Moving to college is a trip. Literally.

First you have to find a place to stay, unless you're staying in the dorm, in which case the college will assign you a place to stay. Here's my advice: find a place as close as possible to where you'll be attending classes.

Walking or biking distance is best. If you're in an urban area with public transportation, check out the routes and make them a part of the decision-making process. For example, is there a bus stop near by and what time of day do the buses run?

Here's why that's important. Parking.

It's not just that parking spots are extremely rare on college campuses; it's the fact that most of the spots you'll find open are reserved for Not You.

You'll find yourself driving to class with plenty of time, only to find there are no available parking spots except in areas where students aren't allowed to park. "What the heck," you'll think to yourself. And you'll park there anyway, which is just fine with the campus police. Writing parking tickets is not only what they do most often; it's what they do best.

At first, ignoring the parking ticket is easy. I know this from experience. I ignored an entire center console full of parking tickets; joked about it with my classmates, who dutifully avoided them.

Then I learned that parking tickets written by campus police are a lot like nuclear waste and empty water bottles. They don't go away. The bursar's office adds them to your tab and then puts a hold on your records until you pay. And when I say they put a hold on your records, I mean you can't even register for classes again until you pay up.

I like to think it was parking, or a lack there of, that finally ended my academic career. You see, I was going to become a doctor, but I couldn't find a place to park.

Don't let this happen to you. Get an apartment close to campus.