10 Things I Wish I Knew as a Berkeley Freshman

Having graduated after five years at UC Berkeley, I want to share 10 pieces of advice that I wish my freshman self had known. Some of these are a little more specific to Berkeley, but most can be applied to any university!

1. Give yourself grace as you adjust to living independently.

Don’t underestimate the challenges that come with learning to live on your own for the first time. You won’t have your parents reminding you to eat or making sure you wake up on time or even taking care of you when you are sick with the freshman flu (like I was). Figuring out all of that is tough. So, don’t worry. You don’t have to overload yourself with 7 courses, a consulting club, and a fancy research gig in your first semester, just because your roommate is doing so. Give yourself the space and time to learn how to adult, and these skills will stay with you for a lifetime.

2. Get your sleep and don’t skip breakfast.

Speaking of adjusting, you no longer have someone ensuring that you’re sleeping well and eating breakfast. It can be so enticing to stay up late at night talking with your friends, but if you do that every single day, you are going to feel physically horrible. And please sleep well before an exam especially – no amount of studying can compensate for not getting 8 hours of quality sleep. And wake up in time for breakfast. For my first three semesters, I would skip breakfast every day. When a friend finally had me start eating breakfast again, I stopped feeling so tired, and now, breakfast is essential to my day.

3. Take a break from technology.

Technology can be a great resource, but also it can be useful to step away from it for a while. Some of my best problem-solving sessions at Berkeley involved nothing more than a giant whiteboard and a few friends. And maybe go old-school and carry around a notebook sometimes. Or take out the headphones and listen to the sounds around you. It’s a beautiful campus: you might hear the birds singing among the redwoods, the creek babbling behind Dwinelle, or the protestors chanting from Sproul.

4. Attend random talks.

Berkeley is a huge university, and there is always something going on around the corner. It can be frightening to go into some of these research talks with renowned faculty, but they are generally open to the public. Just sit and listen and take it all in! And don’t forget the Berkeley Forum, which brings in fascinating speakers from outside academia, like Steve Kerr or Chris Colfer.

5. Take PE classes.

You might be thinking, “PE?! Are you joking?” While high school PE is not the most pleasant, PE in university is a lot more fun and chill. PE isn’t a survey of different sports; rather, you can choose the specific class you want to. I especially loved Vinyasa Yoga, Circuit Weight Training, and Boxing. I started taking these classes in my sophomore year, and they were fantastic for keeping me motivated and on track. Try one out (they’re only 0.5 units and cost $40) and see if it sticks.

6. Check out the art studio.

I took Ceramics and Drawing at the Berkeley Art Studio. While they are a little pricey (~$300), I thought they were a worthwhile investment. You learn new skills, make friends, and have fun, whether you are good at it or not :)… Plus, if you are a STEM student, it may be good for your creativity to touch some grass and get your hands dirty.

7. Connect with your faculty as best as you can.

As a freshman, your classes are likely large, and it is hard to meet with your professors. Regardless, try! Go to faculty office hours even if you don’t have a question; just introduce yourself to them and say something you’ve enjoyed about the class. Take a freshman seminar with a professor who is teaching the seminar for the sole purpose of meeting freshman students. I took a seminar on Water – it was so random but getting to talk to the professor face-to-face was cool.

8. Find your peaceful spot.

This could be a physical location – for me, it was the Fire Trails above Clark Kerr. It could be a favorite song, or a friend who comforts you. Whatever it may be, find it early on. Berkeley is going to beat you down, and you need a place you can go to in order to collect yourself.

9. Give others grace.

You will inevitably get into conflict with others: friends, classmates, instructors or TAs, and more. And maybe they have wronged you. It’s easy to jump to conclusions, assume the worst of someone, and cut them off. But, realize that everyone at Berkeley has an incredibly busy and stressful life, and it’s possible that they just made a mistake. If you can, leave the door open for reconciliation.

10. A thank you goes a long way.

Send a thank you note to your professors and your GSIs when the semester is over. Thank and acknowledge the people who make an impact on you. It means a lot to them, and one day you may even be in that position and feel so happy when your students thank you.