Hi all, college is full of opportunities, and your biggest regret will be missing out on one. Over my time in college, I have learned quite a bit about making the most of things, and I thought I would share it with you!

1.) Send the email

• Do you need to ask a professor for an extension you may or may not use? The worst they can say is no. Take five minutes to send the email and explain the circumstances, even if it is something as silly as you didn’t realize how soon an assignment was due. Many professors are understanding, but won’t know your circumstances unless you tell them.
• Have a question? Take five minutes to send the email. You won’t be able to learn and grow if you don’t.
• Need a letter of recommendation? Just ask! I was scared for this one as a freshman because I didn’t think my professors knew me as well as I hoped. However, I asked anyway and got a wonderful letter of recommendation because my professor was able to look at my journals I wrote for class and she felt like she got to know me.

2.) Go to office hours

• If you have a question, take a few minutes to pop into office hours. Yes, if it is a big class it might be a bit busy, but getting a one-on-one explanation is worth the wait. A professor can sit down with you and explain exactly what you need help with.
• Office hours are also a great resource to get to know staff at the university outside of class. I have found most professors are knowledgeable about other on-campus opportunities, student organizations, and employment opportunities, and again, will write a great letter of recommendation if you get to know them!

3.) Make the move

• You’re only in college once, so do what is fun too. If a fun or engaging opportunity arises, take it! Go to a concert, the state fair, the city park, anything to get out of the cycle of being a student for a bit.
• Buy season tickets to games. Even if you know you can not go to all of them, you will have a good time at the ones you can go to and you can sell the tickets for the ones you can’t go to.
• Volunteer and work. These are great opportunities to see what you like to do in a real-world application. Now is the time to experiment and find this out!