5 ?'s about college life

Student Lounge College Life
1

<ol>
<li>What is the course load like compared to high school?</li>
<li>How has your social life changed? Do you still communicate with your high school friends?</li>
<li>How do professors teach?</li>
<li>How do you budget your time between classes, studying, and work (if you have a job)?</li>
</ol>

<h2>5. Do you prefer your college life or high school life?</h2>

<p>And if you have more time to spare, please tell me your 5 favorite things about college and 5 things you wish you knew before attending college.</p>

2

<ol>
<li>Roughly the same, possibly a bit more in college.</li>
<li>I still talk with a few close high school friends every once in a while, but I’m mostly hanging with a few good college friends.</li>
<li>Depends on the teacher - not very helpful, I’m aware, but some are great, some are boring, some prefer powerpoints, some don’t, etc.</li>
<li>I’ll set aside either Saturday or Sunday to do all the homework due the next week.</li>
<li>I like the additional independence which accompanies college life.</li>
</ol>

3

<p>I asked my BFF these questions, and she responded well - thought I’d share! She attends GWU.</p>

<ol>
<li><p>It depends on your high school and college. My friend took a crazy courseload in senior year high school (6 difficult AP classes + a sport + journalism) and she attended our well-respected state college. College was actually easier for her. For me, I took an average courseload in high school but was in all AP core classes. The work isn’t much harder, but you have to do more yourself! Also, a lot more WRITING! This holds true for most majors in college, except maybe engineering. I have so many 5-10 page essays per semester in college, but in high school I only had 1 per semester and I thought that was a lot.</p></li>
<li><p>I only talk to 3 or 4 of my high school friends; all attend college in DC as well, though I am not friends with all my high school companions who came to DC. I came home Christmas break in freshman year and I hung out with some old high school friends and it was weird. We didn’t really relate anymore. I guess it might be different if you’re really good friends. I stick to my small group and beyond facebook, I don’t communicate with the majority of my high school companions.</p></li>
<li><p>Varies. They don’t baby you as much. They expect you to be a lot more independent and expect you to take the initiative in learning (like attending office hours, reading textbooks, etc).</p></li>
<li><p>You waste a lot less time in class in college versus high school. But you have to study more and you have more hw. As long as you don’t take the extra free time for granted, and you use it wisely between studies and social life, you will be OK. I don’t have a job. I don’t recommend one your freshman year.</p></li>
<li><p>College life. I am independent by nature and my parents were strict at home. Going away for college was great.</p></li>
</ol>

4

<p>1) Depending on your major, the course load can be easier, the same as, or harder than high school. I’m an Animal Science major, so I have to take a ton of science courses, which makes it harder than high school. I love science, but I’m not good at the mathematical part behind some of the sciences and understanding how it all fits together (and some professors want you to know everything down to the last detail) so I have to work extra hard. </p>

<p>2) I only talk to one high school friend now, and that’s rarely. She and I have gone our separate ways. I’ve cut off my friendship with another high school “friend” when I found out she was talking **** about me behind my back, and I wasn’t close to my other friends.</p>

<p>3) Like your high school teachers, professors have different ways of teaching. Some are boring, some love to make the class interactive, some prefer to only use the board, some prefer to use Powerpoint, some make it known that they don’t want to be interrupted while lecturing and to save all questions for before/after class or during office hours, some welcome questions during lecture, etc. </p>

<p>4) I don’t work, but I tend to make Tuesdays and Thursdays my study days since those are my least busiest days, and the weekends for doing homework or study for harder classes. </p>

<p>5) definitely college life. I have more freedom. Back home, I couldn’t even take a nightly stroll around my neighborhood, despite the fact that my hometown is one of the safest cities in my state, without my mom getting overprotective.</p>

5

<ol>
<li><p>The classes are more difficult, but there’s not busy work or everyday assignments/homework due. If you feel like leaving it to the last second to learn everything before the exam, you can go right ahead and do that. Not recommended, though.</p></li>
<li><p>Generally, I’ve had less drama than high school. I still talk to a few high school friends, but not on a daily basis. </p></li>
<li><p>Usually, they don’t. Professors aren’t teachers and they aren’t there to hold your hand. They present you with information and expect you to learn it. Every once in a while, you will find a gem of a professor who presents information in a way that’s very well suited to your learning style. Take as many classes from that prof as you can.</p></li>
<li><p>I usually work on homework throughout the week so I don’t get stuck with everything on the weekends, so I can relax more. Someone once told me to think of college as your full-time job - from 8 am to 5 pm, you are a student and you should be using your time to focus on your studies.</p></li>
<li><p>Oh god. College x 10000</p></li>
</ol>

<p>Favorite things about college:
freedom, getting to study what I want (after gen eds are out of the way) and getting to do research.</p>

<p>Wish I knew:
get as many A’s in your freshman year as you possibly can. It only gets more difficult and you don’t want to fight an uphill battle getting your GPA up during jr/sr year.</p>

6

<ol>
<li><p>More, but it’s manageable. You take less classes, but they’re more intense- it balances out, in my experience.</p></li>
<li><p>I still talk to my high school friends, but I don’t see them on a daily basis. Class is more focused on getting an education, not passing notes and being best friends with the person who sits next to you.</p></li>
<li><p>Mostly just a lecture. You follow along and take notes. In some classes, the notes are on Blackboard. We download them before class and just add side notes, etc. in the margins. </p></li>
<li><p>I separated out the day into half hour chunks, then put in my class information. After that, I put an hour or two a day in for studying- no set class (i.e., Mondays & Wednesdays are math, Tuesdays are Bio, etc), but whatever I feel like I need to do that day. Wouldn’t work for everyone, but does just fine for me. </p></li>
</ol>

<h2>5. College, hands down. The teachers are way more professional and not at all catty like they were in high school. The students actually want to be there because it’s not mandatory and it just makes the experience wayyy better.</h2>

<p>I wish I had known more about scheduling, what it takes to graduate in four years. I was stupid about it and now I’ll have to take on extra debt to do the five year plan. Don’t just take the minimum unless you can test out of a bunch of classes. I hate the thought that I’m not going to be able to graduate with my class.</p>

7

<ol>
<li>Depends on your high school.</li>
<li>I don’t communicate a lot with my high school friends but we hang out over long breaks. I’m pretty happy with my social life here as compared to other schools and such. </li>
<li>All in different ways, but generally much better than high school teachers. They’re not paid to babysit you, so a lot of the stupid stuff you have to deal with in grade school is eliminated.</li>
<li>Just get up and do what you can, when you can. Keep a mental day calendar, write important things down, and try not to overwhelm yourself on a regular basis.</li>
<li>College life, definitely.</li>
</ol>

<p>5 faves: my major program, not living with my parents, friends/profs in my major program, my school in general, and the good parts of the city.</p>

<p>What I wish I knew: take the housing contract seriously because it comes in handy if your roommate is terribly inconsiderate, find an alarm clock system that works really really well, buy more drawers, hangers, etc. than you think you’ll need because everything will end up on the floor, get academic help early if you find yourself struggling grades-wise (there are plenty of resources on campus), and ration your meal plan money wisely. There are many other things, but those are the first 5 I thought of.</p>

8

<ol>
<li><p>What is the course load like compared to high school?
I find that I have way less busy-work / make-work compared to high school. Some introductory classes have weekly homework and whatnot but in the upper levels (at least at my uni’s business school) the worst is just a weekly short paper. Instead it’s a big focus on group projects and exams.</p></li>
<li><p>How has your social life changed? Do you still communicate with your high school friends?
I don’t communicate with my high school friends as much as I used to. When I graduated high school I was in touch with them a lot and we hung out a lot (some of my friends were still in HS, others were studying in the area), but as time has passed those relationships have faded a bit. That’s just the reality of growing up I guess. If a bunch of people from your HS go to your college then it’s a bit different but that wasn’t the case for me.</p></li>
<li><p>How do professors teach?
Lecture style. Usually with slides. </p></li>
<li><p>How do you budget your time between classes, studying, and work (if you have a job)?
I don’t really budget it, I just do it… I don’t work though. I go to class, get home, chill, get work done. </p></li>
<li><p>Do you prefer your college life or high school life?
College, by far. I don’t feel any of the social pressures that I felt going to a 400 person private prep school. There’s no cliquishness because there are 27,000 undergrads. My life ain’t perfect, far from it, but I would never go back to high school even if you paid me a trillion dollars. **** that hell hole lol!</p></li>
</ol>

9

<p>Currently a junior majoring in math at Caltech.</p>

<p>

</p>

<p>People at Caltech take about five classes a term. Most classes have one problem set due a week. Most problem sets are 4-6 problems long. Each problem can take anywhere from 30 minutes to 6 hours. Each lecture covers a new concept.</p>

<p>I personally work a lot less hard in college than I did in high school, but that’s because I did a lot of unassigned problems in high school. Now I don’t do that anymore, and I pay the price in shallower understanding.</p>

<p>

</p>

<p>I have much more of a social life now, and never had high school friends.</p>

<p>

</p>

<p>That depends on the department. In math (my major), professors traditionally write theorems on the board and then prove them. They will spend all of the class time doing this, occasionally injecting an example or a definition. In biology, there tends to be a lot of PowerPoint presentations. In physics, it can go either way, but most of the physics professors I’ve had prefer chalk talks with lots of derivations.</p>

<p>

</p>

<p>I go to almost every class. Even if the class is useless, it structures my day and prevents me from goofing off all the time. Also, it lets me know what I need to cover.</p>

<p>For studying, I like to schedule different problem sets for different days, and if I don’t feel like doing one I can switch the problem sets around. I also like to spread them out over two days and look at multiple sets on one day (so one day my to-do list will say “start Math 108, start CS 156” and the next day “finish Math 108, finish CS 156”). I like to get my work done in the morning because that’s when I feel most motivated. Past 9 pm I’m completely useless.</p>

<p>You also have to budget time for socializing, or else your social life is going to suck. Either that or you’ll feel guilty whenever you go out because you should be working.</p>

<p>

</p>

<p>College by far. High school was hell.</p>

<p>Edit: forgot about this part:

</p>

<p>These aren’t actually my five favorite things, just the first things I thought of, but here goes.
Favorite things:

  1. I am more mature now and handle things better
  2. My classes start at 11. 9 am classes are considered early
  3. I can go out to eat whenever I want
  4. Homework is interesting
  5. You have to earn good grades, they don’t just fall into your lap</p>

<p>Things I wish I knew:

  1. A lot of things aren’t a big deal.
  2. Sleep is a big deal.
  3. Always find a couple people in your class you can work with on homework. Even if you work better alone, you still need people to check answers with. You don’t need to find someone smart if you’re just checking answers, but you do want to find people who start their work early.
  4. Don’t cling to one person because he might dump you.
  5. Study in places without Internet.</p>
10

<ol>
<li>What is the course load like compared to high school?</li>
<li><p>College was WAY WAY WAY WAY more work. But I put barely any effort into high school and went to a very difficult college.</p></li>
<li><p>How has your social life changed? Do you still communicate with your high school friends?</p></li>
<li><p>I didn’t, we grew apart and stopped getting along. I was a lot more confident socializing in college, but did have fewer friends… I was very busy and was in a very serious relationship. I was happy that way.</p></li>
<li><p>How do professors teach?</p></li>
<li><p>Mostly lecture.</p></li>
<li><p>How do you budget your time between classes, studying, and work (if you have a job)?</p></li>
<li><p>I skipped unnecessary classes to study independently a lot. I worked a lot my first two years, not at all the second two… but I was very involved in ECs the second two. My schedule was packed and I slept rarely, in hindsight I wish I had slowed down. I could have enjoyed myself a lot more.</p></li>
<li><p>Do you prefer your college life or high school life?</p></li>
<li><p>My lifestyle in high school was a lot more pleasant, but it was a lot easier to be the more mature, more confident person I was in college. That tips the scales more toward my college life.</p></li>
</ol>

<hr>

<p>Favorite Things

  1. Fun events on campus… special lectures, movie screenings, club meetings, etc
  2. Late night study sessions with my roommate… we didn’t even like each other and we still had a blast.
  3. The prevalence of awesome food… living in a slightly more urban environment than I usually do was great for that sort of thing.
  4. Being around intellectually stimulating people all the time.
  5. Interesting classes… I’ll never forget some of my senior seminars.</p>

<p>5 Things I Wish I Knew

  1. There was absolutely no justifiable reason to spend as much money as I did on tuition. I should have found a way to avoid that.
  2. In the same vein, I should have gone someplace where I could have afforded to take more semesters. Graduating in 4 years meant taking 4-6 credit hours more each semester than was reasonable or realistic for me. It sucked.
  3. There are still mean kids in college. But the nice kids are even nicer, and it balances out.
  4. You will want a lot of spending money. Get a job. It’ll be fun.
  5. Most likely nothing in your later college years or post-college years are going to work out the way you think they will. Just do your best and enjoy the ride.</p>
11

<ol>
<li><p>I have found that the courseload is substantially more difficult in college. Well maybe not more difficult in the traditional sense of the term, but a lot more involved…I wouldn’t call college hard, but I would say that college work is substantially more time-consuming. Very little busy-work though, so college assignments tend to be a lot more meaningful at least in my experience. </p></li>
<li><p>I’ve become way more social in college, and spend a lot more time being social in general at college, going to parties, dinners with friends, random trips and adventures etc. (whereas in high school I did a lot more stuff on my own, didn’t have many friends etc.). I still keep in touch with my best friend from home, and I’ll talk to 3-4 other friends from high school when I visit home (twice a year) but generally I am too busy to really think about my high school friends. I also wasn’t that close to my high school friends in comparison to my college friends (with the exception of my best friend). </p></li>
<li><p>My professors’ teaching styles really are quite varied. Some professors tend to lecture through most of the course, with just a tiny bit of room for questions and comments. Other professors lead a mainly discussion-based course (especially in the liberal arts disciplines). Other professors lecture half of the way and then show you how to do problem sets the other half of the time (generally for more technical subjects). Being in college you learn which professor has the teaching style you like best, and then you have the option to take more of their classes (and choose avoid professors who have teaching styles that you don’t prefer).</p></li>
<li><p>Being in the last semester of my college experience, I am truly a master procrastinator :stuck_out_tongue: I probably spend less time on schoolwork/class than the majority of students. I spend a lot more of my time working (I have 3 part-time jobs) than in class (I am only taking 3 classes/12 credits this semester). I also spend plenty of time going to sporting events, partying, eating, watching tv etc. I don’t know, I guess I’m used to being busy so I am able to allocate my time in an efficient manner. I work best under pressure, and I don’t sleep much. I’m relatively smart, am able to discipline myself to do independent study and generally pick up things quickly - skimming readings and bs-ing papers is a huge part of my life. I don’t sacrifice my happiness for a .5 of a letter grade, but maintain enough focus to get the grades I need to get places in life. And I prioritize work above all else, because I am a broke college student with too much credit card debt and lots of expenses to pay (and like to eat and drink a bit too much). </p></li>
<li><p>COLLLEGEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE x a million. I didn’t really mind high school when I was in it, but there is just so much more to do in college, the freedom/independence, social aspects etc. that are so much better. </p></li>
</ol>

<p>Favorite things about college:

  1. My friends. The roommate I was placed with (blind) is my best friend in college. We have a great social group that does almost everything together - they are super dependable, lots of fun but also hardworking. We can spend hours talking about politics and current events or “nerdy things” but also the more mundane things in life - shopping, sports, boys and partying. </p>

<ol>
<li><p>The sporting events/school spirit. We did not have anything of the sort in high school. As a huge sports fan this was very important to me. Having pride for your school and screaming your lungs out in cheering for your team at basketball and football (and the associated festivities/tailgating) is probably at the top of my favorite college memories. </p></li>
<li><p>My teachers/academic program. I LOVE my major, I love my professors that I was able to establish relationships with. They push me and constantly challenge me, and I feel like I am constantly learning both in and out of class. </p></li>
<li><p>Being able to find the work-social life balance. I really like how I can work 3 part-time jobs (some administrative, others research based), be enrolled full time, and still hang out with my friends. I feel very fulfilled being able to do all 3 in college.</p></li>
<li><p>Being around my peers (kids of my age-group in general). Whether in dorm life, classes etc. all the students around me tend to be inquisitive, willing to learn, challenge their beliefs, and all desire a future. It is quite refreshing to be around. </p></li>
</ol>

<p>Things you wish you knew before attending college (in no particular order):

  1. How to drink/party without making a complete fool of yourself
  2. Sleep is overrated
  3. How awesome college sporting events are (even if you aren’t into sports, at least attend a sporting event or two, especially if you are at a Div. I school…you might be surprised how much you enjoy it)
  4. It is not hard to get a job in college and balance it with your schoolwork. Students who choose not to get a job in college tend to have crappy job prospects (and are pretty darn lazy)
  5. Being poor really stinks but if you learn to manage your money well and take advantage of free things, you can really make what you have go a long ways</p>
12

<p>1. What is the course load like compared to high school?
I’ve liked most of my classes. The difficulty depends on your professor. Some were exactly like my high school classes or easier; others were quite challenging. Overall, it’s about on level.</p>

<p>2. How has your social life changed? Do you still communicate with your high school friends?
I do keep in touch with a few high school friends, but my college social life is more interesting. It’s more of a proximity thing – we’re all on campus, so it’s easy to get together. We’re also constantly together (in class, then in a club, then at a party, then in the dorms, etc), which lets us bond better.</p>

<p>3. How do professors teach?
Some are brilliant. They’ll help you until you understand something, and most will love you if you take an interest in their class (professors usually don’t get many visitors in office hours unless it’s the day of a big test). Others spend a lot of time talking about how brilliant they themselves are. Ask those professors about things other than themselves, and you’ll start getting what you’re looking for.</p>

<p>4. How do you budget your time between classes, studying, and work (if you have a job)?
Employers are usually pretty flexible, especially if you work on campus. They know you’re students and education comes first. As for managing my time between classes and studying, I break my day into chunks: one for classes, one for studying, one for fun. I keep those as separate as possible. I schedule in specific events (i.e., “work on discrete math p-set from 9 - 11 on Thursday morning”) and keep a notebook in my backpack to record anything I catch on the fly in class or elsewhere (i.e., “Ben’s party tomorrow at ten,” or “Fitzgerald essay due next week”). I also make sleep a priority – I try to go to bed at the same time every night and wake up at the same time. </p>

<p>I start p-sets and projects early. I never do my reading before class, either. If I don’t understand a concept when it’s presented in class, I go back over it after class in the textbook. I try to teach myself the material covered in class the same week it’s covered; review for big exams becomes a lot easier as a result later on.</p>

<p>5. Do you prefer your college life or high school life?
College, without a doubt. High school is lots of fun, but college is infinitely better. That said, high school is infinitely more fun than community college.</p>

<p>5 favorite things:

  1. Being around a people of similar age and of similar intellectual ability. It’s an absolute blast to talk to your peers and learn from them.</p>

<p>2) The events that come to campus – speakers, lectures, etc. Best of all, it’s free!</p>

<p>3) Learning from great professors. It’s always fun to see someone on TV and then say, “Oh, he taught my class last semester.”</p>

<p>4) Student organizations and being involved on campus. I love knowing what’s happening and I love the people I’ve met through my student orgs. The most involved students are usually the most interesting ones.</p>

<p>5) This is the only time in your life that you can party one - four times a week and not have it be a huge detriment on your life. Live it up.</p>

<p>5 things I wish I knew before college:

  1. Fit matters. Go to the college you like the best, even if it’s slightly lower ranked. In the end, you’re paying for your own happiness, and throwing so much money for an arbitrary number is silly if you’re miserable.</p>

<p>2) Take an AP class in each of the ‘core’ classes in HS (math, science, English, foreign language, history). This will usually get you out of gen eds pre-reqs, avoid some notoriously bad professors, and start taking challenging/interesting upper level courses early on.</p>

<p>3) Get your classes (and work) out of the way early. I like to take classes early in the morning and then spend the afternoon in the library. After that, I have the rest of my time free to do whatever I want.</p>

<p>4) On campus jobs are usually better than off-campus jobs, both in terms of pay and assignments; I was pretty surprised that so few people were aware of this. Always better to be a paid research assistant two feet from your dorm than pay $20/day in public transport costs to get to some unpaid internship where you answer phones.</p>

<p>5) Studying isn’t dependent solely on knowing the material – it’s all about a class/professor combo. Knowing how to present the material in the manner your professor wants is just as important to getting a good grade, if not more so.</p>

13

<ol>
<li><p>Way, way more, but I think that’s more a reflection of my high school than anything else. My current workload isn’t overly taxing though, it’s just the right amount in my opinion. </p></li>
<li><p>My social life is 1000x better. I now have a really tight, solid group of friends (more like a family really), and we all more or less live together. I also know way more people than I did in high school and I always have lots of people to hang out with. It’s absolutely wonderful. I don’t really talk to anyone I went to high school with, though. I only keep in touch with a few close friends I had before that. I’ve kind of gotten into the electronic music scene as well, and there’s a huge sense of community there that I’ve never felt before. It’s wonderful.</p></li>
<li><p>Professors teach in a range of ways. I’ve had good ones and bad ones. It’s different than high school because they know more about what they’re talking about (usually) but it’s fine. Professors are way more likely to spark my interest about something compared to a high school teacher. A few are really self-absorbed though, which is annoying. I kind of tend to learn on my own though so what they do doesn’t matter all that much to me.</p></li>
<li><p>Currently I have four days of class per week and one day of work. I like it because it’s separate, but I lucked out with having no classes on Fridays. I don’t find it hard to juggle class and work, but I only work about 10 hours a week on average, so that’s not a lot. Some days I have classes in a row, and some I have long breaks where I can take a nap or whatever. I don’t study a lot if I don’t have an upcoming test (bad habit, I know) but I buckle down when I have something due and I’ll study the entire day and night beforehand. I often learn things better on my own so I’m usually comfortable skipping a class in order to teach myself the material instead, especially if the professor isn’t very good.</p></li>
<li><p>College by FAR. High school wasn’t very good for me. I really feel like I’ve been able to spread my wings and live my own life, rather than just chilling in the background. I’ve never been so happy.</p></li>
</ol>

<p>My favorite things about college: Freedom, flexible schedules, living with your friends, learning interesting things, and my college town.</p>

<p>Five things I wish I knew: You will actually have to study (even if you didn’t in high school), the freshman 15 is REAL, you will meet people you thought only existed in movies, people have extremely different views than you do, and it is not a good idea to sign a lease right away with people you barely know. Wait a few months!!!</p>

14

<ol>
<li>What is the course load like compared to high school?</li>
</ol>

<p>Less in number, greater in intensity.
In high school, I took 7 classes. First semester, I took 4, this semester I’m taking 6.
For the most part, homework is limited. If you have it at all for a class, it probably will count very little. For 5 of my 6 classes I’m in right now, it’s 100% based off of tests and quizzes. Homework is 5% in my other class. </p>

<p>I have to study intensely for every test. The intensity varies for each class (more time for calculus, less for history), but is overall a lot higher than the amount of time needed to devote to studying in high school. In high school, (or at least at mine), you’d see an insane problem in the honors textbook and your teacher would tell you not to worry about it. In college, your easiest test questions will cover the hardest questions from the book, and most will go beyond that. All in my experience, of course.</p>

<ol>
<li>How has your social life changed? Do you still communicate with your high school friends?</li>
</ol>

<p>I realized that I only cared about staying in contact with ~5 friends from high school. You realize who you miss and who you don’t. I see one friend on a regular basis, call 3 of the others regularly, and the other one visits whenever she and I have a free weekend.
Making college friends is very important, but don’t worry, cause everyone is in the same boat.</p>

<ol>
<li>How do professors teach?</li>
</ol>

<p>Depends. My physics professor taught through powerpoint, which proved to be very ineffective on our class average. My calculus professor taught notes through examples and provided ample practice opportunities at every corner, which proved to be very effective on our class average. The most “liberal arts” classes are straight lecture based, with me taking notes on what I perceive to be important to the teacher.</p>

<ol>
<li>How do you budget your time between classes, studying, and work (if you have a job)?</li>
</ol>

<p>School comes first for me. Friends second, and sleep third. I will start working next semester, and my hours are all at night, so scheduling around classes isn’t an issue. My job (if I get accepted) will be tutoring-based, so it will also strengthen my knowledge for classes I’m currently enrolled in. I start studying for any given test about 4-5 days ahead of time, depending on the class. Night-before cramming is possible, but makes life miserable, and you don’t actually learn anything.</p>

<ol>
<li>Do you prefer your college life or high school life?
Although college is infinitely more stressful, it’s a good kind of stress. I LOVE the independence. Love, love, love, love it. I can go places with friends at 2AM, and schedule my day strictly around my needs. I’ve heard college is the only time in your life where you get to be selfish, and I’m taking advantage of it. Don’t blow off your grades, though, whatever you do. Have fun and cut loose, but don’t forget the reason you’re there.</li>
</ol>

<p>Five things I wish I knew: 1) Studying is inevitable. Embrace it and find a way to enjoy it. Do what works best for you. 2) Pick a major that’s practical, but that you’re HAPPY with. I was very unhappy with my major first semester. Love my major this semester, and it’s had a huge effect on my level of happiness. 3) Freshman fifteen exists. Especially if you live on campus, where options can be limited. 4) Find an outlet. Bible study (if that applies), intramurals, music, whatever it is that can get your mind off school and allow you to chillax. 5) You don’t have to have it all figured out. You’ll soon learn that no one really knows what they are doing, and everyone has doubts about life after college.</p>

15

<p>Hey Mods - You should Sticky this thread. Lots of good stuff here, and well worth the price of admission!</p>

<p>Oh - and thanks to everybody that contributed so far. Now, if I can just get my kids to read the link…</p>

16

<ol>
<li><p>As a computer engineering major, my course load is exponentially greater than the one I had in high school. In high school I had so little work that I usually just did it in other classes, didn’t do it at all if it was optional, or took a max of an hour a night to do it at home. On the weekends I had a max of 2 hours worth, so I would do half on saturday and half on sunday. I graduated with a 3.95 GPA and took a bunch of honors classes. In college, I easily spend 8+ hours a day doing schoolwork during the weekday. On the weekends, usually somewhere between 4-8 hours a day are spend on homework.</p></li>
<li><p>It has changed: for the worse. I talk to very few people at school and the few I do talk to are new friends that really only had a few things in common with me. My friends from high school are still my closest friends (and really the only ones I like hanging out with), so I talk to them all the time over text and on skype. </p></li>
<li><p>So far in my experience, they give the bare minimum of explanation in class and then expect you to go home and figure out the rest on your own. Most of my college experience so far has mostly felt like independent study.</p></li>
<li><p>I do homework whenever I can. I take 16 credit hours a term on average. I usually sleep at 1 am and get up at 7:45 am. I don’t work, and I couldn’t really imagine doing it during school. I would literally have zero free time.</p></li>
<li><p>High school life times 1000. High school life was casual, easy going, with a lot of free time. The exact type of person I am. College so far has been stressful, schedule oriented, with little free time. Also, high school women to me are much more attractive and more my personality type than college girls.</p></li>
</ol>

17

<ol>
<li><p>What is the course load like compared to high school?
More work that needs to be done, particularly outside of class, but it is generally more enjoyable. Granted my high school was lame and not challenging (next to no AP classes offered and I didn’t take any of them). There is rarely, if any, busy work which is really nice. </p></li>
<li><p>How has your social life changed? Do you still communicate with your high school friends?
I’m more social. I like the social life so much better. If you don’t want to deal with someone it is really easy to not deal with them (small high school, so I never had the chance). I’ve got two or three people I occasional talk with on facebook but basically I cut contact with everyone from high school.</p></li>
<li><p>How do professors teach?
REALLY wide range. I’m in zoology so lots of lectures with powerpoints. I’ve had classes that were more discussion based and they are more enjoyable. Lectures aren’t bad though. I’ve had about half of my profs that require reading (often a good deal) and the other half base their tests on just lectures (which is great, personally). Some profs give lots of homework to help with grades, some give weekly quizzes, and some are just four tests or papers.</p></li>
<li><p>How do you budget your time between classes, studying, and work (if you have a job)?
I’ve been here for a few years so I just kind of have a plan. I like to schedule my work in between my classes and just have a solid block of classes and work. Once I get back from class/work I take an hour break or so and relax or make dinner. </p></li>
</ol>

<p>Then I just start on homework. I generally use a 30/30 or 45/15 study thing where I study for 30 or 45 minutes and then take a break. Since I do a good deal of reading this works good. If I have lab reports or whatever I try to write 1/2 page or whatever and then take a short break. I start my stuff early (like a week or two early) so I have a lot more time to pull this off.</p>

<ol>
<li>Do you prefer your college life or high school life?
College. Some many times college.</li>
</ol>

18

<p>

</p>

<ol>
<li><p>It varies. I found introductory classes to be maybe slightly easier than high school. But as I went deeper into my major, I found that classes started to take up more time, because the material was denser and my classmates were … well, smarter. (Generally, people who stick to their majors are good at it and really like it) </p></li>
<li><p>I hated high school. </p></li>
</ol>

<p>3.It varies. My intro classes had very little student-professor interaction (not the professor’s fault … it’s hard to get to know everyone in a lecture size of 300-400). I generally get to know professor a bit better now. It helps if you do research with a professor. It also depends on the professor’s attitude towards teaching. Some do it because they’re experts in the field and really want you to learn and enjoy their area of expertise. Others just do it because they’re required to. You can generally tell. But I’ve never had a case where a professor when out of his or her way to screw a student in particular. Professors are very busy people, so they are much more professional (as another CCer said) compared to high school teachers. And no, they will never babysit you. </p>

<ol>
<li><p>You make your schedule as busy as possible. Otherwise, time is bound to go to waste (e.g. Facebook). Today is an exception, but I’m generally working with a lot of focus (my last Facebook post was on New Years Eve at home) </p></li>
<li><p>College life. You’re doing what you love. Not because it’s required.</p></li>
</ol>

<p>College (+): </p>

<ul>
<li>No one is telling you what to do, how to do it, where to go, etc. This is freedom in its purest form.</li>
</ul>

<p>College (-)/should knows:</p>

<ul>
<li>It’s hard to know what to expect. College is really good at the element of surprise.</li>
<li>Be nice to your room mate.</li>
<li>College is one heck of a balancing act. There’s many relationships to manage: room mate/hall-dorm mate relationships, RA relationships, professional relationships, professor/TA/study friend relationships, society and extracurricular friend relationships, work relationships (e.g. campus job), “hanging out” friend relationships, and (often overlooked) family relationships. Outside of classes, fulfilling the commitments you have - meetings with other people, extracurriculars, working for pay, working out, hanging out with others, (and later on) looking for internships and jobs, scheduling and preparing for interviews, applying for grad school, etc. … and of course, most importantly, homework and studying.</li>
<li>Sleep is so good for your brain. I’ve never pulled an all-nighter before and don’t plan on it. My brain works so much better without it. </li>
<li>Self-discipline yourself … but don’t police yourself to the brink.</li>
</ul>

19

<ol>
<li>It’s awful. Unlike high school, it took a long time to adjust to the amount of studying I have to do.</li>
<li>I still keep in touch with my high school friends but I went from being one of the most outgoing people in HS to a total introvert in college.</li>
<li>Use ratemyprofessors.com</li>
<li>Don’t have a job, but I like to keep a balance between studyings and time that I have to myself to do whatever I want.</li>
</ol>

<h2>5. High school and it’s not close.</h2>

<p>The only thing I enjoy about college is the freedom I have.
I wish high school prepared me for said freedom.</p>

20

<ol>
<li><p>What is the course load like compared to high school?
when i went full time, it was a lot harder than HS. but that is partly because HS was easy for me, did not have demanding classes at all. I had to really get organized to keep everything straight.</p></li>
<li><p>How has your social life changed? Do you still communicate with your high school friends?
Had a few good friends that stayed in touch and some that i hung out with. Without the structure of HS, there was no seeing a lot of people that i knew, so just let it go.</p></li>
<li><p>How do professors teach?
Every professor is different. You have to pay close attention in the beginning so you can figure out how they are going to grade and what they expect. I always tried to find someone that had the teacher before so i could ask them what their experience was. That is also the best way to decide what teacher to take. Ask people how it was and would they recommend so and so.</p></li>
<li><p>How do you budget your time between classes, studying, and work (if you have a job)?
i had to get very organized. Never, ever fall behind, it will blow everything for the semester. Find a nice, pretty/quiet and peaceful place to study before class. If you find a place that you like and that is convenient, you will begin to enjoy that moment of quiet time, even if it is just to organize notes. Get together with classmates to study when possible, it helped me so much.</p></li>
<li><p>Do you prefer your college life or high school life?</p>

<h2>college by far…It is so much more interesting, from the classes, to the teachers and the students there. None of the icky HS drama either.</h2></li>
</ol>