It is time to take responsibility. Get to know the physical lay of the land ahead of time, including where buildings and classrooms are. Identify the relevant campus websites, which will give you vital information about the campus and its policies. Acquaint yourself with the resources at your disposal, so that when you're wondering about getting an internship or whom to contact about housing, you'll know whom to email. Keep a calendar to juggle spread-out classes and activities.
Studying will be a frequent activity in college, so get the most out of it. Group study can be good for reinforcing studious behavior, but if you are very easily distracted, this may not be for you. Most of us are used to constant multitasking, but studying usually requires sustained concentration. Prepare by getting comfortable with not multitasking--for instance, read a difficult book in silence. If you are a procrastinator, give yourself mini-deadlines for certain parts of larger tasks.
Resources abound at even small campuses to help students succeed. Check with student services if you need tutoring, which is often free, or if you are under intense emotional stress. Everyone needs to decompress. Talk to parents and others who know you well about your needs and problems.
Make frequent use of your professors and graduate student teachers. They are required to hold weekly office hours, where they wait to answer your questions. If you are often overloaded, be willing to drop a class or extracurricular activity. It's better to stay healthy and do a few activities well than to do everything poorly and in misery.
You may have known since you were two years old that you want to be a doctor or lawyer. But college is a unique opportunity to learn about something you may have never even known existed. Take a gamble and schedule some elective classes within the first year. Likewise, make friends who are unlike you, shop around for interesting-sounding clubs, and take some social risks. Extracurricular activities and relationships can be just as important to future employers or graduate schools as coursework. Remember, self-development is a total project--it's not just about grades.
Unhealthy food and alcohol present constant temptation to college students. You can now make your own choices, but you must ask yourself questions: Am I safe in this situation? Am I in control of my behavior? Does my eating promote my vitality and peace of mind? Stress and fatigue can dampen the immune system as well, and exams can't always be rescheduled for those with illness Sleep as well as you can and keep clean. Prevention, as always, is worth a pound of cure.