That’s right, unlike most people, I had the opportunity to spend 12 semesters in college at TCU. While there, I had learned several things, but looking back realized that I learned something different every semester.
Semester 1: When you’re sick, go to the health center. I learned this lesson the hard way. The health center is free to go to, and if you’re sick they’ll get you on the right track with medicine and possibly rest. While missing class may seem like a bad idea, sometimes it is better in the long run because you can get healthy faster and study time is more effective.
Semester 2: Don’t be afraid to ask for help. Regardless of what area of life you need help in, there are people in your life who care about you and want to help. Rather than trying to put on a brave face for everyone, open up and talk with someone. Chances are, if they can’t help, they may know someone or somewhere that can, allowing you to get on with things sooner.
Semester 3: Make friends in your classes and form a study group. College isn’t high school. Chances are that even if you breezed through classes in high school, you won’t be able to in college. Having a group of friends that you can study with will help a lot when preparing for test or completing assignments in the more difficult classes.
Semester 4: If you’re struggling in a class, talk to the professor sooner, rather than later. If you start talking to professors as soon as you’re struggling they are more likely to help you and be less frustrated in the process. It also usually means that they have less work to do to help you understand everything (hence them being more willing and less frustrated).
Semester 5: Don’t study all the time, make time for fun. You will go crazy if you do nothing but study. Nothing says your friend group can’t be the same people as your study group, but make sure that y’all at least occasionally do something for fun.
Semester 6: Take classes for fun. While you obviously need to take classes for your major, use the core class requirements to take classes outside of your major that you think you may enjoy. You never know, you might discover a passion you never knew that could end up being a great minor or even second major.
Semester 7: Cooking is a lot cheaper (and healthier) than eating out. This is especially true if you live off campus. While cooking for one can be difficult, it’s easy to cook for a group. Try finding friends and taking turns cooking. That way less food is wasted and you get to enjoy being with friends.
Semester 8: Don’t have too much fun. Now while it is important to have fun sometimes, you do need to make sure to take care of your classes too. I saw more than one person I knew at TCU end up being kicked out of the school because of their grades due to them partying/playing video games/having all kinds of fun instead of going to classes or studying.
Semester 9: A good friend doesn’t always equal a good roommate. Just because you’re best friends doesn’t mean that you will get along when you try to live with each other. Sometimes when you don’t live together, the time you do spend together is more valuable and you stay better friends.
Semester 10: Take advantage of what your campus offers. From career fairs, the career center, and other various networking opportunities, universities do a lot to try to help you find a job after graduation. Make the time to go to these events and it will probably be well worth your time.
Semester 11: Get to know your professors. This is especially true for the professors within your major. If you know your professors, it makes it that much easier to ask for help if you need it. Even if you don’t need help in your classes, it is a good idea to get to know your professors because they are more likely to write recommendation letters for jobs or grad school when you need them.
Semester 12: You’ll never figure it all out. Without fail, every time you think you’ve figured everything out, something changes and you learn yet another lesson. This also applies to life in general: we will never stop learning!
Leilani Taylor Bird, UBC & TCU grad, Class of 2011
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