Once you have moved all of your stuff into your new dorm room and said your tearful goodbyes to your parents, you’re left to explore all of the opportunities that this school has to offer. 

The first few nights are usually spent meeting all of the other kids on your floor and getting acquainted with the campus. For most, this usually means experiencing Champaign’s nightlife for the first time.

Everyone knows that the first weekend on campus is hopping with new freshman eagerly going out at night to fraternity parties and the bars on Green Street, many for the first time. It’s a new experience to be able to stay out as late as you want and not have to worry about checking in with Mom and Dad. 

While you may feel like college is going to be the best time of your life (and don’t get me wrong – it definitely is), your first nights on campus can mislead you as to why you’re at college in the first place. 

When the first Monday rolls around, you will realize that you actually have classes to attend. After indulging in all the great nightlife options at U of I, it can be hard to flip your brain into study mode and prepare for the beginning of your academic career. 

As someone who has gone through the trials and tribulations of freshman move in week, I know first hand the struggle of waking up for your first 8 a.m. lecture. Although early morning classes may not get easier as the year goes on, here are my tips on surviving your first day of classes:

Walk your schedule the day before

This is probably the most important piece of advice I received when I first got to campus. I was one of those students who didn’t look at his schedule until the Sunday before classes began, thinking that by simply Googling what buildings they were in would be enough. 

However, the night before classes, a couple of friends on my floor convinced me to walk with them to all the buildings we each had classes in the next day. This proved to be the smartest thing I could have done, because I didn’t realize how little I knew about the locations of buildings on campus. 

I learned that simply Googling buildings doesn’t cut it because sometimes Google can be wrong *gasp*. In my walk with my friends, I skipped one building because it was far away and I knew I could find it in the morning. Of course, when Monday morning came around, I spent 45 minutes running around trying to find the building and ended up being 15 minutes late to my first class in college.

Set multiple alarms

You may have looked at your schedule coming to campus and thought, “Wow! I don’t have any classes until 9, I can sleep in!” Sure, we all woke up before the sun came up in high school, but college is a whole different animal. 

There were plenty of times my freshman year where I slept through alarms and missed classes as late as 10 a.m. My roommate actually missed his first class on the first day because he slept through the one alarm he set. Always set multiple alarms at least an hour before your first class to give you enough time to actually get yourself out of bed, because everyone knows that’s the hardest part.

Write down test and due dates the first day

Most freshmen coming to campus have heard the term syllabus week. It refers to the first week of classes where professors usually just go over the course syllabus the first day of class and let you out early. 

If you’re like me, you’ll stuff your syllabus into your backpack the second you get let out and never look at it again until midterms start coming around. However, it’s extremely important to actually read through the syllabus.

Most classes lay out the curriculum week-by-week in the syllabus, including due dates for projects and when the tests will take place. You should have some sort of planner where you can write down these dates right away so you’re not stuck opening up your syllabus four weeks into class only to realize you have a midterm in two days.

Jason is a Junior in Media. 
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