Freshman Year Checklist for College Students: A Comprehensive Guide

Starting college is a significant milestone, filled with excitement and new experiences. However, the transition can also be overwhelming. To ensure a smooth and successful freshman year, it's crucial to be well-prepared. This comprehensive checklist covers essential tasks and considerations, from pre-departure preparations to settling into campus life.

Pre-Departure Preparations

Packing Smart: What to Bring and What to Leave Behind

Packing for college requires careful planning. Space is often limited in dorm rooms, so it's essential to pack efficiently and strategically. Before you start, check with your school about prohibited items and specific regulations regarding appliances like microwaves or refrigerator sizes.

Consider the Climate: If you're attending college out of state, focus on packing for the current weather season. You can always swap out items during breaks when you return home.

Essentials to Pack:

Clothing: Keep it simple and consider packing only for one season at a time, then switch items when you go home during breaks. Lightweight clothing and things that you can layer are ideal for summer or fall. Warmer layers, jackets, or boots can be swapped in during winter break.
Important Documents: Keep essential documents like your driver's license, Social Security card, birth certificate, and health insurance card readily accessible.
Personal Items: Don't forget personal items from home to help ease the transition.

Coordinate with Your Roommate: If you have a roommate, communicate beforehand to coordinate shared items like mini-fridges, rugs, or TVs.

How to Pack: How you plan to move to your college can play a big role in deciding what and how to pack. If you plan on taking a plane, bus, or train to college, you won’t be able to bring all of these items with you. Consider packing only the essentials, such as clothing, important documents, and other small items from home to keep with you.

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Dorm Room Essentials: Creating a Comfortable Living Space

Your dorm room will be your home base for the entire year. While it may not feel like home initially, you can customize the space to make it relaxing and rejuvenating.

Bedding:

Sheets and pillowcases (2 sets. Check with college for size needed - some college twin beds are extra long.)
Towels (3 each of bath, hand and face)
Pillows (2)
Mattress pad (Check with college for size needed)
Blankets (2)
Comforter/bedspread

Decor and Personalization:

Rugs: Bring some life and color to the room.
Posters: Give the space some character and speak to your interests.
Personal pictures, photos, and other favorite items.
Curtains and spring rod, if you like them and your school allows them.

Organization and Storage:

Storage containers and organizers: Customize a small space.
Closet organizers and storage hangers: Keep your wardrobe neat and tidied.

Health and Hygiene:

Towels: bath, washcloths and hand towels.
Shower caddy: Make it easier to bring all of your bathroom essentials over in a single trip.
First aid kit: Provide everything you need in the convenience of a small bag.
First Aid kit, including basic adhesive bandages, vitamins, aspirin, cough drops etc.

Academic Success: Setting Yourself Up for Learning

Set yourself up for success in your classes with some office essentials.

Technology:

Computer and any necessary supplies/accessories.
Laptop and good Internet connection.
Power strip.
Headset.
Mouse.

Supplies:

Calculator
Printer (optional)
Writing pads
Pens and pencils
Pencil holder and sharpener
Notebooks
Folder with pockets
Labels of various sizes
3 × 5 index cards
Sticky notes
Paper clips and binder clips
Rubber bands
Tape
Scissors
Highlighter pens (multiple colors)
Ruler
Stackable desk trays (at least 4)

Financial Matters: Aid, Tuition, and Textbooks

Financial Aid:

To finalize your aid, check to see if the financial aid office needs any additional information or documentation; make sure you have accepted aid that was offered to you; complete entrance loan counseling; and sign your master promissory note if you intend to borrow federal student loans.
If you are receiving financial aid, make sure that you are meeting your school’s Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) and you remain eligible for financial aid.

Textbooks:

You can either rent or buy your textbooks depending on the books you need. First, visit your campus bookstore online or in-person and see what the cost is to rent or buy your books from them. You can then compare those prices to other online textbook services like Chegg, Amazon, and other used bookstores.
Things to consider: Do you need an online access code? Used books will typically not come with these. When do you need your textbooks?

Health and Well-being: Taking Care of Yourself

Immunizations: Review the University of California’s immunization requirement before submitting your Statement of Intent to Register.

Self-Care: Studies have proven that there is a strong correlation between self care and academic performance.

Miscellaneous Essentials:

Umbrella: Keeping a mini umbrella in your backpack at all times can help you prepare for any unplanned weather changes.
Bike lock: If you plan on bringing a bike, you should absolutely be bringing a bike lock as well!
Tool box: If you’re bringing your own furniture to add to the room, you’ll definitely need one to assemble and disassemble it when you move in and out of your dorm.

Important Dates and Deadlines: Staying on Track

Welcome, new Bruins! Make your transition from high school to college smoother by following this list of important dates and deadlines for first-years entering UCLA.

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Entry Level Writing Requirement (ELWR): All incoming first-year students must demonstrate their proficiency with critical reading and analytical writing in English by fulfilling the Entry Level Writing Requirement (ELWR).

Math Placement Test (MPT): You should determine if you need to take the online Math Placement Test (MPT) if you plan to enroll in one of the following classes:

Math 1 Pre-Calculus
Math 3A Calculus (for Life Science Students)
Math 31A Differential and Integral Calculus (for Physical Sciences Students)
Math 31AL Differential and Integral Calculus Laboratory (for Physical Sciences Students)

Chemistry Diagnostic Exam: If you plan to enroll in Chemistry 14A, Chemistry 14AE, Chemistry 17, Chemistry 20A or Chemistry 20AH, you are required to take the Chemistry Diagnostic Exam prior to enrolling in the course itself.

Settling In: On-Campus Tasks

Attending Orientation: Getting Acquainted

New Student Orientation is mandatory for all new undergraduate students. During orientation, you will become acclimated to both the academic and social life at UCLA. You’ll connect with other new students, learn about the campus and many of the services available to Bruins, meet with academic advisors, enroll in your first college classes, and much more.

Exploring the Campus: Finding Your Way Around

Taking time to explore campus and the surrounding area can make you feel better about moving to an unfamiliar place and add to the excitement of living somewhere new. Familiarize yourself with on-campus essentials like residence halls, libraries, and class buildings. And don’t forget to seek out a few off-campus spots, like cafes, grocery stores, and restaurants.

Walk through your class schedule so that you’re able to easily find your classes on the first day.

Connecting with Others: Building a Support System

This is a great way to make new friends and meet staff at your school. Are you living on campus?

Meet Your Floormates Moving to a new place with many unfamiliar faces can feel overwhelming. However, introducing yourself to the folks you see daily and making friends at college will help ease the transition. Do your best to put yourself out there, meet your floormates, and have fun.

Attend a Student Activities Fair Attending a student activities fair facilitates on-campus engagement and helps you meet like-minded students. Engaging in extracurricular activities can also bolster your resume. Through sports, cultural events, and civic engagement, you can make friends outside the classroom and enliven your college experience.

Academic Planning: Setting Goals and Managing Your Schedule

If you need to make changes to your schedule, do so by your institution’s set deadlines for adding, dropping, or swapping classes. Contact your academic advisor if you need assistance with making changes to your class schedule.

Review Your Class Schedule Before classes start, review your schedule so you know when and where your classes are. If you want to adjust your schedule, talk to your advisor. Most colleges allow you to add or drop classes within the first couple of weeks of a semester.

Read and Print Out Your Class Syllabi Before classes start, read over your class syllabi. Getting to know your professors’ expectations and attendance policies will put you on a path toward success. You should also know what reading materials, textbooks, and supplies you’ll need for the semester.

Understanding Campus Resources: Where to Find Help

Often, first-year students are required to have a meal plan. Identify where the dining halls are located, the hours of operation, and how long it takes to walk there in between classes. If you can afford it, it is recommended to have at least two dining hall meals per day to ensure that you will have enough food throughout the semester.

Managing Dorm Life

Laundry and Cleaning: Keeping Your Space Tidy

When it comes to laundry, most students dread the thought of doing it, whether it be loading and unloading hampers or folding clothes afterwards. While we can agree that doing laundry isn’t the most exciting thing you’ll experience in college, it’s a necessary one.

Food and Cooking: Staying Nourished

If your dorm has a community bathroom, a shower caddy can make it easier to bring all of your bathroom essentials over in a single trip.

Your dorm room is probably going to provide a less than satisfactory kitchen area, if any at all. There are lots of great add-ons you can bring to make cooking much more feasible. If you’re not already into coffee, midterms week might change your mind. Keeping some at hand at all times may be what gets you through a homework marathon or a long night of cramming before an exam. If you’re feeling fancy, you can even bring a milk frother to level up your morning fix. Grabbing a box of individually packaged snacks is great for eating in between classes, especially when you don’t have a gap for lunch. Although your dorm’s kitchen may not feel like the one at home, don’t let it deter you from making healthy meals for yourself.

Staying Informed

Checking Your School Portal: Staying Updated

Log into your school portal including your student account, and the learning system your institution uses (ex.

Housing During Breaks: Planning Ahead

See if the residence halls close during winter, spring, or summer, or if you can stay year round. If the residence halls close during breaks, reach out to the Housing office to see if you can secure housing during this time. Often, your financial aid counselor will do this with you, if you request an appointment.

Your campus might keep some of the residence halls open over the break, but they might require you to fill out a form or application to stay there. The earlier you fill it out, the more aid you can get!

Can you remain on-campus? What is the application process like?

Your campus might keep some of the residence halls open over the summer that might require you to fill out a form or application.

Summer Planning: Internships and Classes

Are you taking summer classes, working, or doing an internship? Start planning and preparing for the summer now.

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