This university is stocked with brilliant people: Nobel laureates and Pulitzer Prize winners, mathematicians-to-be and future rocket scientists. And still no one can figure out how to avoid getting parking tickets. Here’s a quick guide to help if you’ve got a friend coming to town, or you’ve just got a car for the weekend and need to know where to hide it.

NORTH CAMPUS

Don’t even think about parking in the lots around the dorms; they’re restricted to permit-holders around the clock. The only exception in your neck of the woods is lot 2g, located behind the Eppley Recreation Center. You can park here without a permit all weekend, plus weeknights between 4 p.m. and 7 a.m.

Lot Q is also open after 4 p.m. — it’s situated between Stadium and Farm drives, across the street from the Cambridge Community. Careful, though — the row of spots closest to the Computer and Space Sciences Building has different rules.

Lot 1 is your next-closest option — it’s free after 4 p.m. weekdays and all weekend; ditto Lots Z and JJ3, which are sections of Lot 1 reserved for faculty and staff during the day.

There are several spots that are technically Lot 1b in front of the Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center.

If you’re in the Cambridge Community, Lot 9 might be a better option than Lot 1, depending on whether there is something going on in the Comcast Center. Under regular circumstances, the parking lots in front of the arena (9b, 9c, 11b, 11c, FF, PP, PP2) are free after 4 p.m. The same goes for lot 4b, the area behind the Comcast Center next to the softball complex.

You can also park in the metered spots behind The Diner and next to La Plata Beach (and anywhere else) — they’re free between 10 p.m. and 7 a.m.

SOUTH CAMPUS

Don’t park in the Mowatt Lane Garage — you need a permit or have to pay for metered parking on the top two levels. Lot U5, in front of Van Munching Hall, is your best bet. It’s free after 4 p.m. and on weekends, but be careful about parking in Lot U6, which is across the street in front of Commons 5. You can’t park there until after 8 p.m., and permits are also required there on the weekend.

There is a very small lot directly behind Van Munching Hall, off of Mowatt Lane. It’s Lot O5, and it’s open after 4 p.m. and all weekend.

OFF-CAMPUS

If you live near Fraternity Row, you might not have to deal with city parking: Lot K, which stretches around behind the row, is open after 4 p.m. and on weekends. Be careful not to park in sections cordoned off as Lot 16 — it’s mixed in near the Leonardtown Community and is restricted 24 hours a day.

Lot 11h is also free after 4 p.m. It’s off of Yale Avenue, behind the police substation.

OTHER PLACES TO PARK

There are several lots that are out of the way for most people but still available on weekends. Lot XX, which wraps around the A.V. Williams Building, is accessible by making your first right after entering the campus. Lots L and C2 are also available after 4 p.m.; they wrap around the Armory and you can get to them off of Regents Drive.

Lot C1 is next to the Visitors Center, which you can get to directly off of Route 1.