You've been working hard and playing harder for three years, and year four has come around faster than you can believe. Within a blink of the eye, college will be over, and you will be faced with the real world whether you are ready or not. There are ways, however, to make the most of this last year to ensure that your college experience was everything it could have been. There were things you wanted to accomplish while you were here, places you wanted to see, and friends you never want to lose. By taking a few extra minutes to create a game plan for this last year, you can be sure to leave college with no loose ends and no regrets.

1. Give Back Your Freshman Fifteen

   Your first year left you with a little more baggage then just a bunch of used textbooks. Fat-laden dining hall food and all-you-can-eat sundae bars seem to have permanently altered your once athletic physique. Then, there have been all those late night cravings for cheesy bread after long hours of partying away school stress. Luckily, you don't have to return home looking like you have been preparing for a long winter of hibernation, because college offers limitless ways to get back into shape before graduation.

   Try learning to cook. You don't have to become a gourmet chef to prepare healthy and affordable meals in your own home. Try eating more salad and fruit, and grill chicken breasts on a cheap electric grill. Enlist your roommates too. Stop ordering so much late night food and baking so many cookies. You can start eating healthier as a team and go to the market together for healthy options.

   If you haven't made a habit of regular exercise between classes and parties, now is the time to start. Most colleges these days offer state of the art fitness facilities on or near campus. The membership to these facilities is almost always included in tuition fees.

   If you can't handle the testosterone packed weight room, or the monotony of cardio equipment, look into classes. Most fitness centers on college campuses offer a selection of aerobics, step, spinning, sculpt, and even martial arts classes that can help you ease your way into a healthy lifestyle. Making daily exercise part of your routine is important, because even the simple transition back to home town life can add weight.

   On campus, you have to walk or bike everywhere, back home you'll rediscover your car. Also, facing the job market can overwhelm many recent graduates, and that stress can lead to eating problems.

2. Get Active

   Join an intramural sport. If you've never joined an intramural team in your three years of college, it is an experience you won't want to miss. These sports are not nearly as competitive as joining the school team. They have much more to do with having a good time and being social. Not to mention you'll be burning off thousands of extra calories while you enjoy yourself in the sun. You can form a team with friends or just sign up as a single and wait to be assigned to a team. Going it alone will guarantee that you'll make new friends. Try a sport you don't even know how to play yet. There is no need to be embarrassed if you are unskilled, because intramurals are offered at all levels.

   Discover the adventure program. Many schools offer outdoor adventure sports and even trips at very discounted prices. These trips are often run by other trained students. Learn to rock climb, canoe, backpack, kayak, and even river raft. This is the only time in your life you'll be guaranteed that the participants on these trips will be your peers. You'll ease off tons of stress and excess energy, and you will see incredible natural sights. After college you'll be challenged to find trips like these offered anywhere near the prices you paid in school, and you'll be even more challenged to find the time to do them.

3. Get Away From Student Housing

   Now that your body is back in shape, it's time to take on a different kind of challenge. If you went away for school, you probably spent at least one year living in a dorm or other form of student housing. If you moved into an apartment, you probably chose one well within the student populated area. You have already experienced the advantages of having your friends as next door neighbors, and for three years, you've never had to walk more than a block to get to a party. But what do you know about the city you live in? Consider moving downtown, or at least out of the student community during senior year. Chances are, when you graduate, you'll move back to the same neighborhood you grew up in. When people ask you what it was like living in St. Louis, New York, Santa Barbara, or Chicago, what will you tell them? Living in a new part of town, gives you a chance to discover what the city has to offer. Living away from all the noise of student life is not for everyone, but it does provide a completely fresh perspective.

4. Live Alone

   If you have the financial resources, consider living by yourself during senior year. After you graduate, you may get stuck living with mom and dad or a roommate for many years. Don't miss the chance to experience life away from parental control where every decision is yours to make. Having your own apartment means you get to create the vibe yourself. You decide when it's time to work, play, cook, veg, and when to have guests over. Living alone is not for everyone because you have to make more of an effort to see friends, and it can feel isolating at times. But living alone can also be extremely liberating. Make breakfast in your underwear, read a book in total silence, throw a dinner party for your friends, and come and go on your own terms. Living alone gives you the chance to see what life is like when it truly is all on your own terms.

5. Check Up on Your Progress

   Remember all those hours you spent figuring out your strategy the first time you registered for class. Well, chances are, after the novelty wore off, this process became second nature. But despite your awareness of the requirements and your near certainty that you have completed every requisite course, it's a good idea to make a visit to the advisor's office at the beginning of senior year. Where is the advisor's office? Exactly. You've probably done all the planning yourself, and anyone can overlook a unit here or there. Nothing could put a damper on your final days at school like finding out you aren't really finished. Make sure to double check that you are on the right track at least once during the first quarter of senior year.

6. Register for Your Dream Class

   What are you waiting for? You only have a few chances left to take that Shakespeare, archeology or sex dducation class everyone said was so amazing. During senior year, you'll be able to get into any class you like because students that have been at school the longest have priority. You probably gave up on taking this course a long time ago because you figured it wasn't that big a deal and was too much work to fight your way in. It is a good idea to reconsider though, because you only have one chance to be a student at your university. You might as well take exactly those classes that you pointed to with excitement the first day. Add the class even if it means having a heavier load or staying an extra quarter. In the long run, the couple of extra months will not affect your future, but they will affect your memory of your college experience. Don't miss out.

7. See the Sights

   Remember when you were first researching your new home. You noticed all the places the city had to offer, such as great museums, cool parks, historic landmarks, and great theaters. During this last year in town, take the time to finally experience all those things you were so anxious to do and see. Go to one of the better-known restaurants in town. Visit the recently hatched Monarch Butterflies. Take a hike through the botanical gardens. Stroll through the museum with a friend. Have your picture taken in front of City Hall. You may think you will visit plenty of times after you graduate, but life has a way of getting in the way. Seize the time you have now to fully take advantage of your school's home town.

8. Attend a Lecture or Play on Campus

   Year after year, you have been hearing about the incredible theater program at your school, a famous orchestra and dance group came to visit last year, and your favorite senator made a speech in the school square. You missed it all because you were studying or invited to hang out with friends. This year, make a point to attend one school event per semester. See a play, hear a speech, and attend a festival. This is probably the only time in your life you'll have such a thriving arts community at your disposal. Expose yourself to a little bit of culture and a little bit of community before going on to the working world. Later in life, you'll be wishing you had the time and access to everything that is brought right to your front door while you are at school.

9. Gather Contact Information and Future Plans From Friends

   After college, everyone scatters. You may have told all your friends and roommates that you will keep in touch forever, but after college is over, it gets a lot more challenging. Make sure you have updated e-mail addresses, home addresses, and home and cell phone numbers for all your friends. Have several ways to contact them on file in case one of their numbers changes. People move around a lot after they graduate so make an agreement with friends to update each other at least once a month and before any major move. Also, find out what your friends have planned. You may have assumed your oldest friend was going back home too, while he may be planning to move into town. Take an active role in this now because when graduation rolls around it will be too late—everyone will be too distracted and excited to think about these details. It would be a shame to lose touch with such great friends.

10. Locate the Alumni Center

    You may think you know exactly what your career path will be. After all, you are going to be a college graduate, and people want to hire employees with educations. This is true, but these days, a college degree is not worth what it used to be. Everyone can use a helping hand getting through the door, and your school's alumni association could be a great way to do that. Find out who else attended your school that now works in your desired field. Sometimes schools will be able to give you email or home addresses for other alumni. You can write a letter to the alumnus telling them about yourself and that you are looking for some advice about getting into your desired field. People love the feeling of camaraderie that comes with helping out a fellow alumnus. Also, some schools even have alumni mentoring programs. Find out where the alumni resource center is on campus and pay a visit. Find out how your current school can give you that extra push forward toward your career. That is why you came to college in the first place, isn't it?