The safety net of high school is gone, and everything is new - your school, subjects and teachers, new people, and maybe you’ve moved out by yourself for the first time. It takes time to get used to new surroundings, but it’s a good idea to be well-prepared anyway. Here are some tips on how you can have a good start to the semester and your studies.

Be an active student

Be active in the beginning of the semester - of course educationally, but also socially. Join buddy week at your school; they have many different events, and it’s a great opportunity to meet new friends.Another good tip is to sign up for a student association. In associations, you get the opportunity to be social with other students, have fun with your interests, and show engagement. In SiO associations there is also a measure called “Welcome” where mentors in different associations have an extra focus on recruitment and including new members.

Make sure to have a good structure in your studies

Many new students find that the structure of higher education is a little “looser” than in high school, which means that you have you steer your days yourself more. The subjects are more broad than in high school, and the curriculum is much larger. Oftentimes there isn’t a teacher hovering over you to tell you what you need to do, either. This means a lot of freedom, whether it be a good or bad thing. This is exactly why it’s a good idea to be aware of your own working habits:

• Plan the semester well, so that you have as few surprises along the way as possible.
• Find out when the exams and mandatory assignments are due.
• Take the time to familiarize yourself with the learning objectives for your study.
• Spread out your workload evenly throughout the semester. All the research shows that it’s worth it.

Sign up for study groups. Not only is it more fun and more social to study with others, but it’s also good to get more perspectives and therefore a better understanding of the subjects. 

Resources at the school

It’s also a good idea to find out which resources you can take advantage of at your school. For example, OsloMet has its own study workshop where you can get mentoring on writing assignments and study techniques. UiO has a similar offer at the Academic writing center.

Make yourself at home where you live

There’s a lot to figure out when you move out by yourself for the first time. Where is the laundry room, how can I contact the caretaker, how can I control my own budget?It takes some time to figure out all of these new things. Use your time wisely, create good routines, set up a budget, and plan out how you want your student life to be. And remember - possibly the easiest way to orient yourself is to ask a neighbor or a fellow student.To summarize - according to the Study Barometer (2018), most students find that higher education is actually less challenging than they expected.