Posted by LionTamer

Take time putting your schedule together.

If you're not a morning person, don't fool yourself into thinking you'll be up and at 'em for a 7:30 class. If you fall asleep around 4 every afternoon, don't take a 3:30 class where they're going to be showing films or PowerPoint presentations in a darkened auditorium.

Also - if you are hopeless in a particular subject which is required to graduate:
This may only work at schools with huge sports systems, but when I failed Calculus at Giant State U (in spite of tutoring and intensive studying), someone suggested I find out when the football team took Calculus. Huh? Well, it turns out that some classes are way over-subscribed with sports stars who may not be the sharpest knives in the drawer. They're popular with the Jocks because the person in charge of team scholastics (and keeping the Big Dummies eligible) has discovered that they may be paced or graded so that even Mouth Breathers can stay in school. I was the only female in the class, (and the only person who weighed under 250) and I kid you not, all the CALCULUS tests were all true/false, and a 51 was a passing grade.

And yes, I passed (barely - thank God for the matricies chapter at the end of Calc, where I got 100%, because that pulled me up to a 52% and a barely-passing D.)

Why didn't I have smart friends like that to tell me these kinds of things when I was in college?

[KSUViolet06]

*Get involved in at least one campus organization that deals with your major. It's nice to get together with people in your field of study.

*GO TO CLASS. I do not care if Bob tells you ECON 270 is "Way easy! You don't need to show up!". Assume he's lying and GO ANYWAY. Classes cost $$, so go, or else you are WASTING IT.

*STAY AWAKE IN CLASS. I've seen people get automatically failed because they came and slept for most of the semester.

*READ THE BOOKS! You (or someone) paid for them! Even if Bob tells you, "Dude, you don't even have to read the book!". Assume he's lying and read it anyway.

*Don't go out EVERY night. I promise you if you do it will get old really fast. You'll have plenty of time for fun.

*For those who end up going Greek: If you are WAY behind on homework, have 2 test the next day, and are burdened down beyond belief, SKIP THAT MIXER. It's okay. There will be PLENTY more.

*INTRODUCE yourself to your professors. I don't care if there's 400 people in the class. It's nothing to go up to a prof after class and say, "Hi Dr. Whatever. I'm Becky. Just wanted to introduce myself." If anything he'll be happy you thought enough to do so. And it will certainly help later on in the semester if you start to have trouble or need help.

*Take advantage of your professor's OFFICE HOURS! They have them for YOU! If you REALLY aren't getting something, stop by. If their hours don't work for you, talk to them and see if you can agree on an appointment.