It’s July again, and college assignments for the incoming freshmen are out. I’ve seen proud declarations from newly minted Sidizens, Hanszenites, and Duncaroos (but no Will Ricers yet … where ARE you people?)
Regardless of what college you were sorted into, if you’re reading this and you are part of the class of 2016 (2017 if you’re unlucky or in architecture), congratulations! From the bottom of my heart. I know you’ll love your new home.
All this commotion has got me to thinking about my own entrance into the world of Brown almost exactly a year ago, and my own O-week experience in August of 2011. I was so young then, so innocent, so … skinny. I thought I knew what I needed to know to get by, but goodness, I couldn’t have been more wrong. In a way that made my first year more fun … however, there are still certain things I did during freshman year that make me want to disappear under the bed when I think back on them.
Therefore, for your education and/or amusement, I present to you the ten most important things I learned during my freshman year:
1. Your Roommate Is Your Best Friend.
Seriously, you guys. This is the number one most important thing you have to remember. You also have to remember that your roommate has most likely had little or no experience with long-term roommates, and s/he is as nervous as you are.
Roommates at Rice are generally well matched; this doesn’t mean that there aren’t some bad matches, however. If you just absolutely hate your roommate, talk to him/her right away, or if that doesn’t help, go to your masters and they’ll help you work it out.
The reason that it’s important to do this immediately is because your roommate really does end up becoming your best friend. S/he is the first to know if you’re sick or upset or having trouble with friends or in school, and at least in my situation, she’s the first person I come to with my problems. Your roommate may not be one of those friends you hang out with in the outside world, but when it comes to the most difficult and personal of problems, s/he is always going to have your back … even if s/he just wants to shut you up so s/he can get some sleep.
This also, sadly, means you have to be nice to your roommate, barring a few stress-related or hormonally charged snaps. You do not want an unresolved argument chilling the atmosphere in your room, and you certainly don’t want someone who is angry at you sharing your sleeping space.
2. You Will Fail Your First Midterm.
My first midterm was in Psych 101. I managed to get a 90% (it WAS a 90, stupid TA who didn’t round up the .55%) but the next midterm, Chem 121, was a killer. I had never, ever, ever, gotten anything less than a B on a test in high school, and suddenly there I was, looking at this tiny red 60 on my score sheet. Basically everyone got a bad grade on that first exam. It was horrible. Smart kids weeping everywhere, drowning their sorrows in ice cream.
My advice? Study your butt off for that first midterm, but don’t be surprised if you get a worse grade than you were expecting. Studying for college isn’t like studying in high school; you need to understand the concepts more than just slugging through busy work, and finding a study plan that works for you is more a process of trial and error than anything else.
Here are some things that failing a midterm doesn’t mean:
- You will fail the course.
- You will be put on probation.
- You will get kicked out of school.
- You’ll never get into grad/med school.
- You’re stupid/unworthy/useless.
As my master once said about my CHEM midterm, “Your CHEM grade is important – but is just a grade, and so is a very very poor indicator of your intelligence and a completely useless indicator of your worth.”
So don’t sweat it. Put that midterm aside and go downstairs and have some tea and a chat with a friend. Think about it – with three midterms a class and eight classes a year, that’s ninety-six midterms. And you just completed one. Calm yo’self.
3. Get Enough Sleep.
I get at least eight hours of sleep a night. Every night. I don’t understand people who use the night as their free time. It makes sense if you’re studying, cramming, or trying to finish homework, but if you budget your time wisely you’ll see that all-nighters become few and far between.
More sleep means less stress, more retained information, more energy, less weight gain, and a happier mood overall. Better grades? Well, there have been a few studies linking consistent procrastination to poorer GPA’S, but I’m too lazy to dig them up right now. I’ll do it later.
4. The Other Colleges Aren’t Really That Bad.
I love Beer Bike as much as the next girl, but sometimes intercollegiate rivalry can get a bit out of hand (particularly when fueled by alcohol.) Here’s the straight up truth – all of the colleges are filled with a mix of great, smart, friendly people, and … well … bad apples. (Truthfully, though, I’ve met very few “bad apples” at Rice.) Yes, Martel IS a college, Will Rice DOES have nice people, and Jones, while they may be ardent animal lovers, respects all creatures’ right to bodily integrity.
When you hear anti-cheers directed at your college, sometimes it’s hard not to leap a tree and just go for that depraved heathen. But control yourself. Anti-cheers are less the actions of a bully and more those of an annoying but loving sibling. And you know what my favorite part of cheer rally is? When all those asinine college cheers and anti-cheers stop and everyone starts up “RICE, FIGHT. NE-VER DIE.”
Because above all, we’re Rice. And we can take comfort in the fact that, working together, all of us colleges can beat the crap out of Texas A&M any day.
5. Your Professors Are Human.
Let me begin with a charming anecdote about my first (and hopefully, only) 200-level social sciences course, ASIA 212 (Perspectives on Modern Asia.) I, being a science major used to writing cut-and-dry descriptions of gel electrophoresis, was extremely nervous sitting in that class on the first day of school. As the deadline for the first essay approached, I remained tongue-tied (finger-tied?) I decided to go to a student organization meeting one night, just to get away from the blank Word document, and what did I find?
One of my ASIA 212 professors!
We only talked for about ten minutes, but at the end of that time I felt so much more confident about the course. He gave me advice and told me I’d do fine (“most students get high B’s or above,”) and the best part was, when I got home, I sat down at my desk, imagined I was telling him all about what I’d learned so far in the class, and the words just poured forth.
I was lucky with my chemistry professor, too. I stormed into his office one day, intending to give him a piece of my mind, and instead sat down and burst into tears. We talked for perhaps half an hour, enough for him to remember my name and call on me when he saw my hand in class.
As you can tell, I really love my professors and I hope to keep in touch with all of them, even though I no longer take their classes. It’s a huge bonus to you and your professor if you take the time to go to their office hours and ask questions in class. You’ll learn more in an active environment, and you’ll show the professor that you’re interested in his/her subject, and the professor gains a new friend!
Yes, it’s true! You can become friends with your professors, especially at Rice, where the classes are so small. And it’s an incredible experience if you do. Any given professor has gone through years and years of education to get to where s/he is today, and is so in love with his/her area of expertise that s/he could talk about it for hours, so if you have a question – any question at all – trust me. Go to the office hour. In fact … run there.
