David Burke Burke is a third-year
English and political science student. E-mail him at dburke@media.ucla.edu.
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Life at UCLA seems to travel at the speed of light. I feel like
I am still getting acquainted with university life and yet, my time
here is almost over.
In the past few months I have had a chance to reflect upon my
mistakes, my regrets, my accomplishments and my fondest
memories.
I would like to share with you 11 suggestions about getting the
most out of your college experience because I think college is a
special opportunity that, unfortunately, most students do not get
to fully experience.
This advice is not for everyone. It is for all of you who are
going through the UCLA motions and are looking to get more out of
this time.
I am not here to tell you how to live your life; I am just
trying to give you some suggestions that I learned through
experience.
Please consider these suggestions; they may make your time here
at UCLA more enjoyable and meaningful.
1) Take your education seriously. College is the pinnacle of
your education and only you can determine its height.
Work hard and learn things that are valuable to you because you
will have regrets if you don’t. The reward greatly exceeds
the effort.
2) Make sure that your major is an area of study that you
actually enjoy studying. If you like more than one area, double
major or add a minor.
Do not spend your college career studying a subject that you
dislike.
3) If you are at all interested, look into joining a fraternity
or a sorority. It is too late for me to join a house and I
don’t even know whether I would enjoy being in a frat, but
the point is that I never will know. So visit rush and see what
it’s like. Who knows? You might really meet some amazing
people.
4) Do not fear members of the opposite sex (or same sex) if you
are attracted to them. If you meet somebody that you want to go on
a date with, just ask them out. Don’t wait for them to ask
you out (girls). Don’t play games (guys and girls). Just pop
the question. If you get rejected, it is not a big deal.
You will have serious regrets if you shy away. Asking a certain
person out on a date could be the best decision that you ever
make.
5) If you do not read for pleasure at least three hours during
the week, pick up a freaking book. The smartest people in the world
have achieved that status because they read good books in their
spare time. You should join them. Where will you get all this free
time to read books? See the next two suggestions.
6) If you play more than one half hour of video games per day,
reduce your playing time to half an hour or less. You’re not
on your deathbed yet but if you were, I have a hunch that you would
not look back fondly on the fact that you spend two or three hours
a day controlling the actions of little computer men.
7) If you watch more than one hour of TV per day, reduce your
watching time to one hour or less. TV is entertainment. Do you want
to do something with your life or do you want to be entertained?
Think about it. I went without TV for over a month last year and I
realized that I was not missing much. Don’t watch
“Friends” so much that it prevents you from meeting
some real ones.
8) Instead of watching other people play sports, play sports
yourself. Join an IM team, play catch with your roommate or get
involved in a pick-up game. I have a lot more fun playing
basketball than I do watching Jason Kapono play basketball. I think
you will too.
9) Use substances in moderation. It is not cool to be a pothead
or an alcoholic.
10) Check out the online list of campus organizations and see if
there are any that you might want to join.
11) Get acquainted with the city of Los Angeles. Visit some
museums, go to the zoo, bathe in the sun, and swim in the ocean.
Los Angeles is a unique and vibrant city. Don’t take it for
granted.