We're about a month into the new academic year. Classes are going steady, and summer is slowly drifting away as the weather cools down (or at least I hope so).

Now that we're all settled into our new places for the year, most of us start to look for things to do outside of the classroom. What student organizations should we join? What should we do with our spare time (assuming your classes allow you to)? That's what your school's organization fair is all about.

You have the opportunity to explore all of the different things you can do, but with so many to choose from and with classes starting to pile, what should you choose? Well, I can't necessarily tell you WHAT organizations you should join. It's all about your preferences, but you already know that.

However, what I can tell you from experience is HOW many you should sign up for. Again, it all depends on personal needs. How much sleep do you need? How much time do you need to study? Are you a freshman? Maybe, you might need a little more time to adjust. These questions and more are what you need to consider in building your overall schedule.

Some people can take 18 credits and still actively participate in 4 different organizations while others can only do half that. It all depends on you and what your priorities are. Either way, you'll have more incentive to look for something to do other than school, and chances are someone will be doing the same thing as you.

On average, the normal college student will typically participate in three separate outside school activities and effectively manage their academic responsibilities.

This is what I like the call The Rule of 3.

Throughout my time in school, I've seen students do just that. The more common approach to the rule is typically one or two fraternities/sororities, a recreational organization, and probably a professional organization. Also, it's not uncommon to hear about students taking up part-time jobs during the year.

Depending on their weekly hours, it could ultimately affect their participation in other organizations too. Overall, there are so many combinations you can think of in order to make the most out of your college experience. It depends on priorities.

My combination was a part-time job, an internship, and president of a small club team. It was honestly more difficult than I expected. The setup, in a sense, put me on a forty-hour work week plus weekends. It was always class then work which made it difficult to ask for any help for class.

Thus, this brings up another question to ask yourself: How often do you ask for help? Honestly, a professor's office hours can make or break your GPA, and I personally forgot to factor this in when I made that combination.

To enjoy these four or more years in school, you need to enjoy yourself every now and then. The best way is through some local organizations who share the same interests as you or whatever you enjoy doing. However, you have to be careful on how much or even what you're doing before you start affecting your priorities. If anything, remember this.

We always make decisions based on our priorities are, but the biggest decisions involve the fate of those priorities.