Learning

If I was coming into UMD as a first semester freshman all over again, I would make sure that I got things in on time better. I would send in my housing information much earlier even though I was not sure wether or not i was going to this school. I would also have gotten my parking pass in much, much earlier then I had, so as to avoid the death march that is my walk to the parking area I was assigned. Most improtantly, however, would be deciding on a major course right away, no matter how tentative my attachment to it was because having some direction is better than no direction whatsoever. So to sum it all up: turn things in early before attending school, take even a tentative direction towards a major and also get involved socially right off the bat.

Go To Class!

One thing I would have done differently, here at UMD, is go to class. I think because I was pretty much forced to go to class in high school , it made me think I could blow it off in college which is not the way to go. In fact I really did need to go. Sometimes the teachers would take attendence and I would miss out on easy participation points. Also, I'd miss important lectures and information needed for tests and assignments. I now know that it is better to go to class and get all you can out of this expensive education rather then sleep in or what not. In the long run you'll be more likely to be on top of your studies and get a better grade.

The first semester here at UMD has been interesting and challenging. There are a few things I would have changed if I could do it over again. First, would be to get enough sleep at night so I can actually wake up for my classes the next day. I would also liked to have studied more in order to get the grades I would have preferred. The learning community system I did not like and I wish I would have not gone into it. Being undecided basically forced me into this program when my interests lie elsewhere besides liberal arts. I would have also changed who I hung out with. The whole semester I hung out with my roommate and one other person. I knew both of them from my home city. I would have rather made new and more friends. Overall, UMD has been a fun and different experience for me.

Stress

When I started out my first semester at UMD I wanted to earn good grades so that my report card would reflect all of my hard efforts. I soon found myself working until the early hours of the morning to complete assignments. I spent almost all of my free time working on homework. I found myself very stressed until the point where I simply couldn't get out of bed for class anymore because I was so exaughsted. Then I realized that I couldn't live my life this way anymore. I had to find something to reduce the amount of stress I was trying to deal with. I decided to get involved in activities and other student events. I still completed my assignments, but I tried not to focus completly on them all of the time. I started working out and doing other physical activities to reduce my stress. I found that just taking little breaks in the middle of studying refreshed my mind and made it easier to finish my work. I found that just hanging out with my friends also rlieved some of the stress I felt. I learned that it is very important to have a balance of work and play in my life and it made the rest of my semester all the more enjoyable.