Design Your Dorm

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It’s not completely uncommon for a college student to be the victim of identity theft. Generally they are targeted because they are thought to be easier ‘marks’. Hopefully with these tips you will learn how to prevent being the victim of identity theft.

Never give your SSN out

Do not give your Social Security Number out to anybody. The only time you should ever be required to present your SSN is in your initial papers to your university and when you first go to the student medical center. After this time they usually accept either the last 4 digits of your SSN or your Student ID.

Student ID

Generally you will get your Student ID number before you even get to school. They will assign it to you by snail mail or email. Although the ramifications of having your Student ID # stolen are not nearly as great as for your SSN it is still a good idea to keep it somewhat private. Grades are often posted outside classrooms and you may not want other people to be able to know what your grades are. Your student ID number can also be used to access a number of school databases that you will likely not want to share out.

Email

Be careful with your college e-mail account. You will use this to send e-mails to professors and TA’s and the like. The last thing that you want is to be the victim of a prank in which one of your friends sends some horrible e-mail to one of your professors. Your friends may not realize how seriously detrimental this could be. So be careful as to not check the box that allows your computer to remember your password for this one.

Computer

Take a minute to think about all the personal and important information you store on your computer. Now imagine how horrible it would be if somebody else were to access all of that information. To prevent this you should password protect your computer by allowing access only after the password has been entered. That way nobody can get on your computer.

Facebook and other social media networks

This is a very touchy subject for a lot of people. The types of things you put up on your Facebook account can come back to bite you. Be wise with what pictures you keep on your profile, a lot of people have access to see these pictures. It is also a good idea to make your Facebook profile private so that only people who you are friends with can see it. There are millions of people on Facebook and you probably don’t want all of them to be able to see what you are up to.

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1. Plastic wrap on the toilet
   This one is a classic. If you have a communal bathroom then you can wrap plastic wrap between the seat and the toilet bowl. The next morning before the 8am classes, at least one tired and unsuspecting student will be in for a very unpleasant surprise.
2. Rotting food trick
   This should only be reserved for your most hated nemesis. Get a few of those disposable Tupperware containers and poke a few holes in the top lid. Then locate something that perishes quickly; raw fish works well. Then place the container under your target’s bed or in his closet. Wait a few days, and watch as his room is overrun by a horrid smell.
3. Hidden alarm clock
   Get a cheap, battery powered alarm clock and set it for a later hour in the middle of the night. Then place it somewhere in your target’s room where he will be able to hear it, but not see it; under the bed works as long as it is a loud alarm. In the middle of the night he will be startled, and likely very upset.
4. Dismantled bed
   This one is truly awesome, but you will probably have to get your target’s roommate to lend you his room key. Wait until a Friday or Saturday night when your target plans on going out for the night and stay for an extra 15 minutes. Sneak into his room and dismantle his bed. When he arrives at 2am he will be disgruntled and exhausted and he will probably be forced to sleep on the floor. For an added twist, you can reassemble his bed in the hallway in front of his room.
5. Stealing towel/robe
   This is simple yet effective if you have communal bathrooms. Wait for your target to walk into the bathroom to shower. Then once they are mid shower steal their towel and or bathrobe and put it someplace where they will have to walk exposed for a short distance. This one never gets old.

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1. Drink a caffeinated beverage before you sit down – caffeine improves your mood, which is always helpful when it comes to hitting the books.
2. Make a list of what you have to accomplish and cross things off as you finish them. Achievement always feels nice.
3. Focus anywhere between 45 minutes to an hour and then take a five-minute break. This will help you clear your head and go back to studying with a fresh mindset.
4. If you’re going to listen to music, make it Mozart (I prefer Debussy’s Claire de Lune).
5. Steal quick glances at your loud neighbors – everyone speaks the universal of “you’re annoying me”.
6. If you don’t need your computer – don’t open it. It’s way too tempting.
7. Concentrate on one course at a time and don’t even think about looking at another class until you’ve finished.
8. Recopy lecture notes – its quick and easy. You’ll be surprised how much information you’ll retain just by doing this.
9. Turn your cell phone on silent, it just adds to the bevy of distractions. Plus, it makes you appear mysterious when you don’t text back right away.
10. Keep your headphones in even if you aren’t listening to music, this way people won’t feel the need to stop and chat.

Seriously though, just get up and move. Loud = lazy and you need to do well on your exams.