<p>This is just a post to help out incoming freshmen not screw up in their first year in college. Any tips and things to do at Uc Davis would be helpful.</p>
<p>-its impossible to study in shields library and the 24 hr room during midterm/finals week
-there are other libraries on campus
-the best time to study is early in the morning when everybody is still sleeping/in class. studying after 8 or 9 pm is nearly impossible
-the study lounge (in the dorms) isn’t a good place to study
-all-nighters DO NOT WORK
-CAPS clinic and The House have massage chairs
-the DC is the most crowded around 12pm</p>
<p>meet as many people as you can, especially early in the year. you’ll have time to work on deeper, more meaningful relationships later on in the year once people have settled into their niches. networking will help get you pretty much anything that a college freshman would want. anything.</p>
<p>it’s a lot easier to get caught breaking the rules when you’re in a traditional dorm as opposed to a suite. quiet hours will get you caught for alcohol (if you’re loud, which is likely). pretty sure that’s what they’re for a lot of the time.</p>
<p>if you have an expensive bike, consider having multiple locks. when my U lock broke, I had a cable lock, so i didn’t get a new one. my bike got stolen.</p>
<p>go over rules with your roommate regarding cleanliness, visitors(friends), “visitors,” and anything else you would consider an issue. it’s better to do this early in the year than later on when actual problems pop up.</p>
<p>this goes with the first one, but take advantage of how friendly and open people are in the first weeks/quarter/whatever.</p>
<p>there are 25,000 undergrads here. make friends(and more than friends). if someone doesn’t like you, whatever. move on to the next one. don’t be shy.</p>
<p>don’t be that person who talks about their old friends and high school all the time. you’re in a new place, you’ll make new friends and do new things. don’t get me wrong, when you’re meeting new people you’ll want to tell them about yourself, but know when to stop, lol.</p>
<p>that said, no one knows or cares about your past. you have a fresh start. take advantage.</p>
<p>i didn’t join any social clubs or organizations but i met a TON of people and still have a circle of very close friends whom i hang out with/talk to every week while also knowing a bunch of acquaintences whom i can party with, converse with, ask favors from etc. </p>
<p>TRY to get enough sleep. if you don’t, concentrating in class will be difficult. manage your time effectively. find a balance; pulling an all nighter to study for a final the next day will likely hurt you more than help you.</p>
<p>form study groups if that’s your thing. i’ve always heard good things, but it’s not really my style and i’ve been able to manage so far, but i definitely would if i felt it would help.</p>
<p>take advantage of the fact that you live REALLY REALLY REALLY close to fellow 17-19 year old kids. it’s really easy to just hang out with people or go out to a party or do whatever fun activity you can think of. that’s what i miss the most about the dorms - the proximity to like minded people, and how easy it was to interact with them.</p>
<p>have fun, try new things, but be safe. know your limits. use protection.</p>
<p>network!!!</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Waitlist. Don’t just give up, fight for your spot in a class whether its for your major or not. Even if you get discouraged by the lines of people waiting to get into the chem lab, go to EVERY single lab and fight for it fall quarter. However, don’t fight for a specific professor if its for a class you need. Everyone knows Enderle is best for chem, but just getting into a chem class is a good thing.</p></li>
<li><p>Study groups are great, but don’t group with people who are less intelligent/ambitious than you. I’m sorry that it needs to be said, but its true. If someone isn’t there to do well in the class, then they probably aren’t going to benefit you. Nothing personal, but if they’re not helping you’re better off studying alone.</p></li>
<li><p>Just don’t buy a new/expensive bike. Everyone says get a U-lock, which is the best lock, but locks don’t prevent bike theft, they just make it more difficult for the thief. Thieves could easily steal the front tire, back tire, or just the frame from an expensive bike. So unless you care a whole lot about looking fly on your bike, just get something that works. Oh yeah, and cruisers take up way too much space in the parking areas.</p></li>
<li><p>Late night cookies are the best. </p></li>
<li><p>Join some clubs, but find something that works for you. I really suggest checking out RHAB or RHJB. Had a great experience with RHAB and got them to add chocolate chip pancakes to the menu, among other things. Did I mention free theme test meals for members?</p></li>
</ol>
<p>more as I think of it…</p>
<p>^ may i ask what RHAB/RHBJ are? </p>
<p>i’ll be starting my first year at ucd this september as junior…these tips are helpful. thanks y’all.</p>
<p>tips for transfer too</p>
<p>@chailatte</p>
<p>Np, RHAB = Residence Hall Advisory Board. Basically if you have a complaint/compliment/or something you want changed then its great. And shhh but there are lots of perks to the group, which you’ll have to participate in to see lol. Even as a 1st year transfer you can join this group, as there were a few in RHAB last year.</p>
<p>RHJB= Residence Hall Judicial Board. I’m pretty sure its generally just for 1st year freshmen. Its a peer review board for student housing policy violations. Both of these groups are a little more serious than typical frats/sororities, but still fun and I had some good experiences with them.</p>
<p>@IamJ00 and jr transfers in general:</p>
<p>I don’t have a similar experience to give you much advice on that BUT I will say that if you are living in the transfer dorms then be VERY aware of the student housing policy on alcohol. Even if you are 21 you cannot have it open in a dorm with people who are underage, and even if it isn’t yours YOU are responsible being of legal age. Can’t tell you how many times people weren’t aware of this.</p>
<p>Another thing, if you smoke certain dorm policy agreements/laws force you to clear a certain distance from the dorm to light up. I think its something like 50 meters, but don’t quote me on that, read the housing agreement to find the specific distance.</p>
<p>Lastly, student housing doesn’t care if you have a medical marijuana license. If you are caught, they’re calling the cops and your housing policy agreement may be void.</p>
<p>^ and if you are careless enough to be caught smoking weed in the dorms and the cops get called, they can’t do anything if you keep your door closed. even if the hall outside reeks and they know you’re inside your room, just hole up for as long as it takes. you may get in trouble with the RA who called but you will probably not get in trouble with the cops. cops are a lot worse.
this happened to me three times and i never got in any real trouble; my RA just told me to be more careful and the cops never even saw my face although they were pounding on my door and yelling at me.</p>
<p>How does the RA handle it if you’re caught with alcohol?</p>
<p>I read there’s a strict policy on alcohol such as the no open can bottles and stuff. No drinking on campus? it’s much like UCSD but has a lot more greek life so get involved with frat row?</p>
<ol>
<li><p>USE YOUR SWIPES. seriously. i ended up with 30-something swipes at the end of the year… >>; </p></li>
<li><p>make friends outside of your dorm. didn’t do it, and now regret it. 
dramu can really f-ck things up when you run mostly in one group of friends.</p></li>
<li><p>socialize, socialize, socialize. yes, it’s great to reach the goal at the end… but who cares if you have no one to share it with? get involved!</p></li>
<li><p>late-night at the DC = the best.</p></li>
<li><p>want to join a frat/sorority? JOIN NOW.</p></li>
<li><p>go meet with your major adviser as early as possible (beginning of winter quarter). why? because then, your major adviser won’t tell you (as you’re ending your first year) “OH BEE TEE DUBS, YOU BEHIND!!1!”</p></li>
<li><p>CAPS = amazing. use it if you need it! don’t be afraid to ask for help. :)</p></li>
<li><p>you have eye and dental insurance through SHIP. again, use it.</p></li>
<li><p>the ARC is amazing, and so is andrea khoo. she will kick your ass into shape. <3</p></li>
<li><p>ratemyprofessor is generally accurate, but not always. sometimes you get really ****ty easy professors, and the hard ones are rated really poorly simply because they’re hard. still, if 300 people say a certain prof = bad, run like the wind!</p></li>
<li><p>play sardines in the death star. :)</p></li>
<li><p>enjoy dorm life… because you’ll miss it. i know i do. :(</p></li>
</ol>
<p>lol I like the nicknames that places get - not sure whether I think the dungeon is funnier or the death star.</p>
<p>@socaloc i think you can look online for that… but you’ll probably just get written up. don’t worry about it unless it’s multiple times
@Helpmepleasee yes, there is no drinking allowed on campus. but it’s a college town. you could easily get drunk every weekend and never drink on campus. just keep in mind what i said about quiet hours and you should be fine if you choose to pregame in your dorm with friends. i don’t advise partying in the dorms.</p>
<p>I recommend that freshmen check out Greek life. I wish I had gotten involved with Greek life earlier since it is a fantastic way to meet people and it makes the huge UCD student body seem a lot more intimate even just by participating in Greek life recruitment events.</p>
<p>UCD Greek life website: [UC</a> Davis Greek Life, A Unit of Student Housing](<a href=“http://greeklife.ucdavis.edu/]UC”>http://greeklife.ucdavis.edu/)</p>
<p>UC Davis Panhellenic Sororities: [University</a> of California - Davis, PHC](<a href=“http://www.davis-panhellenic.com%5DUniversity”>http://www.davis-panhellenic.com)</p>
<p>YouTube video for UC Davis sorority recruitment: [GO</a> GREEK AT UC DAVIS 2011! - YouTube](<a href=“GO GREEK AT UC DAVIS 2011! - YouTube”>GO GREEK AT UC DAVIS 2011! - YouTube)</p>