I don’t really have a subject line that all of these really fall under so here are random tips and tricks that I hope prove to be some use to people here at Penn State.

#1 General Education and classes to take.

So this one is actually really easy, but I am going to give some quick background first. As a Penn State student you are required to fulfill something known as a Gen Ed requirement. Now when you go to schedule.psu.edu you can find a list of Gen Ed classes. Now I only know how to do this for engineering students, but if something that you want to take is not listed as a Gen Ed per say then you can always petition it. This means that you go to http://www.engr.psu.edu/e-petition/ where you make a case about how say your INTST class should count as a General Social and Behavioral Science credit, even though it is not specifically listed as such. This really opens up your options as to what you can take and what qualifies. Otherwise there is also an article on Onward state called “Gen Eds That Don’t Suck.” The link for that is http://onwardstate.com/2013/03/21/gen-eds-that-dont-suck/ and it lists out why and what are the favorite gen ed courses.

#2 Things to buy for your dorm room that people forget to tell you about.

So here are some of my life and money savers. A water filter pitcher that fits into your fridge is a must. This thing has saved me money, its environmentally healthy, and I am lazy and it makes getting water easy. Frozen meals are a god send, I don’t know about you but I just don’t always have time or the patience to go to the dining halls, and some of the frozen meals are actually pretty decent so I say stock up on those, especially in the winter. A dish rack would be helpful, especially if you use dishes a lot in your room, its good for organizing and drying your dishes.

#3 Learning how to live in a noisy hall.

So what I do is turn on C-SPAN on like a volume 4 and then a fan, it becomes the perfect white noise situation that makes it much easier to sleep when there are persistent sounds that would otherwise surround you.

#4 Fans, fans, and more fans.

In the summer you need a big giant window fan to bring in all of that air to keep your body temperature normal, but in the winter you are going to need a little fan that circulates the air in an over heated room so that the air becomes comfortable without opening your window on a 0 degree day.

#5 How to pick a laptop.

So when it comes to school you need a laptop for sure, but what kind is always hard to pick. First look at your major site, they normally have requirements. Past that, just make sure its light enough to carry everywhere and small enough to fit in your back pack.