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Nice to meet you, class of 2030! We’re so excited for you to officially join the Notre Dame family. When you step on campus in August for Welcome Weekend, you will be immediately immersed in all things Irish. Residence hall welcome committees will pull you from one place to another for three incredible days, showing you all that our beautiful Home under the Dome has to offer. Then, of course, Welcome Weekend will end, and you will be standing somewhere on the sidewalk staring hopelessly at Google Maps as every ounce of the direction advice that you received over the past three days drips out of your ears and evaporates. Although I, too, am powerless to prevent this canonical collegiate event from occurring, I figured that the least I could do was to help you get just a bit more familiar with your new stomping grounds ahead of time. Our Lady’s University is a beautiful place filled with (mostly) beautiful landmarks, and we can’t wait for you to get the chance to experience them in person. And don’t worry, you can still use Google Maps in public. We’ve all been there.

1. Hesburgh Library

If you attended The Rally, took a campus tour or grew up with Notre Dame family, you probably see Hesburgh Library mostly as a photo opportunity where you and your family stretch your arms out to the heavens like Touchdown Jesus — sorry, like “The Word of Life” Mural — behind you and smile. Hesburgh Library is indeed an iconic symbol of Notre Dame, especially when College Game Day comes to town. However, your time as a Notre Dame student will quickly cause you to experience a very different side of the landmark; get ready to spend plenty of hours hunched over in the reading room or buried between thirteenth-floor book stacks. There’s no better place to cram for an exam with your friends, print out 300 different practice problems or cry on the phone with your mom before or after a final. The library also functions as a perfect campus compass. If you’re ever confused on where you are, just look for the massive, massive building overhead. It can guide you home.

2. The Basilica of the Sacred Heart

I recommend visiting the Basilica during your first week on campus. It’s one of the great churches of America, but it’s far too easy to just never really step inside of it. Mass is held in the residential halls and none of your classes are going to drag you in there, so you need to take the initiative to go to this one on your own. It’s a great place to find some peace and quiet. If you stay for Easter or the holidays, the service experience here is really something special.

3. Stepan Center

You’ve probably never heard of this one, but you will be there very soon. Stepan Center is the spiritual center of the Notre Dame undergraduate experience. This massive and hideous tinfoil igloo is both the University’s primary exam location and its primary dance venue. It’s also where we host smaller concerts or student performances, such as the Keenan Revue, and where any number of absolutely random events can be held. I once had an organic chemistry midterm, Special Olympics practice, and dorm formal there in the span of 48 hours. The building has a distinct scent and a distinct lack of functional water fountains. Still, it’s beautiful in its own way. I can’t imagine life without it.

4. North and South Dining Hall

You have to eat somewhere. There are two dining halls on campus: One is in Rudy and makes you feel like you’re at Hogwarts, and the other one resembles something between your high school cafeteria and an airport terminal. When you spawn onto campus, you will be inevitably assigned to one of these two dining halls based on the location of your dorm, classes, and friends, and you will be unable to ever go to the other one ever again. For those of you placed into South, enjoy the endless renovations. For those of you in North, enjoy the lines. Enjoy good meals and great memories with friends either way.

5. DeBartolo Hall

If you’re looking for your classroom on the first day of school, look no further. This is where many classes are — and when you’re a freshman and sophomore, this is pretty much where all your classes are. It’s just a building. It’s not particularly nice to look at or fun to be inside, but it gets the job done, and it can fit so many students inside of it that the rush of students leaving after a major scheduling block always ends up feeling like a stampede. If I needed to hide away somewhere on the Notre Dame campus, I would definitely choose here. There are so many rooms that they would never find me.

6. The Grotto and St. Mary’s Lake

The Lake is a gorgeous place to go for a run or just to reflect on your week (and your life). You can even fish in it. It’s also legendary for a reason. They say that if you walk around St. Mary’s Lake with someone else and hold hands, you and that person will get married. I don’t think that’s necessarily true, but if your DomerFest fling tries to get you to go on that walk … think twice before you take them up on it. Its adjacent Grotto is the most peaceful spot on campus. Inhabited by a transient and eclectic mix of students, locals and tourists drawn together in silent prayer on the bench, the Grotto is often where you come in your happiest and most difficult moments. It’s beautiful, and we’re lucky to have it.

7. The Golden Dome

This is what it’s all about, folks. The Golden Dome is attached to the Main Building over on God Quad, but you can see it from nearly everywhere. In my opinion, it never gets old. Have a bad day? Having a great day? Not sure of your path in life? It’s okay, because the Dome is watching over you regardless. Some of my favorite moments at Notre Dame just consist of me looking up at that shining statue of Mary and reflecting on how utterly grateful I am to be here. The Dome reminds you that no matter what challenges you might be facing along your college journey, you’ve already won.

8. Notre Dame Stadium

You know about this one already. It’s waiting for you this season — go Irish!

When you’re at Notre Dame, your campus is your universe. There are countless stories contained within every step of the often waterlogged sidewalks. Every version of your adult self will emerge within these 1,250 acres. By the time you make it to your senior year, this will be your home in every sense of the word. Every part of it, from the cramped classrooms of faraway buildings to the Dome up above, will belong to you forever. You won’t need any sort of map or guide; even if you do end up a bit directionless on the walk back to your dormitory sometimes, your heart will always lead you back to the Bend.

Welcome home.