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Things you wish you had known before you got into fellows
1. The Undergraduate Research Fellows program is a huge time commitment. Often times classes go to the back burner, especially if you are doing scientific research. The procedures take up a lot of time; it is often a struggle to even make it to your classes. (Maravet)2.To avoid having your grades drop the year you are in Fellows, plan ahead what classes you will be taking your Fellows year. Use small segments of time for study when you get the chance. (Maravet)
3. Don't be afraid to say "no" or to explain to your Fellows advisor if you have a big test or project coming up. Your Fellows advisor, if you chose them well, should be understanding of the fact that you are an honors undergraduate student, and are probably taking 15-18 hours per semester. Since they are getting "free labor" they should be understanding of the fact that you have other obligations in your classes. (Maravet)
4. Make sure you are prompt to the lab, and make all your meetings with your Fellows advisor. This may seem obvious, but you don't want to skip a meeting, even accidentally, because this will not reflect well upon your relationship with your advisor, or Fellows. (Maravet)
5. If you should have a problem, especially regarding your time to meet the obligations of your classes, be assured that you can talk to either Dr. Ritter or Mrs. Raisor in the Honors Programs office. They may not always be able to solve the problem but they can give you good advice and show you ways to find lost minutes in your schedule.
6. Also, don't be afraid to have a conference with your other professors. Explain what the Fellows program is, especially mentioning the thesis requirement. I did this and my professors were incredibly understanding and helpful. Not all of them will be that way, but perhaps enough will that it will give you confidence to know that you will be able to complete everything on time.
7. Believe me, you WILL survive, and you will be extremely proud of your extraordinary effort! There is a reason why there are only four things that are designated on your diploma from TAMU. One of them is the TAMU Undergraduate Research Fellowship -- because it is a lot of extremely hard work and effort on your part (otherwise many students would participate in it!). You will KNOW you have completely earned that designation when you graduate!