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College is about having a lot of fun and learning a few things along the way. But one of the things that can really put a damper on your first year is getting in trouble for doing something very wrong. Sadly, a surprising number of freshmen experience the big pain-in-the-butt that is getting in trouble with the administration. So, the best way to avoid getting to know the Cornell administration a lot more intimately than you would like would be to use some common sense. After all, it’s really easy to have a ton of fun and show that you’re not a perfect angel without having to write home to mom and dad to tell them you’ve been suspended.

Academic Stuff
Brown takes academic honesty very seriously. You’ll have an enjoyable session with the Deans or some faculty during Freshman Orientation in which she will emphasize the importance of being completely honest on all your tests and papers. Unfortunately, you need to listen. Brown can and will expel students if they are copying or plagiarizing assignments and papers. So remember...
• Read the book they give you: I know, the book looks really, really boring. But you should read it so you’re familiar with the material. If not, you may make an honest mistake and end up in some big trouble.
• Always cite correctly: In high school, you may be able to get away with some decent citations that show you at least made an attempt to show where you got your information. Not at Cornell. You have to be complete in all your citations, and they must be cited correctly. If you’re not sure how or when to do it, always ask your professor, they’re always happy to help.
• Make sure you understand the notion of “group work:” Every teacher’s idea of group work is a little different. Make sure you understand what they mean when they say you can work together on something. If they don’t make it clear in their instructions, it’s your responsibility to ask them.

Alcohol
Freshmen, year after year, are the best partiers at Brown. Congratulations! You’ll enjoy some of the loudest, wildest, drunkest parties of your life during your first year. But if you’re not careful, you won’t be enjoying it for long.
• Don’t drink outside: Not only will this get you in trouble with Brown Department of Public Safety, but more importantly you will have issues with the police. Drinking outside is and always will be a dumb move.
• Listen to security: While there are plain-clothes Alcohol Enforcement officers and the like sometimes, you generally won’t get in trouble, even if you’re underage, if you’re just having a drink and not causing problems. However, if you start ignoring the requests that security may make, like quieting down or clearing a hallway, then they may start looking at your actions a little more closely.
• Beware hard alcohol: Some security has no tolerance for hard alcohol. So if you’re absolutely inclined to drink hard alcohol, drink it behind closed doors, or at least keep the bottles out of view. If you take a mixed drink out into the hall, make sure it doesn’t reek of vodka. (And remember, mixing beer and hard alcohol really does make you wicked sick.)

Everything Else
Of course, there’s a lot of other stuff you could do at college that could land you in hot water, but everything else is pretty much common sense. Don’t attack your roommate, don’t use any ethnic slurs or the like, always make sure any "extracurricular activity" is consensual. Use your head, and you’ll never have to worry about punishments and rules.