Just so you don’t freak out and quit school after the first week, here are a couple of things you should know.Rule number one – Get to know your professors. They all grade differently. The literature teacher that will give you an A and think that your research paper was brilliant will be nothing like the history teacher that will fail you because your final paper was the worst piece of garbage he’s ever read.Rule number two – Eat healthy. French Fries are potatoes, but that doesn’t mean that they are good for you. And if your louse of a roommate is making it harder for you by stealing all of your Nutri-Grain Bars, don’t eat pizza for breakfast instead. Rule number three – Know your friends. College is like real life only worse. So in addition to knowing who your true friends are, know who your true friend’s friends are. Know who your enemies are, and most importantly know who your roommate is bringing into your room. I had to have my credit card stolen to come to grips with this cruel reality.College could be a great experience. You have the utmost freedom, seemingly very little responsibility, and you are surrounded by the most attractive people you will ever see gathered in one place at one time. But if you’re in the majority, you will fail a class. If you’re in the minority, the rest of your grades will be good enough to keep you off academic probation until you can retake the class.Either way, rule number four- GO TO CLASS!Otherwise, you’ll miss a class because of a party you shouldn’t have gone to the night before, then because you’re hungry, then because it was too hot, then just because Tuesday isn’t a good day for you.A trend will start, and once again, you will fail.Which leads into my fifth and most important rule – Use your time wisely. Although I am an accomplished partygoer, and dater of very attractive black men, neither of those look good on my resume. So this year I will come to the verge of insomnia and death as I try to manage six things at once. Do your homework instead of watching those back-to-back episodes of South Park. Become a member of an honor society or an athletic team, so you won’t have to look back at your college years and say I was a loser. Have a good time, but participate, work hard, and don’t procrastinate. In conclusion, just follow these rules and have a good time; because I would hate to see you cleaning windows at Sunoco or Shell in 20 years.
Bridget Nance, 20, is a junior broadcast journalism student from Alexandria, Virginia.