Containing myself to one group

Don't get me wrong, you'll meet wonderful people, make some good friends, and maybe even some life long ones. I definitely did. But you shouldn't close yourself off to one group of people. Explore other friendships and start networking. It is never too early to get to know your future colleagues. And it generally adds to your college experience to be a social butterfly!

I joined clubs later rather than sooner.

I know everyone always says to join clubs, but seriously join clubs! I wasn't apart of many my first semester, truthfully, because I didn't know anyone who would go to the club meetings with me. But that was even more of a reason to go! You'll meet people who have the same interests as you and people who can mentor you. You'll make friends and you get to add that experience to your resume.

Taking late afternoon classes

Truthfully, this depends on the type of person you are. My advice on this is to realistically make your class schedule. Don't try to match your friends' schedule and don't force a class if you're trying to get some extra work hours in. That's what I did to myself in these late afternoon classes- I'd work in the morning, then go to two two hour classes. And I hated it. For me, these classes were so draining and I wouldn't want to do anything for the rest of the day. If you know you're not a morning person, don't take an 8 a.m. class. If you're not a night owl, don't take an 8 p.m. class.

I didn't utilize everything I was paying for

You may not realize what exactly you're paying for all in your tuition, but you should definitely look into it. Gym usage, pool usage, tickets to sporting events, tutoring, hospital services, etc. Know exactly what you're paying for because it's your money being spent! And you should use every last penny.

Buying too many "mandatory" books

This is definitely case by case, but I bought/rented multiple books that were well over $100 that I did not need to. Some professors claim that you need a book, but maybe one assignment comes from the book. They all say that the reading will help you, and maybe it does, but I sure didn't read more than the first chapter of most books. My general guideline to buying a book is if specific assignments use specific chapters or if you need an access code that only comes with the book. If you can wait until the first day of classes to make the judgment.

Not making a detailed budget

Your first year of college it can be easy to spend your money wherever and whenever you want. I recommend taking a look at approximately how much money you'll have each month and making a budget. A cool rule I found out about recently is the 50-30-20 rule, 50% of your monthly income should go to things you already knew you have to buy so maybe that's books, your phone bill, your Spotify or Netflix bills, etc. 30% should go towards things like entertainment or dining out. So that could be going to the movies, getting your nails done, getting fast food when you're sick of the dining hall. And the last 20% should go towards your savings and debt. So either paying off any loans you have or just putting some cash in your savings account. Now obviously you can tweak this rule, but you should definitely look into it!

Opening a savings account is absolutely the best step you could take as you venture into your adult life!

Not making a connection with faculty

It can seem really scary to make a connection with your professors, and maybe, even more, terrifying with your deans, but I wish I did. Often times your professors have their own network of colleagues and have already been in the field you hope to be in. They'll have advice for you and they can even connect you to your possible future employers. Go to office hours when you need help or even just to network. Say hi and introduce yourself at the end of your first class, I promise you won't be alone in that.

Have one friend in each class

And I don't mean forcing a friend you already have into a class you need to take. This also goes with networking and expanding your social circles. For one of my English classes (that was also an afternoon class), I didn't have someone in the class that I knew really well until halfway through the semester, and it was rough. It makes class better when you have a friend you can turn to talk to and it makes the time fly by faster. It's also super helpful outside of class because you can form a study group or maybe even miss a class and get notes from your buddy later.