College Advice
Jun. 23rd, 2007 08:02 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
sorcyressSo, I managed to be online at the same time as Kyu, for the first time in roughy several trillion years.
Amoung other stuff, he tossed me a list of college advice. Namely:
1. Get along with the roommate.
2. Don't get involved monetarily with anybody. ((Meaning, don't pool money to buy stuff))
3. Drunken make-outs are fun but don't overdo it.
4. Food is very important.
5. Go to class.
6. Make note-buddies if you don't know anybody.
7. Take notes! Also, study for tests. And don't procrastinate on papers.
8. Go to class!
numbah 9 (or something): Board games are very important. Bring some. College freshman are the most nostalgic people you've ever seen--they're on their own (homesick) and confronted with adulthood (so they want their childhood back). They want to play board games and old video games and watch kids cartoons and stuff.
10: Take most (if not all) of that Target money you're going to make, save it, and make sure you have some of it available during the year. But stick to a budget of some sorts. Take it from me, it sucks spending the last month or so of school totally broke.
11: The best way to be popular is to buy somebody lunch/dinner/breakfast-at-3-am. Especially during that last month, when everybody else is broke.
12: Decorate your room. You're going to be living there and you want it to be nice. Extra lamps help, since most dorm rooms will have just a ceiling lamp.
13: Beware the "freshman 15".
14: Be prepared to get used to sharing a bathroom with 20 people. 15 of whom are slobs.
15: I'd advise against a job on campus, unless you really need it; at least for the first semester, so you can get used to stuff.
16: As a college student, there are now tons of special offers available to you, from discounts at local stores and restaurants, to major freebies (or cheapies) from all sorts of different companies. Not to mention the school itself. Take advantage of these.
17: Make friends with somebody who has a car.
18: Bring some kind of video game if you like to play them. It makes a good communal thing, too.
18: And I know you're a reader. Bring books--the campus libraries will have a piss-poor fiction selection, and you might not be able to get to a Boston branch. But not too many, because they will take up quite a bit of room in your tiny tiny room.
18: Other things you might want to bring: food-stuff like silverware, cups, plates, measuring cups, etc, in case you want to cook something in your room (although you'll probably only have a microwave to work with).
20 (?): I don't know Boston, but it is a city, and cities are not places you should be wandering around alone after dark. Take note.
21: Try not to think too hard about how many, many, many people have had sex over every inch of your dorm building.
22: Not to get parental or anything, but if you end up being one of those people, your friendly neighborhood RA will probably have protection if you need some.
23: Your RAs are there to help you out. Go to them if you have a problem or a question. Don't be afraid to ask for help or information; just like everybody else there, you're brand-new.
24: Get used to people doing drugs around you. If you don't know yet, you'll find out exactly what pot smells like, and you might even be approached by drug dealers a few times.
25: Keep your door open. Dorms are a fantastically great place to make friends, and the best way to get involved in stuff is to keep your door open. Random people will walk in, critique your music, comment on your posters, start up discussions of Russian literature, eventually introduce themselves, and finish up by telling you there's a poker tournament down the hall.
26: Call your parents at least once a week.
27: Oh, and that reminds me, since you're getting a laptop, it would be a good idea to invest in a wireless system.
2...9: Buy your textbooks used, and check online if possible. I've gotten 30-dollar books for 3 before. And if the school bookstore does it, sell them back after the semester is over. Otherwise you end up spending 4, 5 hundred dollars on books.
[EDIT: He's still adding things to my list, which means this will be changing for a bit.]
Adding to this, is of course mum's quintessential peice of advice for teens (and other people): AVOID STUPIDITY.
Oh, and the other one she gave me --always have your room key with you.
From Tho:
The best ever way to study is, after each class, to type up your notes.
What else do I need to know before I go 400 miles away where I don't know anyone*
~Sor
MOOP!
*blatent lie. Boston D&D, Persis and DHS, Lisa and Mona, Princess Stacey, and Magus will all be up there to be looking out for me, as well as a whole bunch of people I am no doubt forgetting. And Jarne has promised me that he'll train me into becoming a masshole.
Amoung other stuff, he tossed me a list of college advice. Namely:
1. Get along with the roommate.
2. Don't get involved monetarily with anybody. ((Meaning, don't pool money to buy stuff))
3. Drunken make-outs are fun but don't overdo it.
4. Food is very important.
5. Go to class.
6. Make note-buddies if you don't know anybody.
7. Take notes! Also, study for tests. And don't procrastinate on papers.
8. Go to class!
numbah 9 (or something): Board games are very important. Bring some. College freshman are the most nostalgic people you've ever seen--they're on their own (homesick) and confronted with adulthood (so they want their childhood back). They want to play board games and old video games and watch kids cartoons and stuff.
10: Take most (if not all) of that Target money you're going to make, save it, and make sure you have some of it available during the year. But stick to a budget of some sorts. Take it from me, it sucks spending the last month or so of school totally broke.
11: The best way to be popular is to buy somebody lunch/dinner/breakfast-at-3-am. Especially during that last month, when everybody else is broke.
12: Decorate your room. You're going to be living there and you want it to be nice. Extra lamps help, since most dorm rooms will have just a ceiling lamp.
13: Beware the "freshman 15".
14: Be prepared to get used to sharing a bathroom with 20 people. 15 of whom are slobs.
15: I'd advise against a job on campus, unless you really need it; at least for the first semester, so you can get used to stuff.
16: As a college student, there are now tons of special offers available to you, from discounts at local stores and restaurants, to major freebies (or cheapies) from all sorts of different companies. Not to mention the school itself. Take advantage of these.
17: Make friends with somebody who has a car.
18: Bring some kind of video game if you like to play them. It makes a good communal thing, too.
18: And I know you're a reader. Bring books--the campus libraries will have a piss-poor fiction selection, and you might not be able to get to a Boston branch. But not too many, because they will take up quite a bit of room in your tiny tiny room.
18: Other things you might want to bring: food-stuff like silverware, cups, plates, measuring cups, etc, in case you want to cook something in your room (although you'll probably only have a microwave to work with).
20 (?): I don't know Boston, but it is a city, and cities are not places you should be wandering around alone after dark. Take note.
21: Try not to think too hard about how many, many, many people have had sex over every inch of your dorm building.
22: Not to get parental or anything, but if you end up being one of those people, your friendly neighborhood RA will probably have protection if you need some.
23: Your RAs are there to help you out. Go to them if you have a problem or a question. Don't be afraid to ask for help or information; just like everybody else there, you're brand-new.
24: Get used to people doing drugs around you. If you don't know yet, you'll find out exactly what pot smells like, and you might even be approached by drug dealers a few times.
25: Keep your door open. Dorms are a fantastically great place to make friends, and the best way to get involved in stuff is to keep your door open. Random people will walk in, critique your music, comment on your posters, start up discussions of Russian literature, eventually introduce themselves, and finish up by telling you there's a poker tournament down the hall.
26: Call your parents at least once a week.
27: Oh, and that reminds me, since you're getting a laptop, it would be a good idea to invest in a wireless system.
2...9: Buy your textbooks used, and check online if possible. I've gotten 30-dollar books for 3 before. And if the school bookstore does it, sell them back after the semester is over. Otherwise you end up spending 4, 5 hundred dollars on books.
[EDIT: He's still adding things to my list, which means this will be changing for a bit.]
Adding to this, is of course mum's quintessential peice of advice for teens (and other people): AVOID STUPIDITY.
Oh, and the other one she gave me --always have your room key with you.
From Tho:
The best ever way to study is, after each class, to type up your notes.
What else do I need to know before I go 400 miles away where I don't know anyone*
~Sor
MOOP!
*blatent lie. Boston D&D, Persis and DHS, Lisa and Mona, Princess Stacey, and Magus will all be up there to be looking out for me, as well as a whole bunch of people I am no doubt forgetting. And Jarne has promised me that he'll train me into becoming a masshole.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
re: books
on 2007-06-24 01:04 am (UTC)boston is a great walking city, and has good public transportation.
no subject
on 2007-06-24 01:07 am (UTC)Make friends. I can't stress this enough, being in lectures where you don't know anyone sucks. It sucks a whole lot more when you don't turn up to a lecture and need notes and don't know who to go to.
Don't be afraid of your lecturers. If you approach a lecturer about a problem or something you didn't get in class, you've immediately singled yourself out as a student who cares about learning, and that's a Good Thing. If they're imposing and stuff and you really don't want to confront them face-to-face, email them. Just don't think they cease to exist outside of lectures.
This is how I write notes:
The important thing about this process is that you never let it slip. Every week, you make sure that you have all your notes typed up. As soon as you get behind, you'll lose it. I only did this once, the year before last, and it took me until the term break to catch up. However I find that just this is enough study over the year for me. It means you actually absorb stuff rather than frantically writing stuff down and not paying attention to it.
Grab some manilla folders, or similar. Keep all your handouts in them. Draw the course code in big letters on the front of the folders and keep them somewhere. That way, when you want to find out what you studied in term one, it's all there.
Keep a list of things you need to do. Learn how to use iCal or Google Calendars or similar. At the start of the year, find out when assignments are due and exams will be. Put these dates in there. Set reminders. I'll show you a bunch of stuff when you get your mac.
On a similar note: when you get assignments, do try to start them reasonably early. I know it seems weird, but consider: say you have a month to do an assignment, and you spend an hour on it per weekend for the first three weeks of it. That's not that much, and when it comes to the final weekend when everyone's desperately trying to fit that assignment in with everything else, you'll be comfortably halfway through it already. Make it two hours per weekend, and you'll be finished by that final weekend. Similarly to notes, assignments will run away on you if you let them.
Uni is big on letting you be the responsible one. That rocks. No one telling you what to wear, how to act, whether or not to attend your lectures. But this means you need to develop your self-discipline, so you get stuff done and attend lectures.
With all that said, have fun. Don't make it just about study. Meet awesome new people and do what you want to. Uni is full of geeks, and I'm sure you'll get along fine with them.
no subject
on 2007-06-24 01:18 am (UTC)My college advice
on 2007-06-24 01:19 am (UTC)Oh, and caffeine does not replace sleep.
no subject
on 2007-06-24 01:25 am (UTC)no subject
on 2007-06-24 02:11 am (UTC)If you don't have access to one, I have a spare AirPort Express that you could borrow. A warning, though: Some schools (maybe a lot, I don't know; mine is, at least) are picky/paranoid about what equipment you hook up to their network. Wireless routers are usually near the top of that list, because it puts the network at risk from people who don't know/care to properly secure their personal wireless network.
Also, some schools have wifi across the whole campus, obviating the need for your own router. I don't know if Lesley does, but that's something you should check on.
If item number 27 is meant to be "invest in a wireless system inside your laptop," that's easy because all Mac laptops have it by default now, and the vast majority of Windows laptops do too (on the off chance that's what you'll be getting). So then, no worries on that count.
AVOID STUPIDITY.
Also, eschew obfuscation. While your learnings may be hard, they're not usually complicated.
no subject
on 2007-06-24 02:55 am (UTC)...I wish my iBook had inbuilt bluetooth...
no subject
on 2007-06-24 03:04 am (UTC)Mine does! Except that, to be honest, I haven't found Bluetooth to be incredibly useful. The Bluetooth keyboard is nice, but a wired one would work just as well. Although...hmm...my barcode scanner is good, and a wired one wouldn't be so great. Nevermind then. I'll say...Bluetooth has limited uses, in my experience. (The one thing that I would love to find but doesn't seem to exist is a full-size Bluetooth mouse. My hands are too big for the little mini laptop ones, and having a real mouse would be a nice thing.)
no subject
on 2007-06-24 03:32 am (UTC)no subject
on 2007-06-24 03:04 am (UTC)My school is one of the most wi-fied, and has wireless virtually everywhere on campus--but it still wasn't actually inside the dorms.
no subject
on 2007-06-24 03:18 am (UTC)no subject
on 2008-08-31 07:07 pm (UTC)!!!
Eric, is this offer still valid? If it is, can we figure out a way to get it to me? I'll totally pay you back for postage or whatever.
~Sor
no subject
on 2008-08-31 07:11 pm (UTC)no subject
on 2007-06-24 02:35 am (UTC)This bears emphasis. Always have your room key with you. When your roommate locks you out of your room while you're in the shower, leaving you to have to go down to the front desk wearing only a towel to request someone come up with a key to let you into your room, you will appreciate the depth of this advice.
Along the lines of getting stuck out of your room, make plans for what you'll do when you are sexiled by your roommate.
Join a club.
Do things you've never done before.
Take some classes which are completely impractical but sound cool.
Don't spend too much time hanging out with us cool Boston people such that you don't form strong relationships with your classmates.
Oh, and go to class! (And turn in your papers on time)
no subject
on 2007-07-03 03:31 am (UTC)~Sor
no subject
on 2007-06-24 02:55 am (UTC)Do some stuff outside of school, but not too much, or you will explode/implode/have a mental breakdown when all your courses seem to have assignments due at the same time and you have 3 tests coming up and exams in a few weeks that you really should be studying for and performances coming up for various groups.
Yes, all courses will have assignments due at the same time, and mid-semester tests within a week of each other (and about when the aforementioned assignments are due). Get on to assignments early and you will avoid some of the stress.
Yeah, hindsight is a wonderful thing. I should take my own advice.
no subject
on 2007-06-24 03:06 am (UTC)That may work for some people, but I prefer to bring my laptop to class. At the speed I can type, I'm basically taking down the lecture verbatim, which lets me type on auto-pilot and consider ideas in-class instead of constantly having to decide, "Is what he just said important? Should I write it down?"
Then I just reread or summarize later.
It also works on those professors who will put tiny little details on their exams that normally you'd never write down or remember.
no subject
on 2007-06-24 03:07 am (UTC)no subject
on 2007-06-24 03:08 am (UTC)no subject
on 2007-06-24 09:59 pm (UTC)1. The speed some lecturers write stuff up on the board (or just mention it), I wouldn't be able to type at. Similarly, when they decide to draw giant molecules on the board, I would never be able to cmd-tab to chemdraw, draw that, copy it and paste it into my notes before they continue talking. Same applies to equations, diagrams, etc.
2. That means you only go over your notes once. Writing them down then typing them up forces you to go over them twice.
3. Typing is noisy compared to writing, and noticable if everyone else is busy writing.
no subject
on 2007-06-24 07:45 am (UTC)This is good advice for keeping stuff easy.
If for whatever reason you find yourself unable or unwilling to follow the aforementioned advice, I can tell you that things will be much easier if you take clear, detailed notes.
Be meticulous! be the banker you wish you had! I'm the household banker, I handle all the bills, and everyone's debts to me (for the bills) and eachother (for random things) just because it Works to not have to remember everything.
no subject
on 2007-06-24 09:06 am (UTC)[yeah, i didn't follow this advice either, and dear god i wish i had. twenty years hence, you'll want to remember even the really sucky times. nobody under thirty is going to believe me when i say this. at least some people over thirty aren't going to believe me when i say this. but twenty years hence, you'll want to remember even the really sucky times.]
and kdsorceress only sort of counts. if doing it online is convenient, create another journal (on livejournal or on one of the other services) -- one you TELL NOBODY ABOUT -- and make every single post private/locked. there's something quite therapeutic about pen and paper, but it isn't for everybody, your hand eventually hurts in a way that typing doesn't provoke, and it doesn't have password protection. on the other hand, it doesn't have a "delete" key either, so there's less chance you'll have a dismal day and destroy it. at least not without a book of matches.
another possibility is to give yourself another gmail account and write yourself letters. if it's easier, "address" them to your mother or your sister. but you need a place for you and your writing voice -- and nobody else -- to palaver regularly.
get up early one morning and listen to the traffic reports with a map of boston in front of you.
repeat as necessary until you understand each and every portion of bridge and spur and interstate and parkway.
there's a unique local nomenclature to every city that takes some getting used to, and you'll want to be able to be able to give and take directions without needing a translator.
accept the fact that you'll be unhappy -- possibly even really unhappy -- at least some of the time, and forgive yourself for being human.
this ties into the drugs thing. far, far too many people fall into the trap of assuming they need palliative care for the disease of being alive. college is no different. you're going to have bad days. people around you are going to fight, and sometimes with you. you're going to get stressed. you're going to get lonely. none of these things require a pill. they require a hug (or some tea, if nobody's around) and a good night's sleep.
if you ever decide to use a smudge stick in your room, introduce your RA to the smell it gives off when you burn it.
just trust me on this. (also: put a towel under the door.)
never, ever put anything on a credit card that leaves you with a balance you can't pay off completely at the end of the month.
one thing about credit cards nobody really explains is that they really are good things to have, and use, and use regularly. but only if you can pay off the balance every single month. there's nothing wrong with putting something extremely practical, (and/or considerate, like a tank of gas for whomever's car is taking you on whatever roadtrip you find yourself on), on the card every once in a while. the reason is that your credit rating gets a not-insignificant percentage of its numbers from the length of time you've had a positive credit history. but other than the once-and-a-while minor charges, you should probably use a check card instead of a credit card absolutely everywhere else.
listen to your instincts.
not "follow them," necessarily. at least not all the time. it'll take a while before you get the knack of knowing what's a good instinct ("put the 'LOOK! i've got an IPOD!' headphones in your pocket before getting off of the subway") and what's a bad instinct ("i like pizza. i like pixy-stix. what could possibly go wrong here?").
get a camera. take it everywhere. take pictures. all the time. of everything.
this ties in with the journaling thing. take a picture of your desk. the sculpture of beer cans in the study. your roommate when she's asleep. the pizza from your favorite pizza shack. that door down the hall with all the funny quotes on it. everything. upload copies of the important ones to your private journal and annotate, annotate, annotate. what are the names of the people in the photos? when was this? what were you doing? why was it fun? what happened next?
no, YOU'RE the one with the funny accent.
s'true. you'll get used to it. eventually.
no subject
on 2007-06-24 03:24 pm (UTC)RE20: Harvard Square is also not a place to be wandering around alone after dark.
RE22: There's also Planned Parenthood buildings scattered across the area.
Also, Craigslist is your friend. And don't buy too much furniture for your dorm this year because you can get incredibly good deals near the end of the school year when all of the college graduates are moving and leaving behind their wonderful furniture. The furniture in my room is living proof of this!
no subject
on 2007-06-24 08:41 pm (UTC)Don't be afraid to sign up for a more electives than anyone in their right mind can bear, and during add/drop select one or two you like best and drop the rest like hot potatoes. (Don't forget to drop, though! If too many are nifty, see which ones you can take later, or take a deep breath and get buried in no-life for a semester, and prepare for the inevitable burn-out. And yes, that _does_ mean not buying books for those particular classes until a bit past last-minute, so it's a slightly risky strategy in that regard.) On the other hand, don't over-load on requireds, and try to have variety of different kinds of classes every semester. Do the annoying-to-schedule things as early in the process as possible.
Lots of people say sign up for professors, not classes. Not tried it too much myself, as I mostly took whatever I could requirement-and-schedule-wise, but advice is sound.
Groups and clubs and activities are good sources of both nifty people and free stuff. My gaming club co-paid for a trip to Lunacon for me once. The more you do, the more fun you have, and the more it gives you back, both sentimentally and pragmatically. (Bfud suggests joining the gaming group to meet women. While it worked for him, I'm not sure I endorse the strategy as too commonly functional. It's good for meeting geeks.)
A diet of free pizza is not good for you even when it _is_ cheap and feasible. Try to include things with real nutrients in your meals.
Unless you intend to sleep in class (which I don't actually recommend even if it _is_ the most boring thing ever - find something to keep you awake), sit as close to the front as possible. Don't be afraid to ask questions even if nobody but you cares about the answers, either in class or after or in office hours. _Especially_ if the prof is a mean ogre. :)
As far as studying: you just got through high school. One presumes you had to study before they let you out. Whichever techniques worked for you then will work for you now, the only tricky part is to remember to actually do them in a relatively timely manner. Incidentally, studying with other people might be good for some extra things: it can provide a study time you have to commit to, and/or it might give you a chance to explain things to someone until you understand/remember them yourself. :)
Listen to that thing about credit cards: they are a goodness, but only if used in place of cash you have, not cash you wish you had. Paying it off every month will not lose you money, will give you the habit of paying your bills monthly (a good, good thing to have), and will make you have good credit record when you're out. Not paying off the balance monthly will make you poor for a good long while. (On the other hand, I think check cards are evil: if someone defrauds and ID-steals you using yours, credit charge is infinitely easier to dispute than debit-withdrawal, because the actual money isn't gone yet. Speaking of which, always read your bills carefully; if something looks funny call the company and ask what a charge is. It'll probably be something you did buy, but still, worth checking every time.)
If something feels like a really stupid idea, it probably is. Which is not to say necessarily don't, just weigh your options and be honest with yourself about your motives before proceeding.
no subject
on 2007-06-25 01:51 am (UTC)Learn the local Mass(heh) Transit system (http://www.mbta.com/) well and avoid driving like the plague.
--MAB
no subject
on 2007-06-25 02:45 am (UTC)You will always have clean, fresh, cold water, and you'll save a ton of money (not to mention waste) from not buying bottled water. It's good for you, your wallet, *and* the environment.
On a similar note, if you're going out drinking, make sure the Brita is filled before you leave. Hydration is your friend.