15 Things I Learned My First Semester of College
As some of you might know, I started my first semester of college at Cornell University last fall. Here are some of the things I learned during the five months I was there. Perhaps not all of these things are accurate - I am still a freshman, after all - but these are what I’ve observed. Feel free to correct me if I’m wrong, or share your experience if it isn’t the same as mine :)
Academics
Talk to your professors
Professors are usually very approachable, and as long as you show that you’re eager to learn, they’ll talk to you. Like you know how in high school (or at least my high school) you could ask a question and your teacher might shut you down and tell you it’s not in the syllabus, or kind of imply that it’s a ridiculous question… yeah that hasn’t happened in college so far.
Time management is crucial
Like you don’t even have to do assignments as soon as you get them, but just make sure you plan things out so that you’ll have time to do them.
Spacing out your tasks is optimal
Don’t try to rush assignments or cram tons of tasks into a single day, i.e. planning to do a 10-hour assignment 2 days before it’s due is certainly possible, but trust me, it’ll stress you out.
Revise or prepare for class
People tell you to study/revise every day after class. Personally, I’ve found it more helpful to study before the lecture and then use the lecture as a revision session and to fill in any gaps in my understanding. After class, you’ll also get to ask your professors any questions you had while you were studying before class.
Ask questions
In high school, I could always figure things out on my own, or reverse engineer things, but in college, I’ve found that having a person explain something to you can be a lot easier and save a lot of time.
No one’s going to regularly check your understanding of a certain subject, so it’s your responsibility to do so. You should know if you need help and seek it when you think you do. Ask questions after class or during sections (small group discussions within a certain course, taught by a teaching assistant).
Attending discussions/sections is very useful
A lot of people like to skip sections because they think the lecture’s enough and the section’s useless. However, I personally prefer sections to lectures. Lectures just give you information, but sections allow you to have more in-depth discussions, which allows you to refine your understanding.
Social
Befriend someone from a higher semester
They’ve definitely been where you are now and can give you awesome advice. It’s even better if they’re pursuing the same major/career as you are.
The attitudes of the people around you really matter
Hang out with people who are equally positive as you are. I’m very much affected by my environment, so if all I hear throughout the day is ‘I despise this class’ or ‘I wish I could just sleep right now’ or whatever, I’ll only end up feeling really drained. I know it can be relieving to agree on negative things, like ‘I really wanna go home’ ‘omg same’, but it’s really distracting when you’re trying to not want to go home.
Make friends
It sounds so obvious, but when you’re like me and you’re used to doing things independently, sometimes it just doesn’t cross your mind. It would suck not to have any friends in college.
Friendships in high school and college are different
The structure of my social life (I guess) changed in college. In high school, I had a solid group of friends who I hung out with whenever I could. In college, though, I have more casual friends and hang out with a bunch of different people.
I’ve also found that keeping friends in college takes more effort, especially since you and your friends may have such vastly different schedules. In high school, you and your friends stay in the same building and have a lot of common classes. You definitely gotta be more proactive in sustaining friendships because there’s no guarantee that you’ll see each other often.
Respect differences
You’re going to have friends who come from a wide variety of backgrounds. Sometimes they’re gonna say things you don’t agree with or have never heard before. Respect them, learn from them, and don’t judge their opinions until you learn where they’re coming from.
Health & Wellbeing
Having a hobby keeps you sane
Especially if it’s a hands-on one like music or art. Sometimes you just need a break from all that studying. Sometimes you need a break from socializing, too. Also screens. Maybe try listening to podcasts.
Eat well and move
Whether or not you gain the freshman fifteen is up to you. Don’t eat like it’s Thanksgiving or Chinese New Year every day. And at least stretch and take a walk every now and then.
Start the day right
Having a solid morning routine definitely helps me stay calm throughout the day. I like to meditate, stretch, and journal in the morning. Get some more inspiration from this post.
Don’t study/work all the time
Schedule in breaks/leisure time and meals. It’s very easy to get caught up in all the tasks and assignments that you’ll forget to let yourself rest or you’ll find yourself forgetting to eat. I like to walk around the art museum sometimes (it’s free!)
