Hi there. Thanks so much for visiting my blog and Welcome if this is your first visit. I have been busy writing articles and working on deliverables. As we are in the midst of high school students graduating from school and matriculating to college, here were some thoughts on how to survive college for new and returning students.
– School is Work: Treat it with the seriousness and respect it deserves. Be on time. Be prepared. Do your readings and homework BEFORE class. Prepare questions and discussion topics either for the class or for office hours with the professor.
– Schedule your time: Develop a schedule for everything – class time, studying/study groups/projects, work/internships, eating, working out/sports, socializing, trips, time with significant other/family/friends/etc. Understand that the schedule will need to be adjusted constantly, but the important goal is to STAY IN CONTROL and KEEP TRACK OF YOUR TIME.
– The less free time you have, the better. Get a job or internship, volunteer, get involved in clubs at school, take up intramural sports, whatever. Fill your time up with productive and beneficial activities that will help you stay focused.
– If you control your schedule, try to take the harder courses in the Fall semester. It’s a shorter semester, you’re fresher and focused heading into the fall and you can move easier courses to the Spring (which is longer, and rife with distraction once the beautiful spring weather hits late in the semester).
– ALWAYS REQUEST A SAMPLE SYLLABUS FROM YOUR PROFESSORS AT THE BEGINNING OF THE SEMESTER. Be real with yourself… Can you read 100-200 pages a week, write 2-3 5-page papers, do 3 problem sets, and attend a lab a week over 14 weeks (Fall semester) and expect to get good grades? If not, you need to be real, drop a class, and get something that you can handle. I am not suggesting that you take cake classes. I am merely suggesting that you design your course load in a way that gives you a decent chance of doing well.
– Required Resources: Get very acquainted with your libraries and make sure that you have (1) Elements of Style by E.B.White and William Strunk, Jr. and (2) The Bedford Guide for College Writers. You will have to write a lot of papers during your years in college. You better learn how to properly write papers, cite sources, and conduct research. And no, I don’t mean using GOOGLE…
– Plan your partying accordingly. I was never a big Thursday night party person, but I used to hit the Sound Factory Bar in NYC on Wednesday nights. Therefore, I made sure that I had no classes on Thursday morning. I’m just saying, partying and having fun is a good way to maintain balance during a hectic semester, but you need to keep your eyes on the prize. I had a “pay to play” policy where I would allow myself out to have fun only if I did a certain level of work. If I didn’t, it was “Sorry, Charlie”. That discipline helped me tremendously through college.
– Manage Your friends: I let many of my friends that did not go to college know that I had to hang out with them after the semester was over. It wasn’t their fault, but they were distractions and they could not understand what it is that I was going through, so I had to keep them at a distance. Real friends understood and were supportive; fake ones revealed their true selves as haters and it was a great lesson learned on my journey.
– Less is more: Studies say that the human brain can only obtain, process, and retain information effectively in 15-minute increments. Therefore, there are doubts regarding the effectiveness of all-day study sessions, etc. I believe that it is better to study for 1 hour a day over 5 days than to try to study for five hours one day. Also, it is better to switch topics as you study to keep your mind fresh and effective. And relax on the caffeine. Exercise awakens the brain more effectively than coffee or some energy drink.
– Consistency is key: Like a wellness/fitness program, the effectiveness of your studying can be greatly enhanced by being consistent with respect to the time, place and people that you study with. Also, be careful with study groups. They should be small, and comprise only of individuals serious about doing well in your courses. Participate in such groups if and only if they are beneficial to you.
– Focus on Liberal Arts: So many young adults nowadays can’t write, have suspect math and logic skills, don’t understand politics, economics, statistics, and science, and are not familiar with classic art, music, and literary treasures. Specialization in education is essentially developing adults who cannot function as dynamic, multi-faceted members of society. I would encourage young minds to embrace the liberal arts and strive to have a strong foundation to build upon.
– Not sure what it is that you want to do? Consider Community College. Seriously, these schools are too expensive to be walking around without a clue of what you would like to do. If you’re unsure, defer admission to a school, get a job, register for a few community college classes, and take your time figuring it out.
Best of Luck! Stay safe and stay focused. See you next time.