Good Morning Green Panda Readers and Happy Labour Day.  For some of us tomorrow is the first day of college and for some others tomorrow is the first day in our next college semester.  Regardless of where you are in your college career, tomorrow is your first day back to school.

The first day of college can be overwhelming as you will soon become just one person amongst thousands of other new and returning college students on a big campus. The easiest way to survive your first day back to school is to be as prepared as possible.  Knowing where your classes are located, knowing where to find the bookstore, and having a list of things to do will help make your first day of college a little bit easier; but in all honesty, you can never be fully prepared for your first day back to school because it’s total chaos.

Your college campus will soon be filled with students who are trying to navigate their way around campus, visiting the student services and financial aid offices, trying not to be late for their first class, and waiting in line to get their photo taken for their new college student id card (PS you definitely need one). I hope that you all enjoy your first day back to school and I hope that you will tell us all about it.

5 tips to help you survive your first day back to school

1. Bring Lots of Snacks. You will most likely be waiting in line everywhere you go on campus from the bathrooms to the bookstore. Having lots of snacks in your bag eliminates the need to buy food on campus during the day; it will also ensure that you have enough energy to make it through the day.

2. Be Patient. If you are like me then you hate waiting (for anything) because you feel that it is a complete waste of time.  However waiting in lines on campus is an unfortunate part of your first day of college.  You will also have to be patient with your fellow students because on the first day of school most students are lost and everyone is trying to make a good first impression in front of the professors and academic advisors.

3. Leave Home Early. There is nothing worse than being late on your first day back to school.  Being late has a snowball effect and it can totally ruin your day. Try to leave home 15 minutes early just in case you hit traffic or get lost travelling to and from campus.

4. Keep $20 in your Pocket.  Everything in college costs money and not everywhere accepts credit cards and debit cards. If you need to grab a cold drink, buy coffee, make a donation, pay a registration fee, or pay for parking you will be thankful that you have $20 in your pocket.

5. Hit the Bookstore Early, or Late.  During the entire first (and sometimes second) week of back to school the bookstore is going to be complete and total chaos.  I love the smell of books so I could spend all day in a bookstore; however I hate the smell of sweaty college students who are stressed out because their credit card was declined or because they can’t find their required course books.  You can avoid a lot of frustration if you hit the bookstore first thing in the morning or later on in the evening when the traffic from the mid day student rush is lower.

Photo by somegeek

Tahnya Kristina

Tahnya Kristina

Tahnya is 30 years old and lives in Montreal Quebec. She graduated in 2005 from Concordia University, and she currently works for a major International Financial Institution. She recently launched http://www.mediamadam.ca/. You can follow her on Twitter @TahnyaP.