Picture this: Your parents just left campus after moving you in, you’ve yet to explore all of Georgetown University’s campus and you open up the brand new Canvas page for your classes. All that’s left is actually going to class, which should become your most important part of campus life.
These classes, though, could also become the root of much of your stress, keeping you awake at night on the fifth floor of Lauinger Library. Luckily, unlike most other parts of campus life, they also offer the most built-in guidance. Helpful professors, syllabi and teaching assistants (TAs) will lend you a path through your academic journey at Georgetown. Still, I have some useful tips to offer you that you may not learn about on your first day.
Before classes even start, make sure to find out where all of yours are. This can be something as simple as checking on GU Experience, Georgetown’s central website for all university matters, or the more tried-and-true method of walking to your classes beforehand. While you’re doing this, try to account for those less leisurely breaks in your schedule — say, Car Barn to St. Mary’s in 15 minutes? — as well as any that might give you some time to grab lunch or a quick mid-day snack from MUG.
My most important advice for your actual first day of classes would be to set aside some time so you can arrive early. It doesn’t need to be crazy — just an extra five minutes or so can do a lot. This isn’t solely to avoid showing up out of breath with a red face after climbing four floors in Walsh (although that does help) but also to get to know more people in your class. Those first few days will be a time when people are curious and still introducing themselves to every other first-year they meet (the Georgetown intro of your name, hometown and what you’re studying is a classic). So say hi; maybe they will become your lifelong friend. Maybe they just let you borrow a pencil one day. Maybe they vanish after the add/drop period ends. Whatever the case, you will never regret that first step.
Finally, some advice you’ll probably hear at least once a day during orientation but which stands true nonetheless: Go to office hours. You’ll likely find Georgetown very different from your high school in a lot of ways, but a major difference will be that your professors are dissimilar to your old teachers. They are helpful if you let them be, so go meet them. Discuss with them topics beyond class, such as your interests or any advice you may need. Get to know them outside of their lectures.
As an aside, feel free to go do this for your own reasons. If you are struggling with the material, need feedback on an assignment or are just in search of a recommendation letter, please go ahead by all means. But I hope (and believe) that it will become something deeper than a simple conversation about economics or Spanish.
If all goes well, your first year at Georgetown will be exciting, meaningful and occasionally scary but still pass by too fast, and you’ll be giving similar advice in a year — best of luck!