Dear First Years,

After teaching first year college students for almost three decades, I thought I would share 25 tips I believe can help you make the most of your first year of college.

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Go to Class and Do the Work

You really only have about three or so committed hours per day in class – a little more if you have lab or studio-based courses. The credit hour system works in such a way that you are expected to do twice as much work outside of class as the class meets per week. So, if a 3-credit course meets three hours per week, you should be doing about six hours of work outside class per week for that course. Some classes will take more time outside of class than others, so try to keep in mind that some classes will require more than six hours of work; use this as a baseline. Many first years miss this. 

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Strike a Work/Play Balance 

Have a great time making new friends. One of the best things about college is the social growth that takes place, but strike a balance between coursework and socializing. You have to make the decision for yourself whether going out is the best option for you. While it's important to have fun and be with friends, your course work should remain a top priority. Some students in other majors at your college or university may have a very different course load than you, so understand that you make the choice for yourself, considering the work you have to do. College life tends to have students up quite late. Remember that 8:00 AM really isn’t all that early if you look back at high school. Your professors don’t care when you go to bed. They expect you to be ready to work.

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Take Charge and Own Your Experience

This one is short and simple, and you have probably heard it before. No doubt, Covid complicated a lot of things, but the bottom line is that college is what you make of it. If you put a lot into it, you will get a lot back. If you choose to miss class, remember that a lot of people aren’t making that choice; you might not see what they do, but they are putting in the work. You can coast through, or not. Remember, that’s a choice.

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Understand Course Expectations

Read all your course Syllabi, continually throughout the semester. Professors put a lot of time into getting a course syllabus just right. The syllabus not only tells you what will be covered, it is intended to provide a very good idea of what the professor expects from you regarding course objectives and learning outcomes. Read it periodically, especially at the beginning of the semester and shortly before mid-term. You’ll see that it makes more sense as the semester goes on. Ask yourself if you’re meeting the professor’s stated expectations, and be sure to know exactly when things are due. An assignment will still be due in a few weeks if it’s on the course schedule, even if you don’t talk about it in class. Read the syllabus again before the final push at the end of the semester and be sure to review the course objectives. Self-assess by asking how well you are meeting the course objectives and learning outcomes. If you have concerns about your performance in a class, make an appointment with the professor while there is still time to improve your work. Use your syllabus and use your professor as a resource – some courses have TAs, and you can form study groups with peers. Use these resources to understand the material…and get a grade that reflects the commitment you made to the course.

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Plan Ahead, and Plan Well

Plan ahead so work doesn’t creep up on you. Check out the course expectations on the syllabus: is your grade is going to be based on exams, papers, participation, etc.? Many first years will look at a course schedule and see they’re only responsible for readings in the weeks before a paper or exam is due. Work is not given to you in small, continuous chunks, as it is in high school. You are jeopardizing your success if you don’t take advantage of the time you have to both spread out that reading (and read deeply) and plan out the paper/exam. Professors will sometimes look at drafts of papers, if you ask them. You really want to avoid putting off the reading until the last moment before a test or paper. If the syllabus says you’re going to cover a reading during a particular class, read and annotate, and go to class prepared to discuss the reading by having some questions or comments on hand. When it comes to writing papers, you don’t want to resort to an all-night paper session that ends up yielding a mediocre first draft rather than finished paper. Professors see right through last minute work.

Use a calendar. Paper planners can get lost, so consider keeping an electronic calendar that syncs deadlines between your phone and computer. Some professors now enter assignments as calendar entries, so you may find a deadline will automatically enter your electronic calendar. Enter all your course meeting times to repeat weekly until the end of the semester. Use a different color for each course. Enter study blocks at times of day when you will do your outside work (remember, study time is double the amount of time you are in class). Enter all assignment deadlines so you can plan ahead. Review your calendar daily and stay on top of your responsibilities.

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Make Connections With Faculty

Go up to your professor after class during the first week and just introduce yourself. Depending on the size of the course, this might be difficult so might go see each professor during office hours. I know this one may feel uncomfortable to you. It’s good to check in when you aren’t sure about a paper or exam, but also make the effort to simply introduce yourself. Professors want to know you or they wouldn’t be teaching college. They really enjoy when students just say hello and share how things are going. Professors are usually very laid back people, even if they take their work seriously and expect the same from you. So, put yourself out there.

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Contribute in Class

Try to offer one sincere observation or perspective during most class meetings, especially in small classes. This is difficult in large lecture courses, but you can engage your professors outside class. This is really hard sometimes because you might feel embarrassed, but it feels really good to contribute. Doing so will make you more comfortable and a more successful student. People care less about what you're saying than you think. The more you talk, the more comfortable you become. Some people naturally feel more comfortable speaking in class. Don’t “over contribute” by dominating the conversation, but don’t completely hang back either. Be open to other points of view, even if those views clash with the values you currently hold. Listen with generosity. Listen to learn. And if you really can’t get yourself to speak in class, share your observations with professors outside of class. Stay for a few minutes after class or drop your professor an email saying that you aren’t yet comfortable speaking in class, but that you wanted to offer a comment on what was discussed. Be an active participant. This is really important.

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Look at School as Your Job

It’s not technically a “job,” but look at college as a pre-professional experience designed to give you the skills to navigate the world beyond college. Be professional. Conduct yourself as you would at a job. Learn how to make yourself clear, and be sure to take yourself seriously. Be honest with yourself about whether you are putting your best into the things you do. If you are expected to collaborate on course projects, honor the fact that your peers’ success depends on you. It can be really frustrating when your group members aren't prepared to work with you on a project. If you’re working in a group, put in the effort in so it’s fair for all.  Don’t make excuses if you aren’t fully prepared. If you don’t fully understand what is expected of you, or if you don’t understand the concepts being presented, it’s up to you to get the support you need.

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Present Yourself Well When You Communicate

When you write to your professor, your academic advisor, or perhaps the Career Center or Registrar’s Office, remember that you aren’t texting a friend. Email is the primary medium for communication that unifies the business being done on campus. Email should carry a tone that is more serious than texting or posting online. Use appropriate language. Ask your friends to review drafts of important emails. You will learn quickly which of your friends can help you with grammar and style issues so your emails are professional.  If you write an email from your phone, format it as if it were composed on your computer. And always start with “Dear Professor,” not “Hey, There!” You don’t have to sound wooden, but remember that composing an email is an expression of your professional self. Present yourself in the way you want people to see you. So, this means you have to check email regularly and respond in a timely and professional way.

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Be Okay With Being Confused 

Expect to be a bit all over the place. If you are going to grow into a new person beyond the daily influence of your family and your high school, you have got to let go of old ideas. This is challenging. It’s okay to be confused, unsettled, and even bit nostalgic for high school. Stay in touch with people from home, but don’t slip back into high school mode by going home too often or spending too much time alone in your room on social media. You had your high school world pretty well figured out. It’s important to stay grounded; don’t forget to call your family members and stay in touch with your old friends, but definitely try to dive in and fully lean into your new experience. In time, your college world will also become clear. Be patient and stay with it. You are going to know some people this year who just weren’t quite ready to go to college. They may really struggle, and some may consider leaving school. Remember that you could be them, so try to help them feel like valued members of your community. And reach out to international students in a genuine way. If you think you feel disoriented, imagine how they feel navigating a new culture. Commuter students don’t have dorm life to help cement friendships, so make space for them, too. You have a lot to learn from each other.

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Be A Good Community Member 

Appreciate the people you live with. It’s easy to expect things to be the same as they were when you were living at home, but living with strangers means that some of your habits are just as unfamiliar to others as their habits are to you. Keep this in mind. Share, be generous, and look for common ground. If you live on campus, treat people in your dorm as you wish to be treated. Moving into a dorm with another person you don't know can be unnerving, but it's an opportunity to practice respectful ways to settle difference and meet new people. It’s important to be a good roommate and put yourself out there. If your attitude is that things have to be your way or no way, you have to develop an attitude of mutual respect. Remember that most disagreements are really differences in the way people see the world.

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Always Get Consent 

This one’s really important. If you haven’t already, you will talk a lot about this during orientation. Don’t do anything if you question whether the other person is really into it. There is zero leeway here. Consent is consent. Yes means yes. No means no. Alcohol is not an excuse for crossing lines that aren’t yours to cross. At the same time, sometimes things can get really blurry. You are responsible for staying safe and not putting others in an unsafe position. Go to parties in groups and look out for each other. Commit to supporting your friends. If a non-consensual incident happens, don’t hesitate to report it. Again, support each other in staying safe.

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Appreciate the College Staff  

The food will probably get boring after a while, and the dorms are not 5-star hotels. Be appreciative of what you have. The people who work in college offices have your success in mind when they do their jobs . Thank them, and thank the people who work in the dining hall and the maintainers who keep the dorms clean. They deserve it. 

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Connect With Older Students 

Get to know sophomores and other older students who have been around the block. One of the best things you can do in college is ask for help and advice from older students so you can make sure you are on the right track. Listen to what older students have to say about college success. Avoid people who want to game the system and do as little as they can. This attitude always catches up with them. Instead, get advice on how to best navigate college. Older students are your guides.

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Self Advocate 

Solve your own problems. You’re in a carefully planned out college world with lots of guardrails in place, but it’s important to practice skills you’re going to need in the real world. Self advocacy is one of them. So is independence. When your parents say they will take care of something for you, tell them you are in college now and you need to figure it out yourself. Don’t let them call your professor, the department chair, or the dean. You can make those calls or book those appointments yourself. If you have an issue with a class, talk with your professor. If you have a problem with dorm life, talk with your RA or Head Resident. Your professors and the leaders of the college really want you to learn to advocate for yourself. And you should want to advocate for yourself. It can be difficult at first to feel comfortable handling things on your own, but you will realize that people want to help you. Once you get used to advocating for yourself, it becomes easier and helps you become more independent. Consider meeting with your advisor, or a professor who you click with, or even the Dean of Students if you’re just not sure how to approach a problem – then follow through and solve the issue at hand. This is a big one. Tell your parents you got this.

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Explore and Stretch

Don’t worry if you don’t know what you want to major in. Most 18-year-olds don’t. And if you do think you know, be prepared for the possibility of changing your mind. The whole idea of starting college is to poke around. Don’t let anyone make you feel inadequate because you’re not sure what you want to study. Explore courageously. Take courses that you feel are out of your comfort zone.

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Be Engaged and Respectful in Class 

Keep your phone away during class. Your professor assumes you aren’t engaged if you’re texting in class or have earbuds in. This isn’t a generational thing. A classroom is meant to be a space that engages a community in the present. Texting, listening to music, or responding to notifications on your laptop says that you don’t really care about what’s going on in that space. Even if you think professors don’t notice or care, they do. And they make note. Ultimately, this is a choice that you make for yourself. If you want to learn and put the effort into the class, pay attention. If it's an hour-long class, you're really not going to miss out on anything on your phone that won't be there after.

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Keep Your Priorities Right 

Join a club or two or play a sport, but don’t go crazy. It’s easy to be tempted to get really involved at first because extracurriculars are a great way to meet people and get involved with your school, but keep things in perspective. If you tell yourself you “have” to go to that meeting when you know you have a paper due the next day, you aren’t keeping your priorities straight. 

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Know How to Take Good Notes 

Take good notes. Don’t just copy down what the professor is saying, especially if they post their presentations online. There is growing evidence that you get much more out of hand-written notes than taking notes on a computer. Write down what you understand about the topic being discussed based on your own experience. Take notes with it in mind that you will need to look over them in a few weeks for an exam or paper; make sure they will make sense down the road. It’s pointless to get notes from a classmate if you miss a class. Unless the professor is just stating facts, these notes won’t do you any good. Good note taking means that you are able to understand what is said in class from your own perspective. It also means you can connect the material from one class meeting to other topics in the course, and that you can also make connections outside the course. It takes time to master this, but a good way to start is to avoid copying what someone else is saying and instead process what you hear through your own point of view. Ask questions in your notes. If something connects back to something said a week or two earlier, note that connection. This is how you develop critical thinking skills. One last point on this: research shows that taking notes by hand makes you more inclined to think about what the professor is saying – rather than just copying down what they are saying.

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Annotate Your Readings for Future Use 

Critically annotate every reading you do. Your books and readings should be filled with margin notes that can be used to help you prepare for papers and exams. Again, research suggests we read more critically and comprehend more when we read from paper rather than screens. If you read from a screen, be sure to annotate to the same degree as you would if you were reading off paper. There are apps for this. If that is difficult, print out your readings. Similar to note taking, the notes you take on your readings should make sense in a few weeks. Be able to summarize what you have read, but also be able to identify the main point of each paragraph and the main claim(s) of the overall reading. Then note how the reading applies to the wider course topics. Always have a question or comment on a reading prepared to bring to class. Don’t fake read by skimming without developing a command of what you have read. Avoid the feeling of not knowing what's going on because you didn't read and comprehend!

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Write Critically and Know How to Support a Thesis 

If you still don’t know exactly how to develop a thesis and support the main claims of a paper, get that information ASAP by making an appointment at the college’s Writing Center. Be clear whether you are writing an argumentative, persuasive, analytical, or thought paper. College writing is a fairly steep step up from high school, so expect to be challenged to make your ideas very clear. You may get some grades on assignments this year – most likely in the beginning of first semester – that will feel low, considering the effort you put in. Take your professor’s comments to heart (which means reading them carefully) – then work toward the new standard being presented to you. Consider making an appointment with your professor in order to get further clarification on the strengths and weaknesses of a paper. Look forward, not back. 

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Know Exactly What College Costs

Take the total tuition of your college and divide by 32. The number you get is the cost of attending college each week over freshman year. Ask yourself if you are making the best of this investment. 

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Take Care of Your Body and Mind 

Remember that pizza eaten in the middle of the night contains as many calories as pizza eaten during the day. Regular exercise is one of the most important ways you can combat both late-night snacking and stress. Exercising is a really great way to relieve stress, so even just asking a friend to go on a walk or a run is a great idea. You don't have to do anything crazy, but just try to get your body moving every day and try to make good decisions regarding the food you're eating – even if the dining hall food isn't great. In addition to regular exercise, consider a mindfulness practice, like meditation or breathing techniques, to keep you balanced. 

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Make Meaningful Connections and

Develop a Support Network

Reach out for support. Not only are your professors, advisors, student life professionals, counselors, and other staff available to you, they genuinely want to help make your first year a success. If needed, utilize the Writing Center, Math Center, and Student Academic support services, as well as health services and mental heath counseling. If you are someone who’s identity makes you a minority on campus or you need academic accommodations, know where on campus to go to feel a sense of community. This is really important when adjusting to a new school. Whenever you feel like you need a bit of home, just call someone up – it can really change the whole course of your day. Your peers are perhaps the most important part of your new support network. Being successful in college isn’t really about going about things by yourself. It’s about making the right choices in consultation with others who care about you. Show that same care to others. If you see a peer withdrawing, reach out to them with support. Your parents can certainly be part of your college support network, but it’s a good idea to start widening that network. Give and get support with generosity and value the connections you are making.

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Show Appreciation for This Opportunity 

Your parents or guardians are most likely having a hard me with this transition. It’s not simply that they will miss you. It’s that they know the choices you make, and the values you develop, are yours from this point forward. Their major work is done. When the time feels right, you may want to thank them.

I hope you have a great first year! 

-John Giordano, PhD, MFA

Thank you to Ramp’s 2023 summer interns, both of whom are former Ramp Coaching clients, for their contributions to the 25 Tips:

Simone Allen, University of Vermont, class of 2024

Skyler Moseley, University of Miami, class of 2026