Love College

The New York Times has some great advice from graduate assistants on how undergraduates can make the most of their college experience. As someone who continues to interact with students, I'd like to share a few of my own thoughts. Much of what's written below could be filed under "woulda shoulda coulda" for this B.A. holder:

1. Just say no to Starbucks, Chili's, Johnny Rocket's or any other restaurant, coffee shop, or bar you could find anywhere else in America. If you want to watch the creative energy of competitive small business, look at all the dining places that spring up and die around college campuses. Coffee shops, cup cake trends, creative pubs, sushi - the resources for a culinary adventure are within walking distance from your dorm. College is a chance to develop expand your taste for strange food, foreign beer and locally grown veggies. Taco Bell is for high school students. It's time to grow into something more interesting.
2. Travel. Of course, you're reading words from a man who fell in love with a foreigner and the foreign country she came from. But even before that (and, for me, before college) travel broadened my mind and added to my education in a way a classroom never could. Study abroad. Go on a mission trip or a service project. Believe me, you won't have your kind of energy five years from now. Don't sit around campus; see the world.
3. Hang out with international students. I loved getting to know people from Japan, India, Germany, France and Palestine at my university's international coffee hour. I volunteered as an English language partner for the university's intensive English study center. International students not only bring you new perspectives, but it is fascinating to meet those who are willing to get their education under completely new contexts. While your at it, take your international friend home to meet your parents. Only 10% of international students see the inside of an American home (college apartments don't count), and those that do count it as one of the experiences that had the most impact on their time in the States.
4. Protest. Chances are that during your four years the government will do something that goes against your deepest values. Join the throngs, make a sign, paint your face and practice democracy.
5. While your at it, vote. The voter turn out for young people is embarrassing. Don't forget to register, and don't forget to mail your ballot in. Even if you don't like the candidates, write something in or choose the lesser of two evils. Politicians pay attention to who votes, and if your particular demographic is underrepresented, they will not cater to you.
6. Get to know your professors. I could perhaps say "network" with your professors, but that sound so impersonal and utilitarian. Now, that being said, one of the reasons I wished I had done more of this was to get those recommendations for jobs or grad school. But don't have the posture of someone who is merely looking for career stepping stones. Your professors have worked hard to know and understand interesting things to share with you, and they will be all to happy to pass along what they know beyond their planned lectures. Visit them in their office hours to talk not just about your grades but about their expertise. Ask questions during class, and engage them after class. You won't regret it.
7. Know thyself. Had I better known myself, there's a lot I would have done differently. Plenty of folks my age say the same. Find out how you are wired - personality tests at your college career center will help with this, as will a part time job in the professional world. Find where your gifts lie through trial and error, but once you have them, aggressively pursue majors and careers that will best use them.
8. Don't skimp the economics classes, especially if you are in the social sciences. As an idealistic international relations major, I took the bare minimum requirement of economics (as an aside, an international relations degree should have required more econ than what ours did). I was turned off by the math, the charts, the terms (note to all economics teachers - you'll help your students if you explain the concepts before getting them to memorize the terms) and the fact that macroeconomics seemed like selfishness 101. Alas, economics are the vegetables of international affairs, political science, history, journalism and so many other interesting fields. Any graduate program worth its salt requires at least 12 hours of it. The policy world runs on it. You will be much more useful to the developing world if you understand it. So, hold your breath and learn it well. Get a college subscription to the Economist and read how interesting international economics can be. The dismal science is a science worth knowing, for all of us.
9. If you go to church, go to a church with families. You'll get more out of it if you gain mentors with gray hair and get to interact with their kids. If you never went to church, why not give it a shot? Ask a student in your local campus ministry to take you.
10. Take as many classes as you can, especially if you are on scholarship. Believe me, now that I am in the working world, I wish I could take more classes.
11. Turn four into more. So many students I meet literally consider themselves too cool for school. They lean back and with a resigned, impatient expression talk about how they can't wait to get out in the real world and make some money. Don't worry. The real world will still be there after another year, and you'll be with it until retirement. If you have the resources, take an extra major, pursue a graduate degree, work-study, stay for that extra football season. Unless you are deep in debt (something you should try to avoid), you won't regret getting too much education. Only too little. I personally would have added a communications degree to round out my international affairs qualifications. 20/20 hindsight.

What are your tips?