It's that time of year again. Everyone is lamenting the end of summer (or maybe even are happy that stagnant period is gone) and are packing up to get ready for school. Maybe you’re already out and on your way shuffling the halls. Whether you’re living at home, in a dorm, or rooming with some flat mates and splitting the bills, your first year of college out of high school can be a mixture of exciting, scary, confusing, and stressful. This thread will do its best to ease some of the growing pains that come with the journey that is to be your school year. I will provide links (that may repeat advice given) that contain tips, sites to keep your wallet from drying up, and general guidelines to follow. [u][b]If you are living with the ‘rents[/b][/u] [spoiler]1. Do not feel ashamed or let anyone make you feel shame for doing this. Suck on that teat while you can (just don’t overdo it) 2. Get a job. ESPECIALLY if you’re living at home. You don’t have to pay dorm or apartment fees which allows you the best opportunity to save money. 3. Set up a bank account (both a checking and savings account) If you don’t have to pay for anything put at least 15%-20% of your earnings in the savings account and never touch them. They’ll gain interest and you’ll begin understanding the advantages of budgeting. 4. Have your parents teach you how to do your taxes if you don’t already know. Have them explain what every part of it means and what you should know. Ask them about mortgages (you don’t have to worry about it for a while and you may even forget most of it when it comes time, but you can get an understanding and make choices for the future around that knowledge) Ask them about anything you need to know about living on your own. [/spoiler] [u][b]Living in an apartment or dorm[/b][/u] [spoiler]1. Get a job. Yes, it’s really hard to juggle school, a possible commute, and a job but looking for something small can be ideal. (Dog sitting, baby sitting, mowing a few lawns even) If you’re living in an apartment though you’re going to want a real part time job. You’ve got rent, utilities, car insurance, phone bills, or anything else to shoulder. 2. Make a bank account. (Both checking and savings) Since you’re living in a dorm/apt your wallet may get strained so only put as much in your savings as is comfortable. 2-5% of your income, maybe. Don’t ever touch that money unless it’s an absolute emergency. This is not splurge or a cushion for you to spend that extra on Fallout 4 cuz you have 600 in your savings. It’s a cushion in case you’re in serious trouble. 3. Keep cash on you. You never know when you may need to take a bus, get stranded somewhere, a place doesn’t accept cards, or any other sort of emergency. 4. Communicate with the people you live with. And this carries on well beyond college. If you let little things that bother you build up they’ll turn into a fight. Someone may up and leave, which has you covering their share of finances. Do they leave a light on all the time? Let them know they should keep on that. AC too low? Talk to them about either keeping it higher or paying extra to support the cost of it. Seething creates nothing but trouble. 5. If you share the same interests as your flat/dorm mate see if you can work something out to help keep costs down. Maybe you both enjoy gaming. One person buys a copy and you share it. Small stuff like that 6. Keep your room and living area tidy. Make your damn bed. It seems pointless if you don’t already do it but it breeds healthy mind sets for better living. 7. If you’re living in a dorm have a good amount of clothes. Lots of lounge clothes and a bit of nicer stuff. You’ll be spending a lot of your time tired so comfort over fashion. [/spoiler] [u][b]General Tips No Matter Living Situations[/b][/u] [spoiler]1. Don’t study at home. Head out to the public library or stay on campus. Your home should create an environment of “home”. Studying where you sleep or rest can cause a detrimental mindset that inhibits learning behaviour. 2. If you listen to music while studying listen to instrumental/orchestral or classical. This can even be video game music (Elder Scrolls, Halo, Mass Effect, Bioshock Infinite, and many others have tracks that are good for calming vibes and promotion of brain functionality) 3. Find alternatives to buying text books directly from school. There will be professors who insist on buying a new copy of their version of a book and there’s not much you can do but comply but if you can help it there are tons of resources for free or discounted books. 4. Eat healthy. DO NOT resort to eating junk food, energy drinks, or hyping on caffeine. If you take in good amounts of water and fresh foods (yes protein can be difficult to cook or obtain in a dorm) you’ll be set. Opting for sugary or carb filled sustenance will make you feel tired and shitty. 5. Attend every class. Not only will you never know when a professor will drop important information but if you skip a few you’re apt to skip more until you don’t want to go at all. Creating firm discipline with yourself is an excellent practice. 6. Sleep regular hours and assign yourself a bed time. Having a schedule will keep you less stressed and on track. Skipping sleep to study or cram will hurt you more than help you. You’re less able to retain info if you’re groggy and not at 100% 7. LEARN. It’s not your goal to sponge info robotically. Don’t memorize. If you want any of what you gain from college to count you need to realize the difference between learning and collecting. 8. Meet people. Get outside. Explore. Attend events. A local band playing and you like music? Go try them out. A game night with a bunch of nerds? Yolo. Not only will you establish a healthy social relationship with other people but you’ll have more connections to help if you ever need it. More chances to call a ride, to get that assignment you forgot, to set up study sessions. 9. Don’t be ashamed if you can’t understand a subject. Some professors just don’t click. Get a friend to help or find a tutor. 10. Cut out gaming time. Make it a healthy hobby, not an addiction. 11. Check for stores that deliver groceries. You'll be surprised at how helpful it is. 12. Coupons! Groupons! No shame in saving money. 13. Back up your important files. Drop box, USBs, discs. Whatever you have to. It'll save you come the time you may get a virus. [/spoiler] [b]If you’ve done your time as a freshman don’t be afraid to speak up and give some words of wise to those starting out. Things you learned to do or avoid doing. Actions you would have done differently or perhaps even your experiences. [/b] [b][u]Tips From Kyuun[/u][/b] Here are my tips for living in dorms. [spoiler]Let your parents baby you while they're helping you move in, or spend some time with them before starting. Chances are, that will be the last time they treat you like their baby, give them that opportunity, it's intimate and real. I did, and my parents and I are a lot closer than when I was in high school. Don't overdo it on parties and drinking. Especially on a wet campus, you'll be exposed to a LOT of peer pressure if you're living in a dorm. Your dorm mates will drink, and ask you if you want to drink. If you do, first, look at the law. If you aren't 21 (in America), don't do it. From personal experience, I did, woke up the next morning with a splitting headache, and had to explain (read: bullshit) to the dean of my area of why I had a hangover. If you must (using that term loosely), drink a little only to loosen up. For guys, don't masturbate in the shower. That shit is nasty. If you have to let off a little steam and exercise your arm, clean up after yourself, please. Do your homework before playing around. Be the standard of your class, and try to be number 1. The dean will like it, your friends will like it, and you'll like it when you get that hard earned A. Sex. Don't get pressured into it. If you want to get laid, don't pay for it when/if your friends take you out to town. After you go at it, nothing is going to change. And please, if you do have sex in your dorm room, don't be loud. You'll just piss off your dorm mate because he won't get any sleep listening to you screaming like a yeti in the middle of the night. Don't borrow your roommate's soap unless you plan on replacing it for them. There's no shame in telling your friends and other people in your dorm that you're busy studying. They won't call you a nerd, a geek, or anything. They're going through the same exact thing you're going through. Clean up after yourself. Keep your room and every other room you go into clean. No one wants to walk into a room and slip on some oil and then bust their head open because you left the floor dirty. If there's a problem in your dorm, contact the RA or whoever is in charge of your dorm. Don't let that problem escalate, and be a nuisance later on down the road. This is all for living in dorm, and from personal experience. I'm living at home now with my parents, and it's a much better experience than what I had in dorms. I had a great time in my dorms, but there were times when my dorm mate would do some of the things that made my life a bit harder. Don't be that guy/girl who keeps your roommate up all night because you're getting lucky and they're not. It really screws up their schedule and will piss them off a lot.[/spoiler] [b][u]Helpful Links[/u][/b] [spoiler][url=https://www.malwarebytes.org]Malwarebytes[/url]: Virus Protection [url=https://www.dropbox.com/en/]DropBox[/url]: File backup and sharing [/spoiler]