Everything you need to know as an incoming freshman at the University of Florida

Welcome to best four years of your life. You will learn and grow so much throughout your experience here. You will meet some incredible people and build life-long relationships. Aside from the cliché advice of making sure to expose yourself to new things, being open-minded and taking risks, I’ve got what you as a baby Gator need to know to get through your first year.

Live on campus

Talk to the girls/boys in your communal bathroom – you will form special bonds from the hairballs in the showers. Take advantage of all the free food events and activities with an activity card. Everything is walking distance – dining halls, the gym, and even midtown – so you won’t have to worry about having to wake up too early in order to make it to your morning class in time.

Get involved

Find something you care about and join a club.

There is something for everyone at UF. It is impossible for someone to not be involved in anything if they make some sort of effort. Hop on GatorConnect and find one of the thousands of clubs looking for you to join them.

While balancing classes, extracurriculars and a social life, you will learn time management, which will be very valuable throughout the rest of your life.

Make sure to complete all the F book traditions during your time as a student to earn your UF Tradition Keeper pins and medallions.

Start loving the Gators if you don’t

Sports are big at this school. Buy the student season football tickets, grab a group of friends and cheer on the Gators. You might want to start learning the lyrics to We are the Boys from Old Florida to sing alongside 90,000 other sweaty fans after the third quarter.

Do your best to attend as many school sporting events as you can. Everything except football is free for UF students to attend. Also, join the Alumni association for free ‘BEAT’ Tees.

Spend time in Turlington (free stuff)

The free stuff given out is actually cute. Organizations in Turlington hand out coupon books which include everything from a free pizza from Blaze to donuts and free t-shirts.

Additionally, don’t bring sunglasses. Just about every club on campus hands out a complimentary pair as a form of advertisement.

Don’t dress up for class

Almost everyone walks around in Nike shorts and a tank unless something special, like a career fair, is going on. With that said, save your nice outfits for events where you have to dress in business casual or professional clothing, such as meetings and interviews.

Go to Krishna lunch

This is a must-try and also an F book tradition. It is served during lunch time outside of Plaza of the Americas for $5. If you’re on the picky eater side, start with Wednesday for their spaghetti day.

Consider studying abroad

It will be an exceptional experience. You will meet some of the most diverse people, experience a different culture and travel to amazing destinations. It is an unforgettable experience.

There are so many different destinations to choose from that it doesn’t matter what you are studying. You can almost always find a program at the place you want to go to.

Go out and enjoy it

You are only at college for four years, so do as much as you can, but do not neglect your grades. The parties and the people will always be there, but if you fail out, you’ve wasted your time and money.

Get involved, go to sporting events, be open-minded and Go Gators.