Know what you want. There are people who transition into college undecided on what career path interests them. They might decide on one thing while in college and then realize it's not for them and end up switching and switching, until they look around and 5 or 6 years have passed by and they still don't have a degree to their name. If you want to graduate on time, this lifestyle isn't for you. You must firmly know what you want so you can achieve it in the shortest amount of time possible. Make a list of things that interest you and then narrow your list down to what you could see yourself doing on a daily basis. Take a few classes that interest you while you're still in high school or just before you start college. Try to get a feel for what you want before you enroll. If you still can't put a finger on what you want to do, come up with a career goal before your first 2 years of college are up.
See an advisor as soon as possible and make sure he or she is good at what they do. An advisor will help you plan out your schedule so you can make the best use of your time. After seeing an advisor, run your schedule by a friend or family member who has been through the college system. Someone who has already been through what you're about to go through has invaluable advice that will help you in the long run. After selecting a major, make sure you take proper steps to see your department advisor as soon as possible each semester or quarter to clear any holds you might have on your record or have your questions answered.
Get a hold of your transcript. Most colleges and universities have a computer generated report called The Degree Audit Reporting System (DARS) which shows all your requirements that you have and have not completed. You can usually obtain a copy through your department office or online through your school' s student portal. Your audit report should become your best friend, as it contains your life as a college student on paper.
Manage your time. Time management skills are crucial in college. This is usually easier said than done, as many people, including myself, gravitate toward procrastination than pacing projects and assignments days or weeks in advance. If you want to not stress yourself out and make sure you graduate on time, you have to manage your list of to-dos properly. This can be achieved by always conducting research ahead of time and making an outline. In my experience, this method works best, because when it comes time to writing, you already have a working knowledge of the topic and your thoughts seem to flow easier. Before you know it, you'll crank out that 20 page paper and have time to catch your favorite show on television.
Take as many classes as you can during each semester or quarter. This doesn't mean you should overwhelm yourself, it does however mean you shouldn't under whelm yourself. If you talk yourself into taking it easy and only taking two or three courses, you're bound to spend at least 1 year catching up to everyone else who took a decent amount of courses. The harder your work now, the less work you'll have later.
Have a social life, but don't let the social scene be your life. Let's face it, there is no way you will be able to make it through college on time if you concentrate mostly on making through every party or social event that comes your way. Make friends, meet new people and attend events, but don't let them cloud your goals on making it to the finish line.
Get enough to sleep and eat. Probably the biggest mistake I made in my college years was not getting enough sleep. Sometimes, this is inevitable, as there will be times that you will have to pull an all nighter, but try to get at least the minimum number of hours in, so that a) you actually show up to class, b) you absorb the material that's covered so you don't have to spend extra hours trying to understand it and c) you don't feel like you're going to collapse at a moment's notice.
After checking your audit report and making sure that all your requirements are complete, you are now ready to apply for graduation. This is usually a process that no one tells you about or explains to you. It's an unwritten rule that you find out through friends or classmates. Nevertheless, it is quite an important step and your last step to leaving your beloved campus on time. This step requires you to see your advisor to make sure all your requirements are in order and also to fill out an application to begin a graduation evaluation. After doing this, you receive a letter that will confirm your application was received and your graduation evaluation will be mailed to you. Congratulations, you did it!