Tips for 1Ls
Join the Law & Business Association.
Get out and do something physical regularly, whether it's the gym, going out dancing (you are in New York City, after all!), or joining the flag football league.
Individual study v. group study - use the study method that worked for you in college. Sure, it was sad when they left Elle out of the study group in Legally Blonde, but study groups aren't necessarily for everyone anyway.
Go out to lunches with Professors: free lunch at a real restaurant and stimulating conversation (you'll be amazed at how interesting/funny/personable your professors are)
Break out of your comfort zone and find a way to make friends with upperclassmen (and women). You'll meet people who share your interests and who can also give you insight on the whole law school process.
ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS remember: Lawyering is Pass/Fail.
Suddenly people will be stressed out, just because you're not, it doesn't mean you should be?
No matter what?remember where you are: NYU. Besides the fact that you're almost guaranteed a wonderful job no matter what, remember that the people here are amazing and will help you with anything. If you have a problem, someone can help: student affairs, professors, other students even, which is why NYU is such a great place to be.
Rumor has it that some local bars have internet access (MacDougal Ale House): would you like a beer with your torts? On that note: make a local bar your own; you know, where everybody knows your name?
Don't outline too early: you won't understand it yet anyway.
Beware: wireless internet access. Sure, gchat and the internet are quite tempting (and possibly more interesting than whatever your professor is talking about), but you'll be really perturbed when you end up with 4 lines of notes for all of contracts.
Don't worry if your outline isn't perfect by exam time; the real benefit from outlining is the process, not the result, and you'll be surprised by how little you have to look at your outline during the exam anyway.
Know who to avoid at exam time if they're just going to stress you out.
Don't get sidetrack by the policy heavy discussions in class; most 1L exams test how well you can apply the fundamental principles of the law and focus surprisingly little on policy.
Don't worry about being cold-called. As long as you skimmed the reading you will know enough to get by and if not you can usually BS your way through anyway.
Get away from your laptop. The internet is really distracting and there is no need to take notes on your laptop. You can usually learn just as well by highlighting your casebook and writing in the margins.
Horn books are not required. Reading material not discussed in class may actually hurt you.