Congratulations: You’ve arrived at college, a place where academia and people come together to challenge you one last time before you hit the proverbial real world. Can you walk the walk? Maybe so, but at BU you’ll find the question quickly becomes: can you walk it with swagger? To succeed here at BU, or at any college, you’ll need to learn a lot more than physics, history, or philosophy. Here I present to you a list of practical tips and tricks – life hacks, if you will – that should help you as you transition to college life.

From a young age I was asked to figure things out for myself; college was one of them. Here are a few tips I picked up my Freshman year to make it through:

• If you need new clothes for the year, buy them during Black Friday (day after Thanksgiving). By November, you’ll know what kind of clothing suites you in the cooler Boston weather. This was important coming from California; I finally found out what thermals and hoodies are for (and no, they are not just to make you look cool… though they do help).You’ll be all set to brave the cold weather when you get back to school.

• If you only feel like paying for one semester T pass, go with spring semester. Despite the word “spring” most of the semester takes place in the winter, and its freezing. You won’t want to be waiting around for the BUS (Boston University bus) and you definitely won’t want to walk.

• The only reason you really have to do laundry is if you run out of underwear/socks, so buy enough pairs that you only need to do laundry every month or so. Those quarters and convenience points you pump into the laundry machine can build up.

• You can save money by drying all your clothes in one dryer. For a greener approach, buy a clothes drying rack and let them air dry for three hours.

• Take advantage of the automatic work-study placement available only to first-semester freshman. This guarantees a work-study job your first semester. Ask about it in the work-study office.

• In general, prices get more expensive as you get closer to the city. Remember this when buying your basics like shampoo and soap.

• Quickie Jobs are great – take advantage of them to earn some money for books and weekend hijinx.

• Buy all your books online through websites like Amazon and Half.com. You’ll be amazed at how much money you can save. Then sell them to one of the book collectors you see around campus at the end of the semester.

• You can always read books for free by borrowing them from the library.

• Cancel your sports pass if you do not find yourself using it after your first year. It is $100.00 off your bill.

• Use ratemyprofessor.com, but always maintain a healthy level of skepticism. If students (online or off) say a teacher is amazing, consider taking the class, even if it’s not in your field of study.

• Talk to upperclassmen: “A wise man learns from his mistake, a wiser man learns from his friends.” They can answer SO many of the questions you have and show you a really good time. Put yourself in their shoes: would you decide to help a little, timid, freshman asking for advice? Of course you would.

• Do some damage control first semester: learn to study. Even if you could get by in high school without studying (many of us did), studying helps. Put aside an hour a day to look over your notes or to review the day’s PowerPoint (many professors post them online).

• Study for the final during the semester: color code your notes, make note cards as you go along, and memorize terms and facts.

• There are secret spots where you can use your dining points, like the Hilllel house and SMG. Papa Johns, Dominoes Pizza, and Buick Street (a little convenience store) accepts them as well.

• If you get anything out of first semester, find out how you study best. Do you need a certain temperature? Do you like using a whiteboard? Is it helpful to talk it out with someone? This will allow you adapt more quickly to future studying challenges.

• Study what interests you. Curiosity motivates learning.

• West is the best dining hall, hands down. It has the most variety. Plus, the gym is right across the street, so you can burn off the calories when you’re done.

• Free coffee is all over campus, you just have to look.

• Grab a bunch of free pizza coupons from SPLASH. In fact, get a bunch of free stuff at SPLASH, if you don’t want something, give it to other people. Who knows – you might make a friend.

• For the first couple of weeks everyone is looking for friends. Many freshmen are extremely open for a conversation with someone even if they don’t know the person. It is incredibly easy to get to know people within the first couple of weeks. Say “What’s up?”, comment on what they’re wearing, talk to them about the game last night, something, anything to get them talking. A few weeks later it will become little trickier because everyone has their little cliques, so now’s the time.

• It’s common for you to get homesick the 6th or 7th week. Remember that you’re not the only one. You will miss the familiarity of everything, maybe not your parents, or your city, but you’ll miss knowing how everything works. It will feel like you’re the only one because not many people are putting their business out there. Strike up a conversation during the 6th or 7th week about home and sure enough, it will come out that they miss the familiarity of home just as much as you do.

• The first time I really felt the absence of my parents is when I got sick. Go to student health and make sure you get a note for your professors, they are usually understanding without one, but the note is for those who aren’t.

• Getting up and staying up for an 8am class is surprisingly difficult. Just so you know.

• There is usually free food at Fraternity Rush events.

• Never have a lab due Monday – if you get stumped over the weekend, there is no time to go to office hours to figure it out.

• You can get from Warren Towers to Mugar and still remain indoors for most of the time. This especially comes in handy when it’s cold/snowing/crowded outside. From Warren you cross the street and go into CAS. You then walk all the way down the hall where you exit to Marsh Chapel. Then you enter the School of Theology, go though the basement and exit at Mugar (avoiding that nasty wind tunnel).

• Many places, especially near campus give you a student discount with your ID – you just have to ask. BU students get free admission to The Museum of Fine Arts, for instance.

• You can order meals to go (“Rhetty-to-go meals”) from the dining hall. Check out the BU dining website.

• Proof read your papers.

• Every assignment graded or not, counts for something. Never ever neglect to turn something in. If you can’t make a deadline, turn what you have in for partial credit or contact your professor ASAP. Points add up in the end. Remember, you can also try asking for an extension.

• A Smartphone can be your best friend if you use it wisely. Synced email is great for keeping in touch with professors and classmates, and apps like Grades 2, Evernote, and Redlaser can help you stay organized. Plus having a virtual map on your phone is key. The MBTA Alerts app tells you when the busses are coming and FourSquare can help you discover new things around the city.

• If you want to do well, don’t sleep in class. No one is going to be there to wake you up for that lecture that makes up 30% of the test. And no, copying your friend’s notes does not suffice.

• Pizza Days on Brighton Avenue doesn’t accept convenience points, but they do offer a 50% discount on all pizza orders for BU students – you can get a large cheese for $6.00.

• Get a bike. Bicycling is one of the most fun and most efficient ways to explore the city and to get from place to place.