A new semester dawns upon all students of Cerritos College, Brian Gonzalez starts his day with cereal upon establishing his second year at the campus.

Gonzalez is a working student, in order to get through his day of classes and work shifts he takes sandwiches, protein shakes, and protein bars.

Maintaining a healthy diet can boost your immune system, which means less doctor visits and sick days, time that can better spent studying and doing homework.

Staying fit and healthy is also a priority to add to any student’s busy schedules.

Gonzalez says work and school can be stressful, but when he can he tries to exercise at home.

To keep track of his daily routines in the semester, he keeps a calendar to remain organized and know when he has class duties and work shifts.

Being organized is also a top priority when trying to survive semester classes, work, and a social life all at the same time.

Gonzalez says,”I would be lost without keeping a planner, it’s a priority to keep my planner on hand to not miss a beat.”

Another important tip to survive any semester is to know the professors that are teaching your classes.

Before deciding on what classes to enroll in, Gonzalez refers to ratemyprofessor.com to learn if the students who have previously taken the course thoroughly enjoyed the instructor’s teaching methods and overall semester experience.

Juan Ruiz is presently undecided in his major and currently goes to school part time.

This semester he said, “I am taking Pre-Algebra and an art class, currently I am not working right now because doing a job and going to school can affect how well you do in class so for now I can do my homework ahead of time.”

Ruiz says he studies often to pass his course exams.

Making time to study is also essential to having a good grades throughout the semester.

The on-campus success center located in the same building as the library provides tutoring in math and English for students who need it.

Picking the right classes is not only important in surviving the semester but is also beneficial in progressing and transferring into a four year university.

Miriam Rios, sociology program major, says, “It hasn’t been a bad week so far, at least I didn’t have any trouble. I found all my classes and I am satisfied with the classes I picked.”

Keeping a positive attitude and looking forward to what a new semester can bring is a good way to face the semester that has just began.

Neil Owens, engineering program major, says, “It’s been a pretty good first week I was hoping to see an In and Out food truck on campus though.”

The In-N-Out food truck will be available on campus for Welcome Day Feb. 8 and for Welcome Night Feb. 9.