All that I could think of is just to be open to meeting others and just
don't sit back and don't say a word. Get to know everyone and that will
help you out the most.
Curt Aust

I think it's really important to be in class every time it meets.
Keeping up with class notes and assignments is also very important.
I think students should ask questions whenever they need to.
Asking questions is the best way to learn sometimes.
I also think it's important to do things right away, whenever
possible. Procrastinating is not a good habit to start or continue in
college. Those are some things I thought of. Hope that helps.
Aaron Kelly

My biggest piece of advice to all new students: Don't ever try to do your
homework or study for an exam in the dorms. It is impossible to concentrate, and there are too
many distractions that can keep you from getting your work done. Go to the library, or some other
semi-quiet place.
Thanks for asking, see you on Monday
Chris Kremer

Wow! I think it's really great that you want to be as helpful
as possible for the incoming freshmen! I think the biggest thing I
wish I would have realized as a freshman was that procrastination can
become a very big problem if it's not corrected immediately! Mom is not
at college constantly asking you if you have your homework done!!!
I also wish that I would have taken advantage of professors' open
door policies when I had questions, because actually understanding what
I was doing, instead of guessing would have saved me a lot of stress
and time re-doing what I did wrong the first time.
Robin

My advice to any freshman is to let the environment come to them.
Everyone has been in their shoes before. They should also try to be as
friendly and positive as possible.
Andy McQuillen

Hi. I just have one small thought, but it's one that I think has helped
me succeed. I would suggest to students to get to know other and to get
together in groups to study or at least review class material. I find
that it is easier to ask your friends or classmates with whom you are
comfortable with "dumb" questions. Plus, they may be able to help
others too.
Jennifer Meyer
 

Thank you for your warm welcome!!
A word of wisdom to help the new students could be to meet one on one with their
teachers so there could be a comfort zone between each other. This is something I did not do last
year. Another could be taking a time management class to set a time schedule.
Well I hope to have a great semester with you. Pedro Rodriguez
 
 

Dr. Walsh,
Here's some suggestions
*Avoid going home every weekend the first semester, it really is hard
to adjust to college life and make friends when you go home. When
freshman are enjoying their time here, I think they are more apt to try
to do well in classes so they don't drop out.
*Avoid studying in the Union, to loud and students end up talking,
study instead in your room, with the door closed, or the library.
*Take Effective Study Strategies and Speed Reading classes offered
through Academic Affairs in the Student Services Center, these classes,
if you put forth the effort, are beneficial and will help out a lot.
*Take advantage of the Math and Writing labs in the Student Services
Center, great resources!!
*Organize study groups, a lot of students find it much easier to
study in groups, but take it serious, don't goof off.
*It's ok to go out and have fun, but make it a rule to have all your
reading done before you go out on week nights.
*Do not cram, it is much better to keep up with reading then try to
cram the night before. Also, if you keep up with your reading and start
to prepare for a test about 3-5 days before, then you will only need to
do a quick review the night before an exam. Avoid flipping through
notes (cramming) immediately before a test. You will inevitably
remember only what you have just looked at and blank at the rest.
Instead, while you are in class right before the test, do some breathing
exercises and think about something other than the test.
*Introduce yourself to all your professors in the first week, and go
up to them and talk to them about class and any questions you have. If
a professor knows you and remembers that you made an effort in the
semester, they are likely to help you out with borderline grades.
Example: bump a C+ up to a B-.
*Get involved in at least one organization and pick up a part time
job through the University, benefits are:
-Meet people, extra cash, build resume, and studies show people
who are involved have better time management skills and get better
grades.
*Use your planner, you can not afford to miss an important
assignment, test or paper in college because so often classes are graded
on only a few of these.
*Relax, have fun, and be confident, many students have been in your
shoes and did just fine. If you take college seriously, you will
succeed!!!
Hope this helps,
Jason Kurth

my biggest recommendation: GO TO CLASS
i learned this the hard way my first semester. even if you hardly pay
attention in class, you'll be surprised what you pick up just by being
there. i wish someone would have informed me of this before i started
school....
Luke Steele

I only have one main suggestion but it is VERY important and that is to
attend class. It might sound stupid to many freshman at first because
they think....why wouldn't I goto class but as they will find out soon
enough there are many people who don't. I know its not to helpful but
it was my biggest factor in getting good grades. Ryan Koopmans

Professor Walsh,
Hi! My name is Katherine Clark, or as I preferred to be called Kathy.
Having not ever been in any of your classes before, I do not really know
what to give as advice to freshmen. However, I know that a lot of
students come to college thinking that they can just study their notes
and not read the book. I have learned that that is not always possible.
My advice to freshmen would be to read and reread their textbooks.
Also, I have learned that if you review your notes each day while they
are still fresh in your mind, then it is easier to retain the
information needed when the time comes for a test. Study guides are a
great help so I would tell the freshmen to make sure to go over them if
given one, but not to study only that. Other than that I can't really
think of any more advice except to study hard but always remember not to
burn themselves out. Hope the last few days of your summer are great,
and I will see you in a week. Thanks for your time. Kathy Clark

I would say mostly to just stay caught up. It will need to be done
eventually and it's harder if you wait until the last minute to cram. (This
is coming from a professional procrastinator) :)
Jenny Brown

One thing that I would say to the freshman is to keep in mind your due
dates. In college, you don't have teachers reminding you that something is
due. You have your syllabus and that tells your due dates. Also, don't
stress your self out about tests. That only makes test taking harder and
gets you to nervous which may cause you to do bad on tests.

I was glad to hear from you. It is very important in making a student's out
look for class a good one and this email made me excited to come to class.
I am glad that you are concerned about your students and you are doing what you can to help
them in school.
Missy McLeish

Dr. Walsh,
Sorry I'm kinda late responding. I was out of town this past weekend so
I haven't checked my email for awhile. My advice to any newcoming
student is to relax. I didn't find school to be nearly as difficult as
some people made it out to be. The thing that is most important is to
find what works for you. Some people just don't need to study as much as
others. Balancing your time is also a key. If all you do is study,
you're not getting the whole college experience. Make time for yourself
as well as your studies. I know the things I mentioned above worked for
me last year. Anyways, see you in a week!
Corey Jansen

The best words of wisdom that I could give new incoming freshman is to
not feel like you need to know what you want to major in right away.
They should really use their first two years to explore all of the
different classes available. They may find a hidden interest in
something that they never would have considered. I know this from
personal experience. I am a 5th year senior, and just this past summer
I finally figured out what I really had an interest in. I have changed
my major numerous times. It has taken me awhile to get to this point,
and a few unneeded classes, but to have a career in something that I
will enjoy...it will be worth it:)
Grace Freese

In answer to your request on advice for incoming freshmen here
are a few thoughts: Go to class. Talk to your professors, they are
usually very helpful with questions or worries you may have. Be
prepared for class and make a point of it because it is so easy to
get behind. Write notes to yourself while reading your assignments,
this helps you understand what you are reading and helps you make
"connections" to additional discussions or readings.
Sincerely, Erin Dahle

The best piece of advice would be to not skip classes. Also getting
enough sleep is important.
Joel Caspers

This isn't High school, you actually need to study.

My advice to incoming freshman would be to talk to your
professors. My first semester I didn't talk to any of them, and
second semester they all knew me by name. Not only did I do
better in class, I enjoyed it more.

- Jen Goughnour

I was always afraid of the workload and the finals. I dreaded finals
because I really had no idea what they would be like. I would explain
to the freshmen what the final will be like. Also, I feared that the
professors would be "strict robots" trying their hardest to make us
fail. As long as a teacher is lively, fun, energetic, and really shows
an interest in helping them learn, the freshmen should feel right at
home. -Mike Stone

The best wisdom I can give to the new students is to of course focus on
school, but also make sure to have fun. Also talk to class mates,
because they are great study partners.
Thanks for the welcoming e-mail,
Katie Kenne

*Professors understand that their class is not the only important
class, so don't let yourself go nuts before asking for help. If you
ask before the deadline, have a good attendance/participation record,
and only let it happen once in awhile, they will probably work with you
to agree on a due date.

*Try not to get into the habit of drinking every Thursday night. There
are so many more positive activities on campus that won't drain your
wallet or GPA, but you have to read the newspaper and ask around to
find out about them.

*Spell checkers aren't always reliable, so ask someone for suggestions
or read papers outloud to yourself. The Writing Center also does a
wonderful job at this!

*Say hi to those people you see consistently or if they're alone, ask
to sit at lunch. You'll meet someone new, make their day, AND conserve
that all important table space.

*Stay the first month. The weekends of the first month are when I
really connected with the people I'd met, learned to love the campus,
and got involved the most. Besides, you'll figure out how to beat
homesickness (it's all about staying busy).

*Sometimes it helps to not only read notes, but repeat them to yourself
as well. This stores the information in the hearing and sight areas in
your brain. When one comes up blank during a test, the other place
still has it and you know the answer.

Anne Crotty

Key to succesful college life is to be social, if you socialize with
other people on your dorm floor you have more fun.  This makes studying
and learning seem not quite so difficult.
"Big Mac"

Words of wisdom ... well,for Freshman I would highly recommend
not even stating a Major, you just end up switching it anyway. Taking
mostly General ed is the way to go until your positive on something you
want to do. I see so many people switch Major like 4 or 5 times; they
end up having to take loads of summer school just to catch up because
they invest time and money in classes for a Major that they end up not
Majoring in anyway.
Dax Miller

Prof. Walsh,
I think that my "tip for success" would be to go to class. It's easy in
a class of 200-300 people to think that you can get away with not
showing up... and you end up paying for it in the end. The way for
definite success is to show up every day, pay attention and take notes.
That will score you at least a B in almost every gen ed course that UNI
offers... and most major courses as well.
Phil Klein

  After two years here, there are some things I suggest.

One is to attend as many study sessions as you can.  If you can't, it
is good to make friends in the class so you have study buddies.  Two
heads are always better than one.  Another is to follow along with the
readings. Don't try to do extra work and read ahead because you will
only confuse yourself.  Bring your text to class and follow it during
lecture as well.  This helps you know where to look if you don't quite
get something.

Don't try to copy notes word for word.  Rather put it in your own words
and take down the most important things.  If you focus to much on
trying to get everything down you miss what is being lectured about and
that makes going to class pointless.  If need be bring a tape recorder.

Most importantly attend class all the time.  Reading notes from a
friend isn't going to help you if you don't understand what is written
down.

Those are the main things I have learned.  Hope this helps out

Nick

                        I would just like to say, first of all, is that this is a really neat
                   thing that you are doing!!  I guess what I have learned the most in my
                   freshman year is to have an open mind.  Remember that everybody makes
                   mistakes, but life goes on.  Life is too short to worry about those
                   little petty things; leave the high school drama, you don't need it.
                   There are too many people to meet and too much life to live to spend
                   your time on things like that.
                        Thank you for doing this.  Also, I was wondering if you could send me a
                   copy when you get them compiled.  I just think it would be interesting
                   to see what everybody says!
                   Thanks again!!
                   Michaela Ring

                   This is Jenifer Hood.  Well, I think that the most
                   helpful thing I could have realized as a freshman would have been that
                   there is No One out there to guide you as there were in high school or
                   previously.  I was constantly missing important meetings or auditions
                   my first few weeks because I did not keep track of the dates and times
                   when they were given to me; I thought I'd be told again when the time
                   was closer, just as had been done in high school.  Something I Should
                   have done to address that would have been to keep a well-organized
                   daily/weekly/monthly/yearly planner for reference.  I hope that
                   helps.  Jenifer Hood

                   I would pass on to the incoming freshman that you should study more
                   than just the night before, review your notes every day because in some
                   classes you will have 3 pages (Front/back) of notes a day and once the
                   test comes, you will have like 24 pages to look over.  That's all I can
                   think of right now, but if I can think of anymore I will email you.
                   Meghan
                   Brugman