<p>So now that its almost time to move up to austin, I was wondering if some of you could share you freshman experiences... the transition, party scene, dorm life, how you balanced the school work and stress, did you go downtown alot, somethings to look forward to for next year? just a little something to get us more excited for the upcoming year</p>
<p>haha i can tell your excited…i remember i could not wait to leave home and move up to atx. Well i’ll give you pretty much a sense of how things went for me It will probably be a very long post.</p>
<p>Transition overall went well…it can be a little overwhelming to some people at first being in a new city and all but you will probably be focused on making friends and going out with them and probably be really excited to notice. My roomate was from boston and she had a somewhat harder time adjusting at first because it was a culture shock but then ended up getting over it in like a week so if your out of state dont let it get to you if you feel out of place or anything. It seems like you like to go out and party so the first couple of days before school started were super fun for me…i met soooo many people and there were a ton of parties in west campus to go to and stuff. The party scene is good…if your a girl you can go to any of the frat parties they dont care about girls…guys not so much unless you know someone…but either way im sure youll make your friends and find stuff to do. The dorm life is its own experience…it can get annoying at times but i wouldnt trade it…some people luck out with social hallways and some dont…i only talked to like 2 guys in mine. RA’s are a tossup…some get lucky with chill ones and then some are just complete *******s. I lived right next to my ra and he was legit…literally did not care about anything haha. When it comes to school one thing i realized is that we didnt really know how to actually study…i mean lets face it most of our highschool classes were jokes so i had to learn how to actually sit down and read the textbooks and do the homeworks even if they werent due and study in advance for tests. Try not to procrastinate and it’ll make the stress easier trust me haha. Also study in groups and stuff if it’ll make things easier, make friends in your classes so you can share notes and teach eachother things that you may not understand. As far as downtown, yes i did go downtown quite alot…thursday nights are usually the nights that everyone goes and those would be my favoriteeee! (if you have an id dont use it at maggie mae’s it will get taken up!) the e-bus rides were always a show on the way home too haha. Things to look forward to: football season and tailgatinggg!, acl, ou weekend, round-up, actually gaining some knowledge, making longterm friends.</p>
<p>Hope this helps! sorry for the long post</p>
<p>Longhorn really hit the big points there.</p>
<p>I don’t think high school did much to prepare us for college, at least UT. In high school, grades were handed to you, tests didn’t count nearly as much, finals weren’t as stressful, and you could nearly get by with showing up to class, doing the work, and having your teacher at least like you. Everything was already organized for you, at least timewise. But the thing you have to learn is that every minute of studying counts and you MUST know how to manage your time, prioritize, and yes, start studying for that midterm a few weeks in advance.The playing field is leveled in college and you have to adapt your studying habits to get the grades you want. Definitely participate in study groups and go to office hours because you may be able to memorize what concepts are, but you won’t fully understand them without bouncing around ideas and working on applying those concepts with other people. Scope the campus for good places to study, there are several libraries, lounges, the union. PCL can get packed (and needs more outlets!) especially during finals. Finals are always the most stressful time and you can literally feel it in the air. Review a little bit of material every so often and save yourself from becoming a ticking stressbomb who has resorted to living in the library after procrastinating for that make-it-or-break-it test. The schoolwork was definitely the hardest change I had.
And you can’t forget about having a social life! It’s really easy to make connections at UT, especially if you join organizations. Get out there and meet people, and even if you were shy in hs, now is not the time to be! Getting to know as many new people as you can helps to make a large school smaller and make it home for you. I only went clubbing downtown a few times and looked around during the day but it’s definitely an awesome scene.
I loved the dorm that I stayed in my first year. It was really social, and a good chunk of us were always in the game room and study lounge so we got to know everyone pretty well. All of the RAs were really cool, pretty laid back, helpful when needed but still good to just chill with. Best part about living in the San Jac area–
FOOTBALL GAMES!!! I loved waking up after a wild night and hearing “TEXAS FIGHT!” chants outside my window. And if you’re a crazy football fan and College Gameday is in town, get to the tower early to save you a good spot if you plan on camping out. (front row, right behind the sportscasters and Lance Armstrong for the Texas Tech game fall '09, it was incredible!)</p>
<p>Damn, I wish I had gone to your guys’ high schools because mine was not like that at all.</p>
<p>wow thanks alot guys! cant waitttt!</p>
<p>haha, I’m a senior and I’m itching to get back to the 40 acres in a couple weeks…</p>
<p>I didn’t feel a rough transition when I started school, but sometimes I feel like I am an exception and not the general rule. Many of my friends had a rough semester or two while they ironed out their study skills and uh…motivation to actually attend classes. I took mostly AP level courses my last two years in HS, and many of the freshman courses (anything between 301-305…usually) are on the same level. Once you start taking upper division classes in your major, they get a bit more difficult…definitely more time consuming with reading and projects. Also, in my experience, many freshman courses don’t have finals that count towards a significant portion of your grade. Last semester was the first time I had a final that was worth 50%…and that was pretty terrifying. </p>
<p>To be honest, if you’re into partying you may want to limit yourself during your first semester/year. Its really easy to get carried away when there are so many parties almost every weekend in West Campus. There’s not a lot to do on 6th if you’re not 21, but make sure you check out what its like on Halloween…its definitely an experience you won’t forget! (And get your costume at Lucy in Disguise! Coolest costume shop I’ve ever been in.) But, until you know how difficult your classes are going to be and how much time you need to put aside for projects/papers/studying, be wary of the party scene.</p>
<p>I have felt like it becomes much easier to meet people and make friends through organizations. During the first few weeks of school, take a stroll down the West Mall (in front of the FAC/Union) and you will receive at least 20 different flyers from orgs that do inductions each semester. (Including the one I’m in! :D) Its also a great way to talk to actual members and get a feel of what the org is all about. Many hold preview events before you actually join, so don’t be afraid to go and check 'em out.</p>
<p>Football season is my favorite time of year at UT. Hands down. There’s nothing quite like waking up to the excitement of a home game on Saturdays! Not sure if you’re a football fan, but being a part of the largest crowd in Texas history is pretty awesome. Just you, the team, and 100,000 of your closest friends! 
(too bad Colt is in a better place now…<em>sigh</em>)</p>
<p>Get out and explore the city as much as you can. I really didn’t get outside campus very much my first year and I really regret it. There are so many cool things to do in and around the city (like Kayaking on Town Lake, hiking Mt. Bonnell or walking down to the Capital at night…yep, its open!) Its more difficult without a car, but you can plan a trip on Capital Metro’s website that can tell you how to get pretty much anywhere by bus/public transit.</p>
<p>Good luck!</p>