Coming back for the spring semester isn’t easy.

It’s not like you had a full three months to get bored of being at home, working a minimum wage job and being away from all of your college friends.

Even if you weren’t enrolled in a Jan Term class, the feeling of returning to a full class schedule after a break is never a smooth transition.

Feeling prepared for this transition can be difficult, especially if you don’t even want to attempt to prepare, but getting your stuff together can make for a solid start to the new semester.

How do we go about preparing? Is it even worth it if you already know the semester will end with you begging the professor to change your D to an A?

Try these things, and you just might be topping the Dean’s List come May!

Be Realistic: That’s it. Just be realistic. Do you really think you’re going to kick that procrastination habit that’s been imbedded in your personality since you were old enough to put tasks off?

Are you certain that writing that to-do list is going to be the trick to get you ahead of your schoolwork for the first time in your life?

What about all those pens you bought, or those organizational sticky-notes, or the fact that you cleaned your backpack out of old handouts that acted more as scratch paper for your doodles than as study guides for that final you started studying for the night before you took it?

Will that actually, truly help?

Or will you feel good about yourself that first time you complete your homework assignment two days before its due, decide you deserve a break, then find yourself days behind, only to spend the rest of the semester playing catch-up?

(For all of those people who are always on top of their game, we’re thrilled for you; this guide isn’t for you, but congrats on actually being a responsible and decently functioning adult. You’ll go far.)

Is the effort of preparing still worth it if you’re pretty sure you already know what will happen?

If it is, and you don’t mind falling down the success ladder farther than if you didn’t prepare, knowing to the fullest extent what will happen, then go for it!

The beauty of college is that as long as you get it all done by the last hour of the last day of finals, all that matters is that you got it done.

That’s it! You’re all set for the new semester. Forget wishing it were still break, you’re ready to tackle everything these upcoming classes will throw at you. Roll ’Cats!