The Breeze staff shares freshman advice

House Editorial

Freshmen, this one’s for you.

The Office of Institutional Research asked last year’s seniors their advice to the incoming Class of 2008, which will be sent out in the next few weeks. The Breeze staff then decided that they had their own words of wisdom to pass along to the new kids on the block. Without further ado, here is advice from the Breezers:

First of all, get involved (Writing for The Breeze is always a good start). Really, though, anything students do outside of the classroom makes college that much better.

Don’t date anyone who lives in your residence hall — it makes things extremely awkward after the breakup. This means don’t date your resident adviser or hall director, either.

Ashby Hall is not the same as Ashby apartments. The former is located on the Quad, while the latter is off campus and up Port Republic Road. Likewise, D-hall is not Gibbons Hall — it’s in Gibbons Hall.

Meet your professors, whether you visit their office hours or introduce yourself after class.

If you want to avoid the UREC rush (and the elliptical machine madhouse), go before 8 a.m. or after 8 p.m.

Irons make good hot plates, and it is possible to make furniture out of pizza boxes. On a related note, never steal the sign from the top of the Chanello’s driver’s truck — he or she won’t hesitate to press charges.

When it comes to parties, don’t walk in huge groups, otherwise known as the "freshmen pack;" walk in twos or threes. Sure, you’re all together, but you’re also more likely to get heckled by commuters. And when you’re at the party, remember that hooking up doesn’t necessarily mean anything in the long-term — sorry to burst your bubble.

Be nice to the cleaning ladies in your dorm. They are your toilet paper suppliers and they also clean up your mess after the weekends.

Don’t hold hands in D-hall — public affection is not necessary in an eating environment.

No matter how hard you try, you’re still going to get 8 a.m. classes next semester. And don’t worry about not knowing what you want to do when you graduate — most seniors still don’t know. In fact, it’s doubtful that many faculty members know what they want to do when they grow up.

Remember to call your parents for things other than money or care packages. They are the ones who will love you long after you’re a college graduate.

And the N. 1 piece of advice from the Breezers is this: JMU is what you make of it. Whether you become involved in clubs or study hard, your actions always will pay off in the end.