The Topics:
The courses that surprised me the most were my ENAE classes. Both of my ENAE classes were very insightful into topics and work that I have never had the chance to experience in high school. My semester 1 ENAE course had lectures during the first half in which they just discussed what defines aerospace engineering and the types of research on campus. However, as the main attraction of the class groups of 4 students were put into different labs and helped with graduate research. Hands on experience, working with graduate students on a project that at the end of the semester we would present our findings. The semester 2 ENAE course is a coding class which I have enjoyed the most of my classes. In middle school I did block code in a lego robotics competition but have not touched it much outside of that, even though I was always interested. Being given the opportunity in college to take a coding class and learn actual coding language has been a lot of fun.
Unfortunately I do not have the best insight on developing relationships with faculty members. I did the bare minimum of going to class and attending a few office hours but outside of that my contact with faculty members was limited to only a few emails regarding grades. I did want to reach out over winter break to someone in the mechanical engineering department in hopes of helping with research but day after day of going to his office and knocking to no response I just accepted defeat. Really I should have sent an email regarding my interest but never got around to it. The best advice I can give is to go to office hours and communicate with them. The few office hours I have attended really helped me not only in the class but also in feeling connected to the school and motivated to participate in class.
It is extremely nice to have friends on campus to spend time with. From my school only 2 people ended up going here, neither of which I communicate with on any sort of regular basis. Having people to rely on, even if I have only known them for less than a year, has been extremely beneficial to my mental health and adjustment to college living. The largest obstacle in pursuing these relationships is just having the confidence to talk to them in the first place. I know it's not like elementary school where you can just become best friends with someone by sharing the same favorite color but these are your peers, you are in the same class, that means you have some interest aligned right? Talk to them. See what they are like. Tell them who you are. And if you don’t click so what? There are hundreds of more people to talk to. If none of them are worthy of a friendship I would be shocked. Also, be sure to cherish these connections. These are the people you're working with for future jobs so stick around and get to know them, study with them, go grab food, make the most out of the next 4 years (or so).
I think what I was least prepared for in academic life was how quickly work can build up. Although assignments are not as daily and monotonous as in high school, if you leave them around until the last minute it is a headache to get done. For example, this essay is being typed after an exam, another essay, physics homework, a peer evaluation, 2 class course surveys, and a few other little things. It sucks and I still need to get better at managing my time in a healthy way. The easiest way to deal with this (that I have TOTALLY been doing) is restricting your entertainment until after work is complete. Rather than coming back from classes and playing games or watching YouTube or whatever, take a small break, get your work done, and then enjoy yourself. Another way to modify that is to limit how much time you spend on entertainment before work, or create a schedule. All-in-all be sure to manage your time in a healthy way.
(Sorry this is a bit messy, I will correct it soon. I am just very paranoid as I saw a spider crawl into my keyboard and every tap of the key worries me more and more.)