<p>Hey CC-ers!</p>
<p>I am currently working on a resource for other college students focusing on many aspects of college life, and I need your help!</p>
<p>I am hoping you can help share your insights of strategies that have been helpful in college or thoughts about what would have been helpful for you to know before heading off to college with regard to the following areas:</p>
<p>Academics-course selection, studying, class attendance, learning style, test prep, staying focused
Organization- time management, maintaining a calendar, finances, budget
Social life -roommate, maintaining balance between social and academic life, decision making, peer pressure
Healthy lifestyle- nutrition, sleep, alcohol, stress reduction, exercise,
Support-friends, parents, counseling, coaching </p>
<p>Any info on one or all areas would be much appreciated! </p>
<p>I will start:</p>
<p>Academics</p>
<p>Course Selection: If your college allows you to "shop" around, definitely take advantage of it! The professor's teaching style can be equally important as the subject matter, and it is definitely worth your time to sit in on as many courses as you can to weed out the best. Ratemyprofessor only gets you so far...</p>
<p>Studying: Buy noise cancellation headphones. Best investment I have ever made- I could study in the middle of my loud dorm and feel like I was on a deserted island with those things. They also happen to be very handy on airplanes when you are sitting next to a "Talker" ("Not meaning to be rude, but if I don't respond it's because I actually cannot hear you.") Does wonders.</p>
<p>Class Attendance: Go to class. Seriously, don't be dumb...if you calculate tuition and look at the amount you are paying for each class, odds are that sleeping through calculus will cost you at least 50-100 dollars...that's enough money to buy 5 times as many "beverages" as you consumed the night before that resulted in your missing class in the first place...so save the money for the weekends and work hard before you play hard.</p>
<p>Learning Style: Everyone learns differently, but one strategy that really helped me ascertain information was to think of visual scenarios or acronyms for study material. Here is an example:</p>
<p>Night before a psych exam, I need to know the various parts/functions of the brain. One area is the hippocampus, which controls long term memory and spatial navigation. Now, think about a visual that is wacky and memorable....that's right, folks: A hippo jumping through your campus dorm window would be pretty memorable (and result from poor navigation on the hippo's part). Honestly, it may seem surprising but often times the weirder the scenario, the better you will remember it. I was so excited about this window-destroying hippo that I anticipated that part of the exam and I nailed it.</p>
<p>Test Prep: Schedule a study group two nights before an exam, and invite your class crush. This is beneficial for two reasons: 1. It will motivate you to know the material so you do not come across as a complete idiot in front of the cute girl/guy you invited to the study group. 2. It will give you enough time to identify the information you are not as familiar with, and give you the peace of mind to have that extra day to take it all in (rather than pulling an all nighter when the group ends at 3am and you realize you are screwed).</p>
<p>Staying Focused: For me, the solution was quite simple. I didn't need any sort of caffeine or other pills...I was able to simply stay focused out of necessity. If you can handle the pressure and put in the time to plan out an essay (i.e. get your sources, a solid outline)...last minute can do wonders. If it weren't for the last minute, after all, nothing would get done.</p>
<p>If you are reading this and cringing because that is not your style at all, my recommendation would be similar to the study group suggestion: do work with your crush. You will want to impress away by showcasing your conscientious work ethic. </p>
<p>Organization</p>
<p>Time Management: It's OK to take breaks. In fact, breaks are a must! Study for an hour or two (whatever your limit may be), and take a well-earned break to decompress before hitting the books again. It's also helpful to spread out work around an existing schedule to break it up and make it more manageable. </p>
<p>Re: facebook. Don't do it. If you are studying, I don't care if you "just have to go on really quick to get someone's phone number." We all know that after 10 seconds you will be directed to some psuedo-stranger's photos from their recent trip to Vegas and an hour later you will logout, feel guilty, and immediately realize that you didn't even remember to get the information you initially needed. </p>
<p>Calendar: I feel blessed to have attended college before blackberry's made it big. That is to say, I actually owned a physical calendar. It worked well, given that there is never any potential for technical glitches when you write things down and have it in front of you. </p>
<p>With that said, for collaborative organizing, Google Calendar is so helpful to see other people's schedules and find times that work for everyone. Do whatever you are most comfortable with.</p>
<p>Finances/Budget: Do you REALLY need that 7 dollar venti starbucks frappuccino? I'm just saying...they add up pretty quickly...</p>
<p>Budgeting is pretty simple: Figure out your weekly or monthly allowance, and then record your habits for a week and realize how far off your total was from your projections. Continue to play the "I swear I will stick to my budget this time" game for the remainder of college.</p>
<p>Social Life</p>
<p>Roommate: Communication communication communication. That's all there is to it. If you have something nice to say, say it. If you have an issue, bring it up in a mature fashion (the whole "let's be passive aggressive and roll our eyes at each other until the issue explodes" approach is SO high school). If he or she does not shower for 72+ hours, I'm pretty sure there is a law somewhere that you are allowed to request a new roomie...</p>
<p>Social/Academic Life Balance: Merge the two whenever possible. Figure out which of your friends are "study-friendly" (that is to say, you can actually get work done together without gchat messaging across the table from each other the entire time). It's nice to have a support network, even if it means just having someone to vent to or high-five when you finish that endless Cognitive Psych. chapter.</p>
<p>Decision Making/Peer Pressure: If you are surrounded by a group of people doing something, just do it. You don't want to be the odd man out, because then you will have no friends.</p>
<p>I am being sarcastic (mostly). There will be certain people who are more judgmental than others when it comes to participation (or lack therof) in certain activities, but overall just do what feels right and try to think about waking up the next morning...would you sufficiently regret this decision? If yes, then your decision should go from definitely to possibly. College is all about testing the waters...and everyone's current is completely different. Don't go from a stream to a waterfall without passing through the internal dam of your moral compass. </p>
<p>Now that I have sufficiently exhausted every metaphor known to man, hopefully you get the idea. Oh, and one more thing- if you ever don't feel like doing something or going to an event, just say that you are feeling nauseous. No one wants to be around the sick kid, plus nausea is something that can pass and an excuse that will not result in awkwardness a couple of hours later if you bump into everyone at a party ("My stomach feels so much better!" is far more credible than "Turns out I don't have an identical twin in town this weekend...or any weekend...).</p>
<p>Healthy Lifestyle</p>
<p>Nutrition: Moderation, people. Diet is all about healthy variety. If nothing else, I promise you that the following switch will improve your diet drastically: Instead of drinking copious amounts of soda and juice, replace them with water and milk and your bones and mind will thank you. (Juice is OK every once in a while, but they are dangerously deceptive)</p>
<p>Sleep: I would highly recommend getting some every once in a while. 7+ hours, if you can. I got about 5 hours/night during the weekdays and I would crash for 12 hours during the weekends, and let me tell you there is nothing more sickening than hearing birds chirping as you are studying at 5am, or waking up on a Sunday afternoon finding it to be pitch black outside. 2 years later, my body is still recovering from my "cool at the time, idiotic in retrospect" sleep schedule.</p>
<p>Alcohol: Be very careful with mystery drinks/punches in a frat basement. Also, keep in mind that alcohol doesn't really hit you until several minutes after consumption. So, it's probably a smart idea to space it out and avoid taking several shots in a row. Of tequila. On your first night of college when first impressions are surprisingly lasting.</p>
<p>Stress-Reduction: Naps were my savior. Try to aim for 30-50 minutes, or else your nap can turn into a mini-sleep which can result in you waking up more exhausted and confused than when you laid down. Also, it's important to put things in perspective. Yes, you may have a huge orgo test in the morning, but there are people in third world countries without access to water and there are other college students (hopefully not your roomie) down the hall avoiding showers for days. It's important to aim high, but recognize that people make mistakes. Life continues even if you do not ace the exam. Perhaps it will lead you to an exciting career surveying clients on whether they would prefer rectangular fried potatoes with their meal, but it continues nonetheless...(kidding! you'll be fine)</p>
<p>Exercise: Join/create the intramural dodgeball team. Great workout, great times.</p>
<p>Support:</p>
<p>Friends: College is a huge adjustment from high school, in that many of us will befriend people of all ages and not have the same consistency in our group of friends. You ultimately have the make the decision of whether you value a more intimate group that you see often, or a more scattered group without the same sustainability. Everyone has their own individual balance, and you will figure things out after a semester or two. </p>
<p>Parents: Call them every once in a while, OK? They are likely 10 times more anxious about your departure than you are, and a quick check-in on the way to class can go a long way. Also, if you have a parents weekend that your rentals can attend, suggest a restaurant that they can take you and your friends (particularly your friends from far away whose parents could not make it). A surrogate family is always appreciated, especially when it comes to good food. </p>
<p>Counseling/Coaching: Many campuses offer free counseling services. Do not hesitate to take advantage of these resources! Also, whether it is a friend, professor, or other member of your college community, I am sure you will come across several people who you can trust for support, or at least allow you to vent and point you in the right direction. College is a blast, but it is also a time of personal growth and expansion of metaphoric bodies of water, so live it up but recognize that everyone is going through challenges, and you should never feel like you have to overlook any of your own. </p>
<p>Hope this was helpful, and I look forward to reading your comments! </p>
<p>Time to get back to studying for my African Mammal Window Treatment exam...</p>
This was really fun to read, and now I’m looking forward to college even more. Only one more year left!</p>