If you missed tonight here is Dan's advice for college.

Jill, Ria, and Andrew have amazing advice which I hope to add to the following bits of advice. 

College Prep Night

Credit cards are good and helpful but they can cause problems.

-My sister Ann thought that she could put all that she wanted on her credit card and just pay the minimum due. She did not realize that if she paid only the minimum that she would be ok. What she did not plan on is that it would take her 5 years at the rate she was going.

-Credit cards offer 0 interested for a period of time but there are 2 major catches

1. After that time the interest can jump to 11%, 15%, and 21%

2. If you miss or forget to make a payment the interest then jumps to the normal interest rate.

-Apply for as many grants and scholarships that you can.

-Look for cheaper books online

-Look for a job/ campus job/ ask around/ craigslist

-Sometimes you can find a live in position where you help out an older person/or help with childcare and live with the family you are serving

Roommates/choose wisely

I (Dan) had a roommate my first year who partied a lot, would have friends over until late, and who did not respect me or my stuff.

Story: One night his friends wanted to watch a movie and I had an early class in the morning. I laid on the top bunk bed to go to sleep while 2 of his friends sat on the edge of the bed watching their movie.

-Lower your standards on how rooming with someone will be(either someone you know or don’t know)

-Know that you might not be best friends with your roommate (if you don’t know the person before)

-Best friends usually are not the best roommates

-Know yourself and ask questions if you have a choice of who to room with (are you at early bird, night owl, neat nick, messy…etc.

-Get the most out of your education and go potluck (have the school pick one for you) or even better request an international student

-When you want to kill your roommate: go for a walk, talk it out with a friend and then with the roommate, if it gets worse or stays the same talk to a school employ about changing roommates.
-What to do if your roommate brings there date over and they are doing things that you bother you?

Picking classes when you don't know what you want to do:

-Gen ed's that fit for several of your interests
-Pick courses for the teacher that you like or what you are interested in

Taking care of business/school work

-Pace yourself by making room for spiritual refreshment, fellowship, fun, studying, sleep, exercise, etc.

-It's your choice to study or not but it's your future and your consequences
-Most students learn to love naps and sleep
-Take advantage of study abroad programs, you get all the credits for normally less homework, same costs as staying at the college, and a greater understanding of the world, yourself, and God.

-Bad grades equal less possibilities and less financial support
-Challenge yourself by taking classes that are not the easiest or with a demanding professor
-Know yourself...would you sleep/feel better if you study and then sleep or
-Would you do better to sleep and study in the morning?

-Do you work better under pressure or better without
-If you have trouble in a class get a tutor
-If you are really good at a subject help others (maybe making extra money)
-If you don't know what you want to do visit a counselor, talk to a professor, or career counselor.
-Read your syllabus and plan accordingly (sometimes you get the whole semester to work on a project but this could happen in more than one class--pace yourself so everything is not due at once.
-Take notes, if your not good at taking notes ask to barrow someone else's
-Ask upperclassmen about good professors---great way to meet new people and get the scoop on great professors

Friends, Family, and Dating
-Pray that God would introduce you to good friends before you get there
-Find out where the Christians are, get involved, and stay involved (don't commit to too many Bible studies or feel bad if you can't make everything)
-Play the field--hang out with a group, college is just not the same when you only hang out with one person---may stunt your growth as a person
-How to find friend---intramural sports, clubs,
-When you are alone and wish for home what are you going to do? How are you going to react…it will happen.
-Sit at different tables if you eat at the cafeteria
-It can be stressful going home, you have changed so much but usually your parents have not experienced as many changes…be prepared to be treated like a kids again.

Staying Spiritually strong

-find a fellowship of believers--pace yourself...everything is good but not everything is helpful for building up righteousness

-Accountability partner/ prayer partner

-Drinking/drug use
 
Depression, stress, anxiety.

-Choose carefully what advice you will listen to
-get help, it could be a health issue---tired (mono), getting heavy it could be stress or your thyroid is not working etc.

-You are not responsible for anyone else's happiness or quality of life...some problems that friends have are bigger than you.