College 101: Getting into the Groove

A new city, new school, new bed, new people, new experiences. How completely terrifying! Only the craziest of thrillseekers would think that all of that at once is fun.

However, I have a few tips for surviving those first scary weeks of college:

• If you live on campus (which you should your first year) eat in your dorm's dining hall.
• Participate in hall activities - this is such a great way to meet people who live near you who will be feeling the exact same homesickness as you.
• Familiarize yourself with campus before classes start. Grab a map and find all of the buildings where you have classes. Grab a buddy and walk out your routes.
• Find at least one "safety" person. It might be a roommate, teammate, or friend from high school. Having a safety person will allow you to have at least one person to hang out with, then as the two of you make friends you'll each make twice as many.
• Get to know the building where your adviser will be.
• Join up in a game of frisbee or hackey sack or just hang out on the lawn where other people seem to be congregating. Even if you're sitting alone with a book or homework, you'll probably look approachable.
• Find a group or social club to join and participate in different campus activities.
  
• Find a "buddy" in each of your classes. The first week of classes you'll notice the same people in some of your classes. Learn their names and that way you'll always have someone to sit next to or form a group.
• Have fun and do not hole up in your room. You may have the instinct to hide, but if you hide out the first few weeks of school you'll earn the label of unfriendly or hermit.
  

College is such an amazing experience, you shouldn't have to stress out about all of the little intricacies. Also remember to have fun, it gets easier each day!