Getting a degree is hard work! And that’s often compounded by being in a new place, in a new city, and in surroundings quite unlike anything you’ve experienced before. So we looked for the best advice from the people who know — student bloggers who have been there and have some savvy knowledge to share. Follow these tips from 10 top student bloggers to survive entering college or university.
We’ve just put excerpts below in alphabetical order, but if you’d like to read more (which we recommend) and follow the bloggers (which we highly recommend) we’ve added the links to each of their blogs.
As a mother whose child is just about to enter university, we found these tips and blogs to be invaluable help for how to survive entering college or university. My daughter feels she is getting some great inside knowledge, and already knows about the strategies — and pitfalls to watch out for!
How to choose: student loan vs scholarship vs private finance
Survive entering college or university: top student bloggers’ advice
Aimée Perera (Penn Graduate School of Education)
Here are a few top tips that I have picked up during my time here at Penn for survive entering college or university — and not just surviving, but also thriving.
Survive:
1. Stay full and caffeinated
2. Stay healthy
3. Seek Help: If you feel overwhelmed with class work and assignments, don’t be afraid seek help from your professors, they are very understanding and more than happy to support and help you.
Thrive:
1. Go beyond your program
2. Get involved
3. Get to know the city.
Andrew Chan (Caltech) I Think I Chan
Caltech Prefrosh Experience! This is admissions’ huge event for admitted students that they put on every year. Because I work as an admissions fellow, I did all sorts of fun work during this event. It all started on Sunday when I was picking students up from the airport. This was a great experience as it allowed for lots of personal interactions with the admitted students, and I felt like I was able to get to know them and help in their admissions decisions.
Ciara (Caltech) Triene to Graduate
(Re grad admissions/visiting weekends). After all of the fun has been had (and you rack up all those nice airline miles), you are given about a month to make a final decision. April 15 is what is known as decision day for grad schools. (I believe it is May 1 for undergrad…goodness, that seems so long ago now…)
The most intense part about deciding where to go to schools (and I think this can be said for undergrad as well as grad school) is knowing that you are turning down good offers. The common phrases that get thrown around are “there is no bad decision” and “they are all good schools.” To put things in perspective, when I narrowed down my list of schools that I would truly be interested in attending after the visit weekends, I was left with Berkeley, Harvard, Princeton, and Stanford. Rejecting any of those schools just seems wrong! But, the reality is, you can only attend one, so rejections will have to happen.
Courtney Weiner (University of Glasgow, Scotland)
If I’m being honest… the honeymoon phase is real. The honeymoon phase ends. And it ended for me the day after I moved into University of Glasgow. Out of nowhere, I was just sad. I wanted to go home. I was wondering what I got myself into. Here are just a few tricks to keep in mind at the beginning of a semester abroad:
1. Anticipate It Coming
2. Think of What’s to Come
3. Talk to Friends and Family
Helen (Christy) David (University of San Francisco)
I’m the type of person that always jumps head first into everything- new experiences and all of the challenges that come along with them have always been exciting to me, but I think that as important as challenging oneself is, so is recognizing your limits and being able to take a step back. … I’m adapting the philosophy of “when one door closes another one opens,” there are so many different opportunities, and I am excited to see what’s in store for the next chapter!
Jessi Peters (Southern Illinois University, Edwardsville)
On the first day of classes, SIUE faculty and staff are located all across campus holding signs that say “Ask Me” on them. And they mean just that. These people were there to make sure I found my classes so I could avoid the “deer-in-headlights” look. This is definitely an advantage of going to SIUE. Everyone cares so much about the students.
Laura Layton (Latrobe University)
So, a couple of rules. One, do not feed the ducks unless you always want a crowd of them around you. Also, familiarise yourself with the doors and the entries and exits to the major venues, like the Library. You do not want to be the first year that face-plants straight into the glass door.
Lila Zuckermann (Seattle University)
These tips and tricks helped me adjust:
Eating regular meals with friends every day. My classes might have been different, but I could still get a burger with friends at 6pm at C St exactly like I did the previous quarter.
Exercising. The first week of class always feels off, as there’s no assignments yet but you know they’re all coming. On most days it was too cold or rainy to go walk outside, so I went to the gym.
Capitalizing on free time. When I did have less homework in the beginning I used that time to go out and explore Seattle.
Reginald Pulley (Catawba College)
During my freshman year, multiple opportunities were presented to me to help my development academically, socially, and for my life after Catawba. In my first year, I had the chance to help lead organizations on campus to gain leadership experience. I gravitated to the Student Government Association (SGA) and ran for Freshmen Class President. Being a Class President with that passion burning inside me opened up doors for me that I could have never imagined. SGA provided me with opportunities to serve the Catawba and the Salisbury community, then it allowed me to meet amazing people. Being a Class President, I took it upon myself to get to know as many people in my class as possible and be a representative for them. It allowed me to meet and connect with so many diverse groups of students. At the end of my freshman year, a lot of my colleagues in SGA believed in me enough to encourage me to run for SGA Executive Vice-President, and I won! Being the SGA Vice-President allows me to see Catawba from a different point of view that fosters a unique love for Catawba.
Vicki Chan (Duke University, Fuqua)
I was seven months pregnant when I attended Weekend for Women, and I decided to come to Fuqua when my daughter was two months old.
Going into my MBA program as a new mom, I knew I’d have the unwavering support of my partner, but I wasn’t counting on finding so many Fuquan parents eager to help. I was especially blown away by my fellow super-human mamas of Fuqua. I’m in constant awe of their smarts and insights in the classroom, their dedication to leadership in their community, and of course, their incredible love and patience with their families at home. I feel privileged to be their classmate and friend.
