First, let me preface this by saying I’m a “last-minute woman.”

I’ve been known to leave class preparations until the last minute and go downtown on the occasional Monday.

Those facts add up to the handy little stereotype above, according to Cynthia Powell’s description in her Wednesday column, “Three types of students roam campus.”

Her cheerful little column detailed three different kinds of students and oh-so-thoughtfully gave suggestions on how one could better improve his or her grades to achieve the most from their time at the University.

Now, I can’t speak for everyone on campus, but I do know this: some of the most valuable lessons I’ve learned during my time in Athens have occurred outside of the classroom.

Sure, I enjoy my classes – most of the time.

But the real lessons come while actually experiencing life, such as how to handle an awkward encounter downtown, how to pull an all-nighter before a term paper is due and how to cure a wine hangover.

But since certain people seem so obsessed with stereotypes, allow me to describe a few common ones that permeate campus.

1. The die-hard fan. This student only cares about Georgia football. He or she was raised by University alums and tailgated every weekend as a child. His or her motivation for making good grades in high school was solely to get accepted to the University.

Football is their religion, and Sanford Stadium is their place of worship.

They compete with one another for the best tailgating spots and their mood is directly correlated to the number of Bulldog wins in a season.

2. The fratty/sorostitute. These students take advantage of their high socioeconomic status to pay for friends.

They wear Polos and pearls and boat shoes and Croakies. These students can be found downtown on any given weeknight, usually at Bourbon Street or Boar’s Head.

3. The townie-in-training. This student attends shows downtown frequently, usually of lesser-known local bands. They scoff at mainstream music and wear tight jeans and glasses.

The men are scruffy and the women smell like Patchouli. After graduation, they get local jobs and frequent The Globe and Trappeze.

4. The SLC-dweller. This student is obsessed with getting into law/medical/veterinary/pharmacy/nursing school. Their entire lives are consumed with preparations for the GMAT, LSAT and other similar exams. They spend hours studying outside of class and require Adderall and caffeine to function properly.

5. And finally, there is the preachy observer. The preachy observer deigns to suggest ways for other students to improve their lives, without taking into account outside factors. They condescend to assume everyone has hours of free time to devote to bettering their grades, especially on the weekends.

Don’t like my generalizations? Good.

Generalizations are stupid and inaccurate, as Cynthia Powell so aptly – yet unintentionally – conveyed in her column.

What’s wrong with balancing school, work and fun? Trust me – it’s possible.

Sure, put in a few hours studying here and there, but, despite what professors tell you, it’s not always necessary to devote two hours of work each day for their class.

Some of us hold part- or full-time jobs to support ourselves. We have boyfriends and girlfriends and friends and families. Classes and graduating certainly are a priority, but they’re not always No. 1.

If you’re overwhelmed, here are two options: buy or make a calendar and allot a significant portion of your day to studying, as suggested by Cynthia Powell.

Or, do as Tom Petty says. “Relax … You’ll never remember class time, but you’ll remember time you wasted hanging out with friends … The work never ends, but college does.”

These are the best years of our lives. Why waste them studying?

- Shannon Otto is the Managing Editor of The Red & Black.