This is not another article about all the weight you may gain your first year of college or how to stay active and be healthy (although that is important). It is, however, a list of fifteen things I think are important for freshmen in college to keep in mind. Now that I am a senior (cue the waterworks), I cannot believe how fast the time goes by. I don’t know about you guys, but I wasn’t sure what to expect going into my freshman year, so I put together a list that I wish I had going into college.

15 things I wish I knew to make my first year of college successful:

1) Honestly, this is probably going to go against pretty much everything your parents or professors tell you, but GO OUT. It’s important to find balance between school and a social life, and there is nothing wrong with rewarding yourself after a hard week of school. You can blow of some steam and dance the night away with friends (and this does not have to include alcohol). Looking back on my freshman year, I don’t remember the tests or projects I had, but I do remember the spontaneous nights with friends.

2) Go to the gym! I know I said this wasn’t about the freshman fifteen, but it is important to stay healthy. I don’t know how it works at every college, but for me the gym is free and I’ve taken advantage of that every year. I came into my freshman year in the best shape I’d ever been in and kind of thought my body would stay that way. Newsflash, it doesn’t. The gym is your friend.

3) That being said, there is nothing wrong with ordering some late night Domino’s every once in awhile. There is no better way to make friends than sharing some pizza. Nobody can turn down pizza.

4) Go to your professor’s office hours. You have no idea when you are going to need a letter of recommendation or just someone to talk to if things get tough in class. Building a relationship with professors is key and helps you out in more ways than you can imagine in the future. It shows that you care and take the class seriously by going to them outside of the scheduled class time.

5) Get involved. There is nothing worse come junior, or even senior year, than scramming to spruce up your résumé. If you start getting involved early on, you won’t feel as much pressure as you approach the real world.

6) Enjoy every minute. Yes, that means the stress, the awkwardness of trying to find your friend group and the sadness of being away from familiarity. All of those experiences will help you grow as a person. Each day that passes at your new school will begin to feel more like home. I would give anything to go back to my freshman year. Awkwardness and all.

7) Don’t be afraid to talk to people right away! I started out in a dorm where nobody talked to each other and everyone’s doors were closed. To put it nicely, it sucked. When I moved dorms I decided to put myself out there, unlike when I was on my original floor. It’s amazing what happens when you ask your floor mates to hang out… they in turn ask you to hang out. It took me awhile to figure out, but I got there eventually.

8) Stay in touch with friends from home. Realistically, you are not going to stay friends with everyone you talked to in high school. But, it is important to stay in contact with your close friends from home while you are going through this extreme period of adjustment. It is easy to get caught up in your new life and routine, but remember the people who helped get you there (this includes parents)!

9) Drama is stupid. Chances are when you are living on a floor with twenty (or more) girls, drama will happen. In the scheme of your college career, it really does not matter. In the moment it may seem important, but don’t let that get in the way of your college experience.

10) Enjoy the time with your college friends. Four years goes by faster than you realize and you don’t know where you and all your friends will end up post-graduation. So make the most of your time together.

11) Take advantage of the meal plan as long as you can! Once you’re an upperclassman, cooking for yourself becomes a pain (at least for me). It is so quick and easy to run to the dining hall and grab some food. No cooking or dish washing necessary.

12) Take as many pictures as you can to capture your moments. There are so many times that I will see a picture from my freshman year and a million memories will come flooding back from that night or adventure.

13) If you have the opportunity to study abroad, do it. That was one of my biggest regrets. Plan ahead because I always put it off and told myself I would do it eventually. Well, life caught up with me and I never got around to it. Don’t make the same mistake as me.

14) Go to as many sporting events as you can. You only have four years as a student at your school, so don’t miss out on it. There is nothing like going all out in school spirit and being apart of your student section with others that share the same passion.

15) Live in the moment! Do not worry about the little things or post-graduation life. While those things are important, it’s necessary to enjoy your time. This is most likely the last time you will be in a school setting with a semi-independent lifestyle. The stresses of the real world are on the horizon so just enjoy college while you can.