It’s back to school time so time for some advice. As a former English instructor, admissions counselor, graduation analyst, thesis/dissertation editor, and, more importantly, former student, I was in school for a long time and learned far more than what was taught.
Are you really a morning person? Seriously ask yourself this. I know you probably got up early in high school, but did you enjoy it? If not, don’t sign up for an 8am class if you can help it.
Challenge yourself. Don’t take the same professors over and over again just because you figured out how to pass their class. This will come back to haunt you when you reach your last year and those favorite professors are not teaching the courses you need to graduate. I saw way too many people fall into this trap.
Take ownership. Don’t just parrot back answers for the sake of getting an A or memorize things just for the test. Learn it. Internalize it. Apply it to your life. This attitude will serve you very well in life.
Go ahead and start on that assignment even if it isn’t due for a while. I know Friday can feel like it’s a long ways away, but trust me, it’s not. Don’t wait to start assignments because you’ve got time (or you think you do). Time has a way of sneaking up on you.
Don’t neglect your social life. As the saying goes, all work and no play makes [insert your name here] a very dull person. Have fun. You don’t have to party all day to have fun either (maybe just part of the day). Just as life is more than work, school is more than work too.
Ask questions. I saw this a lot as an Admissions counselor and instructor. I even saw this among doctoral degree candidates. If you have a question, ask it. If you think it’s dumb, ask it. If you think you are supposed to know the answer already, ask it anyway. Seriously, get clarity.
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