When it comes to hitting the ground running on your first day of classes, a bit of prep goes a long way. The first week is always a mess; a little planning can streamline some of the chaos and set you up for a smooth ride once the semester gets into full swing. Here are 10 things you can do to prepare:
1. Figure Out Your Daily Routine
Walk out your class schedule and see how much time you need to get from place to place. Establish a new schedule at your job that works around your class schedule. Understand whether your classes have additional labs. Knowing where you need to go and when takes away stress and also helps you get home to relax more quickly!
2. Change Your Sleep Schedule
Don’t go from a 10 am wake-up and 2 am bedtime summer routine to a 10 pm bedtime and 7 am wake-up the first day of classes. You’ll set yourself up for at least a week or two of sleeping poorly and feeling super tired when you wake up. Take a couple of weeks before the semester to start transitioning to the adult version of “school night” bedtime.
3. Practice Single-Tasking
We multitask all the time – you’re probably reading this on your phone right now with the TV on in the background. But when it comes to difficult and/or involved tasks, keeping sustained attention on one thing is key to doing it well. Dividing attention time to focus on one thing each in 20-minute increments is a great way to start managing time without multitasking.
4. Scout Your Study Spot
When you’ve got 40 minutes between classes but nothing to do, you should make the most of your time. You’re stuck on campus anyway, right? When you walk out of your class schedule, wander around the campus and uptown to find a study spot that fits your learning style. Get some pro tips on that in our article: Sussing Out the Best Study Spots at Ohio University.
5. Reach Out to Professors
Worried about a class? Have specific needs to learn your lectures better? Interested in convincing a prof to become your thesis advisor? Reaching out before the school year starts not only gets you face time, but they’ll also have more time to attend to your interaction(s) – the first 2 weeks of the semester are the best time for you to contact your professors.
6. Determine a New Gym Schedule
It’s easy to let up on the daily runs when classes get into full swing, but exercise is most useful during the school year – it supports emotional health, reduces stress, improves sleep, and acts as a self-care activity. Good news – Ping is always right down on South Green!
7. Check Your Email Daily
Sometimes nothing happens in the summer, sometimes a class gets cancelled, and you never check your email, so you don’t find out until you show up to an empty lecture hall the first day of class. Now you have to find a new class to fit into that one’s spot, and all the classes are full. Keep up with your inbox through the summer.
8. Make Sure Your Tuition is Paid
The university is notorious for coming at you like a mob boss who wants their money the literal moment tuition is late. And often, it’s not even the student’s fault. Whether TA positions, scholarships, loans, etc, keep an eye on your bursar account so you have an answer when they ask you where the money is, so they don’t kneecap you.
9. Look into Student Organizations
Have a hobby you love or a sport you played in high school that you miss? There are many clubs and organizations around campus for support, social causes, community, sports, arts, and more. Look into them and narrow down what you’re interested in so you know which week-one meetings to check out.
10. Plan Your Meals
Do a big grocery shopping trip the weekend before classes start, or earlier if you want to miss the thousands of parents who’ll be doing that with their freshmen on the weekend. Meal prepping for the week is never a bad idea, but simply having food on hand at home will do more than just save you money; it will also ensure you can just grab and go when hurrying to class. Or eat carbs when you get home from the bars at 2 am. Life is about balance. Don’t forget to talk to your landlord about any issues or requests at your student rental before the school year gets into full swing. That way, we can help make coming home to your off-campus apartment the easiest part of your day.
Aside from Preparing for Classes, Fall is the Time for Athens Apartment Hunting
Off-campus apartments near Ohio University are always in high demand, especially in uptown Athens. Since leases for these student rentals usually span May-May or August-August, if you’re on the hunt for a new apartment to move into, fall is the best time to start. You might think that starting this early is overkill, but ensuring that you begin your apartment hunt at least 9 months in advance is crucial.
Without early preparation, you’ll end up having to settle for rentals that are either far from campus or poorly maintained. We can go on about just how competitive the Athens rental market is, but you get the idea.
When you start your OU off-campus housing search, you should first explore options from reputable rental companies in Athens. By starting with their list of properties, you can rest assured that your student apartment will be comfortable to live in and include all the necessary amenities that make your life easier.
Kleinpenny Rentals has a huge variety of apartments and houses available for rent. From studio apartments to multi-bedroom houses with a yard, we have many choices that suit all kinds of student lifestyles. Check out our full property list of Athens student rentals and keep an eye out, so you can live in an Ohio University apartment that meets all your requirements.