Your College Unnie: Hello World! Here’s a survival guide for first-years

When I was little, I decided to try and get into coding. Bad idea. Not only was I unsuccessful, I also flooded my Google Drive with hundreds of copies of a document containing just two words: “hello, world!”

Like managing a tsunami of cheery greetings in Drive, college (especially your first semester) can be overwhelming, daunting and chaotic. Luckily, I already went through it as a fall admit, so you don’t have to.

1. UCLA has better food than USC.

As Chris Martin once sang, “When you try your best but you don’t succeed…” I know it. Your professors know it. You don’t know it yet, but you will soon. Do yourself a favor, go to H Mart and create a stockpile of Asian snacks and essentials in your dorm that would make Doomsday conspiracists proud. I recommend starting with microwavable rice, Shin Ramyun, Pocky, banana milk and Ramune. 

2. APASA (Asian Pacific American Student Assembly) and APASS (Asian Pacific American Student Services) are your friends.

The organizations are great. Their newsletters are something else. From the Night Market to learning about and joining ethnic orgs like KASA, there’s no source I’d thank more for a great freshman experience than their newsletters. 

3. The Farmers Market is a godsend.

Every Wednesday, a staple as iconic as Carol Folt herself graces the McCarthy Quad. Featuring everything from Thai tea to bulgogi kimbap to the best dolmas and kalamata olives you’ll ever have outside of Greece, you don’t want to miss it (you won’t if you’re on campus).

4. Frequent the West Jefferson and Hoover crosswalk.

There tends to be a lot of foot traffic here, so adjacent from Rock and Reilly’s is typically where clubs, orgs and companies will set up tents to advertise various events, programs and offers. Save the keep-walking-with-no-eye-contact technique for the girl scouts that haggle your neighborhood in the summer. Here, if you’re strategic, you can collect quite the stash of free Insomnia cookies, Chick-fil-A sandwiches, shirts, drinks, trinkets and other food items. Free food!

5. Ronald Tutor Campus Center.

You have 2 swipes per week. Guard them with your life.

6. Leavey is open 24 hours.

Remember this. It’ll come in handy.

7. There’s this thing that happens in LA called “rain.”

Just like Texas with their annual snowstorm, California apparently forgets that rain is something weather can do. This may be sunny “Californ-i-a,” (“Surfin’,” The Beach Boys) but you’ll still need your raincoat and handy-dandy umbrella. Unless you’re into looking like a drenched rat. Then, by all means, go ahead.

8. Seek and ye shall find.

Don’t blame RMP (Rate My Professors) for your poor performance in class… If you’re struggling, SC has resources you can exhaust. From peer tutoring to office hours and more, support is available in more formats than you’d think. A simple Google or Reddit search will give you answers to all (or well most) that your heart desires.

9. No, you’re probably not making that 8 a.m.

Don’t take classes with hopes you’ll correct your sleep schedule and tardiness. Ideally, you would attend the class, take excellent notes, earn an A and leave pumped and ready to take on the day. Worst case, you could oversleep, miss class, skip class, be late to class, be in class but fall asleep, take unintelligible notes, do poorly or not remember anything at all. Take it from a vet, that’s a rookie *** mistake. Unless you are a natural born early bird, don’t take the risk.

10. No, it’s not Black Friday, that’s just the line to get into Lyon Center.

New year, new me, new Gymshark gear you can’t wear because the Lyon Center is full. But don’t worry, wait 1-2 weeks, and most people will clear out. In the meantime, may I suggest running around the Village? Running from your problems also works quite well.

Last but not least, my most important piece of advice, ever. It’s so valuable, it’s only available once a semester. Ahem. Join Daily Trojan. From photographers to Opinion writers and copy editors, we’re always looking for bright minds and passionate people to elevate the DT experience to the next level. 

You’re gonna be great.

I promise.

Fighting! 

Victoria Lee is a freshman writing about the AAPI experience in America. She is also the Wellness and Community Outreach Director for the Daily Trojan. Her column, “Your College Unnie,” runs every other Wednesday.