So It’s Your First Year at Poly
As a rising sophomore, let’s just say I have a vivid memory of freshman year. First day of school, I had no idea where I was going. What’s up with the whole room numbering thing?
Well, here are some pro-tips: the first number is the floor number. 1 is the first floor, 2 is second, and 3 is the third floor. If the number has only double or single digits, then you know it’s in the basement of the Academic Building–the Engineering Building does not have a third floor or basement.
Additionally, and very importantly, if the final two digits of a classroom number are below 50 then you’re in the Academic Building–above 50 is the Engineering Building. The lowest numbers start at the front of the school and increase the further back you go. Also the building is called the engineering building but it isn’t just STEM classes.
Now that you have a chance of being able to get to your classes, the rest is pretty simple. GET ALL YOUR WORK DONE ON TIME!!!! Honestly, this goes a long way towards keeping your grades up, especially in freshman year. Almost everything you’re given can be done during class. Instead of talking with your friends before doing the work, get your work done! Then you’ll have time to talk to your friends near the end of class without unfinished work looming over you. One should always study for tests, but getting all your work done can go a long way towards giving you more room for error on tests.
I know that may have sounded like your teachers, your parents, or both, but those two simple concepts–studying and getting work done when you’re supposed to–will go a long way to keep you from failing. But if you’re a high achiever there’s some other tricks you can use. First, flashcards: trust me, they work. They don’t even have to be for vocabulary terms in a language, English, or science. You can use them for pretty much anything. Second, writing anything down will help you remember it. Half of memorizing flashcards is writing them out, so making your own flashcards is definitely worthwhile. Third, using online tools to study is a good thing. If they help you understand the concept and you use them to solidify your knowledge, they are perfectly fine. A final study tip: look up studying strategies. There are so many out there and different ones work for different people.
Moving past academics, Poly has a lot of teams and clubs. Not only can they be great experiences and help you make friends in your class, but they can also help you become friends with upperclassmen. Who doesn’t love having a couple upperclassmen on their side? When it comes to clubs, even if it’s only freshman year, they look pretty good on a college application. Better yet, you can work to create a new club if you think Poly lacks something it needs. In a single year at Poly I saw several pop up. If you want to join an existing club, most clubs will be open to anyone who shows up and accepts anyone who stays involved. Click here to go to the clubs Catalogue for the Fall of 2023 and find out what clubs there are, where they are, and who to get in touch with. Not only do we have a list and contact info, we also have short descriptions for each club.
Along with clubs, Poly has a variety of sports. If you’ve already missed out on fall sports, there’s still winter and spring. Yet again, we have all the information for you here. Sports give you a break from academics and are something to look forward to and an outlet at the end of every hard day of learning.
If you stick to my advice, hopefully you’ll have a good freshman year and by this time next year go into sophomore year on a positive note. Trust me, you want to. It only gets harder from here.
