Things I Wish I Knew Before Freshman Year at ASU

Nobody Tells You These Things at Orientation

Orientation at ASU is logistically useful and completely useless for everything that actually matters. Here's the stuff that takes most students a semester or two to figure out, delivered upfront.

Your Major Can Change — and That's Okay

A disturbing number of freshmen have already decided they're on a specific path and treat any deviation as failure. Most ASU students change their major at least once. The university is massive — 100+ programs — and you'll discover interests you didn't know you had.

Choose a direction and start moving, but don't lock yourself in so tightly that you can't adjust when you learn more about yourself. Meeting with your academic advisor in the first month is one of the most valuable things you can do. Not because they have all the answers, but because understanding your degree map early gives you flexibility.

General Studies Requirements Are Not Obstacles

Every freshman complains about general studies (gen ed) requirements. Here's the flip side: they're opportunities to take a completely different class than you'd normally choose. The history of science or a studio art class or a philosophy seminar might be genuinely interesting. You're already paying for them.

Alternately, use gen eds strategically: take ones you'll likely do well in to boost your GPA during semesters when your major courses are brutal.

Go to Office Hours Even When You're Doing Fine

Office hours feel like a thing you do when you're struggling. They're actually most valuable when you're doing reasonably well. Professors who know your face and remember your questions grade ambiguous work more generously. Recommendation letters come from professors who know who you are. Research and internship opportunities often flow from these relationships.

You don't need a specific question to show up. "I'm enjoying the course and wanted to understand more about X" is a completely valid reason to attend.

The Social Scene Is Bigger Than One Group

ASU has 75,000+ students. The friend group from your dorm floor or your first-week friends is not your only option — it's just the easiest immediate option. If those connections feel forced or like they're not quite right, you're not locked in.

Changemaker Central, club fairs, intramural sports, student organizations, academic honor societies — find the one or two that genuinely interest you and invest in them. Real connections form around shared purpose, not just proximity.

Hayden Library Is Great, But It Isn't Everything

Hayden Library is the obvious study choice and it's often crowded. Noble Library and the Design Library both have their own character and tend to be quieter. Learn the library system — the research databases alone are worth the effort of logging in. For any class that involves research, knowing how to use the library databases properly saves you hours and produces better work.

The Bus and Light Rail Are Your Friends

If you don't have a car, the light rail connecting to downtown Phoenix and beyond is genuinely useful. The ASU U-Pass is affordable and makes the Valley accessible. You can get to the airport, to Scottsdale, to Phoenix sports events, and to a lot of internship and job sites without a car.

Check ASU List Before Buying Anything

Textbooks are the first major example, but it extends to furniture, kitchen equipment, sports gear, bikes, electronics — basically anything a student might need at the start of a semester. Other students are always selling things, and the prices are usually far below retail.

At the end of each semester, the reverse is true: list what you're not taking with you and someone will buy it.

Your GPA Matters More in Some Majors Than Others

For grad school, law school, or med school ambitions, GPA is a genuine selection factor and you need to protect it from day one. For most career paths in tech, business, and the arts, your skills, portfolio, and network matter more than whether you got a 3.6 versus a 3.2.

Understand which category your intended path falls into. This affects how you should allocate time and energy.

Tempe Is a Real City — Use It

ASU is a big campus and it's easy to exist entirely on and around it. Tempe has Tempe Town Lake, Mill Avenue, genuine neighborhoods, and proximity to the larger Phoenix metro. Getting out of the campus bubble regularly is good for your mental health and gives you context for why you're here.

Some of the best things about living in Tempe become clear only when you actually explore it: the hiking accessible from South Mountain, the restaurant variety in nearby Chandler and Scottsdale, the arts scene in downtown Phoenix, the genuine weirdness of Tempe Art Festival, and the fact that the desert is genuinely beautiful in ways photos don't capture.

Prioritize Sleep and Mental Health — Not as Self-Help Advice, as Logistics

When your sleep consistently falls below 6–7 hours, your cognitive function measurably degrades. You study for longer with worse retention. You make worse decisions. You're less pleasant to be around.

If you're struggling, ASU Counseling Services exists and is covered by your fees. There is no good reason not to use it when you need it.

You Will Not Have It Figured Out

Most of what makes freshman year stressful is the social pressure to appear like you know what you're doing. Nobody does. The most confident-seeming person in your dorm is figuring it out as they go, same as you.

The four years go faster than anyone warns you. The semester you're in is worth being present for.