Issue No. 83 • August 2026
Welcome to Houston First Five Things to Do
Houston 101 Back to School Bingo
WELCOME TO HOUSTON
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
EDITORIAL Ryan E. Ross Cooglife Executive Editor cooglife@thedailycougar.com
COVER Adam Matthews Cooglife Contributor
WRITERS Mahdiya Bhiwandiwala Pam Crawford Gauraangi Gupta Gillian Wisniewski
ARTISTS Adam Matthews Ryan E. Ross
03 Table of Contents | Contributor Credits & Editor’s Note 06 How to Make Friends When Everyone is New 10 Student Voices: Advice from an Upperclassman 13 Let’s Start the Journey 14 First Five Things to Do 17 Back to School Bingo 18 Houston 101 EDITOR’S NOTE Greetings Coogs, First I’d like to give a warm welcome to all the new and returning students, it’s going to be a great year! I am so happy to share with you our first issue of the school year, “Welcome to Houston.” Within these pages you’ll find advice from upperclassmen, tips on making friends, ways to get involved on campus, and much more. I hope you enjoy each page, put together by myself and the talented artists, writers, and photographers of Cooglife magazine. If you are interested in becoming a member of Cooglife magazine, please see the QR code on the back cover, or the link in our Instagram bio. Until the next read, Ryan E. Ross | Executive Editor
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Today is not just another day.
It’s a new opportunity, a new chance, a new beginning. Photo by Adam Matthews COOGLIFE // August 2026 COOGLIFE // August 2026
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Welcome new Coogs! You made it and we couldn't be more proud of you. Look around you and remember this moment. These next few years will be the best years of your life. You will create so many new memories, have new experiences, explore yourself and make some life long friends. Wait, did I say ‘life long friends?’ I know what’s going on in your mind. How will I make friends when everyone around me is new? But that’s the beauty of this new journey. Everyone, including yourself is a plain, white canvas. It’s a new beginning for everyone and you’re not alone. // August 2026 6 6 COOGLIFE COOGLIFE // August 2026
Like I said, it's a new journey for everyone, so don’t feel awkward or weird reaching out first. Make the first move and introduce yourself. You might end up realizing that the person in front of you has similar hobbies or very unique experiences. Share Instagram or other contact details if possible to keep in touch.
Get involved The best way to make friends is by getting involved on campus. As an incoming graduate student, who spent almost five years in college in two different continents, I can vouch for this. You can attend over a 100 events throughout the year to get involved on campus and meet new people.
Written by Gauraangi Gupta | Photos by Adam Matthews
How to Make Friends When Everyone is New
Don’t hesitate
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UH also features over a 100 different organizations where you can find students with similar interests and make life long friends.
Study groups Believe it or not, you can make some of the strongest bonds while preparing for a mid-term exam or a final. Joining or creating a study group is twofold. It helps you progress academically while sharing a moment of struggle with your peers.
Stay consistent, but don’t overdo it Once you’ve met some people and have become a little comfortable, it's time to remain consistent.
Keep in touch with them and make plans to hang out. However, keep things slow because it’s important to build trust first. Remain consistent but not clingy because different people have different comfort zones.
Be yourself! This is the most important part. Be yourself and don’t try to act like someone you’re not. It is important to build a level of trust and have fun. So don’t do anything you’re not comfortable doing just for the other person to like you. // August 2026 8 8 COOGLIFE COOGLIFE // August 2026
The right people are just around the corner, and you’ll find them soon! COOGLIFE // August 2026 9 COOGLIFE // August 2026 9
Student Voices: Advice From an Upperclassman Written by Gillian Wisniewski
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Beginning a new chapter at a new Beginning a new chapter at school can bea new extremely school intimidating, can be there extremely is a lot of stress intimidating, there iswith a lot walking of stress through that comes that comes with walking an unopened door. through Luckily enough, an unopened enough, the door. sameLuckily people that are the same people you that everyday are surrounding on surrounding campusyouhaveeveryday been in on the exact campus same have boat. been Every in thecollege exact student same boat. college has Every had their fair student share of stress has hadand theiranxiety fair share stress clubs, overofclasses, and anxiety overfriendships classes, clubs, athletics, and so on. A athletics,great friendships andfor sothis on.isAto ask to eye-opener great eye-opener for this is toItask hear others’ advice. cantogo a long hear others’ way.advice. It can go a long way.
All students struggle to manage All students manage their struggle classes tothroughout the their classes the semesters.throughout Additional study time semesters. Additional studyattime begins to eat away spare time, begins to eatit away at spare and can take away time, other things and it can takea away other things within daily routine. Sleep begins within ato daily routine. Sleep begins be cut short, plans with friends to be cutstart short, plans more with friends to cancel frequently and start to cancel morerises frequently the stress higherand than ever. the stress risesonhigher Being top of than your ever. work with a Being onstrict top of your work a study schedule for with allotted strict schedule hours isfor oneallotted of the study best ways to hours istackle one of the best ways to this. tackle this. Another big factor that can take Anotheraway big factor that can take from schoolwork time is the away from schoolwork is theor social distraction of atime phone distraction of a phone or social media. media.
One way to work around this is to One wayset to work this is to time around restrictions for both set time restrictions for both schoolwork and screen time. Spend schoolwork and screen time.on Spend 30 minutes focused schoolwork, 30 minutes on schoolwork, andfocused at the end of that timer allow and at the end of 5-10 that timer allowon your yourself minutes yourself phone. 5-10 minutes Repeatingonthatyour cycle also phone. provides Repeatingtime thatfor cycle also reset, a mental provideswhen time you for circle a mental back reset, to your work when you circle back to your work you can approach it with a fresh set you can of approach eyes. it with a fresh set of eyes. Stepping into aspects outside of Steppingacademics, into aspects outside of stressor another leading academics, leading stressor for another students is the struggle of for students thefriendships. struggle ofIt can be creatingis new creating extremely new friendships. canfind be others difficultIt to extremely difficult to find othersinterests, with the same personal with theespecially same personal when interests, the number of especially when theskyrockets. number of Luckily students studentsenough, skyrockets. Luckily there are numerous ways enough, tothere are numerous go about engagingways with other to go about engaging with other students on campus. Study groups studentswithin on campus. groups classesStudy can be one of the within classes can be one most impactful waysoftothe make new most impactful friends. ways to make new friends.
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It provides stability to see your peers every week, and time to get to know each other through conversations. This will also benefit everyone as a whole by working on classwork in a more positive, uplifting light. Another way to meet others with a more specific niche is by going to student club events. Organizations and clubs will promote themselves by showcasing who they are and what they do, all while encouraging new students to join. Taking a walk through and speaking to the club members is not only informational, but a big release of stress. Conversing about interests and meeting others who are also interested creates an opportunity for new friendships to begin. As the majority of college students know, going to football or basketball games is one of the greatest ways to be involved within your school.
These games are incredibly active with all of the fans in the crowd, especially the student sections. There are little games during every break where students from the crowd are pulled onto the field for a chance to win a prize. The student section also has a lot of chants and traditions that bring the energy to a crazy high throughout the night. With all of that being said, one of the greatest benefits of this is that the university offers free student tickets for these games, as well as every other sport. So take advantage of this opportunity, it’s not everyday that a free college football game ticket is handed out.
To add on, the football tailgates are a very unique, yet important piece to the college experience. Everybody has their fair share of interesting encounters at these tailgates, but the greatest part of it all is meeting new people. Creating friendships and bonds with other students at the tailgate enhances the experience as a whole. The environment is very upbeat, friendly and everyone is there to have a great time. Overall, the biggest factor to having a great college experience is to go out and get involved. There are so many different opportunities waiting for you, and it is important to take action. College provides so much room for individual growth and learning how to navigate through difficulties, but that is not possible unless the right steps are taken.
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Let’s
start
the journey
Photo by Adam Matthews COOGLIFE // August 2026 13 COOGLIFE // August 2026 13
First Five Things to Do By Mahdiya Bhiwandiwala
Beginning your journey at the University of Houston can feel like a mix of nerves and excitement as you start a new and significant chapter of your life. And sometimes, the toughest part is getting started because you don’t know what the right first step looks like. The first few days of the semester set the tone for everything that follows, and how you use that time can make a big difference in your academic success and overall college experience. To make this transition easier, here are the first five things that every UH student should do at the start of the semester, which are applicable to both new and returning students: Check your class schedule and know where your classes are located.
The start of the semester is the right time to go through your class schedule and confirm whether your class is face-toface, hybrid, synchronous or asynchronous. // August 2026 14 COOGLIFE 14 COOGLIFE // August 2026
. This can help with scheduling your day to day activities. Another important reason to check your class schedule is to find out their locations. Because UH has a very large and widespread campus, you may require additional time to get to your classes. Usually, students have classes in different buildings, so knowing where to go and how to get there on time will make you more efficient and disciplined. If you want, you can print out your class schedule, have a screenshot of it on your phone or use a sticky note to jot down your class location and class times for the sake of convenience.
Tip:
You can find your class schedule and an interactive campus map on the UH Go mobile app.
Going over the syllabus and making note of important deadlines.
One of the most important things to do at the start of each semester is go through the syllabus for each class.
It provides a detailed schedule and highlights exam dates. This can give students enough time to plan ahead and ensure that they do not have any conflicting commitments on the days of their exams. Besides exam dates, the syllabus is also a guide on the grading criteria for the class and breaks down the components that make up the overall grade. It may also cover any other important information that is relevant to a class, including office hours and contact information of the professor and/or the teaching assistants. Therefore, going over the syllabus and constantly reviewing it from time to time is a great way for students to keep up with the class and feel in control of their coursework.
Tip:
UH Simple Syllabus is a useful resource to view the syllabus for different classes and is also categorized based on different colleges and sessions.
Stop by any on-campus events and get freebies.
The first two weeks of each new semester are usually very enjoyable because it is the time when a variety of on-campus events take place. Whether it be Cat’s Back, Resource Fair or other fun pop-ups, these events allow students to learn what’s happening on campus and collect UH swag and freebies along the way. It is highly recommended for students to go and drop by such events because it’s a nice way to feel belonged, meet new people, gain more awareness about the university and to simply hang out with your friends or classmates.
Decide what textbooks you’ll need (CTAP/opt-out)
The start of the semester involves a lot of figuring out. One of the things each student should figure out is any course related material that they may need, be it textbooks, software subscriptions or other supplies. Fortunately, UH offers the Cougar Textbook Access Program (CTAP), which is an opportunity for students to access all their required course material before the semester begins at a flat fee, regardless of their major or credit hours. The fee is added to a part of your overall tuition fees, unless you decide to opt out of the program. CTAP is a convenient way for students to have all their course materials ready for the semester without putting in a lot of effort. Although it may seem a little expensive upfront, it is intended to save costs more than if you were to purchase each textbook for each class separately. Even though it is not obligatory for students to opt into CTAP, it is always nice to know what resources the university offers for the ease of students.
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Tip:
big goals attainable and keep you motivated all semester
You can visit the campus bookstore to collect any physical copies of your textbooks or learning materials, and even buy last minute school supplies if you need anything urgently. You can visit the campus bookstore to collect any physical copies of your textbooks or learning materials, and even buy last minute school supplies if you need anything urgently.
Tip:
Set goals for the semester
big goals attainable and keep you motivated down your goals increases the all Writing semester likelihood of achieving them by approximately
Tip:
33% compared to if you just think about them.
Tip:
Writing down your goals increases the likelihood of achieving them by approximately 33% compared to if you just think about them.
Remember to maximize the first week of Setthing goals that for the semester Another beneficial students semester and use it to your advantage to should do at the start of the semester is to get a head start. Be intentional with the your Remember to maximize first week of set academic goals for beneficial themselves. Every Another thing that students actions, andsemester begin with a positive outlook and use it to your advantage to new beginning with should docomes at the start of thenew semester and is tofresh energy to make the most of your get a head start. Be intentional with your expectationssetand opportunities, andthemselves. as a academic goals for Every college journey ahead. actions, and begin with a positive outlook college student, should makecomes the mostwith new youbeginning new and fresh energy to make the most of your of it. Having goals helpsandyouopportunities, take small, and as a expectations college journey ahead. progressive college steps. student, Whetheryou youshould wantmake to the most join a student get straight A’s, take small, of organization, it. Having goals helps you secure an internship, yourWhether network you or want to progressivebuild steps. reduce procrastination, these steps makeget straight A’s, join a student organization,
Go Coogs! Go Coogs!
secure an internship, build your network or reduce procrastination, these steps make
Become an
Inspirational Voice and apply now
go.uth.edu/SPHUH 16 COOGLIFE // August 2026
Back to school
BINGO Set semester goals
Check class schedule
Join a study group
Meet someone new
FREE SPACE
Explore Houston
Join a club
Read syllabi
Fix sleep schedule
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Houston Houston 101 101 Written by Pam Crawford | Photo by Adam Matthews
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Neighborhoods to know as a UH student Neighborhoods
to know as a UH student
Montrose
Only a 15 minute drive from the UH campus, Montrose is a very popular neighborhood for students. Featuring many unique coffee shops, restaurants, thrift stores and consignment shops within walking distance of each other make Montrose a perfect destination for a day out. Stop by Leopard Lounge for vintage thrifting, and walk to Agora down the street for some coffee afterwards. It is easy to spend hours shopping and eating in Montrose.
Rice Village
Also a 15 minute drive from the UH campus is Rice Village, a walkable shopping and dining center in the heart of Houston.
This location is very popular with locals of West University as well as students. There are mostly boutique and luxury brand shops, making it less affordable for students, but window shopping is still free. The selection of restaurants is diverse, ranging from more affordable to fine dining, with a variety of different cuisines. Here’s a tip- free street parking is difficult during peak times, but there is a 2-hour free parking garage off University Blvd.
Chinatown
Outside of the inner loop, 15 miles away from UH is Chinatown.
One of Houston’s highlights is the diversity of cultures, and Chinatown is one of the best examples of that. Featuring affordable and authentic Asian food options, Chinatown is worth a visit. Whether you’re craving boba or want to pick up fresh Asian groceries at HMart, everything is within a short distance from each other.
Greater Third Ward
Greater Third Ward is home to the University of Houston, as well as Texas Southern University.
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Every student should become familiar with the area during their time at UH. While Third Ward is mostly residential space, there are some restaurants nearby campus to highlight. Frenchy’s Chicken and Cream Burger are just across the street from campus, and are able to satisfy any late night cravings.
Medical Center and Museum Park In between Rice University and the University of Houston is the Medical Center and Museum Park.
Hermann Park is an expansive urban park, perfect for walking, biking, picnicking and relaxing. Attached to Hermann Park is the Houston Zoo, which offers free admission for UH students. North of Hermann Park is Houston’s Museum District, including the Museum of Natural Sciences and the Museum of Fine Arts. HMNS offers free admission on Tuesdays and MFAH offers free admission on Thursdays. As a student, it is affordable and a great way to spend the day. There are also public transit options if heading to the Med Center from UH.
Landmarks of Houston
Landmarks of Houston
The Williams Tower
The Williams Tower and the Water Wall are iconic landmarks of the Galleria area. It is the tallest building outside of downtown Houston. Connected to the tower is the Water Wall, an iconic Houston attraction perfect for taking pictures in front of.
Downtown attractions
If you’re driving along the north to east side of downtown, you might notice some of Houston’s murals along the buildings. Downtown Houston highlights activism in its public art. There’s also Buffalo Bayou, providing green spaces in and around downtown. Buffalo Bayou Park is a popular space for biking and walking. The park is also connected to Sabine St. bridge, a perfect space for photo ops.
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The Astrodome
The Astrodome was the world’s first domed stadium, built only 15 minutes away from the University of Houston’s campus. Now it sits unused, but remains one of Houston’s most recognizable landmarks. Nearby the Astrodome is NRG Park, featuring Reliant Stadium and NRG Arena, where the Houston Rodeo and Houston Texans games take place.
What to know about culture here What to know
about culture here
Car-centric culture
As many commuter students already know, Houston is an extremely carcentric city with little to no infrastructure for walking or biking in many parts of the city. Inside the 610 loop, there are walkable neighborhoods, but once outside the loop it becomes increasingly difficult to transport oneself without a personal automobile. Maintaining a social life also becomes difficult outside of campus due to driving time and distance.
Foodie culture
On the bright side, there is no shortage of food options in the city, whether inside or outside of the highway loops. 22 COOGLIFE // August 2026
There are affordable options, fine dining options, and food in any cuisine imaginable. According to visithouston, there are an estimated 13,000 restaurants representing over 70 countries. If there’s a favorite pastime in Houston, it’s probably going out to eat.
Rodeo culture
During the months of February and March, every Houstonian knows it’s time for the Rodeo. Every year, NRG Park is home to the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo. The Rodeo provides many hours of entertainment through food
vendors, carnival rides, games, live music and of course the rodeo itself. It also features shopping and educational opportunities indoors. Every year the Rodeo earns hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue, which goes directly into supporting farmers, ranchers, students, grants, scholarships, etc. It’s a big deal throughout the whole area, and brings the city together to celebrate its roots.
What surprises surprises newcomers the most
Lastly, what surprises newcomers the most is the weather. It stays very hot throughout the year, and with relative humidity in the 6070% range, the intensity rises.
Take it all one day at a time, and enjoy the journey.
-Kristi Bartlett -Kristi
Bartlett
Photo by Adam Matthews
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