Yale University

Explore different majors, before committing to your (parents’) dream of becoming a doctor, lawyer, or engineer. There are so many options out there, and Yale is a great place to discover some of them.

Don't take on too much. As a freshman, there's a temptation to do everything, because everything seems so cool. But in the end, no matter how cool all 15 of your extracurricular activities are, they will seem like the bane of your existence.

Try to quickly learn what type of class structure suits you best. Do you like large lectures, or do you crave personal interaction with your professors? Do you want to talk or listen? Do you like to take tests or write papers?

See your freshman counselor as the resource he or she is. This senior knows the ins and outs of Yale and can give you advice on everything from which classes are good to take to where to take your parents. They also remember what it is like to be a freshman, and they truly want to help you through it.

Go to Masters’ Teas. These opportunities to spend the afternoon drinking tea and eating little sandwiches while listening to great people speak is invaluable. Some recent guests include singer and songwriter Carole King, Actor Bronson Pinchot, Writer Tobias Wolff, and political commentator Arianna Huffington.

Don't party too much. Freedom is great, but just because you can go out and get wasted every night, does not mean you should.

That said, don't study all the time. Yale is a strong academic school, but it is also so much more. What you can learn about life is often just as valuable as what you can learn about astronomy. Remember, there is only so much information your brain can retain at once.