Sometimes we don’t even know what we don’t know, especially when it comes to helpful and relatively under-the-radar resources. From one Badger to another, here are a few handy on-campus amenities you probably didn’t know about, but should.
1. DoIt Classes
The Division of Information Technology (DoIt) doesn’t just provide us with overarching technology services, they also host free classes for students to help improve their skills or simply learn new skills in their (limited, but valuable) free time. Among the most popular classes are HTML, CSS, Excel, and Photoshop, which are varied by skill level. Not only are these resume-boosting classes easy to sign up for but, you heard right, they’re free. So next time you want to improve your technology skills, go here first.
2. Badger Spill
Ever needed to rant to someone but have no one to turn to? Believe it or not, you can submit anonymously to Badger Spill and receive a thread of advice responses anonymously from other students. Before joining Spill, students fill out a questionnaire evaluating issues they consider themselves qualified to address; that way, you know you’re receiving an answer from someone with either firsthand or secondhand experience with what you’re dealing with. It’s the perfect set up: you don’t know them and they don’t know you. So spill to your heart’s content, Badgers.
3. GUTS
Struggling to keep up in class? The Greater University Tutoring Service (GUTS) has got you covered. GUTS provides free—that’s right, free—tutoring for academic courses, study skills, conversational English practice, and intercultural exchange. And if you’re interested in education, you can even sign up to be a volunteer tutor. Not a bad deal, eh?
4. Campus Area Housing
In the midst of the where-am-I-going-to-live-next-year hysteria, Campus Area Housing will be your best friend. The site brings together all Madison housing availabilities into an easy-to-find and easy-to-use search setting: a system perfect for price and location comparisons. CAH lays everything down on the table, so you don’t have to take your search outside the site, and even provides students with handy law advice before any rash decisions are made at their expense. Even better, the site also debunks the “November Rush” leasing myth, which should hopefully ease all of our qualms.
5. DoIT Equipment Checkout
DoIt comes in clutch once again with its free, three-day checkout opportunity for all sorts of equipment we might not want to fork over large sums of cash to call our own. Students can rent iPads, still cameras, video cameras, and audio recorders—all for free. There’s even a phone app that lets you check availabilities at nearby checkout locations.
At UW Madison we have tons of amazing resources, but we often don’t know about them all. Take the time to look into what there is to offer, because they’re there to help us succeed. Badgers stick together.