The Declassified College Survival Guide
College is four years of freedom, excitement and growth. Staying up late until 3 A.M. partying, and going out late for fast food runs. Worrying about cramming for midterms, and discovering how to appreciate dining hall food. Learning to write a strongly-cited research paper, and figuring out how to transform your bedsheet into a toga. College is an AWESOME time!!!
However, there is more to four years of college than having “fun”. It’s also the launching pad for the rest of your life.
Follow these steps and learn how anyone can become a standout student and succeed in college:
1. Don’t do all of your reading.
For reading that covers the topic of an upcoming lecture, it’s often sufficient to skim the main points ahead of time, and then fill in the gaps during class by taking good notes.
2. Relax before exams.
Some students believe it’s beneficial to maintain “intellectual momentum” by studying right up until the testing begins. This type of approach releases too much adrenaline, which makes you jittery and unfocused. The best state for your mind to be in is confident and calm.
3. Never nap.
(I’ll pause and wait for the groaning to simmer) Sleeping in the afternoon or early evening takes up large amounts of your limited time, it makes you drowsy and unfocused, and it throws off your regular sleep schedule.
4. Study in 50 minute chunks.
Whether you are reading, taking notes, working on a lab, or memorizing definitions, try to do everything in fifty-minute chunks. Take 10 minute breaks in between each fifty-minute chunk.
5. Learn to listen.
The good thing about this approach is that it works just as well in a classroom discussion as it does when chatting with a friend. If you learn to listen, not only will develop a much clearer understanding of issues that you care about, but you will also gain people’s respect.
6. Find an escape.
Think about it, you are thrown into a close-knit world where you have no personal space, you are living with strangers, your mind is being challenged more than ever before, you have to form an entire social identity from scratch, and for the first time your parents are not providing you with direct guidance on how to live your life.
7. Care about your grades, ignore your GPA.
If you begin to obsess about your GPA, much of the excitement of college is lost. Every test stops being an opportunity to show off your ability to engage the material, and instead becomes a potential devastation to your overall academic standing. At the end of every semester you will exist in a state of nervous apprehension as you wait for your final grades to be released. Obsessing about your GPA makes your life stressful and can derail you from your larger goals.
If you follow the advice above, you will be well on your way toward taking advantage of all that college has to offer, and ensure yourself the strongest possible start in the real world that follows.
