It’s the time of year again, the days are shortening, the leaves are changing, and a new school year is around the corner. This time: you are now going to Cornell University. Covering 745 acres, you will be studying with 26,284 of the smartest people in the world. Home is now a long road trip, tiresome flight, or several countries away. It sounds daunting, I know. So here are some of the best tips I learned during my freshman year of college.
During O-week, I recommend walking your schedule. Since campus is so large, it is easy to underestimate how long it will take to get to Goldwin Smith or Phillips Hall. Google or Apple Maps will become your best friend when trying to find your classes. You can put in the name of the building, and you’ll get the exact directions you need.
Try to be social. It is hard to be in a new place, especially without the friends you grew up with. The people you meet know nothing about you, and you lack the robust social network you had at home. On the bright side, you now have a blank slate to establish yourself. It is important to reach out to your podmates, classmates, and acquaintances. Try joining one of Cornell’s 1,000 clubs to meet people with similar interests. After all, you’ll need someone to bring you a meal when you’re sick, borrow laundry detergent from, and go to hockey games with. Friendships are a crucial resource for success in university.
There are several apps that can help you maximize your success as a Cornell student. The GET Mobile app will tell you have many BRBs you have left, as well as offer you mobile access to the dining hall if you forget your keycard. Ithaca Transit and Google Maps will help you track the TCAT. Many of your teachers will use Poll Everywhere, mainly to track attendance. I personally liked having Canvas Student on my phone, so I could have direct notifications. Additionally, many Cornellians with an IOS device find themselves using Sidechat, which has a forum solely for Cornell students. While the app offers many benefits, as with every anonymous posting platform, there can be toxicity and risks, so download at your own discretion.
You don’t have to take the hardest classes or max out on credits, especially not in your first semester. You are smart, and you did earn your spot regardless of how many and which classes you take in your first semester. Cornell coursework is much different than your high school, even if you took AP or local college courses. You may find yourself challenged for one of the first times, or struggling with the content of your intended major. If taking the hardest classes or maxing out on credits is something you genuinely want to do, then go for it. However, there is nothing wrong with taking a light first semester to avoid feeling overwhelmed.
On that note, going to class is one of the best things you can do to not only stay up to date with your coursework, but also maintain a functioning schedule to avoid feeling overwhelmed. It’s easy to fall into the trap of skipping classes, but it will hurt your grades in the long run. If you are avoiding going to class because you dislike it and are struggling to learn, you have a lengthy add/drop period to find another class you can enjoy.
Don’t study in your room. Several studies have shown that it decreases the quality of your sleep and hinders productivity. For me, I found working in public kept me off Instagram and focused on my assignments. Thankfully, Cornell has 18 libraries scattered across their Ithaca campus for students to use, free of charge. Additionally, most dorms have lounges which can be used to study.
Maintain your healthy habits. Eat healthy: the dining hall has an abundance of nutritious foods to fuel your academic weaponry. Additionally, walking around campus or going to the various gyms can increase concentration and reduce stress. Helen Newman, a gym located on North Campus, has incredible features such as a pool for swimming, a basketball court, badminton, a weight room, treadmills, and more.
To stay organized, I recommend having some sort of planner. Sometimes you’ll get the date for a big event several months in advance. When your social calendar fills up with formals, speaker events, and papers, you will need something to help keep track of it all. Setting reminders on your phone, or creating a Google calendar can help you manage all your events. Your mind is better served studying content for a prelim than memorizing your social calendar.
Make sure you have a quality winter wardrobe. As you may have heard, Upstate New York is cold and it will snow for quite some time. By January and February, the waterfalls on campus will freeze over, making for an incredible sight but also a definitive sign of a frigid winter. My best investment for winter was a long and fluffy coat, waterproof boots, earmuffs, and thick mittens. You’ll likely need these clothes before Thanksgiving break, so start preparing in October. Additionally, to beat the yearlong rainstorms, you can purchase an umbrella or waterproof laptop case or backpack.
Go to office hours. I didn’t understand how valuable this was until I started going to them consistently. Office hours with either your professor or TA provides you with clarification on a lecture, ensures your papers are on track with the assignment, and provides you with potentially useful information for your exams. The professors or TAs conducting the office hours are the ones grading your papers; going to office hours gives you an idea of what you need to know and how they will grade. It is also important to connect with your professors to build rapport for your letters of recommendation.
My last and most important tip for mental, physical, and academic success at Cornell is to maintain a positive mindset. Anywhere will be a bad place if you focus on the negatives. Cornell’s education is absolutely amazing, your peers are vastly intelligent, and you will do so much learning together. Not to mention, the campus is beautiful; our dining halls are amazing; the sports games are incredibly entertaining; and the people are so special and uniquely friendly. Cornell will have everything you need, and it is perfectly fine, in fact normal, if it takes you a long time to figure out what exactly that is.
Good luck with your first year, and hope you enjoy being a Cornellian!
