Being a freshman is hard, believe me. I’m living my freshmen year right now and I’m only a semester in. I may not have had the best of times and had some major struggles the first three months of college but I know I have some helpful tips for incoming or current freshmen at UNH. If you follow the 50 tips below you can learn from my mistakes and have an unforgettable freshman year!
If you pick your roommates from the facebook page be sure you guys will get along either as friends or will work well together living together. Sometimes people aren’t who they say they are.
There is always going to be the situation where two roommates who get along while the other may not be as close with the other two. If you are the one who is left out do not worry! Your roommates do not need to be your best friends, you can meet new people. There may be a falling out between the other two and you become close friends with one your other roommates.
You may have so many fun things to do at first and going out with all new friends but plan ahead your work schedule. Get an agenda or a whiteboard and write down what is due on what day and plan for when you should do it.
You just came from high school probably just over your case of senioritis, do not be lazy! You will have a lot of work to do in a short amount of time. Do not put it off until the last minute like in high school, you will regret the all nighter you pulled when you have an 8 am.
You may be one of the fortunate ones who finds their click right away and you have all of these new friends, while the other half of you may not have found your click yet. Do not stress! Everything takes time, and you will find your group of people that better you and create memories with. It will come.
Depending on what meal plan you have you have a certain amount of dining dollars to use. Take it from me and budget yourself to about one hundred dollars a semester. Otherwise, you’ll be like me who started with $200 and now sitting, stressing with only $35 left.
Your RA can either be your best friend or your worst nightmare. At UNH I have heard nothing but good things about the RAs on campus and how involved they are trying to put together socials and make your floor feel like home.
Make sure to go to tailgates and the football games along with the D1 hockey games! Go with kids on your floor or friends from classes, you never know the fun things you might do or the new people you may meet. Going out and being apart of the UNH campus experience is a great way to get involved.
You’ve heard this a thousand times, and here is number one thousand and one. Joining clubs and organizations is a great way to meet people, have things to do during the week nights, and gets you out of your room and out and about around campus. If you’re looking for one that helps others, enables you to meet so many new people, Project Sunshine is a great club to get involved with on campus.
A great way to get to know people on your floor and people throughout your building is to join Hall Council. If you participated in Student Gov. in high school this is your chance to continue what you like to do. Even if Student Gov. wasn’t your scene in high school but you wanna try something new, they are welcoming to everyone!
In high school eating alone was seen as a bad thing, but in college eating alone is just a part of your everyday life. Sometimes your schedule doesn’t match up with your friends and you have to eat a bagel by yourself or some cold pasta at a table for one. You will be okay. The sooner you get over the fear of eating alone, the better.
Whether this applies to you because of a significant other or the first time you’ve away from your parents/guardians, it is hard for everyone. If you learn anything from this, remember to stay at school the first month. It will be hard and you will want to go home, but stay here at UNH and build friendships and get used to the new college atmosphere. Keep in contact with those most important to you, send gifts, facetime, anything to make you feel comfortable.
You don’t have to be best friends with every professor you have and you don’t have to be a teachers pet, just try and form some kind of relationship with them. Most specifically get to know the professor teaching the field you are most interested in. If they know who you are in a room full of kids they will be able to write recommendation letters, help you in certain areas you are struggling and it is good to know you are not just a number in a crowd full of students.
This is the most difficult thing about coming to college. You think the parties are going to be how they are in the movies, and sometimes they are and sometimes they simply are not. Also, if partying isn’t your thing don’t think you are the only one sitting in on a saturday night, you’re not. It may take some time but you will find your group of friends you feel comfortable going out with along the streets of Durham or you find your crowd of people to sit in and watch movies with. It’s all up to you, whatever you want your experience to be, you can make that happen, just give it time.
Sororities and Fraternities may seem like the most important thing when coming to college, but it’s not always that way. If you want to rush and join Greek Life, it is suggested not to do it your first semester just because it is so time consuming and you are still getting accustomed to life here at college but if you feel that you can do it, you go do it! Greek Life isn’t a must do to have a great time at UNH, it’s how you make of your experience here. It’s a great way to meet new people, but if that scene just simply is not for you, the world will not end. There are other ways to get involved and meet new people on campus.
When you pick your classes at orientation be extremely cautious of picking 8 and 9 ams. You may think that you can get up no problem because you got up at 6 am for high school…but trust me on this. Half way through the semester you will be dragging yourself out of bed and fighting the urge to stay warm and cozy under your blankets when the temperature reads 30 degrees.
At first, UNH may seem like this huge campus that is extremely overwhelming and you can’t imagine ever finding your classes. My advice to you, take your campus map and highlight the buildings you need to go to and find all of your classes. Walk around, go inside, look at your classroom or lecture hall, get a feel for what it will be like on the first day. I promise you will see other freshman with their maps out trying to find their classes as well, you will not be alone.
Along with finding your classes after the first couple of weeks once you are comfortable with finding your classes, try and take some back roads or through the woods to get to your classes more quickly. Special hint to those who live in the upper quad; cut through the woods behind Devine. You can get to the center of campus in 5 minutes. You can thank me later!
For both boys and girls don’t bring your warm clothes until Parents weekend or Thanksgiving. You won’t need it and you won’t have any storage space in your room. Girls- Bring only 3 pairs of jeans, I promise you will not need anymore than that. Boys- you barely own a lot of clothes any ways so this doesn’t really apply to you. Make sure to have basic school supplies, glue stick, scissors, extra paper, folders, paper clips, stapler. You never know when you will need something. Make sure to have extra tooth brush, tooth paste, makeup remover wipes, phone charger and headphones.
Depending on what you want your college experience to be like at UNH you do not need the same short sleeve shirt that you have in 3 different colors. You will not need all 15 pairs of sandals. Think about what you REALLY REALLY where, because if you do not wear it at home almost 85% sure you won’t wear it at school. Bring only 3 pairs of heels because I promise you, no one will notice if you wore the same pair last saturday. Again, boys you are usually not that complicated with clothes so this doesn’t really apply to you.
If you live by Stoke, Lord or by Paul College you will soon know this place like the back of your hand. Be aware of spending Cats Cashe or Dining Dollars, but this place will save your soul after a night out with friends or the morning after. Also, another special hint. Download Tapingo on the appstore. You can thank me later.
Make sure you are stocked with snacks when your parents drop you off because you will be hungry after 9 pm when all the dining halls are closed and you’re trying to save your money for a better time. Yes make sure you have chips, oreos, cookies, but also make sure you have breakfast bars for the morning walks to class and food that will hopefully fill you until you can get to the dining hall in the morning.
The dryer will shrink your clothes!!! Only dry the clothes that can be shrunk a little bit or are simply just soaking wet. Otherwise hang your clothes on a pop up rack in your room or around posts and on the closets in your room.
You don’t want too many clothes because you will definitely not wear them all and you won’t have any storage space, but what you want to do is make sure you have enough undergarments both boys and girls to be able to go a week and a half to two weeks without having to do your laundry.
While boys usually bring posters and a black or blue comforter girls usually try and coordinate colors and make their room look as cute as possible. Although that is fun, make sure you make your room feel as homey and as close to your room at home as possible because that room will be your second home for most of the year and you will want to feel comfortable and at home there.
You may meet some amazing people your first few months at college or in the first year but that doesn’t always mean they will be your best friends forever. That’s okay, freshman year is just the beginning and you will meet so many people throughout your fours years at UNH. Accept the fact there will be people who come into your life and stay while others may leave but it’s all for a reason.
When you go up for orientation try and open a bank account up at a local New Hampshire branch or open up a credit union account so you won’t get charged with service fees when you run out of cash after the first month.
While I am guilty of taking a nap after my morning class and sleeping until 12:30, I do not recommend taking one every day or late in the afternoon because you will not be able to fall asleep throwing your whole sleep cycle off. This will result in a difficult rest of the week for you.
It is a known thing that college students drink 2 maybe 3 cups of coffee a day to try and stay awake to study and even though it is so delicious all of that caffeine is unhealthy for you. An occasional coffee is okay if you are trying to stay awake and study for a big test, but really if you plan out your week and study 2-3 hours every day leading up to your test you won’t need to cram all night before.
On the third floor (main level when you walk in) in the Dimond Library all the way in the back there is a free service center where college students and graduates help you plan, write and edit your paper for any class.
You don’t need a big one, in fact a smaller one is better to hold your body wash, shampoo and conditioner. And please for everything holy in the world, WEAR SHOWER SHOES!!
Don’t do your homework in your bed, it makes you more tired and not motivated. If you have to do homework in your room sit at your desk or go to a study lounge in your hall or do it in the library where you can get everything done all at once.
Apply for a work study so you can get an on campus job and receive money for financial aid or apply for a part time job at Aroma Joes or Lexie’s burger restaurant. You will NEED money, and you will need it fast.
USE THEM! Going to office hours is also a great way to get to know your professor and usually you can get one on one time so you don’t get behind on what you are learning.
Within the first week you can spend up to $1,000 or more just on text books so I suggest renting them on the bookstore in the mub if you know you will not need that textbook for long. Also, go downtown to the second bookstore because they sometimes have cheaper books there for students.
Make sure you set your alarm for 5 minutes before you actually want to wake up because you know you will hit snooze and that way you won’t be late getting up and ready for class. DO NOT have your alarm or phone far away from you and not at reach, no one wants to hear that go off in the morning.
We all love to watch netflix cozy in bed before falling asleep but if your bedroom light is off staring at the screen will make you feel more awake because the light you are seeing will trigger your brain to thinking it is day time and you should be awake, not trying to go to bed.
If professors see that not a lot of students are in class that day they may give a test answer or an important hint that could help you on an upcoming test or assignment but your lazy butt couldn’t get up out of bed. Try your hardest to go to class, after all you are paying thousands and thousands of dollars to go to class.
It is definitely one of the most difficult things on campus with the Dairy Bar, unlimited buffets at the dining halls, delicious burgers and fries but you need to have a balanced diet. Of course treat yourself to some tasty foods now and then but remember to go to the gym, join exercise classes or simply go on walks around campus.
This is completely normal. There are so many classes, assignments, deadlines, obligations to keep track of including just some time to yourself. It’s important to learn how to deal with this early, if you start feeling stressed take a break. Don’t work yourself too hard!
Make the library your friend!! Go there between classes, find a study spot that works for you. You can go to the library with friends and meet new people, you’d be surprised the second floor can get prettyyyy crazy!
There will be times when your professors assign tedious work assignments but don’t try to take the easier way out, read the assigned pages and answer the questions thoroughly.
You may not realize this now but you will miss your mom, dad, whoever is important to you and make sure to keep in contact with them. As hard as this transition will be for you, it will be even harder for them. Call your loved ones spontaneously, check in with them and tell them you love them.
Don’t talk about all the cool things you did and how many parties you went to and all of your reckless stories, everyone has them and they may be special to you; but keep them to yourself.
With so many kids on campus all living in such close proximity everyone is bound to share some illnesses. Your first sickness away from home will be hard, but try and go to class, wash your hands, and if it progresses go to the clinic right before going down town.
Living with so many people in a dorm you never know what people’s intentions are. Always put your laptop, ipad, kindle away if you are not going to be in the room. Shut your door and don’t give your key, combination, or pad number to anyway no matter how close you are with them.
Whatever your intentions are with getting to know people, the best thing to steer clear of is getting involved with someone on your floor. You never know what can happen and it is best not to do anything that may complicate a relationship or friendship with someone you could see every day.
No matter what you are doing whether going out with some friends and having a fun night or just staying in and hanging out make sure you know your surroundings and in control of any situation. Anything can happen and you want to make sure you are with good people you can trust or you will be able to handle a situation on your own,
Your TA is just like you, they have done the sitting in a class, taking exams type of environment and are always willing to help. If your professor isn’t available they are the next best option for help!
You can go undeclared and find your passion. You can go in with a major and decide to change it. Or simply choose a major and have that be your passion and create a network for the rest of your life. Don’t feel pressured to do anything you don’t want to do, find your passion and stick with it!
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