Okay, you fucking teenagers or non-traditional students, today we’re going to talk about how to find a college (FYI, this is mostly for US students, because I don’t fucking know nothing about foreign colleges and AMURICA).
Use 2 notebooks when taking notes: one for in class and one for copying the notes at home. The one in class, make it messy with add-ins, subtext, etc etc! Take down as much info as you can. Then, after class, take those messy, hard-to-read notes and re-copy them into your home notebook. These are the ones you study off of so make them neat and clear to understand!
This got me my degree haha
1. Open Culture: Not a large a selection, but high quality texts. If you just want to skim a book to brush up on a course you took in ninth grade, download one of these. I have yet to be disappointed.
2. Book Boon: Provides free college-level textbooks in a PDF format. Probably the widest range of subjects on the web. The site is also pretty.
3. Flat World Knowledge: The worlds largest publisher of free and open college textbooks. Humanitie texts are particularly difficult to come by, this site has a great selection in all disciplines.
4. Textbook Revolution: Some of the books are PDF files, others are viewable online as e-books, or some are simply web sites containing course or multimedia content.
5. Library Pirate: I’ve always had an addiction to torrent based pirating. When this site opened a few months ago, I went a little overboard. After dropping two hundred on a paperback spanish textbook, I downloaded the ebook version illegally. I also got a great Psyc text i’m obsessed with. It will be interesting to see how this site grows- they already have a great selection.
College bookstores completely rip off their students, so ALWAYS reblog free textbooks!
college tips
- do not take 8 am classes
- dont take 3 hr classes that only meet once a week
- sleep
- when u write an essay pick out the quotes/examples u want and write the essay around it
- email ur teachers and meet with ur advisors regularly
- quizlet
- TRIPLE CHECK YOUR ALARMS
- bring tupperware to the dining hall to smuggle out extra food
- dont wear your lanyard around your neck
- try to group your classes together in back-to-back time blocks. you wont want to go back to class once you get home
- STAY ON TOP OF YOUR HOMEWORK EVEN IF THERE ARE OPEN DUE DATES
- when walking on the sidewalk keep all the way to the right especially if your pace is slow
- yes, sometimes we can hear the music through your earbuds. we really don’t care or mind
- try not to eat a whole bunch after 10PM, especially fatty foods like pizza or lots of pop. you’ll get stomach aches in the morning
- nerd clubs are 100% okay and there are tons of students who share your interests with you, you just have to look
- take out the fucking trash
-if you’re in a completely silent library, be courteous of others and don’t blare your music through your earbuds PLEASE
-always sit by plug outlets
-enjoy your time off
-keep a log of all passwords and usernames for online homework (YOU WILL HAVE ONLINE HOMEWORK)
-get a planner
-geT A PLANNER
-GET A PLANNER
-USE the planner
-ps 8ams aren’t that bad if it’s not every day
1. Leave your door open. If your door doesn’t stay open, find a way to open it. I know almost no one on my floor and I regret that.
2. The work is a lot different from high school. Make sure you have a study system that works.
3. Don’t be afraid to ask for help.
4. I have a lot of anxiety and it is hard for me to meet people. That’s why I try to do one thing everyday that scares me like eating in the dining hall alone or sitting in a coffee shop for a few hours. I wish I had started this earlier because I can already feel it helping.
5. No one knows what the fuck they are doing with their life. Don’t feel pressure to figure out your life your freshman year.
6. No one gives a fuck if you eat by yourself in the dining hall.
7. Join as many clubs as possible, even if you don’t think you are interested in the club. I joined a couple just because the people seemed cool.
8. Don’t rely on your roommate to make you friends.
9. Bring more storage. If you think you have enough, you don’t.
10. Call your parents. They miss you. Especially call them if you are the first to go to college because they are not used to this.
11. Don’t spend all your money on the sims. Especially before midterms.
Add on some more if you have any!
If you have any type of disability (mental or physical) register with the students with disabilities office. Even if you don’t think you need it, they can provide all sorts of accommodation. It’s nice to have.
College Packing Index Cards: Use these index cards as a college packing guide — you don’t have to bring everything on the list.
Holy shiiiiit. This just saved me so much time.
- just as much of a quality education as you would get at a state school or uni
- much more affordable
- usually more night classes that make going to school while working and/or taking care of kids much easier
- transfer students actually have a higher graduation rate than students who have been at a university all 4 years
- there is nothing wrong with aspiring to go to a community college
- there is nothing wrong with being proud of attending a community college
- there is absolutely nothing wrong with community college
SO HELP ME GOD YOU LITTLE SHITS BETTER USE FAFSA.GOV TO FILL OUT YOUR FUCKING FAFSA.
IF YOU PAY $88 TO FILE YOUR FAFSA AT FAFSA.COM, I WILL SMACK THE DUMB LOOK RIGHT OFF YOUR DAMN FACES. FAFSA.COM IS NOT AFFILIATED WITH THE US DEPARTMENT OF ED. THEY ARE BAD PEOPLE WHO WILL TAKE YOUR MONEY AND CHARGE YOU TO FILL OUT A FREE FORM. A FREE FUCKING FORM. FREE IS THE FIRST WORD IN THE ACRONYM!
.GOV IS LOVE. .COM IS A PUTRID POOL OF FUCKERY.
-THE VERY ANGRY SUDDEN ADULT
cheap things for school/college!!
remember: if you’re attending a school that gives you a .edu email address, you can upgrade your amazon.com account to prime for free by going on and choosing the college/student membership. that means you get the prime 2-day shipping and even some textbook discounts (not to mention AFAIK you enjoy the amazon instant access for free for the duration of your edu email being active)
well at least someone is looking out for students
1. Open Culture: Not a large a selection, but high quality texts. If you just want to skim a book to brush up on a course you took in ninth grade, download one of these. I have yet to be disappointed.
2. Book Boon: Provides free college-level textbooks in a PDF format. Probably the widest range of subjects on the web. The site is also pretty.
3. Flat World Knowledge: The worlds largest publisher of free and open college textbooks. Humanitie texts are particularly difficult to come by, this site has a great selection in all disciplines.
4. Textbook Revolution: Some of the books are PDF files, others are viewable online as e-books, or some are simply web sites containing course or multimedia content.
5. Library Pirate: I’ve always had an addiction to torrent based pirating. When this site opened a few months ago, I went a little overboard. After dropping two hundred on a paperback spanish textbook, I downloaded the ebook version illegally. I also got a great Psyc text i’m obsessed with. It will be interesting to see how this site grows- they already have a great selection.
College bookstores completely rip off their students, so ALWAYS reblog free textbooks!
any college packing tips? honestly anything you can think of.
yes, actually, leaRN FROM MY MISTAKES!
this is moderately long, but if you’re heading to college and you don’t know what all to take, this is my experiences and my recommendations. feel free to skim. this has ten points of the things i consider the MOST important!
Thank you this is great! Making notes right now.
i’ve also got some addendums!! coming from my undergrad/dorm experiences and my recent cross-country shithaul:
repeating what emma said, take only the bare minimum. if you’re decently close to your parents’ place, you can always pick up extra stuff on break or during a long weekend, or, worst comes to worst, ask your parents to mail you shit you forgot or didn’t realize you’d need.
1. appliances and electronics
some dorms allow appliances — fridges, microwaves, toasters, generally not stovetops/burners — so if you decide to get appliances, investin your appliances.get as high of quality appliances as you can afford. my undergrad university had a huge overflow problem with on-campus housing, and only first-year students lived in the dorms. period. when you were done with your first year, you had to move out. consider this when you’re buying things. look at that microwave or that coffee maker and make sure it’s something you’ll be able to use a few years down the road. i’ve had this teapot since 2010 and i just bought a toaster oven i know i can still be using in 20 years. again, like emma said, make sure you’ve got power strips and extension cords. your dorm room might have the world’s most inconvenient wall outlet, so be prepared for that. check if your dorm wants you to bring an ethernet cable — there might not be wifi. if your family has an old router, you could probably bring that and be the cool dorm that actually has wifi.
2. food/nutrition/health
this is less of a packing tip, but it’s really fucking important. please, please make sure to feed yourself to the best of your ability.the freshman fifteen thing is kind of a myth, but it’s definitely absolutely true that first-year college students take a nosedive in eating healthy. trust me, you won’t be able to function when you’re cramming and all you’ve had all day is ice cream and a pack of oreos. keep emergency snacks in your room. saltine crackers for when you’re feeling sick to your stomach, ramen for when you can’t afford anything else, protein bars, last-resort comfort food, things like that. this leads me right into first aid kits. first aid kits are important. you might not want to go to your RA at 2am for a bandaid when you cut your finger doing something embarrassing. also, if you can, keep condoms and emergency contraceptives in with your first aid stuff. like yeah, tee hee sex in college and all, but you seriously never know when you or a friend might end up in a Situation.
3. storage
storage. storage. storage. my bed was lofted to above my waist level when i was in the dorms and i fit literally fucking everything under there. winter clothes? throw them in a plastic tub under your bed. the hair curler you thought you’d use every day but it turns out you’re too lazy? bin. extra sheets? bin. non-perishable food? bin. i know emma said it, but yeah — under-bed storage is critical. your dorm might have extra lofting supplies for you to use; mine did.
4. seasonal stuff
i can’t really give advice here given that i’m a californian transplant in new york, but in any case, my family has a bunch of different down comforters in various “weights” because we used to live in minnesota. my mom offered me the normal “summer” comforter to take with me as well as the heavy-as-shit super-thick survive-an-arctic-winter comforter, and i ended up taking the heavy one because i’d much rather sleep under some blankets for the summer than be too cold to sleep in the winter. weigh your options, and find out if your dorm room has a thermostat you can control or not. i also don’t know how or when winter starts for you, but again, if you’re close enough to home, you might be able to leave some winter gear with your parents so that you can gauge your space and see what you can fit where during the warmer months.
5. “office supplies”
again, trying to keep it to the bare minimum, either bring school supplies with you or prepare yourself to buy some once you’re all moved in. i highly suggest notebooks over a binder full of loose-leaf paper (it’s just easier for me to keep track of) but that’s just how i prefer to have everything. make sure you’ve got pencils you can use on a scantron. buy scantrons and blue books (or whatever your school’s equivalent for testing materials is) in advance and keep them in a stash. make sure you’ve got scissors. for the love of god, make sure you have scissors. when you buy your own textbooks you can highlight the shit out of them, so get/bring some nice highlighters.
6. this is kind of a mishmash category that doesn’t have much to do with packing, but it’s still important.
and my personal favorite #1 college life hack: i didn’t always by the required textbook for class. once you’re in your second quarter/semester and you’ve gotten used to how classes work, you’ll be able to gauge this much better. if your teacher wants you to buy a required textbook that’s only for “supplementary” reading that you know you’ll cover in class and that you won’t get tested on, you might not actually have to drop the $200 to buy it. i just straight-up stopped buying textbooks, like, halfway through my second year. some people need to have textbooks as supplementary material. i know this. i don’t usually need textbooks, so this worked for me. it might not work for you. you can always buy the textbook a week or two into class if you realize you’re fucked without it. “suggested” textbooks are kind of total bullshit.
but yeah! between what emma said and what i added, this pretty much sums up all i have to say about college prep. good luck, happy packing, and happy travels!! :>
