The course that surprised me most was MATH246, Differential Equations for Scientists and Engineers. I have always excelled in math, so the challenge posed by this class caught me a bit off guard. Still, it was a valuable experience and a very enjoyable class. I discovered this class when it was recommended to me by my MATH240 professor as a class that I could take concurrently. I would recommend that future students be open to adding new courses even as the semester is starting, as you might discover something you would enjoy. However, students should still be careful not to overload their schedule, especially in their first semester.
The strongest relationship that I developed with a faculty member was with my ENGL101 professor, Peter Grybauskas. I have never enjoyed English, but this course was very different from what I experienced before. It focused on Tolkien and his academic works, which tied in with my interest in linguistics and fantasy. When you and the professor are passionate about the same academic topics, it is easy to form a strong relationship. I would recommend that students try to find courses and professors that align with their outside interests to develop a good relationship. Regular attendance is also critical. I had many positive interactions with faculty members, but if I failed to attend their classes regularly, it was difficult to form a relationship.
The greatest obstacle to relationships with my peers was simply a lack of time. I and my friends all had busy schedules, so when coursework became more difficult, there was just less time to hang out. The relationships that were the easiest to maintain were those that involved group studying, because we could still rely on eachother when we got busy. This also helped me adjust to the academic demands of university life, so I would recommend that students form study groups and keep in touch with them.
I was least prepared for the amount of time I would need to spend out of class. Much less time is spent in class in university than in high school, and I had difficulty properly managing my time out of class. One strategy that helped me and that I would recommend to future students is to explicitly schedule time to work on each class. Setting aside specific windows of time (particularly the time between classes) helped me stay in the right frame of mind to get work done.