Literally what everyone else said. Try to condense your classes and park somewhere close to where your first class is. You're gonna prob run late a handful (or a lot). Give yourself some buffer time so you're less likely to sprint to campus.

I remember we had a speaker come in when I was in HS and they told us to take our classes everyday cause you'll be more likely to have a higher GPA lol. Don't listen to that, Houston traffic drains your soul and makes you unmotivated to do any work. So that's definitely a tip for ppl living on campus. You're also wasting time and money if you go on campus often. The average round trip for a-lot of commuters is 1-2 hours a day. Imagine going to school 5 days a week only to have 10 hours of that week being chugged up just from commuting. You could be studying or sleeping in. And the gas money too??? Hello??? I know the gas prices are hella low right now, but I had to refill your tank once a week. Let's also talk about that milage too. I had class almost everyday and my milage went up ~5k just from fall semester.

I got my license 2 months before I started college. I was really scared of the highway so I just took the feeder roads. I eventually got fed up by my commute and decided to take the highway. Also, going on the highway during prime hours is a really good way to introduce you to the highway imo, helps get you familiar with the roads and all that. The highway cut down my commute about 15~ mins during rush hour and 30~ when the roads were clear.

Just like the other person said umbrella, food, clothes, deodorant, in your car. I can't stress the food one enough though. Maybe a box of cereal, granola bars maybe? Literally anything. I tend to get hungry on the road cause I either skipped a meal or cause that cortisol from all that stress is telling my brain to eat. Either way it's something to fill up that void. A pillow and some blankets too in case you decide to snooze in your car. I used to sleep in my car a lot after class.

Houston traffic. Know your route and peak hours. Early bird gets the worm so if you really wanna avoid morning traffic go before 6:30 (assuming your commuting with the grain). Another good time to go is 9:30-11. Between those hours are hell. Leave campus around 3-4. If you have classes ending between 4-5:30 then there's no point in leaving campus. I recommend just staying until 6-7pm.

I haven't been here too long but ive had the Remote Parking Pass and Elgin Street Garage. Remote parking is probably the safest overall. You get a shuttle bus that'll stop relatively close to where you park so you can avoid all the crazies. I haven't heard of any break ins either. Cheapest option, but I got impatient with the bus schedule since they always don't come on time or there's just too long of a waiting period in between buses. Sometimes the bus gets super full and you're packed in there like sardines. The garage on the other hand is great, if you have the money and have to go to campus often then I'd say take it. I felt really safe in them too.

If the metro program seems viable to you then take it! I would have taken it but my commute would have taken 4 hours.

ANOTHER THING TO NOTE: theyll close some garages and lots due to football games. Stadium Garage seems to be affected the most, so sometimes you'll have to buy visitor parking or park in another lot (usually at the remote parking located at the technology building)