<p>I'm in an incoming freshmen, and I would love any tips as to how I can do as well as I can in these classes in particular. I think I'll major in Chem (pre-med emphasis), minor in music, and while I do well in science courses in HS, I have three, very distressing problems: sometimes I'm careless, aloof, and erratic (LABS come to mind). I feel like this is going to kill me in college, and that I've only been getting away with it because I do decently, and I'm in HS. It's as if I don't do things methodically, but instead, I rush hastily through everything.</p>
<p>When, I get to college, I want to be a bit more meticulous in how I handle things, especially schoolwork, but I don't know exactly how to do that. Should I try to set up a schedule and just sit down and study calmly and rationally? Sorry if this seems too confusing.</p>
<p>The only way that I can think of to thrive in science classes in college is to not be careless, aloof, or erratic. As long as you're never any of those, you'll be ok.</p>
<p>The way you excel in college science classes is the same way you excelled in your high school on ones... go to class (the irony is it becomes more important, but less required), read the material, go to review sessions, and study.</p>
<p>The one major difference I can think of is to get to know your teachers (office hours) and talk to them about the class outside of lecture. This isn't so you can suck up to them but to familiarize yourself with how they teach and many instructors give out valuable notes during office hours. Oh and it wouldn't hurt for the instructor to know your name when final grades come around.</p>
<p>Same for TAs. (By the way, get to know, not STALK).</p>
<p>When you arrive on campus, go to your school's Academic Advising Center or whatever they call it. Talk to these good people about how to overcome problems you had in high school; how college studying, note-taking, exams are different than high school; etc. They will give you tips, tricks and strategies, and be very happy to do so - that's what they're there for! And it's better to attack the problem up front, without waiting until you are in trouble.</p>
<p>Learn time management and to take your time. Careless errors come from rushing. Think of how many pop multiplication quizzes you failed in eleementary school and why.</p>
<p>Don't get behind. Get help as soon as you halfway don't understand something.</p>
<p>Look over the section you will be covering before class so that it isn't so foreign to you. If your teacher has notes/powerpoints available online, print those out and look over them too.</p>
<p>As far as labs go, my college ones have been easier than high school ones. Get a good lab partner and have them help you with your calculations and the write up if you need help. Don't rush thru the lab. If you don't understand how to do something, ask your lab partner if they would like to do it and pay attention to what they do. If you have to do it twice, say you'd like to do it the second time. Your partner should be more than happy to help you out since your mistakes can turn into their bad grade. Don't be afraid to ask the instructer and surrounding groups for help. I think that the most important thing to do is to pay attention and double check everything (I'd check things off on my lab manual).</p>
<p>Read your textbook actively and try to make connections between major concepts. I didn't try this until college (it was a chem class), but it definitely paid off. I scribbled notes in the margins and sometimes rephrased the textbook's explanations in my own words. I followed all the derivations or worked them out myself if the book didn't show them. If you find something that's puzzling, ask the TA or professor during recitation, office hours, or even during lecture. In my math/science classes this year, I asked a ton of questions, and it paid off.</p>
<p>Also, read the chapter before going into lecture. You can get a lot more out of lectures that way.</p>
<p>For labs, I also suggest doing background reading on procedures and equipment in addition to any pre-lab assignments you might have. Your lab partner will thank you for staying so on top of things, and you'll thank yourself later when you're writing the lab report and realize that you actually understand everything.</p>
<p>Don't be too worried about your 'problem' with labs. Just try and be in a good state of mind when your doing labs; come with your mind already focused -if that makes sense.</p>