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illicitstylz 12-12-2010 08:22 AM

A great read for all post-secondary students
 
Stumbled across this on RFD, was a good read and definitely something we should all take into account for with our years spent in university. Hope it's not a repost as it is a relatively older blog posting.

See how many you've checked off!

Quote:

Originally Posted by http://www.mitadmissions.org/topics/life/workplay_balance_at_mit/50_things.shtml
Dear Class of 2010,

This will be my last entry written specifically for you; beginning with the launch of our new site in early September, I'll begin focusing on the future class of 2011. I hope that you guys won't be strangers; stay in touch either in person (come visit us!) or online (please drop by the blogs from time to time and say hi).

As you begin your college experience, and I prepare for my 10-year college reunion, I thought I'd leave you with the things that, in retrospect, I think are important as you navigate the next four years. I hope that some of them are helpful.

Here goes...

1. Your friends will change a lot over the next four years. Let them.

2. Call someone you love back home a few times a week, even if just for a few minutes.

3. In college more than ever before, songs will attach themselves to memories. Every month or two, make a mix cd, mp3 folder, whatever - just make sure you keep copies of these songs. Ten years out, they'll be as effective as a journal in taking you back to your favorite moments.

4. Take naps in the middle of the afternoon with reckless abandon.

5. Adjust your schedule around when you are most productive and creative. If you're nocturnal and do your best work late at night, embrace that. It may be the only time in your life when you can.

6. If you write your best papers the night before they are due, don't let people tell you that you "should be more organized" or that you "should plan better." Different things work for different people. Personally, I worked best under pressure - so I always procrastinated... and always kicked ass (which annoyed my friends to no end). ;-) Use the freedom that comes with not having grades first semester to experiment and see what works best for you.

7. At least a few times in your college career, do something fun and irresponsible when you should be studying. The night before my freshman year psych final, my roommate somehow scored front row seats to the Indigo Girls at a venue 2 hours away. I didn't do so well on the final, but I haven't thought about psych since 1993. I've thought about the experience of going to that show (with the guy who is now my son's godfather) at least once a month ever since.

8. Become friends with your favorite professors. Recognize that they can learn from you too - in fact, that's part of the reason they chose to be professors.

9. Carve out an hour every single day to be alone. (Sleeping doesn't count.)

10. Go on dates. Don't feel like every date has to turn into a relationship.

11. Don't date someone your roommate has been in a relationship with.

12. When your friends' parents visit, include them. You'll get free food, etc., and you'll help them to feel like they're cool, hangin' with the hip college kids.

13. In the first month of college, send a hand-written letter to someone who made college possible for you and describe your adventures thus far. It will mean a lot to him/her now, and it will mean a lot to you in ten years when he/she shows it to you.

14. Embrace the differences between you and your classmates. Always be asking yourself, "what can I learn from this person?" More of your education will come from this than from any classroom.

15. All-nighters are entirely overrated.

16. For those of you who have come to college in a long-distance relationship with someone from high school: despite what many will tell you, it can work. The key is to not let your relationship interfere with your college experience. If you don't want to date anyone else, that's totally fine! What's not fine, however, is missing out on a lot of defining experiences because you're on the phone with your boyfriend/girlfriend for three hours every day.

17. Working things out between friends is best done in person, not over email. (IM does not count as "in person.") Often someone's facial expressions will tell you more than his/her words.

18. Take risks.

19. Don't be afraid of (or excited by) the co-ed bathrooms. The thrill is over in about 2 seconds.

20. Wednesday is the middle of the week; therefore on wednesday night the week is more than half over. You should celebrate accordingly. (It makes thursday and friday a lot more fun.)

21. Welcome failure into your lives. It's how we grow. What matters is not that you failed, but that you recovered.

22. Take some classes that have nothing to do with your major(s), purely for the fun of it.

23. It's important to think about the future, but it's more important to be present in the now. You won't get the most out of college if you think of it as a stepping stone.

24. When you're living on a college campus with 400 things going on every second of every day, watching TV is pretty much a waste of your time and a waste of your parents' money. If you're going to watch, watch with friends so at least you can call it a "valuable social experience."

25. Don't be afraid to fall in love. When it happens, don't take it for granted. Celebrate it, but don't let it define your college experience.

26. Much of the time you once had for pleasure reading is going to disappear. Keep a list of the books you would have read had you had the time, so that you can start reading them when you graduate.

27. Things that seem like the end of the world really do become funny with a little time and distance. Knowing this, forget the embarassment and skip to the good part.

28. Every once in awhile, there will come an especially powerful moment when you can actually feel that an experience has changed who you are. Embrace these, even if they are painful.

29. No matter what your political or religious beliefs, be open-minded. You're going to be challenged over the next four years in ways you can't imagine, across all fronts. You can't learn if you're closed off.

30. If you need to get a job, find something that you actually enjoy. Just because it's work doesn't mean it has to suck.

31. Don't always lead. It's good to follow sometimes.

32. Take a lot of pictures. One of my major regrets in life is that I didn't take more pictures in college. My excuse was the cost of film and processing. Digital cameras are cheap and you have plenty of hard drive space, so you have no excuse.

33. Your health and safety are more important than anything.

34. Ask for help. Often.

35. Half of you will be in the bottom half of your class at any given moment. Way more than half of you will be in the bottom half of your class at some point in the next four years. Get used to it.

36. In ten years very few of you will look as good as you do right now, so secretly revel in how hot you are before it's too late.

37. In the long run, where you go to college doesn't matter as much as what you do with the opportunities you're given there. The MIT name on your resume won't mean much if that's the only thing on your resume. As a student here, you will have access to a variety of unique opportunities that no one else will ever have - don't waste them.

38. On the flip side, don't try to do everything. Balance = well-being.

39. Make perspective a priority. If you're too close to something to have good perspective, rely on your friends to help you.

40. Eat badly sometimes. It's the last time in your life when you can do this without feeling guilty about it.

41. Make a complete ass of yourself at least once, preferably more. It builds character.

42. Wash your sheets more than once a year. Trust me on this one.

43. If you are in a relationship and none of your friends want to hang out with you and your significant other, pay attention. They usually know better than you do.

44. Don't be afraid of the weird pizza topping combinations that your new friend from across the country loves. Some of the truly awful ones actually taste pretty good. Expand your horizons.

45. Explore the campus thoroughly. Don't get caught.

46. Life is too short to stick with a course of study that you're no longer excited about. Switch, even if it complicates things.

47. Tattoos are permanent. Be very certain.

48. Don't make fun of prefrosh. That was you like 2 hours ago.

49. Enjoy every second of the next four years. It is impossible to describe how quickly they pass.

50. This is the only time in your lives when your only real responsibility is to learn. Try to remember how lucky you are every day.

Be yourself. Create. Inspire, and be inspired. Grow. Laugh. Learn. Love.

Welcome to some of the best years of your lives.


MG1 12-12-2010 08:49 AM

Many of those things are so true.................. .

People say, what's the point of post secondary. All you get is a piece of paper. It doesn't help you get a job. It's a waste of time. Yada, yada, yada............. Bullshit. That piece of paper shows people in the know, that you have survived all the bullshit and have experienced all of the things listed above. I loved every minute of it. I even went back and loved it more.

LiquidTurbo 12-12-2010 09:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 89blkcivic (Post 7224807)
Many of those things are so true.................. .

People say, what's the point of post secondary. All you get is a piece of paper. It doesn't help you get a job.It's a waste of time. Yada, yada, yada............. Bullshit. That piece of paper shows people in the know, that you have survived all the bullshit and have experienced all of the things listed above. I loved every minute of it. I even went back and loved it more.

True, bro.

Culture_Vulture 12-12-2010 09:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 89blkcivic (Post 7224807)
Many of those things are so true.................. .

People say, what's the point of post secondary. All you get is a piece of paper. It doesn't help you get a job. It's a waste of time. Yada, yada, yada............. Bullshit. That piece of paper shows people in the know, that you have survived all the bullshit and have experienced all of the things listed above. I loved every minute of it. I even went back and loved it more.

agreed, im still in college now and thankfully i realized early on that going to college isnt just about finding a job with an otherwise worthless piece of paper, its really about finding yourself.

I feel sorry for all of my friends who still think otherwise.
Posted via RS Mobile

Alphamale 12-12-2010 09:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LiquidTurbo (Post 7224812)
Not necessarily true, bro.

Reading comprehension fail.

tonyzoomzoom 12-12-2010 09:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 89blkcivic (Post 7224807)
Many of those things are so true.................. .

People say, what's the point of post secondary. All you get is a piece of paper. It doesn't help you get a job. It's a waste of time. Yada, yada, yada............. Bullshit. That piece of paper shows people in the know, that you have survived all the bullshit and have experienced all of the things listed above. I loved every minute of it. I even went back and loved it more.

Totally true. Rather than worry about marks / scores on exams, I actually "learnt" the second time around. It was a much better experience :)

truth 12-12-2010 09:44 AM

it's amazing how some people go through university and still don't learn how to socially interact with others since all they focused on were grades

LiquidTurbo 12-12-2010 09:45 AM

Basically the ones that didn't say they had a goodtime probably failed out, or didn't bother to engage themselves in the experience. I'd do 2 degrees if I could, but it's just not practical to spend that many years in school for me.

MG1 12-12-2010 09:54 AM

LOL at number 8.

I remember the time I got kicked out of class when I told the prof that she was full of it and I was sick and tired of the bullshit. The class was in shock as I swore at her. From that day on, the faculty treated me with respect. Funny part was, later on I got hired by that same prof to do summer research for a project of hers. I got to know so many of my profs on a personal basis during my stay at UBC.

I'm looking forward to my senior days, when I can go take courses for free. Hopefully, free courses for seniors will still be around.

twitchyzero 12-12-2010 10:12 AM

half of those only apply if you moved away for school which isn't the majority for canadian students..but great read.

I always wanted to try #7...should've done it in 1st year.

insomniac 12-12-2010 10:48 AM

Wow great read as I'm heading in there next year lol
Posted via RS Mobile

BNR32_Coupe 12-12-2010 01:49 PM

wow, that's pretty emotional. now get back to b.law 101, those finals aren;t going to study for themselves

Greenstoner 12-12-2010 02:29 PM

I wish I went to university
Posted via RS Mobile

Infiniti 12-12-2010 03:20 PM

^never too late...

dachinesedude 12-12-2010 03:37 PM

sadly, i cant relate to most of those, never lived on campus so university was never "an experience", it was just school....go to class, leave class, go home

m!chael 12-12-2010 04:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dachinesedude (Post 7225208)
sadly, i cant relate to most of those, never lived on campus so university was never "an experience", it was just school....go to class, leave class, go home

That's the same excuse I used to give myself in first year. Good thing I smartened up in second year and actually started getting the university experience. Now that I'm in my fourth year I'm sad to be finishing up. Years from now when I look back at my university years I'm pretty sure I'm gonna remember the time I fucked a chick in the library, or came to class still drunk from an all nighter of partying and hooking up to give a presentation and having to run to the bathroom to puke mid class, etc. I doubt I'll remember first year english or math.

Legit article btw, thanks.

SkunkWorks 12-12-2010 05:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dachinesedude (Post 7225208)
sadly, i cant relate to most of those, never lived on campus so university was never "an experience", it was just school....go to class, leave class, go home

That's bullshit. I honestly thought the same way in 1st year but realistically, let yourself go, take risks, have some fun and get involved. If you embrace it, it'll repay you tenfold.

That said, it'll be a while till I graduate but fuck it, I couldn't be happier.

Ulic Qel-Droma 12-12-2010 05:27 PM

all i can say, real life starts after university.

if u do all the above, awesome, you had a great time, if you don't whatever.

don't bank the greatest times of your years around school. work hard. go make baller bucks.

lol you'll reap the rewards after. who says 30 is old? lol. your campus will be the world, your classmates, people from all over, and women? lol. you'll have them at your feet.

money! (and school sorta).

TheKingdom2000 12-12-2010 05:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 89blkcivic (Post 7224807)
Many of those things are so true.................. .

People say, what's the point of post secondary. All you get is a piece of paper. It doesn't help you get a job. It's a waste of time. Yada, yada, yada............. Bullshit. That piece of paper shows people in the know, that you have survived all the bullshit and have experienced all of the things listed above. I loved every minute of it. I even went back and loved it more.

unless it's an arts degree :spin:

MG1 12-12-2010 06:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mx703 (Post 7225451)
unless it's an arts degree :spin:

Bwahahahaha..................... artsy fartsies, we used to call them.

TheKingdom2000 12-12-2010 07:27 PM

can someone clarify...
my friend told me that a BA with honours only means a 4 year degree and not a degree with a high GPA?

is that true? i tried the old google, but i found that it actually did mean a high GPA and there were a couple posts about the four year thing?

Does anyone know?

t8v6 12-12-2010 07:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dachinesedude (Post 7225208)
sadly, i cant relate to most of those, never lived on campus so university was never "an experience", it was just school....go to class, leave class, go home

that was true for me first two years of university...until i realized that the money we pay for isn't just for the classes but the entire experience as a whole. so i joined some clubs and made a lot friends, went to conferences and met even more people. you may not know it, but these experiences and connections that you make in university may actually be useful for you in the future. Even if it isn't helpful, who cares? i had a ton of fun :D

jackmeister 12-12-2010 07:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mx703 (Post 7225611)
can someone clarify...
my friend told me that a BA with honours only means a 4 year degree and not a degree with a high GPA?

is that true? i tried the old google, but i found that it actually did mean a high GPA and there were a couple posts about the four year thing?

Does anyone know?

If I remember correctly, at UBC Econ, the difference between regular and honours Econ is just the difference in credits required and some courses that are open to Honour students only. Is that correct? Graduating with honours is when you graduate with high GPA but I know that applies to Sauder but not sure about other faculties

wouwou 12-12-2010 08:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mx703 (Post 7225611)
can someone clarify...
my friend told me that a BA with honours only means a 4 year degree and not a degree with a high GPA?

is that true? i tried the old google, but i found that it actually did mean a high GPA and there were a couple posts about the four year thing?

Does anyone know?

SFU Honor means a high GPA of min. A- and 20 extra credits.

As of 4 years ago, that is.

Ferra 12-12-2010 08:23 PM

i swear time goes 10x faster after you graduated from school...:(

There are always so much things going on and happening in school.... you are surrounded by friends, and there are plenty of dramas and things happening every day.

After university, work and everything in your life just seem the same every fucking day...years go by without you even realizing it.


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