# Tips for college freshmen **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [September 3, 2013, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tips-for-college-freshmen/667915 "2013-09-03T19:55:52Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2013, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tips-for-college-freshmen/667915/1 "2013-09-03T19:55:52Z")
[The Onion](http://onion.com/17JAsNC) posted some useful advice for those embarking on their college careers. Does anyone have something to add to the list? ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2013, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tips-for-college-freshmen/667915/2 "2013-09-03T20:09:41Z")
“Never eat anything you can’t pronounce.” No, wait, that’s the “Backpacking through Europe” advice. 🙂 Let’s see… Socially, college and university is among the best it ever gets. Enjoy! ---
**Author:** ![monstro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba9def/32.png) [@monstro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/monstro)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2013, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tips-for-college-freshmen/667915/3 "2013-09-03T20:19:55Z")
You might as well start crying now. You’re going to fail that calculus mid-term no matter how hard you study for it. And make sure when you go to the professor to get extra points, you make sure to remind him that you REALLY have to get an A out of the class. Remember to throw in your medical school aspirations. He will not have ever heard this. Your originality will convince him of your intellectual prowess. Make sure that when you talk to your parents, you always emphasize how poor you are. They will forget you don’t. Just make sure that you aren’t calling them on an expensive cell phone plan, from a swanky bar, and that you aren’t looking like you just fell out of an Ambercrombie & Fitch catalogue. ---
**Author:** ![Rilchiam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/2bfe46/32.png) [@Rilchiam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rilchiam)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2013, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tips-for-college-freshmen/667915/4 "2013-09-03T20:25:42Z")
On move-in day, wear shorts. There will be long lines at registration. This is not something to complain about. It’s a great way to meet people. Bring something to drink. Bring: Plastic tumblers, at least two boxes of tissues, Febreze, and a wall calendar. ---
**Author:** ![PSXer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/48db29/32.png) [@PSXer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PSXer)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2013, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tips-for-college-freshmen/667915/5 "2013-09-03T20:26:39Z")
Long lines at registration? Is this 1990? Now you only have to worry about the server going down on registration ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2013, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tips-for-college-freshmen/667915/6 "2013-09-03T20:29:35Z")
Sign up for as many 8am classes as possible. This will free up your afternoons for homework and studying. ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2013, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tips-for-college-freshmen/667915/7 "2013-09-04T14:02:41Z")
Ooh, good one. ---
**Author:** ![AaronX](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/7bcc69/32.png) [@AaronX](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AaronX)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2013, 2:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tips-for-college-freshmen/667915/8 "2013-09-04T14:17:20Z")
Start thinking of your résumé NOW. Even start writing it. Put your certificates in one place. Or 3 years now you’ll be wondering “when was I a leader?” ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2013, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tips-for-college-freshmen/667915/9 "2013-09-04T14:22:29Z")
The government expects everyone to default on their tuition loans and they forgive those as soon as you graduate, so make sure you borrow at least as much as the balance you have on all your low interest rate student credit cards. ---
**Author:** ![bouv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bc8723/32.png) [@bouv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bouv)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2013, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tips-for-college-freshmen/667915/10 "2013-09-04T14:29:38Z")
Uhhh…I think a few of you didn’t actually read the article in the OP. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Enright3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/enright3/32/2897_2.png) [@Enright3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enright3)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2013, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tips-for-college-freshmen/667915/11 "2013-09-04T15:03:30Z")
True story. When my wife was preparing for college she asked her sisters if they had any advice. Sister 1: “Bring a book with you to drop/add classes.” (this was in 1982, where you had to stand in line to enroll or drop out of a class) Sister 2: “Never go upstairs at a frat party.” ---
**Author:** ![tim-n-va](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tim-n-va/32/3001_2.png) [@tim-n-va](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tim-n-va)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2013, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tips-for-college-freshmen/667915/12 "2013-09-04T15:08:05Z")
The red light on the video camera means that it is off. ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2013, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tips-for-college-freshmen/667915/13 "2013-09-04T20:42:30Z")
You worked hard for that high school letterman’s jacket. Let your new friends know how cool you were, wear it every waking moment. Doubly so for the women.\* \*Yes, I really did have a student her wore her jacket freshman year. ---
**Author:** ![bouv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bc8723/32.png) [@bouv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bouv)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2013, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tips-for-college-freshmen/667915/14 "2013-09-04T21:05:36Z")
You don’t want to make too many new friends too soon. Be sure to head back home every weekend and hang out at your old high school as much as possible. ---
**Author:** ![Inner\_Stickler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inner_stickler/32/318_2.png) [@Inner\_Stickler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inner_Stickler)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2013, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tips-for-college-freshmen/667915/15 "2013-09-04T21:07:05Z")
Professors know how exciting and novel college can be so don’t worry about going to every single class. Just drop by their office every once in a while to see if you missed anything. And don’t worry about office hours. Those are for the lame students. ---
**Author:** ![bup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6bbea6/32.png) [@bup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bup)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2013, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tips-for-college-freshmen/667915/16 "2013-09-04T21:08:49Z")
Hang out near the high school closest to your college. It’s a great place to ‘ease into’ your college social life. ---
**Author:** ![Icarus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/icarus/32/72_2.png) [@Icarus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Icarus)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2013, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tips-for-college-freshmen/667915/17 "2013-09-04T21:11:26Z")
For men - What better way to learn about women than to major in Women’s Studies? ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2013, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tips-for-college-freshmen/667915/18 "2013-09-04T21:25:04Z")
> [@Icarus](#): > > For men - What better way to learn about women than to major in Women’s Studies? Women’s Studies classes are the easiest places to pick up chicks! ---
**Author:** ![Icarus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/icarus/32/72_2.png) [@Icarus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Icarus)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2013, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tips-for-college-freshmen/667915/19 "2013-09-04T22:04:22Z")
> [@Shagnasty](#): > > Women’s Studies classes are the easiest places to pick up chicks! …that’s what SHE said! :eek: ---
**Author:** ![EmilyG](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/emilyg/32/364_2.png) [@EmilyG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EmilyG)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2013, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tips-for-college-freshmen/667915/20 "2013-09-04T22:20:53Z")
If you think you’ll fail a class, don’t stay in the class just because the professor is hot. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tips-for-college-freshmen/667915.md?page=2)