<p>Bump, anyone have anything to add to this really helpful thread?</p>
<p>Thread’s been down for a while, well its summer break now so I guess it cant be helped.</p>
<p>Just one little advice for now:
Its no secret that infos given by school’s reps arent reliable. So obviously its best to visit the campus first before choosing a school. However, most prospective students focus on asking current students they forgot the importance of asking the local residents.
This is particularly true for small town campuses, while you may think its unnecessary, many times these people know more about whats going on in their town than the students themselves. They’ll provide you with informations school reps dont give, like the truth about social life, how bad the weather can get, how nice or crappy the students are, whether its easy to find anything in town, etc. So go ahead and ask around. If the locals arent friendly to begin with, then its already a sign that life isnt that good there.</p>
<p>Going to second da<em>mad</em>cow’s suggestion. It’s good to get a feel for the town and what the locals are like. One of the reasons I ended up choosing my school was because random people I met in the city were just super nice and all had good things to say about the school, so…not the final decision-maker but still something to consider, I’d say.</p>
<p>this thread is pretty awesome. and basically convinced me to just go for the public school i was already considering… not my state school, but still cheaper. it’ll be fun either way:)</p>
<p>tip for those from new england: if an out of state public university has a major offering that you want to take that your own school doesn’t offer, you can get a reduced tuition rate. i plan on going to uconn and majoring in physiology and neurobiology, and since nowhere in RI offers the major, i get a 10k cut in tuition. nice, yes?</p>
<p>by the way, if you’re interested in the new england program, here’s the website: [New</a> England Board of Higher Education (NEBHE) - Home](<a href=“http://www.nebhe.org/explain.html]New”>http://www.nebhe.org/explain.html)</p>
<p>While catalogs are good to read try to find the actual course offerings in the past year or two. Most schools have those online now but they are not always easy to find.</p>
<p>Take a good spread of courses in your first year to both help get requirements out of the way and to try out new areas.</p>
<p>Find a good system of contacts to help you evaluate Professors. While you never know who you will like it is best to avoid Professors who get universally bad reviews. If your school allows it visit/shop as many courses as possible in the first week or two before committing.</p>
<p>Don’t kill yourself first semester, i.e. take lots of lab courses, but take a schedule that does stretch you.</p>
<p>Have fun, in moderation (I am a parent after all), but take the academics very seriously. Do not get behind in your work and establish an organized approach to managing your time.</p>
<p>Attend every different on-campus event (music, drama, sports etc.) you can, even/especially those you didn’t attend in High School. You will meet new people and might find something you are interested.</p>
<p>da<em>mad</em>cow’s Shopping in College 101:
Looking for books? furnitures? Be smart and look around at the bulletin boards on campus. Ads selling stuffs from as tiny as books all the way to cars are posted there.</p>
<p>Coupons, coupons, coupons!!! Take as many as you can, theyre free anyway. Youre most likely to use less than half the coupons you get (why bother with pointless discount hair dyes???), mostly on food. The more the better. You still cant use 2 coupons at once, but you can still get discounts the next time you need to buy pizza :)</p>
<p>For those w/ cars: true you can shop around to find cheaper gas for your car (assuming there are big names gas stations there), but with the tiny fraction in difference (think 1-4 cents per gallon), its best to just stick with the closer ones from your location. Translation: you’ll waste more gas driving around for “cheaper” gas.</p>
<p>If you don’t click with people right away, don’t shut off yourself from social interaction. You will have people to hang out with and meet new people, with whom you may connect better.</p>
<p>I’m sending this entire thread to my son’s email address if I can figure out how! He needs to read the entire thing.</p>
<p>schoolmarm, click the thread tools box, theres an option to email these pages. but I think you’ll have to do one page at a time.</p>
<p>Or you could just email him the link…</p>
<p>Bump! cant think of anything to add right now :D</p>
<p>Thread’s been down for a while, too bad. Time for the next advice (finally):</p>
<p>Safety advice for dorm kids:
Whenever you dont use your computer, either turn it off of plug off the internet cable. This minimize the risk of someone hacking into your computer searching for “valuables”, namely mp3, online papers and such. Worse, if the school finds out they will cut off your internet line. When this happens no matter whats in your computer (be it legal or not, lol you know what I mean), no matter who’s at fault, you’re always at disadvantage as the school’s internet service will search your computer and mess around with all your files in it before they decide whether to reactivate your internet account or terminate it. They take NO responsibility of any lost files while the computer is in their possesion!!! When cases like hacking happens, the victim is considered GUILTY UNTIL PROVEN OTHERWISE. Please remember this carefully.</p>
<p>Compilation of all advice up to this point, with minimal copyediting (da<em>mad</em>cow gives great advice in atrocious English, says the grammar Nazi):</p>
<ol>
<li>Do NOT underestimate the importance of an attractive campus. This is where visiting helps. While other aspects of the school may appeal to you more, when it comes to day-to-day living, ugly brick buildings get old fast. It’s really nice if your campus has nice landscaping and lots of grass - it’s much nicer to look at and it makes activities like Frisbee much more enjoyable.</li>
</ol>
<p>The campus appeal truly is important. To be walking to class and be in awe of your surroundings is a pretty cool feeling. Especially on days where its nice out and everyone is just relaxing outside. It gives you a real exciting feeling of “wow, I can’t believe I’m a student here,” as opposed to waking up every morning in a boring enviroment. Campus was a huge factor in choosing my school, and I’m still glad to this day for that.</p>
<ol>
<li>SERIOUSLY consider the financial toll that private schools will take on you and your family. I thought about this before when I was deciding between a few excellent in-state schools and my current university, but the dramatic difference in cost didn’t really hit me until I had to give every penny I ever saved just for one semester’s tuition. Be absolutely certain that expensive schools are right for you (unless money is no problem, in which case you should ignore this completely). If grad school is in your future, you may want to reconsider. All the hidden costs like books and snacks add up fast, and colleges also tend to up the tuition from year to year.</li>
</ol>
<p>If you do choose to go to a school that will leave you in debt, be aware of the fact that you may not get to take vacations. Your friends will inevitably suggest trips to Europe or Mexico or Canada or somewhere, depending on where you are. If, like me, you’re putting every last cent towards tuition, you may be stuck on campus over breaks while everyone else goes on amazing trips. In some ways, it might have been nicer to go to a more affordable school and then be able to go on these kinds of trips.</p>
<p>Also on costs, I’m not into this, but greek life is often obscenely expensive. If you’re deciding between public and private on account of costs, and becoming a member of a fraternity or sorority is something you can’t see yourself going through college without, it’s not going to be possible if you’re already stretched thin at a private school. Truth be told, you’ll have to make sacrifices.</p>
<p>Try to be careful of money:
- eating out. My uni is in a wealthy town, and inevitably we eat out to celebrate the end of finals, for (insert name)'s birthday (which happens many times), for whatever other reason. $20 a meal sucks the money right out of the bank.
- Fees for intramurals, sports, clubs, etc.
- Travel to and from cities, plays, concerts, home, to visit friends
- The plays, concerts, student-events themselves. Even at $8-10 a piece, you go to more than 10 of those a year I would imagine, and don’t really want to miss them.</p>
<p>Make a more conservative estimate of how much money you will need! Even if you’re like, oh I just won’t go out, in the beginning, it’s a vastly different decision when all your friends are leaving and you’re there. I saved up $3000 to spend for myself from working this summer, and am very close to being out. I don’t know how I’m going to replenish that this summer since I am not getting paid as much.</p>
<ol>
<li>Small colleges often advertise their small courses and one-on-one contact with the professors. My university is small, and we do get excellent contact with the professors, but there’s one thing I didn’t realize - going to a small school (especially a private one with a limited endowment) means that classes are not offered as much as they would be elsewhere. There is often only one section or one professor teaching a course, and many courses are only offered every other year or once every three years. It really makes it hard to choose the best possible schedule when the course offerings are limited, so if flexibility is really important to you, be aware that bigger universities may be able to
offer many more class times and options.</li>
</ol>
<p>This also applies to smaller schools/departments even at larger schools. You may have smaller classes and get to know your professors better, but not all classes may be offered every semester.</p>
<p>This is one of the biggest unpleasant surprises for students who attend small colleges (or large colleges that are overenrolled). Many students who go in thinking they can do a double major, or at least graduate in four years, find out that they can’t when they look at what classes are actually available to register for.</p>
<p>My favorite way of solving the “not enough courses” problem is LACs in consortiums!</p>
<p>There is also another problem with small universities, you stand out when the classes are small. Sometimes this can be a good thing, so you can talk to the professor directly, but other times this is a hindrance. Not that I’m encouraging people to skip classes, but sometimes there will be days where it would benefit you far more to get some much needed sleep or do some extra work that you’re behind on instead of wasting your time in a class where you can just do the reading assignments later. In smaller classes they know you are missing and you most likely will get points off, where as in a larger class they don’t take attendence. Like I said, I’m not saying skip classes, but sometimes it’s nice to have the option if it’s necessary.</p>
<p>Discussion sections are great too, but some days, you’ll be running on two hours of sleep and an hour-and-a-half long class with 10 other students is absolutely torturous. I’ve been able to get a good mix of class sizes so far, so it’s really been nice to have both the contact-with-professors and the freedom that comes with large lectures.</p>
<p>Investigate your MINOR options as well. I was very intent upon ensuring my school had appropriate courses for my major and ASSUMED that my minor (German) would be covered as well. Didn’t happen. German minor is essentially impossible. Some minors (particularly in languages) are designed for people who will start at the bottom level. If you intend to minor in a language, and also anticipate placing out of the actual requirement, look into this.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Decide on living guidelines with your roommate before becoming friends. It’s much easier to set rules when you’re still getting used to each other as opposed to when you might be good friends and feelings could get hurt.</p></li>
<li><p>The quality of food is more important than you realize. At least as a freshman, you’ll likely eat most of your meals during the week on campus, and limited offerings can be really frustrating. When you tour a campus, eat a meal there and scope out the options to make sure you’ll be satisfied. Make sure your campus has a variety of different places to choose from. I cannot stress this enough!</p></li>
<li><p>My campus is ten miles away from a major city, and it is REALLY nice to be able to get off-campus on weekends. I came from a rural area, and it’s great to be able to experience semi-urban living. If you are looking at similarly located schools, ask about public transportation and off-campus options. Believe me, there is nothing nicer than getting a change of pace on weekends. Rural schools may not have such options, so be aware of this when you apply.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>Also consider if you attend a school in a major city and when the weekend comes, is there a large percentage of the students that are leaving the campus to take in the city life? If money is a real issue, it is going to be really lonely being left on campus most weekends, when your friends want to leave campus to go out to dinner, club, show, bar, etc. Also consider that even with great transportation, it slows down during late hours and the friend will want to split a cab and you only have enough for the bus or train.</p>
<p>If you’re going to a city for the “opportunities beyond campus,” please be aware that with the increased opportunities, there’s increased competition. I go to NYU and have met many people who want to find the big i-banking internship with only volunteering-at-the-shelter experience. Be prepared to search independently for these so-called opportunities, knowing that you might have to settle for less than what you imagined.</p>
<p>Also be aware that you can find plenty of opportunities in cities that aren’t New York, D.C., etc. I was sure I would have to go to Washington to benefit from good political opportunities, but it turns out Columbus offers all that, too - on a different scale, sure, but its internship opportunities with state representatives/the governor/other political agencies are still plentiful. I’d imagine the same is true of any other state capitol of somewhat large city.</p>
<ol>
<li>I came from California to the East Coast, and everyone warned me about the cold. They should’ve warned me about the humidity for the first few months of school! It was ridiculously hot and I only brought a few summer-ish clothes, so I suffered for weeks until the weather finally cooled. Be aware of the weather in your college’s area at all times of the year well in advance and pack appropriately.</li>
</ol>
<p>This is especially true if you’re walking to class at a big university. I thought “oh weather is no big deal I’m used to 20 degree temps and snow in the winter” so I had no reservations about going north for school. However, walking 15 minutes to class in 20 degree weather and snow is MUCH different than just walking out of your house to your car. I have spent most of my time in the winter wishing that I went south to college to avoid the unbearable walks every morning and afternoon.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>I joined my school’s ski team, and it’s great to have a sport to break up the long winter. Even if you’re not athletic, find something to do - theater, dance, pottery, etc., anything to keep you busy in the winter months when not much else is going on.</p></li>
<li><p>Take advantage of any event with free food on campus. They’re usually fun and it’s a great way to score a non-dining-services meal.</p></li>
<li><p>It’s easy to avoid the freshman 15 with a little effort. I’ve found that working out with friends is much more fun, and playing intramurals is a great way to keep in shape without any serious time commitment. There are also good options at salad bars (usually), so take advantage when the lettuce is fresh.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>I’ve lost a lot of weight due to stress, and not eating a sufficient amount of meals. Be aware that busy schedules, and awkward dining hall hours can inevitably cause you to miss a few meals.</p>
<ol>
<li>Use your first semester to determine what kind of schedule works for you. Some people like to start class at noon and end late and others like to start early and end early, etc. I’m in favor of starting mid-morning and taking classes one right after the other. It’s nice to get them all done at once and have afternoons off. Feel free to play around and figure out what works for you. The timing of your schedule is sometimes more important than the classes themselves!</li>
</ol>
<p>Another thing to remember about intense schedules - if you know you’re going to be playing a sport or participating in a time-consuming activity over any given semester, plan around it. It might be better to take the more challenging courses in a different semester and switch to a lighter load during the one where you have other commitments. This way, you can try some potentially fun classes and not kill yourself over the stress of hard courses/major extracurriculars.</p>
<p>Try not to join a frat/sorority the first semester of freshman year unless your school uses pass/fail system or hides first semester grades.</p>
<p>Don’t get cocky about school - aka don’t cram. Ask as many upperclassmen as you know how they stay on top of their work and try their strategies because almost everyone (who does well) will say some of the same things - namely go to classes, use office hours, don’t study in your room, utilize the library, etc.</p>
<p>Don’t take a ridiculously hard courseload your first semester. You will be adjusting to an entirely new situation, and having a more moderate workload will really make your transition to college life easier. In high school you may have wowed people with your 7 APs in a year, but in college people don’t think a freshman juggling a whole bunch of advanced courses is cool – they think you’re nuts. Because you are. College is an entirely different ball game, and maxing yourself out first semester freshman year is a very, very bad idea. Some people burn out right away because they overload themselves. Take it easy. You have 7 more semesters. There is no shame in not pressing your upper intellectual limits your first semester. You’ll be glad you didn’t, because when your first set of midterms roll around, you won’t be freaking.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Shower daily. Always.</p></li>
<li><p>In college, you don’t have to do every page of the reading. In fact, it’s probably impossible. If you’re a humanities major, you can end up with upwards of 1000 pages of reading a week, in really dense history/philosophy books. You can skim, and that is ok. Read the introduction and conclusion of the books, and read the first and last sentence of every paragraph. You’ll still get the most important ideas (while skipping over unnecessary details) and not waste too much time. Also, write in the margins. Note important points, because it will help you more than you can ever imagine when you have to write a paper on it later in the semester.</p></li>
<li><p>If your department or college sends out a newsletter with news and opportunities, READ IT! I’ve found some really cool clubs/jobs/internship offers that my friends all miss out on because they can’t be bothered to read the e-mail.</p></li>
<li><p>Just because everybody around you does drugs and drinks incessantly (and in large amounts!) does NOT MEAN that you should give into the peer pressure to fit in. I drank a few times, and you know what? Big deal. I never did in high school. People start to respect you more if that’s not what you like to do–maybe watching movies/eating at restaurants instead. OF course, an occassional indulgence in alcohol is not a bad thing if you are safe, but…Going over the top like my friends did at Tulane was…the STUPIDEST thing. Each one of them is now on academic probation.</p></li>
<li><p>If you’re not sure what you want to major in and/or do make sure to go to a school that appeals to most, if not all, of your interests and/or hobbies. When I went to my first college I chose to be a creative writing major because it was something I was both good at and liked to do. But I realized by the end of my first semester that my real passion was in theatre (something I was already debating with before I went to school) and while I loved my school the theatre department was lacking and so I left to go somewhere that had a better theatre department. So if you’re really unsure of what you want to do go where you have lots of options and you will be happy with. Or if all else fails, go to a community college first and transfer and save a lot of money in the process!</p></li>
<li><p>Think long and hard before going to a specific school and rooming with friends from high school. People change and just because they were your best friend in high school doesn’t mean that will stay the same way when in college. It also doesn’t mean that you two are compatible roommates at all. I feel it can be a hinderance to room with a good friend because it doesn’t allow you to open up to other people. I found it’s best to room with a stranger because you both are experiencing the same things for the first time and you have each other for support that first semester (or even year) as you slowly begin to find other friends through clubs and activities.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>About making friends - it sounds lame, but go to all the events your school will throw over orientation. You’ll meet people like you who also want to meet friends. It’s generally not as hard as everyone says, although don’t expect to be best friends with the first few people you meet or your roommate. It takes a while to meet a group that sticks; joining clubs or playing pick-up sports definitely helps, too. Just make sure you’re doing things you’re actually interested in and you’ll be more than fine!</p>
<ol>
<li>If you get sick, go see health services! They’re going to take one look at you, tell you that you’re sick, and send you along to go back to bed, but if the need arises where you need to get something dropped, you can. Now, I’m not saying that you should abuse this, but I know many people thought they were superhuman (myself included) and kept doing what they usually do rather than stopping and resting. There are a lot of perks given to freshman because they’re new to the whole system, so take advantage of them if you need them. Oh, and you should probably go to health services even if the course issue doesn’t come into play just in case that cold really is something more malicious.</li>
</ol>
<p>Wash your hands more than you usually would. Get a flu shot if you can. Generally try and stay healthy - trust me, being sick in college can be miserable, but there’s a lot you can do to avoid it.</p>
<ol>
<li>Befriend a professor other than your advisor…they can be sources of invaluable advice. My advisor actually made me do this and it helped me out so much when crap started to happen somewhere around mid-November and I had to seek a medical drop, scale back on extracurricular activities, get a room change, etc.</li>
</ol>
<p>Some of the most helpful advice I’ve received: try and have one professor every quarter who’d you feel comfortable asking for a recommendation. Even if it’s awkward, speak up in class. You don’t have to suck up or anything, just make sure they know who you are.</p>
<p>Sit up front, and build a relationship with your teacher. You don’t have to be that kiss ass who laughs at everything the prof says, but you should participate often, and ask questions when you have them.</p>
<p>If you’re really sick, email your professor and tell him that you can’t make it. There are two ways to approach sickness when you’re living on your own. You can either get the rest you need, and get better quickly. Or you can put your body under unnecessary stress and go to class when it isn’t absolutely necessary.</p>
<p>Always remember that unlike in HS, college professors (for the most part) want nothing more than to teach and help you. In high school there are a lot of teachers who make you jump through hoops and they give you a lot of chicken **** for the sake of chicken ****. College professors will gladly help you with anything, they’ll give you extensions on a paper if you need it, and they’ll understand if you need to miss class once or twice.</p>
<p>If you feel yourself slipping behind in a class, be a champ and speak to somebody about it. This is college. Nobody is designated to be your babysitter. That’s a great thing in some ways (do you want your parents to know that you’ve become an expert at disabling smoke alarms?) and in some ways it’s a kiss of death, because you can feign competence when you know you’re slippy on the material.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>You know those pretty flowers and tress in the brochures that aren’t native to the area around the campus? Yeah. Don’t be surprised if you suddenly have allergies.</p></li>
<li><p>Keep in mind the cost of traveling back home during vacations and at the end of the school year. I know a lot of students originally reject the idea of going to a college close to home, but even a college an hour away doesn’t mean that you’ll be going home THAT often.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>I currently have to fly back home during vacations, and it is a LOT more expensive than I thought it would be. If you are not on top of scheduling your plane flights, you may be looking at plane tickets several hundred dollars more than you expect. For instance, I have to book my Thanksgiving and Christmas plane tickets in July right after I finish enrolling for my Fall classes. I once waited too long (August) and was looking at extremely expensive prices. Not to mention, the shuttle from school to the airport for me is $18 one-way ($36 roundtrip) and the whole deal takes pretty much one entire day to make it from campus to the airport through security check-in to waiting for your flight to finally making it back home.</p>
<p>Also, you should think about whether or not you want the convenience of being able to come home randomly for a weekend. I love where I go to college, but I do wish I had the choice of coming home for special occasions (e.g. a friend is back in town or a relative’s birthday). Also, it makes it easier in case you forgot something back at home or just wanted to get something (like your car or some nicer formal clothes) instead of having to resort to purchasing it near school or just doing without it.</p>
<p>ALSO, remember that you have to move all your stuff to and from school at the beginning and end of the year!!! I cannot tell you how stressful it is to attempt to stuff a year’s worth of YOUR LIFE into the backseat/trunk of your car! My sister has to drive to my school every year and pick me up and then proceed to drive eight hours back home in a squished car. If you’re living in the dorms, they kick you out the last day of finals (and luck will have it be that YOU will probably be stuck with the last final time) which means you will have only a few hours to pack and leave (most people want to devote finals week to studying instead of packing). All I am saying is that I REALLY wished I had thought about living closer to home, especially since it allows you to potentially take several trips to and from home (or have more than one car from your family take the trip up) instead of hoping that everything that you’ve accumulated over one year will fit into one tiny car.</p>
<p>You will never need as much as you bring initially, try to take some back during any breaks. I haven’t touched 1/4 of the things I brought. It’s still kinda costly to store over the break, and my school does it per-box.</p>
<p>You can arrange for storage, but its inconvenient because if you are living in the dorms during the school year, the things that you have brought are things that you usually use year round and would like to continue using during the summer. (Something like furniture would make sense for storage, but because dorms already provide the furniture, you probably wouldn’t have purchased those things for your room). There may be a few items that you could potentially store in storage, but often times you will find that the hassle of getting the items to and back from storage and paying for it may not be worth it if you only have a few items. There also may not simply be enough time to carefully sort out what you want in storage and arrange for it all to make it there (remember, this will probably occur during Finals week in June). I’m sure there are some students who live across the country that probably do end up using storage, but most people I know at my school just end up going through great lengths to truck everything home. I am DEFINITELY not saying that should make or break your decision to go to a college farther away from home (that should be your one of your last reasons to not go! lol), but if it comes down to a choice between two fantastic schools that you could see yourself having a great time at both, then the convenience of living closer to home may be something to strongly consider.</p>
<p>Also, keep in mind your storage options if you plan to study abroad. Last summer, I stored all of my stuff in an apartment I sublet locally for an internship. I’m studying abroad all of next year and am now looking at dropping a few hundred dollars to ship home literally everything I own. I’ll also have to find people to buy my TV and microwave since there’s no way I’m shipping those. I don’t have a car so I can’t even drive it all home.</p>
<p>Most students go home during Thanksgiving and Christmas. I think most university dorms and the dining halls actually shut down during Winter Break (Christmas) for the entire break, though I’m sure many universities have some sort of way to allow a stay-over during that time. But I would say about 85% of the students go home for Thanksgiving and 98% of the students go home for Winter Break.</p>
<p>To avoid going home for every single break, MAKE FRIENDS WHO LIVE NEAR THE SCHOOL! Home is 3,000 miles away from me and plane tickets are much too expensive to fly more than at Christmas and for the summer. Luckily, I now have a standing invitation to stay with a friend 45 minutes away from school and another invitation to go home with someone who lives two hours away. The option is often there as long as you look for it.</p>
<p>For those students who “want to get away from home”, remember that just because home is right around the corner doesn’t mean that you actually have to go back that often! It’s a choice on how often you go home and as long as you choose a college that you feel is different enough from home in a good way, you might find that actually HAVING that choice to go home once in awhile will only be an extra plus and money saver!</p>
<p>I cannot stress this enough. I currently live about 700 miles from home, which is entirely too far a drive. Plane tickets are more expensive than i thought, especially considering the amount of holidays and occasions you may want to go home for. You should also factor in the travel time. I recently spent about 24 hours in an airport trying to get home for spring break. With airplanes, you are always subject to their scheduling and weather concerns. You are at their mercy. Consider this before you decide to go outside of driving distance. There may be some occasions you would like to go home for, that you cannot make. This weekend is Easter, and I cannot go home because I was home for Spring Break last week. It is these little things to consider when going more than two or three hours from home. Not to scare you away from it, or anything.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Use Google Calendar!</p></li>
<li><p>Leave your door open when you’re just in your room hanging out–easier to meet people in your hall that way.</p></li>
<li><p>SHOWER SHOES. BRING SHOWER SHOES. Grab a pair of cheap flip-flops or something. My husband contracted athlete’s foot in a gym shower in college (an Ivy League FWIW. Hard to believe, I know) and it still recurs periodically 30 years later.</p></li>
<li><p>Whenever something bad happens to you, theft, assault, etc, try your best NOT to go to campus police or the campus attorny.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>Campus cops aren’t trained to anticipate such criminal activities. They’re basically trained to maintain campus safety and uphold campus rules, think underage drinking, minor felonies, pranks, parking tickets. When real crimes happen they most of the time don’t know what to do, often leading to dead ends.</p>
<p>Campus attorneys are paid by the school! Always remember that, therefore they will give biased advice. And you still have to pay them by the hour! Real case: a girl got raped by a football player, or was it basketball player (I forgot), she went to the school attorney and ended up with how she couldn’t sue the rapist because there’s no evidence and all, and campus police won’t help because they’re also on the school’s payroll.</p>
<p>Bottom line? Seek help from the town/city’s local police office, and a real attorney. They’re mostly unbiased and will do real investigations.</p>
<p>Rape victims should always go to a hospital emergency room if for no other reason than to have documented legal evidence. </p>
<ol>
<li>When buying a meal plan (assuming you’re getting one), think carefully before choosing the highest level. Many times you won’t even have enough time for breakfast; you end up eating donuts or a sandwich on the way to class. Or in other cases, you get sick of eating the same meal over and over again. I recommend buying an intermediate plan (2 meals a day), then add cash if you’re running out (you can do that at the student’s dining service cashier). Remember, you can add, but in most cases you can’t refund the balance if you don’t spend it all in one semester. Oh and no, the balance isn’t transferrable to next semester’s account.</li>
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<p>Always double check your student account bills as soon as you get it. Sometimes you may get charged twice for the same thing (ex: health insurance or internet lab service). This happens a lot, particularly at larger public schools where the management is rather poor. Like I said earlier, paying is easy, refunding anything (even if it’s the admin’s mistake) can take forever. Like it or not, admins don’t like giving refunds. They have to put in effort to find the mistake then still have to pay you money for it. Always file a complaint ASAP if you notice anything wrong on your bills. I got charged for internet lab service I never used for $300, and I had to wait 5 weeks after I complained to the admin to get my refund.</p>
<p>Those mandatory housing deposits (for dorms) are NON-REFUNDABLE. So if you live on a floor full of trashers who commit property damage, don’t worry about it too much if they don’t admit it, they’ll just take the fine from your collective deposit (meaning the whole floor, or even the whole building’s deposit). And yes I know this by personal experience. Most of the time there’ll be enough money left by the end of the semester for the dorm to hold a pizza party and movies. If you don’t spend the balance left, the school will take it, or in some cases the dorm manager can keep it in his/her pocket (it’s fraud, I know, but nearly impossible to prove).</p>
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<li>When looking for secondhand textbooks, spare some time and look at the bulletin boards across the campus. There are always students selling their books by posting an ad on the board. Buying books from a private party can save you a lot, especially if the book costs over a hundred bucks USED! Often students sell their books straight to other students to cut their losses. And these books can cost like 30% less than what you’ll have to pay at the school’s bookstore. Another plus, unlike the stores, buying privately means no tax.</li>
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<p>Of course, this advice works vice versa, when you’re selling, it’s better to sell them yourself. Sell them to the bookstore, and you’ll get like 25-30% of the book’s worth. It’s worth it, there are more customers interested in those books than you might think. Naturally upper-level course textbooks are tougher to sell, so set a deadline yourself for these. If the books still don’t sell by then, sell them to the bookstore.</p>
<p>Basically this is how it works, when the book costs $100 new, you’ll get about $30-35 when you sell it to the bookstore. The store then labels those books as “used” and sells them back for around $65-70. Sell them yourself and you can get like $40-55 depending on the book’s condition. The bookstore on the other hand doesn’t really care about the book’s condition (unless it’s really beaten up) and will give you the same ridiculous sum.</p>
<p>If you’re too lazy, or think it’s not worth the effort, just come as early as you can to the bookstore. That way you can get books that are literally like-new for the same amount of cash as those beat-up ones. They all cost the same, so it’s best to be early and pick the gems before someone else does.</p>
<p>Btw, buying the books online from, say, Ebay or Amazon isn’t a good idea. Yes, their prices may seem tempting at first, but once you count the shipping cost (unless they charge 0 for shipping) and the time you have to wait for the books, often it’s not worth it. Worse yet, if the book isn’t in good condition (or different from what the seller described) you get a refund MINUS shipping.</p>
<p>WARNING: This is very very important. If you’re buying from a private party, it’s best to go to the bookstore first and see if they sell the same book. It rarely happens but sometimes the class suddenly requires a new, totally different textbook and the used ones are simply thrown away. If that’s the case, you’re out of luck, gotta buy new no matter what unless you can find the book cheaper elsewhere.</p>
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<li><p>It’s no secret that info given by school’s reps isn’t reliable. So obviously it’s best to visit the campus first before choosing a school. However, most prospective students focus on asking current students; they forget the importance of asking the local residents. This is particularly true for small-town campuses; while you may think it’s unnecessary, many times these people know more about what’s going on in their town than the students themselves. They’ll provide you with information school reps don’t give, like the truth about social life, how bad the weather can get, how nice or crappy the students are, whether it’s easy to find anything in town, etc. So go ahead and ask around. If the locals aren’t friendly to begin with, then it’s already a sign that life isn’t that good there.</p></li>
<li><p>Take a good spread of courses in your first year to both help get requirements out of the way and to try out new areas.</p></li>
<li><p>Find a good system of contacts to help you evaluate professors. While you never know who you will like, it is best to avoid professors who get universally bad reviews. If your school allows it, visit/shop as many courses as possible in the first week or two before committing.</p></li>
<li><p>Whenever you don’t use your computer, either turn it off or unplug the internet cable. This minimizes the risk of someone hacking into your computer and searching for “valuables,” namely mp3s, online papers, and such. Worse, if the school finds out, they will cut off your internet line. When this happens, no matter what’s in your computer (be it legal or not, you know what I mean), no matter who’s at fault, you’re always at a disadvantage as the school’s internet service will search your computer and mess around with all of your files before they decide whether to reactivate your internet account or terminate it. They take NO responsibility for any lost files while the computer is in their possession! When cases like hacking happen, the victim is considered GUILTY UNTIL PROVEN OTHERWISE. Please remember this carefully.</p></li>
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<p>bumping to revive a great thread…so much good advice here!</p>
<p>Wow, lots of great advice here!!</p>
<p>I love this thread. Commenting… just so that it may be noticed and helpful to everyone. This should be a required reading assignment for everyone about to leave for college. :)</p>
<p>So much great information. And while this thread is a few years old, it’s all still relevant today. Printed out the compilation of all comments on page 9 for my rising H.S. senior. Thank you!</p>
<p>Any updates?</p>
<p>1) A lot of stereotypes that are associated as features of schools are often times just stereotypes</p>
<p>2) Coming from the south to the northeast, its really not the intensity of the winter but the length of it. This becomes very apparent in late march, april, and even early may this year.</p>