Tips for your first year of college at Marian

Karaline Staggs | June 17, 2019 

It’s no secret that there’s a certain excitement that surrounds your first year of college. It’s the start of a new chapter in life! The college years are supposed to be some of the best years of your life, so how can your experience best meet the expectations you have for the next 2-4 years?

Here are my top 7 tips for how to survive your first year of college

Make friends right away 

Making friends is essential if you want to have the best college experience. It makes things easier when you can turn to a friend after a stressful school day, or if you just want to have a movie night because you’re all caught up on homework, so get out there and mingle your little heart out!  Maybe try joining a club, or a sports team. You won’t regret putting yourself out there, and who knows, you might just meet your lifelong pals.

Manage your money

This is a big one! Being a college student myself, one of the first things I struggled with was learning how to manage my money wisely. You want to have a good college experience so take my advice, and don’t go spending every extra dollar you have on material items. It’s ok to splurge every once in a while, but save up for important things that will benefit you in the long run. When graduating college, money is necessary to start a life, so save up for your future life!

 Step outside of your comfort zone

Have you ever been outside your comfort zone? A lot of the time it feels uncomfortable to be in situations you’re not quite used to but I encourage you to try and experience new things that might be a little uncomfortable at first. For example, if you struggle with public speaking, it might be cool to join the speech team! Or, if a certain subject has always interested you, sign up for a class pertaining to said subject! College is the perfect place to step outside of your comfort zone. The sky’s the limit!

Do your laundry!

I know this one seems obvious. But it’s a tip I wish someone would have given me my first few years! You’ll know what I mean when you’re out of fresh shirts to wear and you have to be at school in 5 minutes… Just trust me on this one.

 Do your homework (and study)

Now this one is definitely obvious. Take it from a fourth year college student, nothing good ever comes from not studying for important tests, or procrastinating assignments. Getting important things like this done give you more time to relax by yourself and with friends too!

Go to class!

Yes, you are paying to go to college, but depending on the professor, most of the time attendance is a grade, and going to class can really make or break you. It’s in your best interest to just go. A lot of the time you will have professors who like to tell you important information like upcoming tests in person, so it’s better to be safe than sorry! Professors want to teach you valuable things! It’s also just respectful.

 Have fun!

Whether it be a movie night in with your friends, or an adventurous trip to Florida for spring break, make sure to have fun. Have as much fun as you can while you can, because before you know it you’ll have blinked and college will be over. Make sure you fill your college years with a lot of fun times because those are the times you’ll remember for the rest of your life.