Of all the classes that I found relevant by far the class that I found the most useful was ENME202. This class has the most relevance to the real world as coding has become more important to the real world and while I do not like Matlab or anything it stands for C is a fast and useable programming language that is used worldwide across many technology companies. The most important fast step that most students take in this class is obviously learning the programming language itself. If you do not know where to start it will simply be painful to do anything else. But once you know the language the syntax still needs to be organized and correct in general. But it is worth it once you know the skill.
My greatest success in developing relations with faculty is mainly when there is motivation to do so. If the professor presents a good potential or prospect for the future or if they are a good professor in terms of attitude and teaching it is more likely that you will be able to be motivated to have contacts with that staff in particular. The biggest challenge is showing yourself to said person. A few ways to get the professors attention is sitting at the front and constant participation. There is also after class and office hours that could be spent to build the relation with the professor. However it is not easy to do so all the time as the front seats are more likely to be taken (and the back too but that is for a different reason) and office hours and after class may not be as easy to attend, especially from conflicting schedules. But if you want to have a better connection do the following things.
To be honest, the only real challenge at least for me that college has presented is the difficulty of classes. The way that peers and friends have done to help me through this is either to study together or help me through classes when I am challenge by them. Making connections. Pursuing relationships is also hard when classes can become rigorous and there is not much that can be done about that. The best thing to do is to make connections early so that you guys can work through problems together. Everyone is in the same position so do not be scared about expressing problems.
The thing about university academics that I was least prepared for was the speed and magnitude that the classes increase in difficulty. While I did work as early as possible there were still many challenges that stacked up when I was trying to do the easy assignments first. The main advice I can give is to do assignments as early as possible and to study material on a daily basis. Get as much sleep as possible as you probably will get minimal amounts and breaks are a good thing but do not become obsessed with breaks. Maintain a balance of work and life.