Now that you’re on campus, and classes have started, where are you going to study? In order to do well in classes you need to go to class, but outside of the class you need to find a study space that will work well for you. Ask yourself some of these questions to find a good study space. What type of environment do you prefer working in, quiet or louder? Do you study better around people or alone? Do you want to sit at a table, desk, couch, etc.? Think about all of these options while you walk around campus and town keeping an eye out for the study space that will work the best for you.
There are a lot of coffee shops or dining centers on campus where you can study if you don’t get distracted with people being around you. If you like it to be really quiet there are very quiet areas in the Valley library on the 4th, 5th, and 6th floor or take a quick walk to the downtown Corvallis library. Make sure to check out all the different floors because you might find an area on a specific floor that’s perfect for your needs. The OSU library is also great for group projects or if you just likes to study with a group of friends. There are study rooms in the library that you can reserve online or at the front desk. Other areas you might want to consider on campus are the MU, or your residence hall or co-op study lounges, or even the small study areas in Dixon Rec Center. Your study spaces might be closer to you than you think. Try giving the different study areas a try throughout the first few weeks and find the space that works for you!
You’ve hopefully settled into your classes, made a few friends and now it is time to make your advising appointment. To receive the most benefit of the advising appointments keep these tips in mind:
- Reach out to your advisor to set up a meeting. Almost all colleges and majors have unique ways of setting up appointments so make sure to follow their guides.
- Prepare a few questions. Do you want to get involved more? Do you want to know what minors could fit into your schedule? Do you want to study abroad? Maybe start applying for work? Your advisor is a great starting point in the discovering the answers to all your questions.
- Prepare your schedule. Make sure to look on MyDegrees and use the planner tab to help browse through the course work that is required for your degree. The planner tab on MyDegrees will allow you to loosely plan out your entire career here at OSU. It’s pretty neat.
- Lastly, remember to be on time to your appointment, and have an open mind. Your advisor could connect you with some amazing opportunities.
Hello again Beavers! With football season kicking off recently I am sure many of you have been curious as to how to get tickets without getting tackled by mobs of people. Here is your fail safe guide as to how to get to the 50 yard line without getting intercepted.
- REMEMBER YOUR STUDENT ID
- Make sure there are no holds on your account, if there are then you won’t be able to get a ticket and that would be sad
- Camp out in line outside the ticket office at Resser
- Most of the time 12 hours ahead is good enough, however the better we are doing the earlier you will want to get there. You can start camping out up to 24 hours before tickets become available
- Bring your friends and some games
- Bonus points if you bring a tent or couch, you will be everyone’s best friend
- Note, if you do bring any camping equipment, officials will walk around between 3-4am to have you put it away and make sure you are awake
- Move to the front of the line
- When you get to the front have your student ID ready to give to the ticket office
- DON’T LOSE YOUR TICKET
- Again, that would be sad and you only are distributed one ticket per game
- Go to the game!
- When you attend the game you must have your ticket and your student ID, otherwise you will not be let in. Stand in your assigned section and have a great time watching your OSU Beaver Football team
Have a great time for me!
Hello New Beavers! Welcome to the first week of classes. During your first year it is unavoidable to have a couple large lectures with 300+ students. You may have been close with your teachers in high school and it is possible to have the same kinds of relationships with your new professors in college. The best way to do this is by putting in the effort to meet with them one-on-one. Here are some tips as to what to do when meeting with professors:
- Check your syllabus to see where and when their office hours are
- Email them ahead of time to give them a heads up as to when you are coming
- This will make you hold yourself accountable to actually go as well
- Go to their office on the day and time you said you would be there
- Let them know your name, which of their classes you are in, and why you are taking this class
- Bonus points if you don’t say, “I don’t know, my advisor made me”
- Ask them what they like to do outside of teaching
- I promise they have lives outside of a classroom
Some benefits of being on a first name basis with a professor in a large lecture hall are:
- They have a face to your name, so if you are .50% away from a better grade they will remember that you put in an effort to meet them and you will be more likely to get bumped up
- If you use a clicker and it isn’t working one day, you can go up to them after class and let them know you were there. If they saw you in class then you are more likely to get those points
- Professors in general are very interesting. They all come from very different backgrounds and you never know, you could have a lot in common with them, and it never hurts to have a faculty member by your side
Best of luck on your first week and say hi to your professors from me!
Everybody wants to avoid that dreaded freshman fifteen, here are some insider tips to help you stay healthy during your first year at OSU!
- Actually go to Dixon!!
- Don’t just tell yourself you are going to go and then skip it every day. Make it a social event and go with a friend!
- Don’t be intimidated, everybody had to learn sometime. If you don’t know how to use a machine, ask someone!! They are probably happy to show off their knowledge.
- Just force yourself to go the first couple times until it becomes a routine!
- Buy a fit pass if you like going to scheduled fitness classes like Bodypump or Spin!
- If working out at the gym isn’t your thing there are other options
- Go for a run (to places like the covered bridge at the end of Campus Way or to Bald Hill)
- Join a Club Sports team – a great option if organized sports are your thing
- Play Intramural Sports – a super fun way to stay active while making new friends!
- Don’t let the dining halls get the best of you!!
- Opt for the healthy option – you don’t always need the bacon cheeseburger and milkshake. Check out the daily menus at UHDS dining centers to find tasty, healthy options.
- Try not to skip breakfast – yes is it can be hard when you have 8am classes, but three smaller meals a day is much healthier
Now that you’re all moved in to your new home it’s time to start getting ready for classes and buy your textbooks for fall term! I know that they can get expensive, so here are some helpful tips for saving money while also making sure you have all of the books you need:
How to buy textbooks:
- Go to your MyOSU portal on the Oregon State website and click the student tab.
- Select “MyTextbooks” which should direct you to the online Beaver Store and automatically input your classes (if this doesn’t work you can visit the OSU Beaverstore website’s academic section and manually input your classes).
- You can now see what textbooks each of your professors has assigned for your courses, and you can view a price comparison between the OSU Beaver Store prices and online resources (like Amazon and Chegg).
- If you are buying from the bookstore you can pay online and pick them up later, or just buy them at the Beaver Store.
