It seems like every time September rolls around we start to panic. Could summer possibly be over? Have I picked my courses yet? Is the school year here already? Well this year, you’re not going to wait until September. As a matter of fact, the middle of July is when you’ll have all of your school stuff figured out.

Let’s get ready for the upcoming school year… right now!

Pay your fees.

Have you paid your upcoming fees? I know that it’s not fun to give money to your college, but if you pay in advance you avoid the potential of late fees, and yes late fees really do suck. On top of paying astronomical fees for your education, do you really want to incur additional costs just for being late? Didn’t think so. There’s no better day than today to ensure that you’re on top of all of your college costs.

Pick your courses.

Have you decided on your courses yet? You don’t want to be the person stuck with the worst possible course options. Waiting until the last minute will guarantee that you’re left with the worst courses, at the worst times (there’s nothing worse than a class on a Monday morning). You may not want to think about your Fall courses in July, but do you want to spend three months on a course at the worst possible time?

Figure out living situation.

Where will you sleep at night? I understand the thrill behind trying to find a place last minute, but do you really need that stress? If you start looking today, you can hopefully find a steady place to live in by the time the school year comes. You don’t want to move away for college, if you’re not sure of exactly where you’re moving to.

Solve transportation issues.

How will you get to school? This may not seem like an issue at this very moment, but how will you get to school on a daily basis? I never thought about this until I realized that it took me an eternity to get to school. The bus may be cheap but is it the most feasible option? Can you carpool or is the bus the best possible option?

Deal with administrative stuff.

Ugh. Who doesn’t love dealing with administrative stuff? Well I hate it, but it needs to be dealt with. Before the next school year begins, it’s important to ensure that you’ve dealt with past obligations. This can come in the form of accounting for credits, or making sure that the appropriate courses will be offered in the upcoming semester. A small administrative error can costs you thousands of dollars in the future (i.e. missing the deadline for a specific course). Deal with it now before it’s too late.

Are you ready for the upcoming school year? The middle of July is usually the ideal time to be chugging beers and hitting the night clubs. Don’t get me wrong, that’s perfectly cool. However, there’s nothing wrong with planning ahead of time to deal with disaster in the future.

Martin Dasko

Martin Dasko