5 Myths About the Best (College) Years of Your Life

You won't, and you shouldn't. But perhaps you are wary of Myth 3 and have forsaken all earthly pleasures (including extracurriculars) to focus on academics. You may have spent 40 hours a week locked in classrooms back in high school, but you'll be in the university lecture hall more like 15. You'll find that it's tough to fill that vacuum with studying alone, especially when deep, imponderable questions are crying out to you: If I watch another edition of SportsCenter, will it have new scores to report? (Answer: Yes.) If I party on Tuesday like it's Saturday, what does that make Wednesday? (Answer: Painful.) Is it possible to play "Guitar Hero III" for 24 hours straight without getting carpal tunnel syndrome? (Answer: We were too scared to try.) The discipline that a well-chosen mix of courses and extracurriculars imposes is better than a routine devoid of fun.

5 If your roommate is a dud, your social life will be too.

You will be thrilled to know that this is also a no. We consistently find that students tend to underemphasize what they should take seriously -- such as selecting the best professors and classes -- and overemphasize what they should take as it comes -- such as roommates. We have known roomies who forged lifelong friendships (and billion-dollar partnerships) and others who were undone by the polka music blaring from one side of the room or the dirty boxers piling up on the other. (Our favorite was the smoker who requested a nonsmoking roommate because "two smokers in one room would be too much.") Your safest bet is to lower your expectations about roomie-bonding and seek out other avenues for fun. The two of you may not agree on bunk beds, matching bedspreads or the use of snooze buttons, but it will all be over in a year.

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Peter Feaver is a professor at Duke University. Anne Crossman, a Duke graduate, is a freelance writer in Seattle. They are co-authors, with Sue Wasiolek, of "Getting the Best Out of College."