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Zero · 12-25-2006, 05:08 PM

If you search the internet or read books on the "college effectiveness", you will get advice that boils down to this: "take initiative". If an 18-22 year old had that kind of initiative, they would not need the advice. The problem with all of this is that "old" people, years removed from college, are telling you what they would have done. They are speaking from hindsight, and you are just trying to figure things out. I hope I am articulating this clearly. The best college advice that I can give: your semester is going to be ok and you will get through it.

As for classes being "hard" or "easy", you will have a different opinion on this before you take the course, during your first week, during midterms and at the end of the semester. At this point, you cannot accurately plan out the whole semester without knowing how the teachers organize their courses and the actual work that they will be giving you. I have taken math courses that were very easy and other that were very difficult simply because the amount of work the teachers gave out.

With that, I would manage the semester as it comes and do not plan more than one week out. And, even a week may be too long. The majority of students in college will do their assigned work at the last minute, managing the things they have in front of them. The teachers know this, and structure their courses accordingly. If you begin to prepare for a project or assignment that is 2 or 3 weeks out, the teacher may cancel the assignment, water it down as the semester rolls on or go over it in detail in a future lecture (making the project much easier). So, planning and preparation in college may be creating more work for yourself.

Also, pick your spots with non-graded assignments. Many times you can just do a subset of work, or not do them it all, and be just fine. This gives you time for the graded assignments.

As for health. If you are 18-22, who cares? Eat what you like, and exercise if and when you want. Personally, I do not think that this is a concern for a college student.

In college, there are so many opportunities to talk with other people. For classes, organizing study groups is a great way to study for tests and work on projects (another great reason not to "plan"). There are so many groups and clubs that are doing interesting things. You have time to volunteer. If you hang out with the right crowd, you have opportunities to go to parties, etc, etc, etc.

I will reiterate: you will be ok, and do not listen to conventional college advice.

12-25-2006, 05:08 PM	#4 (permalink)
Zero Junior Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Posts: 12	If you search the internet or read books on the "college effectiveness", you will get advice that boils down to this: "take initiative". If an 18-22 year old had that kind of initiative, they would not need the advice. The problem with all of this is that "old" people, years removed from college, are telling you what they would have done. They are speaking from hindsight, and you are just trying to figure things out. I hope I am articulating this clearly. The best college advice that I can give: your semester is going to be ok and you will get through it. As for classes being "hard" or "easy", you will have a different opinion on this before you take the course, during your first week, during midterms and at the end of the semester. At this point, you cannot accurately plan out the whole semester without knowing how the teachers organize their courses and the actual work that they will be giving you. I have taken math courses that were very easy and other that were very difficult simply because the amount of work the teachers gave out. With that, I would manage the semester as it comes and do not plan more than one week out. And, even a week may be too long. The majority of students in college will do their assigned work at the last minute, managing the things they have in front of them. The teachers know this, and structure their courses accordingly. If you begin to prepare for a project or assignment that is 2 or 3 weeks out, the teacher may cancel the assignment, water it down as the semester rolls on or go over it in detail in a future lecture (making the project much easier). So, planning and preparation in college may be creating more work for yourself. Also, pick your spots with non-graded assignments. Many times you can just do a subset of work, or not do them it all, and be just fine. This gives you time for the graded assignments. As for health. If you are 18-22, who cares? Eat what you like, and exercise if and when you want. Personally, I do not think that this is a concern for a college student. In college, there are so many opportunities to talk with other people. For classes, organizing study groups is a great way to study for tests and work on projects (another great reason not to "plan"). There are so many groups and clubs that are doing interesting things. You have time to volunteer. If you hang out with the right crowd, you have opportunities to go to parties, etc, etc, etc. I will reiterate: you will be ok, and do not listen to conventional college advice.