Starting school tomorrow

Dude, I can remember my first day of college like it was yesterday, and what you're going through is normal. Even though I had taken classes on the campus during summer, by the time fall rolled around on my freshman year, I didn't know jack. I got lost all the time, was afraid to ask for directions, and was rushed by so many people pushing their clubs, fraternities, whatever else. Basically what I'm saying is what you're going through is perfectly normal. Hell, I start up another semester this coming Thursday, and I still feel nervous about it, even though I know the campus and familiar with the buildings.

The best advice I can say is just go with the flow. Don't be afraid to ask for help, since there are probably a group of people who are there to help out new people. If you feel overwhelmed, it's okay to hide in the bathroom or in the library and just breath. Professors are usually understanding about people being late on the first day. College isn't what you're high school teachers scared you into thinking; it's basically a more laid back version of high school.

Just get some rest, tell yourself "you're not alone", and always be aware. Trust me, in about two weeks, you'll get into the swing of things and everything will feel natural (until Finals Week).

 

Figure out how to manage your time. Get ahead of assignments, but at the same time, don't obsess over getting everything done as soon as possible.

I've been going to college for about four years now (three at community, currently at university) and I'm also feeling daunting by one of my classes that requires me to do things I've never really done before involving other people, but a past student of the class came in and talked about the importance of time management. I still feel anxious, but not to the dangerous point I was at on the first two days.

Get a map as soon as you can, whether it be physical or digital.

Ask your professors for help whenever you want. Their job is to see you succeed: use them for all the money and time you're spending.

 

I'm late to reply to this but hopefully I can still offer some words of advice!

I'm taking a semester off from school right now and I'm definitely afraid to return in the fall, simply because I feel I'm out of practice -- I went part-time last semester, as I only had two classes left to finish my two-year degree, so come September I won't have written a paper in over a year. It's frightening but I reassure myself knowing that I really love and care about my program of study and that I can and will get through it to reach my ultimate goal.

I had similar anxieties starting community college, too, especially considering how awful my high school experience was. The panic of not finding my way around campus gripped me every time I started at a new school, too, so don't feel that's at all unreasonable. For starters, I'm sure you'll be able to find a map of your campus, either online or at an information center -- which, by the way, the student center at my college had an info desk dedicated specifically to things like "where is ___ building" or similar questions, so see if you can locate that! If not, receptionists or even students are, in my experience, pretty kind about helping you get around. You can even ask your professor at the end of your first class, which will not only help you get around but also lets you get some face time with the professor. If you have some time between your classes or you can hang around campus after your last class of the day, take a stroll around the campus and try to get your bearings. Within a week or two I'm sure you'll locate everything.

The nice thing about community college too is that a lot of the people there are in very similar situations -- they're in school for the first time since high school or they did some college then took some time off. Sometimes there are seniors taking their first class in fifty years! You'll be surprised at how easily you fall back into the swing of school, and even if you don't right away, perhaps you can establish some new habits to correct old ones from high school (like never writing down your assignments or procrastinating).

Beyond that, if I can offer just a few general school/college tips...

Be organized. Seriously. It's obvious but it's so important to find an organization plan that works for you. Just because everybody uses binders doesn't mean you're a binder person. You might be more of a notebook and a folder person, or a legal pad kinda dude. It's all okay as long as it makes sense to you. Keep track of deadlines and parcel out your assignments -- it's a lot easier to read five pages a night than 50 in one day (and you retain things better that way). Similarly, find a good environment to get work done. Some people can't do homework in their bedroom because they have their stereo or phone or computer right there and they let themselves get distracted -- if you need to, go to a library or something, whatever keeps you focused (but don't be afraid to take a break every hour or so).

Get enough sleep. I know that's laughable for any college student but the classes that I slept through every week, I retained basically none of the information from them and they're the ones that ultimately dragged down my GPA.

Take your time and don't be afraid to drop a class if you need to. The idea that you'll get your Bachelor's in four years is a completely fabricated concept; if it takes you three or five or six years, that's all okay. People work in different ways and at different speeds. It's not the end of the world if you need to drop out of a class, particularly if keeping it means you're not doing your best in your other classes because the workload is too heavy. Similarly, if you fail a class, it's okay. It happens to everyone.

Get involved. I really cannot stress this enough. In high school I was extremely anti-social, to the point where, in a class of only 260 or so, I'm pretty sure that if you said my name to most of my classmates they'd say "who?". I resolved in college to meet people and join a club and I'm so glad I did. I'm always happier in more active groups rather than the social ones, so I joined my school's feminist newspaper and eventually became editor, which was a great experience and will definitely bolster my resume (and I've got a great recommendation from my faculty adviser). I also joined the women's club for a more social experience, and I met some really interesting people through that. I did things that three or four years ago, I never would have dreamed of, like walking around campus and surveying random students, handing out Planned Parenthood pamphlets, wheeling thousands of thick and heavy magazines around an extremely hilly campus, or gabbing about our lives to group project members instead of getting work done. Speak up in class if you have something to say. Take the dissenting opinion on a discussion or paper. College is a great time to explore yourself and get kind of a blank slate after high school.

Talk to your professors, not just to ask for help or so that you can weasel a recommendation out of them at some point down the line, but a lot of them are genuinely interesting people that you can make great connections with. One of my favorite professors studied at law school, then mythology, learned Greek, and was deeply involved in the second-wave feminist movement. Another was a big fan of Jane Austen and scifi (sound like anyone you know?). And then, an amazing English professor I had, who I hope to emulate and deeply respect, gave me a really encouraging speech about how I have a real talent for literary analysis and always had something interesting to add to discussions or to write in my papers. You'll definitely have ones that you loathe or question why they ever decided to work in a school -- and it can help to get on their good side by emailing them etc. -- but many of them are passionately committed to their subjects and/or their students and that can be incredibly inspiring.

Hope some of this helps! Good luck tale and feel free to ask me for help if you need~