Abby is a senior at Rhodes College majoring in International Studies with minors in Spanish and Environmental Studies, a member of the cross country and track teams and a Tri-Delt. Because of her busy schedule with academics, school sports and her sorority, Abby learned how to make the best use of her time and school experience by taking advantage of the support provided from the writing center and office hours with her professors. She is also a member of the ClassTracker testing team, providing product feedback and design suggestions. This fall her brother starts at Cal Poly. These are her words of wisdom to him.
Dear Theo,
I’m so excited that you are off to college and hope you have a great time. I wouldn’t be your older sister if I didn’t give you some advice, so here goes!
Advice for the first week of school:
Be Open To Everything: Always take advantage of opportunities to meet people and experience new things, and remember everyone is as terrified and lost as you. Join clubs, get involved and reach out to other people!! This first week isn’t your only chance, but it’s one of the easiest. College is what you make of it, so don't make it Netflix all day. That being said...
It’s Ok To Be Alone: You're going to be around people all the time, even when you're in you own room! So whether you're an introvert or just like alone time, find some space around your city or campus where you can gain some sanity. It's going to be a little crazy.
It Might Not Be Like The Movies (All The Time): Everyone’s so excited, your friends are having so much fun at other schools and you don’t understand why you’re not. It’s fine. You might not meet your best friends for the next four years the first week of school. You might not like the people you live with. It might take a little while to adjust, especially if you branched out, college selection wise. There are probably times where you’ll freak out a little in your first few days, so just know that’s normal.
Simple stuff that you have to make yourself do once you go to college:
Going To Class: It sounds obvious but just you wait until it’s 7:30 in the morning and the last thing you want to do is haul your tired, hungover self across the freezing cold campus to sociology class. And no one’s there to make you. BUT it’s probably the easiest thing you can do to maintain grades, so just show up – whatever condition you’re in, it’s probably still easier than making up a class. Not to mention how much you’re paying per class (although try not to think about that). You might think it’s harmless to skip a class to work on a project for another – until you miss something in that class and have to skip another class to make up for it. And then suddenly you’re in deep pit of behind-ness.
Office Hours: If you’re shy or awkward (or lazy) this one can be tough, but showing your teachers your interest is not only an easy way to help your GPA but also a way to form relationships that may turn into into recommendations for graduate school or connections for jobs, after college. (Also, they usually want to talk to you anyway.)
Exercising: Dude, you’re like, 18 years old. Someday you’ll be old and fat, so take advantage of the time you don’t have to be. It takes like an hour, on occasion, and you’ll probably be more productive in the long run because exercising is energizing AND good for your brain.
Sleeping Normally: It really does seem like a good idea to sleep until 11 on that one day when you don’t have class until noon, but you’ll feel more rested if you maintain some consistency.
Drinking Water: It’s a whole new world of liquids in college. Free coffee and soda in the dining hall, great coffee shops near campus, and energy drinks galore… it’s magical!! But drink water too. It’s really, very important.
Super simple, right? Good luck, little bro.’
What words of wisdom would you give to a rising freshmen? Leave them in the comments below!
