Hey new Terps!
Less than one week left until the first day of classes! Is it the same as when you went to your first day of classes in Kindergarden? Probably not! At that point, your parents did everything for you, but now, you have to get it all done yourself. So here are a few things you should remember before you come on Monday.
1. Make sure your schedule is as set as possible. Log onto Testudo.umd.edu to modify your schedule as necessary. However, if you find that a class is too far to get to in ten minutes, or you don't like an instructor, or the course load is not what you expected, you can change your classes until the end of the drop/add period which is the 10th day of class.
2. While you are on Testudo, take note of the classroom locations. Log onto the UMD website and view a map. Find your classes and if you get a chance, come back to campus to find your classes.
3. And while you are on your way to campus, take a few extra minutes to find those alternative routes. ESPECIALLY on the first week of classes, campus is going to be really busy. You're going to have to take some extra time to park and walk to classes.
4. Buy your books now! If you buy your books now, you can get the best copies of used books. You can find your book list on Testudo as well. You can either purchase all your books in the University Book Center or you can go to amazon.com. I suggest that if the book is $50 or less, just buy it at the bookstore, but if it is a big ticket item, check Amazon. Students last week reported savings of up to $70 on certain textbooks.
Those are the big things. A couple other things:
-Ask lots of questions about the syllabus. You want to be as clear as possible BEFORE the semester starts.
- If you are going to keep your schedule, immediately go home and put all your assignments and classes into a planner of some sort. When life gets busy, assignments are forgotten. Don't let it happen to you.
-Find out where you are going to eat on campus. Check out the older post about eating on campus.
-Find a place to study. A lot of schedules are riddled with holes where it's not enough time to go home, but too much time to head to your next class. Find a great place to sit with your readings and do some work along the way. Remember that, if you are a full-time student, you should treat your schooling like a 40 hour work week. If you go to your classes, do your homework and study within the 9-5 schedule (or something comparable), you are less likely to have to do anything on the weekends.
Take care and good luck!!
What other tips do you have to share with your fellow terps?
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On elms.umd.edu, it says that I am enrolled in 0 courses. Will this be updated before classes start so I can look at the syllabi for my classes?
ReplyDeleteHi, the elms.umd.edu (better known as blackboard) is a site where instructors can load materials, keep your grades readily available and provide other types of multimedia instruction. If it says you have no classes, that probably means that your instructors are not using it this semester or have not set up a site yet (though at this point, it's probably the first). if you want to check your schedule, you want to go to testudo.umd.edu to gather course information. Hope this helps!
ReplyDeleteIS there a microwave open to the public? Im a commuter and Im getting sick of paying for lunches every day when I could bring food from home.
ReplyDeleteHi there. There are a few microwaves. The most easily accessible and readily used (and cleaned) one is in the Stamp Student Union. If you walk on the Food Court level away from the bookstore and then make a right at the hallway immediately following the McDonald's, you will see microwaves on your right side by the vending machines. These are available anytime the union is open for student use. Hope this helps!
ReplyDeleteHello Transfer Terps! My name is Kaisha Baker, and I am a sophomore double major in Communication and Philosophy. As a double major I am usually taking more credits than the average student. Therefore, I usually have more books to buy than the average student as well. My first year I looked for all of my books at the University Book Store. It turned out that my books were much cheaper in many different places. Amazon.com is a good option, but sometimes they send you an older version than professors want to use, or the university won't take them back at the end of the year. Therefore, I began to use bookholders.
ReplyDeleteBookholders is amazing. They have the lowest prices that I have found yet, and you can do everything online. You sign on to bookholders.com and find the University of Maryland. Then, you can select your class, pay for the books you want, and decide whether you want them shipped to you or if you would like to pick them up when you get to campus.
Hey everyone! My name is Trey. I am a freshman finance major and I'll be an Orientation Advisor this summer. Just a note to add on buying books. You should check to see if you can get e-book versions of the books you need. Reading on a computer screen can strain some people's eyes though. But, if it doesn't bother you, then you can get the e-book versions cheaper than the text books, and instead of lugging your books around campus, all you'd need is your laptop.
ReplyDeleteHello readers! My name is Catherine Gomeringer. I am a sophomore Government and Politics & Criminology double major from Mendham, NJ. I am going to be an Orientation Advisor this summer! As far as buying books, I would recommend first going to a class before buying your books. Some classes have online portions that can serve as a substitute for textbooks, or online textbooks as Trey said.
ReplyDeleteHowever, I would prefer to read a textbook rather than off of a computer. The University Book Center is the official on-campus bookstore, and is located in the Stamp Student Union. The Book Center is not the cheapest option, but it has the greatest selection of books. It is also conveniently located for students living on North Campus. The Maryland Book Exchange, located on Route 1 across from campus is another great alternative. The Book Exchange may have better prices than the University Book Center. Bookholders, located next to Bagel Place on the corner of Route 1 and College Ave, is another option as well. However, they may not always have a book you are looking for. In order to get text books for the least expensive prices, all students should do research before buying textbooks. I would suggest making a trip to all of the three stores to find which has the best prices/the books that you need. Additionally, these stores all sell used text books. I would recommend buying used text books if you have the option to do so.
Hi there...
ReplyDeleteI was wondering if course textbooks are available on closed-reserve at any on-campus libraries? For example, in my previous school, at least 1 copy of most course textbooks could be found at the library and students could check them out for 2-hour intervals.
Thanks :)
Hi,
ReplyDeleteThe university will have some copies of the books but they are usually checked out pretty quickly. I would suggest looking at lib.umd.edu and going through the catalog to search for any books you may be looking for.