Skip to main content

What to bring to class on the first day

Don’t overdo it. I often see students laboring around campus with little suitcases on wheels. I assume they are carrying their computer, their notebooks, and every textbook they were asked to buy this semester. Maybe a few library books and their lunch. Here’s what you need to bring to class that first day:

  • A copy of your class schedule, just to remind you where to go. (Sometimes campus computers make mistakes and send you to classes that don’t exist or put you in places where you don’t belong. A printout of your schedule will solve a lot of problems if you have to ask questions.)
    • A campus map would not be a bad idea either.
  • Pen or pencil. You do need to bring your own. Only annoying fools think everyone else should supply them with writing tools. 
  • Spiral notebook. On that first day, someone is certain to say something you will need to remember. (It wouldn’t be a bad idea to have a spiral notebook for each course you will take.)
  • Accordion file folder. The first day usually has a lot of handouts, and you want to keep them all—together with each other, but separate from the handouts for other classes.
  • Everything else is optional. You will probably not need your textbooks in class on the first day. In fact, college teachers do not often require you to use the textbook in class. It’s for homework reading, and we assume you have done the reading before you get here.

About bringing your computer that first day …

You probably don’t need it. Most teachers spend the first day on “rules and regulations” stuff (syllabus, schedule of readings and assignments, etc.) and on some sort of “getting to know you” material. so there’s no point in desperately digging into the internet. And besides …

  • You will be juggling a lot of other confusing stuff that day anyhow, and
  • logging into the campus system takes a while the first time, and
  • the campus network is often overloaded the first day or two so you might have to wait a LONG time, and
  • babysitting a computer and worrying about it is far less important than finding out what you have to do to pass this course.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Getting Your Computer Ready for School

Back when I was a student, everyone packed up their portable typewriter for the move to campus. Lots of people got a new typewriter as a graduation gift, but I didn’t. I ended up using one we bought when I was in high school. The story is probably the same for you, except that it’s a computer, not a mechanical typewriter. Whether you just bought a new one or kept your old faithful companion with all of its stickers, you need to do a few things to get the machine ready for college. Getting Old Faithful ready for college Is Old Faithful sick? If the machine crashes a lot, has trouble (and takes a long time) doing things, or pops up weird ads to play poker or look at porn, you probably have a virus. (You just had to download that fancy screensaver, didn’t you?) Take a deep breath—bite the bullet—pay the computer repair shop to clean it up for you. Now that Old Faithful is feeling better … Back up the really important stuff. (Your only

Lunchroom Legends about College

A lot of fake news circulates concerning college life. I’m not sure where all of this comes from, but kids seem to tell each other these lies—and you need to ignore them. Spoiler Alert: Pretty much all of the legends below are quick routes to failing a course or flunking out entirely. Don’t believe them. College attendance doesn’t count Yes it does, in two ways. In our course (and in many courses) attendance is part of the grade, and unexcused absences count against you. And obviously, if you weren’t here and the teacher said something you need, that hurts too. Some teachers don’t appear to take attendance, but they really can—they just know who is supposed to be in their small classroom. (I’m not that good. I will usually call roll.) You only think that absences don’t count against you because we don’t have an assistant principal phoning your mother. You are an adult now, and you should know how much absences hurt your grade. Strolling i

If you are in trouble in a course

Every semester, I have one or two students who stop attending and stop submitting papers, BUT they are still on the books as students. Because they are missing major papers, they end up failing the course. This is not good for their GPA. It takes a lot of work to overcome an “F.” What to do if you are sinking Your first step should always be to discuss your problem with your course instructor. You may have some options to save your grade. If the issue is that you simply weren’t prepared for the course, working with our tutoring center might be your best choice. Before you make any major changes, discuss things with your academic advisor. Perhaps it would be wise to withdraw from the course. A “W” on your transcript doesn’t kill your GPA, and you are always free to try the course again at a later date. While you are in your academic advisor’s office, ask the question whether you are in the r