Chp 1: You and Your College Experience

1.1 Who Are You, Really?

• Succeeding in college is more about $you$ than it is about $college$.
• It’s the most important place to start considering:
  • Why you’re here
  • What matters to you
  • What you expect to get out of it
• Reaffirm your commitment to your plan
• Ask yourself these questions for your college plan:
  • How long do you anticipate being in college?
  • How many courses will you need to take per term to finish college in your planned time period?
  • How do you anticipate will be the most difficult part of completing college?
  • Are you confident you will be able to overcome any possible difficulties in completing college?
• These questions are important to think about for the simple reasons that students have a clear plan and who are prepared to overcome possible obstacles that may arise along the way.
  • In other words, $think positive about your future$!

What Matters to You?

• Values - things that matter to a person
  • What makes you feel good?
  • What things would you be if you had all the time, money, and opportunities in the world?
  • Every individual has his/her own values.
• Think about your values and how they relate to how you think you need to manage your time effectively while in college.

Thinking Ahead to a Major and Career

• What should you major in?
  • Students choose to major in an academic subject simply because they enjoy the subject.
  • The traditional idea of liberal arts education is that you can go to college to become a well-educated person who is in a better position to work in any number of careers.
• All students receive the same benefits of college, and are likely to find a more fulfilling career.
• Where are $you$ in this great variety of attitudes about career and major choices?
  • You don’t need to make any decisions yet.
  • As you take courses in a variety of subjects and meet people in different fields, you’ll naturally discover something about what you really enjoy doing and what career options you may want to pursue.
• Help is available for discovering your interests, strengths, and personality factors related to careers.
  • Visit your college’s advising or counseling department.
  • Almost all colleges have tools to help you discover what careers you would most enjoy.
• The $Strong Interest Inventory$ is an assessment tool used by many colleges and universities.
  • Has a series of simple questions, and the computer-scored tabulation provides information about your interests, strengths, and personality related to different types of careers.
  • Also suggests specific courses, jobs and internships, and extracurricular activities relevant to personal and career interests.
  • Ask your college’s career counseling center if the tool is available.
• The $Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI$) is a personality inventory that identifies you as one of 16 distinct personality types.
  • Each personality type correlates with happiness in certain careers.
• The $CareerLink Inventory$ (https://www.mpcfaculty.net/CL/climain.htm) is a simple tool that can teach you a lot about yourself.
  • Follow the steps in the “Outside the Book” section to maximize your results.
• If you start out without an intended major or career path, do not. $accidentally$ take courses that end up not counting toward your program goal or degree.
  • Possibly end up in college $longer than need$ and have to pay for additional courses
  • Read your college catalog $carefully$ and talk to your academic advisor.

Your Past Educational Experience

• Understand how college is different from high school and how well your own past educational experiences have prepared you for what you’ll find in college.
  • This is another way in which entering college $“with your eyes wide open”$ will prove beneficial.
• College is a $unique$ experience for all students.
  • You’re transitioning from one form of education to another.
• However, the college experience is different in these ways:
  • Time management is more important because of varying class, work schedules, and other time commitments.
  • College instructors seldom seek you out to offer extra help if you’re falling behind. You’re on your own and expected to do the work, meet deadlines, and so on.
  • There may be $no attendance policy$ for classes. You’re expected to be mature enough to come to class without fear of penalties.
  • Many classes are large, making it easy to feel lost in a crowd.
  • Many instructors, especially in large classes, teach by lecture---which can be difficult for those whose high school teachers interacted a great deal with students.
  • College courses require more study time and for you to work on your own.
  • Your social and personal life may be less supervised. Younger students may experience a $sudden increase$ in freedom to do what they want.
  • You will meet more people from more $diverse backgrounds$ in college.
  • All of these differences, along with a change in living situation for many students, can lead to emotional changes---both positive and negative.

Liking Yourself as a Student and Why That Matters

• Attitude is the most important factor that affects how well one does in college.
  • A positive attitude leads to motivation, and someone who is strongly motivated to succeed can overcome obstacles that may occur.
• Your attitude towards $yourself$ matters just as much.
• Know that you’re not alone.
  • Lots of new college students start having $doubts$.
  • These feelings can hinder one’s motivation and ability to succeed. Why is that?
  • If you have doubts about being able to do well, it’s mostly a matter of $having the right skills$ for succeeding in college.
  • Some students just need a little more help to succeed.
  • Everyone can learn the skills to succeed.

Self-Management

• Take control of your life.
• Here are a few thoughts to get you started in the right direction:
  • Accept responsibility for your life. You’re on equal footing with everyone else and have the same opportunities to succeed.
  • Decide what you want to do. $Make$ things happen by deciding what they should happen.
  • Realize you can change. You can change your habits to become a better student. You can change your attitudes & become a more positive, motivated student.
  • Develop a personal ethical code. Do what is right for you and for others. The college world demands ethical standards and rewards responsible, ethical behavior.
  • Be proud of who you are and your good decisions!
  • Enjoy your life! Enjoy meeting new people, learning new things, and experiencing the diversity of the college experience.

1.2 Different Worlds of Different Students

• Avoid stereotyping when thinking about different “types” of students.
  • Never assume an individual person has certain characteristics simply because he or she is a certain “type” of student.
• “Traditional” student - a young student that’s attending college right after high school.
  • The world “traditional” is used because these group of students make up the majority of college students---at many colleges, they are the minority.
• “Nontraditional” student - an older (or international) student who has worked for some years before returning to school
• Understand how your $background$ may impact your own preparedness for college.
  • If you’re 18 and living in a college dorm for the first time, you’ll wont face the same issues of finding time for studying as an older student working full-time.
  • If you’re 30 and returning to school after years of working, you’ll have to reestablish your study skills.
  • Every student brings certain advantages to college from their $background experience$.

“Traditional” Students

• These group of students are no longer the majority at many colleges.
  • The term is still sometimes used by educators.
  • Used to attending classes, reading textbooks, and studying thus may find the transition easier.
  • Many are single and unattached and have fewer time commitments to others.
  • A high percentage do work while in college, the work is typically part-time or during the summer.
  • Have fewer responsibilities other than their academic work.
• On the other hand, they may face more psychological and social issues than other student groups.
  • Many experiment with or develop habits such as poor dietary and sleep habits, lack of exercise, and sometimes substance abuse.
  • Many are forced to “grow up” quickly.
  • Students who don’t adjust to the freedoms end up dropping out their first year.

Returning Students

• Often older students who may have worked for a number of years, and may be used to living on their own and becoming financially and psychologically independent.
  • More mature and have a stronger sense of what they want from college
  • More goal driven
  • May be paying their own way through college
  • May be full-time students but are frequently still working and can only take a part-time course load.
  • Often live off campus
  • May have children
  • Are motivated to do the work
• Spent time in the work world, they may have developed good problem-solving and decision-making skills as a result of their “real-world” experience.
• On the other hand, they may have less time for studying because of work and family commitments.
  • They may feel more stressed.
  • They may not have time for extracurricular and campus activities.
  • Less patient

Other Student Groups

• Commuter students - returning students who come to campus for classes only
• First-Generation students - “traditional” students who are the first in their families to attend college.
• Recent Immigration and International students - students who come from a different culture and possibly speak English as a second language
• Students with Disabilities - have the right to request any accommodations needed to allow them to succeed
• Students Who Are Working - their key issue is finding enough time for studying to do well in classes.
• Students with a Family - returning students who have families of their own

Profile of a Successful Student

• Develop a plan to move forward and ensure that you have the knowledge and skills needed to succeed.
• Characteristics that successful students have:
  • Have a good attitude and know how to stay motivated.
  • Developed time management strategies, such as scheduling studying time and getting started early on assignments and projects.
  • Developed their critical thinking skills and apply them in their studies.
  • Effective strategies for taking good notes in class and using them.
  • Learned how to gain the most from their assigned readings for classes.
  • Know how to prepare for and take tests successfully.
  • Interact well with their instructors and fellow students in and outside of class.
  • Learned to write well for their classes, an essential aspect of college education.
  • Develop social relationships that contribute to, rather than detract from, their educational experiences.
  • Take control of their health with good habits that help them be better student and feel less stress.
  • Control over their finances.
  • Are able to transition well from the world of college into their future careers.

1.3 How You Learn

• Understand the learning process itself.
• People have different learning styles.

The Learning Cycle: Four Steps to Learning

• In college, most of the responsibility for learning falls on the student. You’re free to fail or succeed.
  • This also applies to how well you learn.
• Learning an academic subject means:
  • Really understanding it
  • Being able to think about it in meaningful ways
  • Apply that understanding in new situations

  Academic learning occurs most effectively in this cycle of four steps:

• Preparing
  • Prepare in advance for classes, reading, tests, and other learning.
  • Partly, you are putting yourself in the right mindset to learn.
  • When you review yesterday’s notes to prepare for today’s class, you’re also solidifying yesterday’s learning.
• Absorbing
  • Absorbing - the actual taking in of new ideas, information, or experience.
  • This is what happens at the moment a student listens to a class lecture or reads a textbook.
  • Learning requires $understanding$ the topic, not just repeating facts or information.
• Capturing
  • Capturing - taking notes
  • Take good notes in college because there’s so much to learn.
  • Go back over the material again, sometimes several times again, thinking about it and seeing how it all fits together.
  • The more effective your note-taking skills, the better your learning abilities.
  • Also, take notes when reading your textbooks.
• Reviewing
  • Reviewing - a way to prepare for new information and ideas.
  • The end of the process loops back to the beginning as you prepare for additional learning.
  • Where you discover whether you really understand the material.
  • If not, reread the material, talk it over with a friend in class, or go see your instructor.

What’s Your Learning Style?

• Different people have different learning styles.
• Style - a student’s specific learning preferences and actions.
• Each learning style has certain advantages and disadvantages compared with others. You can learn to use your own style more effectively.
• College instructors also have different teaching styles, which may or may not match up with your learning style.
  • Know how to adapt to teaching styles in college.
• Howard Gardner’s “multiple intelligences,” is based on eight different types of intelligence:
  • Verbal (prefers words)
  • Logical (prefers math and logical problem solving)
  • Visual (prefers images and spatial relationships)
  • Kinesthetic (prefers body movements and doing)
  • Rhythmic (prefers music, rhymes)
  • Interpersonal (prefers group work)
  • Intrapersonal (prefers introspection and independence)
  • Naturalist (prefers nature, natural categories)
• The multiple intelligence approach recognizes that different people have different ways, or combinations of ways, of relating to the world.
• The VARK approach focuses on learning through different senses:
  • Visual learners prefer images, charts, and the like.
  • Aural learners learn better by listening.
  • Reading/Writing learners learn better through written language.
  • Kinesthetic learners learn through doing, practicing, and acting.
• There are still more systems used by educators to describe the various ways in which people learn.
• All of these systems can help you learn more about how you as an individual person and college student learn best.
• The following sections below look at the key ways in which learning occurs in college classes and offer some suggestions about how to adapt your strengths for success.

Reading

• Reading skills are critically important.
• Most classes involve reading assignments.
• Many instructors may cover some of the textbook’s content in lectures or class discussions.
  • Students CANNOT skip the reading assignments and expect to do well.
• For people whose learning style is verbal and independent; if you learn well by sitting alone and reading.
• Tips:
  • Underline and highlight key ideas when reading.
  • Take good notes on your reading, using your own words.
  • Write descriptions that summarize information presented in nonverbal modes, such as through charts and graphs.
  • Do all optional and supplemental readings.
  • Take good notes in class, as you may remember more from your written words than from the instructor’s spoken words.
  • If a class involves significant nonreading learning, such as learning hands-on physical processes, study with other students who are kinesthetic or “doing” learners.
• If you have a different learning style, give more attention to your reading skills.
  • Allow plenty of time for reading assignments
  • Do your readings at times of the day when you are most alert.
  • Find a quiet, comfortable place conducive to reading.
• Also, try to maximize your learning through your personal style.
  • Learn better by listening: Sit up front in lecture classes where you can see and hear the instructor better.
  • Ask if you can record an instructor’s lectures and then listen again at a convenient time.
  • Visual learner: Sit in class where you can see PowerPoint slides and other visual presentations most clearly.
  • Use a visual approach in your class notes.
  • Check out whether video podcasts may be available for reviewing lectures.
  • Try to relate all of these visual images to the textbook’s content.
  • Pay special attention to illustrations and diagrams in the book, which will further help you understand the written information and ideas.
  • Interpersonal learner: Form a study group with other students and talk with others about the course topics.
  • Take advantage of your instructor’s office hours to help clarify your understanding after reading assignments.

Listening

• College students are expected to listen to their instructors in class and remember and understand what is being said.
• In discussion classes, listening is important for participating well in discussions.
• Tips:
  • Sit where you can best hear the instructor, away from other distractions.
  • Study with other students and listen to what they say about the course material. Hearing them talk from their class notes may be more helpful than reviewing.
  • Record lectures and listen to them again later when reviewing material before a test.
  • When studying, read your notes aloud. Review previous tests by reading the questions aloud and speaking your answers.
  • Talk with your instructor if you feel that you’re not understanding course readings.
  • Use rhymes or acronyms to recall verbal information.
  • Explore supplemental learning aids, such as audio and vidoe podcasts (even from other colleges and universities) on the course’s subject matter.

Seeing

• A “seeing” learner learns more effectively through seeing than through reading or listening.
• Some college courses include demonstrations and physical processes that can be observed.
• Visual learners: Work on developing your reading and listening skills because you’ll need to learn in these ways as well.
• Tips to improve learning related to seeing:
  • Pay special attention in class to visual presentations, such as charts, diagrams, and images.
  • Take lecture notes using a visual approach. Do the same when taking notes on class readings. Use diagrams, different colors, lists and sketches.
  • Use video podcasts or other visual aids for reviewing lectures.
  • If your instructor or textbook uses few visuals to help you understand and recall information and ideas, try to imagine how you present this information visually to others.
  • In your notes, create sketches for a PowerPoint slideshow capturing the highlights of the material.
  • Study with other students who may learn better by reading or listening, and watch how they explain the material.

Doing

• Often attracted to careers with a strong physical or hands-on component, from athletics to engineering.
• Tips:
  • Try to engage all your senses when learning.
  • Think about how you would teach the topic you are presently learning.
  • When it becomes difficult to concentrate when reading while sitting in a quiet place, get up and move around while studying; make gestures as you read aloud.
  • Use your hands to create a range of study aids: make charts, posters, flashcards, and so on.
  • When taking notes, sketch familiar shapes around words and phrases to help you remember them.
  • Try to associate abstract ideas with concrete examples.
  • The act of writing---handwriting more than typing---may increase retention; write key things several times.
  • Study with other students who may learn better by reading or listening.

Feeling

• Focus on the emotional side of information and learn through personal connections.
• Focus on what you and others feel about the information and ideas being learned.
• Tips:
  • Try to establish an emotional connection with the topic you’re learning.
  • Talk with your instructor during office hours. Share your feelings about the subject.
  • Do supplemental reading about the people involved in a subject you’re studying.
  • Talk with other students who learn better by reading or listening in a personal way about what the material means to them.
  • Try teaching them about the topic while explaining your feelings about it.
  • Try the strategies listed for the “doing” learning style.

Your Style, Your Instructor’s Style

• In large classes, instructors generally emphasize listening carefully and reading well.
• Take responsibility for your own learning.
• Much learning in college also comes from interactions with others.
  • Be open to interacting with other students and instructors.
• Talk with your instructor privately during office hours if a genuine mismatch is occurring.
  • Explain how you best learn and ask for suggestions about other resources that may help you.

1.4 What is College, Really?

Big Classes, Small Classes

• Many college classes are large. You may feel anonymous, even invisible.
• It’s up to the instructor to teach in an entertaining way if you are to learn at all.
• $In college, you take responsibility for your own learning$.
• Learn how to learn in a large lecture class.
  • It’s up to you to stay actively engaged in your own learning while in college.
• Your instructors $do$ know who you are.
  • They have academic integrity. The impression you make might affect how far instructors go out of their way to offer a helping hand.
• $Interacting with instructors$ is the primary way students learn.
  • Show respect for them and their classes as well.

Core Courses, Electives, Majors, and Credits

• There are three types of courses:
  • Core courses
  • Sometimes called $“general education requirements”$
  • A range of courses from which you can choose to meet this general requirement.
  • A certain number of credits or course hours in certain types of core courses.
  • You can often choose among various specific courses for how you meet these requirements.
  • Required courses in your major
  • Are determined by $individual academic departments$
  • Your individual departments set specific required courses you must take and offers options.
  • Electives
  • Courses that you choose freely to complete the total number of college credits needed for your program/degree.
• Understand what courses you need and how each one counts.
  • Study the $college catalog$ carefully
  • Talk things over fully with your advisor.
• Each term, you choose how many courses or hours to take.
  • Colleges have rules about the maximum number of hours allowed for full-time students.
  • Taking a light course load could add up over time and result in an extra full year of college (or more!).
  • All students should talk this issue over with their advisor each year or term.

Online Courses

• Online courses - regular courses with an $online$ component
  • Via computer
  • Work independently
  • Communicating with the instructor (and sometimes other students) primarily through written communication
• Here’s what is involved in taking an online course:
  • You need to own or have $frequent access$ to a recent model of a computer with a high-speed Internet connection.
  • Without the set hours of a class, you need to be $self-motivating$ to schedule your time to participate regularly.
  • Without an instructor or other students in the room, you need to be able to $pay attention effectively to the computer screen. Take notes$
  • Without reminders in class and peer pressure, you’ll need to $take responsibility to complete all assignments and papers on time$.
  • Since your instructor will evaluate you primarily through your writing, you need $good writing skills$ for an online course.
  • You must $take the initiative to ask questions if you don’t understand something$.
  • You may need to $be creative to find other ways to interact with other students in the course$.

Class Attendance and Promptness

• In some classes, $attendance is required$ and absences can affect one’s grade in the course.
  • Even when attendance is required, $missing classes$ will affect your grade as well.
• Arrive to class $promptly$.
  • Walking into a class that has already begun is $rude$ to the instructor and to other students.
  • A $mature student$ respects the instructor and other students and in turn receives respect back.

College Policies

• Academic honesty is the most important academic policy.
  • Cheating is taken very seriously.
  • Academic dishonesty may result in $automatic failure of the course$---or even $expulsion$ from the college.
  • The principle is simple: $Every student must do his or her own work$.
  • Check the $college website$ for its policy statements or talk with your instructor.
• College also has policies about alcohol and drug use, sexual harassment, hazing, hate crimes, and other potential problems.
• $Residence halls$ have policies about noise limits, visitors, hours, structural and cosmetic alterations of university property, and so on.
• The $college registrar$ has policies about course add and drop dates, payment schedules and refunds, and the like.
  • Such policies are designed to ensure that all students have the same right to quality education.
  • You can find these policies on the college website or in the catalog.

College Resources

• You need to $be fully informed and make wise decisions$ about the courses you register for, college policies, and additional resources.
  • Your college $wants$ you to succeed; if you’re having any difficulties, there are college resources available to help you.
  • This is true for both academic and personal issues.
  • $Never$ hesitate to go looking for help or information---you have to take the first step.
• The college catalog is a great source of many kinds of information.
  • Have an updated catalog every year or know where to find it online.
• The college’s website is the second place to look for help. Includes information about:
  • College programs
  • Offices
  • Special assistance programs
  • Studying tips
  • Personal health
  • Financial help
  • Take time to explore and learn what’s available
• Many colleges have offices or individuals that can help in a variety of ways.
  • Visit the office of student services or the dean of students.
  • Example resources:
  • Academic advising office
    • Choose courses and plan your program or degree.
    • Have a personal meeting at least once every term.
  • Counseling office
    • Personal problems, including health, stress management, interpersonal issues, etc.
  • Financial aid office
    • If you’re presently receiving financial aid or may qualify for assistance
  • Tutoring or skill centers
    • Students can go for additional help for their courses.
  • Computer lab
    • Receive training or help resolve technical problems
    • Assist students with technical issues
  • Student health clinic
    • Provides basic medical care and makes referrals
    • Help w/ issues such as diet and exercise counseling, birth control services, & preventative healthcare
  • Career guidance or placement office
    • Help find students jobs or internships
    • Plan for your career after graduation
    • Receive career counseling
  • Office for students with disabilities
    • Provide various services to help students w/ disabilities adapt to the college environment
  • Housing office
    • Controls campus residential housing
    • Often assists students to find off-campus private accommodations
  • Diversity office
    • Promotes cultural awareness on campus
    • Runs special programs
    • Assists diverse students with adjusting to campus culture
  • Office of student affairs or student organizations
    • Participate in a group of like-minded students to support academic success
  • Athletic center
    • Exercise equipment
    • Pools
    • Courts and tracks
    • Take advantage of this to improve or maintain your personal health
    • Promotes academic success
  • Other specialized offices for student populations
    • Office supporting students who speak English as a second language
    • Adult students returning to college
    • International students
    • Religious students
    • Students with children (possibly a childcare center)
    • Veterans of the armed services
    • Students preparing for certain types of careers
  • Your instructors
    • Ask a friendly instructor if he/she knows of any additional resources you haven’t discovered yet.
• Everyone needs help at some time.
  • Never feel embarrassed or ashamed to seek help.
  • A part of your tuition and fees are going to these offices.
  • You have every right to take advantage of them.

1.5 Let’s Talk about Success

• No book can “make” you successful---it can only offer the tools for you to use if you want.

“Success” and “Failure”

• What does “success” mean in college?
  • The complete college experience
  • Exploring many different subjects and discovering one’s own interests
  • Meeting a lot of interesting people, learning about different ways to live
  • Learning how to make decisions and solve problems that are now related to a career
  • Gaining the skills needed to get the job---and life---one desires
• Getting good grades is not the ultimate goal of college or the best way to define personal success while in college.
  • Grades are only one component of a larger picture.

How Much Do Grades Matter?

• Think about your attitude towards grades.
  • Grades often motivate students to study and do well on assignments.
• The answer to having a good attitude towards grades depends on how grades matter generally---and specifically in your own situation.
• Some ways grades clearly matter:
  • All students must maintain a certain grade point average (GPA) to be allowed to continue taking courses and graduate.
  • Financial aid and scholarship recipients must maintain a certain grade in all courses or a minimum GPA overall.
  • In some programs, the grade in certain courses must be higher than simply passing in order to count toward the program or major.
• After graduation, how well one did in college may affect one’s life.
  • Employers often ask how well you did in college (new graduates).
  • Students who are proud of their grades usually include their GPA on their resumes.
  • Students with a low GPA may avoid including it on their resume, but employers may ask on the company’s application form or in an interview.
  • An employer who asks for a college transcript will see all your grades.
• Grades matter if you plan to continue to graduate school, professional school, or other educational programs---all of which require your transcript.
• Grades are not the only way people are judged, but all forms of experience, personal qualities, and the recommendations of others.
• Simply do the best that you can do.
  • If you have special concerns about grades, talk with your academic advisor.
  • They can help you work through any individual issues related to doing well and getting the best grade you can.

Succeeding in Your First Year

• The first year is almost every student’s most crucial time.
  • Students wrestle with time management, their freedom, and their other commitments to family, friends, and work.
  • Recognize that it may not be easy for you.
• When you do succeed in your first year, the odds are good that you’ll continue to succeed and will complete your program or degree.
• $Motivation and a positive attitude$ are the keys to getting off to a running start.

Getting Started on the Right Foot Right Now

• Make an appointment to talk with your academic advisor if you have any doubt about the courses you’ve already enrolled in.
  • Start examining how you spend your time and ensure you make enough time to keep up with your courses.
• Check for tutoring assistance if you feel you may need it and make an appointment or schedule time to visit tutoring centers on campus to see what help you can get if needed.
• Like yourself. Avoid the trap of feeling down on yourself if you’re struggling with any classes.
• Pay attention to your learning style and your instructors’ teaching styles.
  • Begin immediately.
  • Apply the guidelines discussed earlier.
• Plan ahead. Check your syllabus for each class and highlight the dates of major assignments and tests.
  • Write in your calendar the important dates coming up.
• Look around your classrooms and plan to introduce yourself right away to one or two other students.
  • Talking with other students is the first step in forming study groups that will help you succeed.
• Introduce yourself to your instructors. In a large lecture class, go up to the instructor after class and ask a question about anything in the lecture or about any upcoming assignment.
• Participate in your classes.
  • Take the first step.
  • Find something of particular interest to you and write down a question for the instructor.
  • Then raise your hand at the right time and ask.
• Vow to pay more attention to how you spend your money.
• Take good care of your body. Good health makes you a better student.
  • Vow to avoid junk food, get enough sleep, and move around more.