It is that time of year where you are headed off to college and you will be away from home for probably the longest time in your life. Do not worry, you are not alone. There are a lot of people in the same boat as you and some haven't even been away from home at all. So, if you want to have an easier year and not be stressed like everyone else, follow these tips to help you survive your first year in college. Get excited and pumped for the first year of your college career and make it one to remember. Congratulations, you are officially a college student! Good luck!

1. Break out of your comfort zone.

Do not be afraid to try something new. This is what life is about - taking chances and risks. You won't know if you like something unless you try. Do not be that person to judge something by its cover, most likely you do not know anything about it and if you do you are usually wrong. Take it from me, you will most likely not regret stepping out of your comfort zone and you will be a lot happier in the long run.

2. Make NEW FRIENDS!

You are in a new place with new people that are in the same boat as you, living in the same building as you and being nervous to walk down the hall or even next door to introduce themselves. You should be the first to break the ice with everyone and take a walk down the hall to meet all your new hall for the semester or year. Besides, your roommates you are going to want to have other friends so you guys do not get sick of each other and start fighting. You went away to college for a reason to meet new people and become a better version of you.

3. Stock up on snacks.

You will not regret this one. This is an essential because you do not want to go hungry and no one can ever have too many snacks. Make sure to stock up on you favorite snacks or candy and hide them so no one can steal them from you or say "Oo I didn't know this was yours." It does not matter if it is early in the morning or late at night, you will most likely want something to snack on. It is also going to save you a ton of money because you are not going to have to spend your money at a convenience store or a student-run store that is on campus.

4. Buy a planner and use it!

This is something that I learned extremely quickly during my freshman year. No matter how much you tell yourself that you aren't going to need one, you are bound to forget something or miss a due date. Your planner is going to be your best friend for the next 4-8 years, depending on how long you are going to school for. Your planner is a life saver and you won't have to cram everything into the calendar on your phone because you will have more space in your planner and you can color coordinate and decorate it any way you want.

5. Be friendly to your RA.

Your RA is someone who is there to help you out with anything that you may need. Please do not be mean or rude to them, they are also college students who are just as busy and stressed as you are. If you are not too fond of your RA all you have to do is say hi or give them a wave, you don't have to become best friends with them.

6. Ask for help.

Do not be afraid to ask whether it is in a class, a question on how to do laundry, moving stuff in or out or having someone help you carry up one of your 3 bags that you brought home for winter break. Chances are if you are in a huge lecture class someone else will have the same question and is too afraid to ask the question in front of everyone. There is nothing wrong with asking for a little help.

7. Become friendly with your professor.

Your professor is not only there to teach you, they are there to also help you with anything that you may need throughout the semester. Their door is always open, even if they say that their office hours are only a certain, but if you can't make their office hours and don't want to take the chance of missing your professor you can always send him or her an email asking to meet. And if you are struggling in a certain class and you keep showing up to their office hours and you still are not liking the results, chances are your professor will help you out and boost up your grade to help you reach your goal.

8. Do your laundry in a reasonable amount of time.

I for one would rather not stare at someone's overflowing laundry basket or step on their dirty underwear, gross. For everyone's sake please do your laundry at least once a week. You will thank yourself later because all your clothes will be nice and clean and you do not have to worry about running out of leggings or rushing to get the top you wanted to wear that night washed in time.

9. Set a timer when doing laundry.

Please, please, please set a timer when you do your laundry. It is extremely annoying when someone has their laundry in the washer or dryer and they do not come down and get it when it is done. So if you are that person who does not set a timer, be prepared to come back to your laundry thrown on top of the washer or dryer. Nobody has time to wait around for you to come back and get your laundry that has been done for over 2 hours.

10. Be respectful of everyone's space and privacy.

I get it, you are in this tiny room that you share with 1 or 2 other people and it is hard at times to give each other space. As long as you don't go through their stuff or touch anything everything will be fine.

11. The microwave is your new best friend.

Believe it or not but you will be using your microwave A LOT considering this is the only cooking appliance that you are allowed to have in most dorms. I did not think I was going to use my microwave at all but boy was I wrong. There was not a day that went by where I wasn't making popcorn or heating up some food that my mom sent to me through the overnight mail.

12. Bring a mini-fridge with an actual freezer.

I was so happy that my parents bought me a mini-fridge that had an actual freezer that kept all my food frozen, and most importantly, my ice cream frozen. My friends we jealous of me because I have an actual freezer not one of those flaps with ice around it. You will certainly regret getting a mini-fridge that doesn't have an actual freezer.

13. DO NOT PROCRASTINATE!!

I learned this one the hard way. If you know that you have a huge project, exam or paper coming up in the next few weeks, get a head start on it so you aren't up the night before cramming to get it done, like I did. If you are someone that works better under pressure, by all means, do your thing but if you get stressed more easily or tend to get distracted a lot make sure you have extra time to get it your take done before the deadline.

14. Don't leave your cleaning products and toiletries at home!

If you do not notice this when you are unpacking you will notice it the minute you need to use them. Probably one of the most important things you need you left at home and now you need to go out and buy all new stuff or just the essentials. If your parents are nice enough they might mail you all of your products that you somehow forgot at home. Also, make sure that you have an extra toothbrush in case it falls on the floor, it happens more than you think, 4 times my freshman year.

15. Bring a printer.

You will be so happy that you invested in your own printer because now you do not have to go all the way to the library and print out something that you need for a class. Most of the time you have to pay for printing at the library. You also are not going to be that person who does not bring a printer to college and uses everyone's printer because they are too cheap to go out and buy one.

16. The friends you meet the first few weeks are not your friends for life.

After the first few weeks you will start to notice who your real friends are and who are only friends because you have a certain object that they wish they had. By the end of the semester you will have a good idea of who is there for the long run and who is only in your life because they got stuck living on the same floor as you.

17. Do not forget to be you and focus on yourself.

I know it can be stressful at times, especially during finals week. It is very easy for someone to become someone they are not and that is not a good thing. People like you for you, not someone who you are trying to become. Make it a goal everyday to take at least 10-15 minutes to yourself and remind yourself of who you are and the things that make you happy.

Do not forget to be you and go with the flow. DO NOT STRESS OUT OVER THE LITTLE THINGS. A motto that I live by is Everything happens for a reason so don't get stressed because there is a reason that you were put into a certain situation.

Good luck with your freshman year of college now go crush it!!