You’ve done it. You’ve gone through a rigorous application process, been accepted to a business degree program and carefully hung your posters of Warren Buffet in your dorm room. The next several years will be crucial to your development so you’ll want to make the most of them. Here’s how.

Do Network

Network, network, network. You’ve heard it a million times, but it’s truer in business than anywhere else: it’s not what you know, it’s who you know. Business schools hold networking events with professors, students and local business people all the time. Take advantage of them. The people you meet might give you great advice; they might connect you to others who share your interests; they might give you a connection to your first job outside of school and they just might be the key to your business career trajectory.

This doesn’t have to mean handing out your card, making sales pitches and schmoozing everywhere you go. It does mean you should be open to meeting new people, expanding your connections and going to events you might not feel like attending,

Don’t Wait to Choose Your Major or Specialize

Be prepared for the moment you can declare a major or choose a concentration. Specializing in an area like finance, marketing, human resources or management is a great way to narrow your focus and find a niche in the industry. To prepare, there are a few things you can do:

• If you haven’t already, take personality tests like the Myers-Briggs or True Colors and try to match your traits with your educational (and career path)
• Talk to an advisor
• Ask people who know you well (friends, family, coworkers, bosses) where they think you would excel
• Look at your options and “feel” out the ones that excite you

Do Learn to Manage Your Time

Time management skills are crucial for all college students but they’re particularly important for students in business school, where professors will pile more work on you than a normal mortal can handle. They do this not because they’re sadists but because they know it’s what you’ll face when you enter the business world. Throwing you in the deep end in a safe environment like business school is a great way to test your mettle and force you to pace yourself, stop procrastinating, stick to a schedule and focus on the important stuff.

Don’t Close Your Mind to New Ideas

When you’re faced with a new environment and daunting levels of work, it can be easy to retreat to the familiar; to stick with your comfort zone. Resist that urge with all your might. Being good at business means keeping your mind malleable and open to unconventional ideas and business school is the perfect place to start. You’ll be exposed to myriad ideas from professors, fellow students and independent study. Don’t reject anything because it doesn’t fit with your preconceived notions.

Do Get Real-World Experience

You can study economic theory, sit in classrooms and lose yourself in textbooks for years and still be clueless when it comes to business. Getting real-world experience — either by working or doing an internship — is an invaluable way to use your time at business school. It will not only help you connect your classroom study to practical situations, but it might also give you your first job in business. In fact, a survey by the National Association of Colleges and Employers found that 56.1% of interns became full-time, entry-level employees at the company where they did their internship.

Using these time-honored tips can mean the difference between spinning your wheels (and wasting your money) in business school and using your time to catapult into a successful business career.