Dearest Class of 2023,

Our most hearty congratulations to you as you embark on the glorious start to your undergraduate career. On the brink of finishing our first year, we have become older and wiser and now offer to you some unsolicited advice, free-of-charge. Take what we say to heart or with a grain of salt.

1. “Appreciate every moment of every conversation, because you are going to start feeling like each moment is more valuable as the school year draws to a close.” — Kayla Severson

2. “When there’s a choice between doing work or spending time with people you care about, do the latter.” — Isabel Gallegos

3. “Turn up the memorable.” — Cooper Shea

4. “Go to all the cool Speakers Series!” —Sarayu Pai

5. “Things in the quarter system move fast, including friendships.” — Anonymous

6. “Put effort in during New Student Orientation (NSO) to meet people, because afterwards, it gets difficult.” — Andrea Collins

7. “Keep your room clean.” — Andrea Collins

8. “Forming relationships is important.” – Andrea Collins

9. “Find yourself an amazing group of friends that will support you through ups and downs.” — May Aye

10. “Be yourself, don’t get caught up following the crowd or changing who you are/what you value to please other people. Unless you’re an asshole. Then check yourself.” — Janine Fleming

11. “Have a general idea of what you’re interested in doing while you’re here. Come up with a rough plan. NSO and the beginning of autumn quarter can be so overwhelming.” — Janine Fleming

12. “Meet people in classes, because you guys have shared interests and homework.” — Lila Mack

13. “Wash your sheets.” –— Sean Casey

14. “Don’t feel pressured to figure out everything — your friends, major, interests — immediately. Everything goes really fast, so it feels like you have to figure it all out really fast, but take your time.” — Anushree Thekkedath

15. “Do what you want to do and don’t conform to societal pressures.” — Ricky Rodriguez

16. “Make your bed every morning (or don’t).” — Alex Nielsen

18. “Bring a freezer.” — Anonymous

19. “If you live at Wilbur, eat at Stern.” — Henry Liera

20. “Expect flake culture.” — Anonymous

21. “Find a good study spot.” — Allie Jones

22. “Make friends with all the dining and housekeeping staff!” — Henry Liera

23. “Learn the names of everyone in your dorm.” — Allie Jones

24. “Sleep. Sleep is more important than almost everything else.” — Laurel Foster

25. “Don’t stress over units.” — Isaac Cazares

26. “You should not be in 20-plus units.” — Henry Liera

27. “People say not to plan ahead at all, but you should have at least some idea.” — Shouryaman Saha

28. “Join at least one club.” — Isaac Cazares

29. “Don’t go to office hours without a clear goal.” — Anonymous

30. “Don’t worry about your future too much. Have fun freshman year.” — Gordon Martinez-Piedra

31. “Not everyone is a good friend for you, but the ones that are will last forever.” — Lauren Gill

32. “Work hard and play hard because you only live once, and you’ll only do your undergrad at Stanford once.” — Sarayu Pai

Tree-mendous love,

The Class of 2022

Contact Sarayu Pai at smpai918 ‘at’ stanford.edu.