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College Success InsiderSmart Scheduling
So many students have busy lives in which they juggle commitments to family and work while trying to complete their college education. With a little bit of planning, smart scheduling can help you reduce and manage the stress that comes with such a hectic life.
When planning a semester schedule, it might be helpful to have a calendar in front of you to pencil things in so you can get the big picture before you make any solid commitments.
When deciding which classes to sign up for, the first consideration should be for your fixed commitments like work, caring for family members, time for faith activities, and so on. Don't sign up for any classes that will interfere with those obligations. Leaving work early all the time to go to classes will be frowned upon (unless you have made prior arrangements at work), and arriving consistently late to classes will not be looked upon positively by most instructors either. If you have a part-time job with a flexible schedule, it is essential to discuss your plans for the coming semester with your boss or manager.
Be sure to factor in things like travel time, finding a parking space, having something to eat before class, using the restroom, and following through on any on-campus errands. If your schedule has no planned time for these activities, it is almost a certainty your stress levels will be soaring some days.
Work with an academic advisor to choose classes that fit with your program plan and your schedule. They are experienced at helping students figure out the best way through their degrees. Academic advisors are part of what you pay for with your tuition; take advantage of their help.
Are you a morning person or an evening person? If you can, schedule classes for the times of day when you are the most alert. This, of course, is not always possible, but it can be really helpful to tackle a class that is a particular challenge for you when you are feeling sharp.
If your class schedule includes a significant break between classes, use that time on campus wisely. Study, review notes, do research, run errands -- there are many possibilities. It's good to plan for a little down time or socializing in there, too.
Choosing a mix of classes will help keep your mind more refreshed during a school day, make life more interesting during the semester, and be less likely to lead to excessive stress. Get your basic general education classes out of the way as soon as possible and step through the series of classes in your major in a logical order. I have seen some students put off taking certain classes to the point where they had no choice but to take multiple highly demanding classes in their major during their last semester before graduating. That is not a good recipe to do well in those classes, or to put yourself in a situation where stress will be easy to manage.
Hot Off The Press: Employment Prospects and Your Major
As a fitting follow-up to the three-part post series on choosing a major, here's an article from CNNMoney.com about which majors are high in unemployment statistics at the present time.
Unemployment Soars Among College Majors Like Architecture
What's Your Major? Part 3: Personality & Lifestyle Preferences
In yesterday’s post, we looked at some practical factors to consider what choosing a major, namely, career paths, financial aspects, and growth potential. The final installment of this three-post series takes things back to the personal level. Who you are and how you want to live your life must be considered in choosing the career area that is so strongly tied to deciding on a major.
Personality. Are you energized by being with other people, or do you need time alone to recharge? Do you like dealing with concepts or theories, or are you more comfortable with specific facts and figures? Do you thrive when there is public pressure to succeed, or do you prefer individual feedback? Do you need flexibility in your work environment, or are defined rules and schedules optimal for you? The answers to these questions can provide insight into your personality and what kind of job environment may be best suited to you. Links to some helpful personality measures will be provided in an upcoming post.
Lifestyle preferences. Do you like being busy all the time? Do you prefer to work at a more steady pace? Do you need a lot of variety in the work you do, or do you thrive on doing a smaller range of tasks with excellence? Do you prefer living in an urban or a rural area? Is 40 hours your ideal work week, or are you willing to work as many hours in a week as it takes to complete a project? These are but a few of the questions you should ask yourself when considering the careers that stem from a prospective major. While some people, for instance, may want the prestige and affluence that comes from being a heart surgeon, few of them will be willing to go through the intensive schooling, demanding and low-paying internships and residencies, long hours, and stressful working conditions needed to reach that goal.
Visualize your life 5 years from now, 10 years from now, and 20 years from now. What is the quality of life you want to have? Where do you want to be living? What kinds of relationships will you have? Work has a profound influence on all of your life, so choosing a career path and major wisely will have long-term payoffs.
Making a decision as to what your major will be takes using both your head and your heart. Hopefully, this series of posts has given you some ideas about how to choose a major or even to re-evaluate the major you have already decided upon.
What's Your Major? Part 2: Career Path, Financial Aspects, & Growth Potential
In yesterday’s post, we looked at the basics of what goes into choosing a major and more specifically how interests and skills can contribute to this vital decision. Next, let’s consider some practical aspects.
Career paths. It is wise to think about the different career paths a particular major can provide you. Make sure to explore other opportunities in case your dream job is not all you believed it to be or, as has been the case for many people in today’s dysfunctional economy, the job market throws you a curve ball and your dream job no longer exists. While it is good to have concrete career goals, don’t let them narrow your focus too much. Include inquires about the range of jobs available when talking to professors in your proposed major and people who are already working in the field.
Financial aspects. It is important to consider what sort of pay you can expect working during the course of your future career. While no one has a crystal ball to predict what a certain profession will pay in the future, looking at the wage history for different jobs can be informative. In California, the Employment Development Department hosts an online occupational guide that provides a wide variety of job information, including wages and how many jobs are expected to be available for particular professions in the future. Most states will have something similar available for use.
Growth potential. Where will this major take you over your career’s lifetime? It is extremely rare for anyone to work in the exact same job position for an entire career, and most of us expect to be able to advance in responsibilities, authority level, and pay as we gain further work experience. However, some careers might have a lower “top level” than our expectations might lead us to believe. Find out about the growth potential within your proposed field of work while talking with professors who teach the major and people employed in that field.
In the final post of this series tomorrow, we will look at how personality and lifestyle preferences are important pieces in the puzzle of choosing a major.
What's Your Major? Part 1: Skills & Interests
What's your major?
This is probably the second most asked question directed to college students, right behind what school do you go to? It's an important question, too. Your major is something that will shape the direction of your life, so it's crucial to choose it wisely. This multi-part post will give you some guidance on ways to successfully search for a major that works for you.
Choosing a major is not a one-time decision for most college students. There are, of course, those who have decided firmly what they are going to be when they grow up from an early age and have stuck to that decision. For the rest of us, however, choosing a major is a process made in steps, hopefully starting around the time one attends middle school. Yes, you read that right, middle school. In my considered opinion, the common practice of waiting unless a student is a junior or senior in high school to discuss college is counter-productive. At that point, many students are feeling so much pressure from contemplating what comes next that it is difficult to truly give the choice of a major the attention it deserved.
A major should be chosen by balancing several important factors. Let's take a look at a couple of them and do some brainstorming, either by yourself on paper or with the assistance of someone who knows you well.
Interests. Since we spend a majority of our waking hours as adults engaged in work, doing something you like as your career helps make life more meaningful and your work life more enjoyable Make a list of your interests, academic, professional, and personal. Look at both the big picture (for example, “I like helping people”) and the details (“I’m really interested in improving the nutrition of children in our country”). Don’t worry that an interest of yours might not be marketable at this point; just get as much interest information down as possible.
Skills. This is where having a friend or family member who knows you well can come in handy. Sometimes we are not as aware of skills we have as those who observe us. We also might have the tendency to sell ourselves short as to the strength of our talents and abilities. Again, look at both a broad perspective (“I communicate with people well”) and a more narrow approach (“I’m good at being able to calm people down in a crisis situation”). List everything, no matter how big or small the skill may be.
Part 2 on career paths, financial aspects, and growth potential is on its way tomorrow.
Succeeding In Online Classes
Online classes are a great higher education option for people with sticky schedules. I recently had a student who worked in law enforcement at a level that sometimes things would happen that would prevent him from attending a face-to-face class regularly. While we were able to work things out over the semester, his work situation makes him better suited to take online classes whenever possible.
The major plus to an online class is that you can complete the work without attending a regularly-scheduled face-to-face class. In order to succeed in online classes, here are some things to consider.
You need as close to bombproof internet access as possible. You also need a backup plan or two for internet access in case yours fails. Even though online classes don't have face-to-face meetings, they still have deadlines that must be met.
You need very strong self-motivation and self-discipline. When you are taking a class that does not meet face-to-face, the temptation to procrastinate is much stronger. You can help prevent this by scheduling a regular time to do the work for your online class and sticking to it and by keeping up with or ahead of the readings and activities for the class.
Don't assume that your online class will be easier than the face-to-face version. In fact, the opposite is often true. A common component of online classes is participation in a discussion board with the instructor and other students. This can be quite time consuming on top of all the other regular assignments you need to complete for the class.
Most importantly, communicate promptly with the instructor at the first sign of confusion with the materials or problems with the course delivery system. It is very easy to fall behind.
Pluses and Minuses of Hybrid Courses
A hybrid course is one in which part of the classes are conducted face-to-face and part of them are conducted online, usually in a 50/50 split. What are some advantages and disadvantages of hybrid classes?
+ Fewer live class meetings to make a tough schedule worse
+ Great when you already have solid prior knowledge of the material
+ Flexibility
+ Compromise for those who like online courses
+ Good for some general education courses that are mostly lecture based
+ Great for highly motivated students with good self-discipline
- Fewer live class meetings to clear up confusion and get examples
- Not ideal for less motivated students with lower self-discipline
- Less group interaction and spontaneous learning moments
- Probably not a good idea for classes in your major or classes where hands-on learning is required
Hot Off The Press: Think Carefully Before Attending a For-Profit College
The distressed state of the economy over the past several years has wreaked havoc on many sectors of society, including higher education. While the demand for classes in public colleges and universities is very high, budget cutbacks have decreased the number of classes available, thus making it much more difficult for students to complete their degrees. In frustration, an increasing number of students are turning to for-profit colleges that promise to get them through their degrees quickly -- but at a very high price that is often not just monetary. This excellent Huffington Post article provides substantial food for thought.
Community College Budget Cuts Drive Students To For-Profit Schools
Effective Study Groups
Have you ever joined a study group for a class only to have it turn in to a waste of time? Here are some tips to make a study group more effective than the social hour, people stop showing up, so-and-so doesn't follow through free-for-all that so many unsuccessful study groups melt down into.
Have a regular time to meet and a usual length of time to meet. This will give the study group meetings a more formal feel and make it easier for everyone to fit it into their schedules. Limiting the length of time may also assist with keeping things on track during the meeting.
Meet in a library or other quiet setting. Libraries will often have meeting rooms that can be reserved for group work. If you cannot obtain one, find a remote area of the library where the group's discussions are unlikely to disturb anyone. Having a study group at someone's home or at a coffee shop or restaurant will give too much of an informal feel and might lead to a loss of focus.
Keep it small (no more than 6 members). The larger a study group is, the more likely it is to break down due to no shows, social distractions, or members not doing their part. Smaller groups are more likely to feel responsible to one other and self-regulate their behavior.
Limit distractions. Start with checking that everyone's cell phone is off. Computers should be off as well, with the possible exception of one member whose job is to look up answers to disputed questions online if they can't be found otherwise.
Conduct it like a meeting. This may sound rigid, but study groups are organized in order to accomplish work. Having a structure where people take turns in raising questions or presenting material will smooth the process. Have an agenda or goal for each meeting and be sure to agree upon a new agenda at the end of each meeting.
Bring questions to be answered to each meeting. Each member should review all of the materials to be covered at the next meeting and bring specific questions to be answered. Whether they are questions over material the individual found difficult to understand or questions the individual thinks the instructor might ask on the next test, they can be good focus points to keep the group on task.
Share responsibility for material. If your group has four members and there are four chapters on an upcoming test, it might be beneficial to assign primary responsibility for presenting each chapter to each group member. Teaching information to others is a great way to solidify what you've learning.
Have a timer to limit off-topic discussion to 30 seconds. Someone should be responsible for timing and stopping off-topic discussions to help keep the group focused. It might be a good idea for the job of timer to rotate among group members. There also should be an agreed-upon limit of how many off-topic discussions can take place within a meeting period.
Eliminate dead-weight members promptly. We have all been in group work situations where one or more people slack off while the others work frantically to fill the gaps. Don't let this happen in your study group. Those who do not show up or fail to contribute their share to the group should be asked to leave the group as soon as possible. It might be desirable to discuss at the first group meeting what the criteria will be for asking a member to leave.
College Revisited: Coming Back to School
Perhaps the largest growing segment of students in colleges and universities throughout the United States are those who are over the age of 25 (sometimes referred to as non-traditional students). Some of them have no prior college experience. Others tried college after high school and found it was not right for them at the time. Many started college but dropped out when life -- work, family, or other issues -- got in the way. The good news is that it's never too late to start or continue a college education. I had a student a few years ago that was brand new to college at the age of 68!
It's not unusual for students over the age of 25 to be concerned about how they will cope with their studies and the college environment. The most common issues are worrying about fitting in, dealing with rusty study and classroom skills, and balancing school with work and family.
Fitting in. The average age of students at colleges and universities in the United States has been steadily rising for the past two decades or so. According to a 2008 report from the U.S. Census Bureau, 12.3% full time and 20.5% part time of two-year college students were over age 25, as were 32% of full time and 35.2% of part time students at four year institutions.
Classroom and study skills. With the rise in the non-traditional student population, colleges and universities have stepped up their services to address older students' specific needs, both in and out of the classroom. Peer support groups for adult re-entry students, programs to assist displaced workers, services for students with disabilities and veterans, support for single parents, and on-campus child care centers all can assist the returning student in reaching his or her educational goals. Financial aid, grants, and scholarships are available for the returning student population. For the returning student who feels unsure of his or her technological skills, workshops in how to use the internet, software programs, and library resources are frequently held.
Balancing school with work and family. Classes are now offered in a wide variety of options: face-to-face, hybrid (part face-to-face, part online), fully online, weekends, and evenings. Colleges and universities have accepted that students of all ages are often dealing with multiple obligations that can be challenging to fit into a hectic schedule. By creating class offerings that are presented through different means, higher education is more available to a wider segment of potential students. Granted, if one is working full time, it may not be possible (or advisable) to carry a full time class load, but some progress can be steadily made.
Over the time I have been teaching, I can't help but notice some of the amazing strengths that older students bring to the college classroom. Having more practical life experience under their belts tends to make them better at multitasking, more willing to ask for help, more realistic about the time it will take to accomplish a task, and better contributors to classroom discussions. On top of that, they are great examples to younger students, and I've seen some really wonderful intergenerational friendships develop among classmates as a result.
All great journeys start with a single step. Why not take that step now?
What's the Best Way to Study?
Here is some wise advice from several psychologists on this age-old question of students everywhere courtesy of the Wall Street Journal.
How to Study Long and Hard and Still Fail…or How to Get the Most Out of Studying
Here is a wonderful set of videos from cognitive psychologist Stephen L. Chew, PhD of Samford University in Birmingham, Alabama. I highly recommend watching all five videos. I found them to be instructive, entertaining, and good food for thought going into a new school year.
Are your beliefs about learning holding you back from making the most of your classes? Check it out in Beliefs That Make You Fail.
What goes into the process of learning? Dr. Chew discusses the levels of processing theory and how it can boost your study power in What Students Should Understand About How People Learn.
How can the levels of processing theory be used by students? Cognitive Principles for Optimizing Learning breaks the levels of processing theory into four components for developing study strategies.
How do the levels of processing work in the real world of the classroom? Dr. Chew uses common study situations as examples in Putting the Principles for Optimizing Learning into Practice.
It's likely to happen to most students sometime in their college career. You failed an exam. I Blew the Exam, Now What? offers solid advice about what to do and what not to do in the face of this unfortunate event.
Many thanks to Dr. Chew for his research and passion to help students succeed.
Be There
One of the best ways to do well in college is to be there. It's not enough to simply physically be there -- you need to engage your mind and your attention so you can benefit from the learning experience before you. Some classes will hold your attention easily; others may be a struggle. Regardless of whether you are in a class that captivates you or if you're in a class where you feel like a captive, it is your responsibility to learn.
You should be well-prepared to learn each time you enter the classroom. Here are some hints:
- Reading the textbook or other material ahead of time will make the lecture easier to understand and enhance your ability to take good notes.
- Reviewing prior chapter notes before you go to class, especially where information in newer chapters builds on knowledge in older chapters, enables you to more readily grasp new concepts presented in lecture.
- Writing questions about reading materials and assignments and bringing them up in class gets you and other students participating actively in the learning process.
- This may sound simple, but have paper, pens, pencils, scantrons, syllabi, and whatever else you need to take notes and complete assignments and tests in class.
There are things you can do to anchor your attention while in class, such as taking notes, highlighting text, asking or writing down questions, and actively participating in class activities. Put away all possible distractors (especially cell phones) and concentrate on the class you are in. If other students are behaving in a distracting manner, focus away from them -- even change your seat if necessary.
The more you are truly there for each class meeting, the more you will get out of it.
Adding A Class
For the most part, you can add a class all on your own up until the first day of class. After that point, however, you will generally need instructor permission. Keep in mind that instructors are not obligated to add students to their classes on or after the first day. If an instructor tells you he or she is not adding students, you need to respect that.
If you've just missed one class and you are added to the class, you probably are in okay shape. If you're adding after that point, you may be putting yourself at a disadvantage. Here are some reasons not to add a class after the first class session has occurred.
- You may have missed points that you will not be able to makeup.
- You will have missed the review of the syllabus, which can give you important information and an overall understanding of the instructor's teaching style.
- You may find yourself taking a quiz that you've had no time to prepare for.
- You will need to catch yourself up on the class material you've missed. The instructor has no obligation to do anything special for you when you add a class late. Plan on getting missed notes and other information from other students.
The Frugal Student
It's no great secret that college is expensive. In addition to obtaining financial aid, here are some things to consider to help you control expenses.
- When shopping for supplies, don't forget your local Dollar Tree, Big Lots, 99 Cents Only, and other deep discount stores. There will be some supplies that you will want to spend more money on (computers, graphing calculators, and the like), but for others, a less expensive version will work just fine.
- Consider renting your textbooks. Most college bookstores and many websites offer this option which will typically save you 50% off the cost of a new textbook. Get your textbook information from the instructor as soon as you are registered for the course and you can start shopping. If you order your texts from a website, remember to allow enough time to get them before the first day of class.
- If public transportation to and from campus is a reasonable option for you, this could save you a lot of money. Many colleges have arranged for discounted or free student transportation via public transit. If you must drive to campus, think about carpooling with other students to save money and keep campus parking lots less crazy. If you only come to campus a couple of days per week, look at the costs of daily parking passes versus semester parking passes.
- Working on campus in a job specifically designed for students can help save money and time. Such jobs are usually designed around your class schedule. If you can obtain a full time staff job on at your college, tuition is often discounted deeply. Keep in mind that full time staff jobs are difficult to obtain in the present economic climate, but student jobs still seem to be plentiful.
- The cost of housing can be overwhelming for students. If you are a college student who can live for free or for reduced rent with your parents or other family members while you attend school, it will save you considerable money. You also may want to consider having roommates in an apartment or house. Another option is to rent a room in someone's house. You may also find some situations where housing is provided in exchange for work for the homeowner. For instance, in my area (Inland Southern California), it is possible for one to find such arrangements at horse or livestock facilities.
- If there is some item you need, check out the local Craigslist or Freecycle listings. At times you can find goods that are barely used at all for great prices.
- If you have some particular talent or ability that is marketable, you might want to check into doing a bit of freelance work to earn some extra money.
Just for Fun: Some Unusual Majors
I ran across this article about some unique majors in the Chronicle of Higher Education. Enjoy!
What's Your Major? Probably Not One of These
Treat Your College Education Like a Job
A significant number of college students work either part-time or full-time while they are completing their higher education. Applying the expectations that employers have for their employees – being on time, following rules and procedures, completing work assignments in a timely manner, engaging in courteous interactions with others, behaving appropriately, and being self-responsible – to your education can powerfully increase your college success potential.
Consider this. College is your own investment of time, energy, money, and intellectual resources into your future. This is an investment that can never be taken away from you. What you put into your college education will have a tremendous impact on the quality of what you get out of it.
A student who approaches his or her education in a responsible, consistent, and engaged manner is a student who is more likely to obtain positive future recommendations from professors for jobs or graduate school.
Applying good workplace habits to your education can be a great stress reducer by giving you a better sense of control.
Yes, you can still have fun in college. Knowing when to be serious and focused and knowing when it’s okay to relax and hang out is a valuable life and work skill to practice.
The Essentials: English, Math, and Reading
In order to be admitted to a college or university, it’s very common for prospective students to take placement tests to assess where they are in English, math, and reading, which are collectively known as basic skills. If a student’s level in one or more of the basic skills subjects is not at college level, he or she will need to take developmental classes in order to get up to college speed.
If you need to take developmental classes in one or more of the basic skills, you will be required to enroll in and complete those in your first semesters of your college career. Once you have successfully passed them, you will then be required to take college level math and English classes that are suitable for your major.
It is an excellent idea to take the college level classes in math and English immediately after completing the last developmental classes in those subjects. That way, the knowledge and skills are fresh in your mind and it increases your chances for success. Fluency in college level math and English are needed to take more advanced classes, whether they are listed as formal prerequisites or not. Some classes will even require you to have earned a C or better in college level math or English.
If you are struggling with developmental or college level basic skills classes, get tutoring and other support to pass the classes right away. You do not want to get close to graduating but still have a basic skills class preventing you from doing so. Avoid using retakes on developmental and college level basic skills classes if at all possible – make wise drop decisions if needed.
Other classes that are often included under basic skills are speech, critical thinking, and computer competency. If you complete all of your basic skills classes early in your college career, you will be better equipped to take on the challenges of more advanced coursework.
Dealing Appropriately with Unforeseen Circumstances
Life happens while students are pursuing their educational goals, and sometimes life hands us circumstances which hold us back from doing our best at our studies. If you should encounter unforeseen emergency circumstances which will take you out of the classroom for a while, here are some strategies for dealing with the situation constructively.
• Contact your instructors immediately and be honest about your emergency situation. You do not need to tell your instructor any overly personal details, but do explain the scope and seriousness of what is going on, and provide an estimate of how long you expect to be out of class. Do not be offended if your instructor asks you to provide some sort of documentation; this is standard procedure at nearly every college and university.
• Notify your academic advisor so that he or she can direct you to further assistance from other college personnel or student services. We are here to help you in any way we can.
• Be willing to accept recommendations to drop classes or take incompletes if your absence from classes is going to be extensive.
• Be realistic about your abilities to bounce back from your absence within the time left in the semester. Some emergency circumstances (medical situations in particular) may take a lot longer for you to return to the classroom than anticipated.
• While you are out of the classroom dealing with the emergency situation, stay in touch with your academic advisor and instructors to update them on how things are going and when you plan to return.
So You’re Failing A Class
It happens sometimes. Regardless of what the reasons might be, you’re failing a class. Hopefully, you have become aware of this relatively early in the semester when there are still many things you can do to remedy the situation. Even if you have found out around midterms, you still probably have a fighting chance. But if it’s the last few weeks of the semester, there may be little you can do.
This is why it is so important to keep track of your grade in the class throughout the entire semester. If you know there is a specific grade you need to earn in a class for financial aid, scholarship, or transfer purposes, you need to focus on behaviors geared toward earning that grade from the very beginning of the class.
Here are some steps to take if you are failing a class.
• Talk to the instructor and ask for a breakdown of your grades. He or she may have helpful suggestions on what you need to do to improve your grade and probably can advise you as to whether you have any realistic chances of passing the class. Remember, the later you check into the problem, the less likely it is that it can be fixed.
• Take a look at the work you’ve done so far in the class and figure out where the weaknesses are. Do you procrastinate on out-of-class assignments? Are you losing points on reading quizzes? Do you panic when a major test is coming up? Are you unsure of how to write a paper? Find out what is tripping up your grade, talk to your instructor, and see if there is tutoring available to boost your confidence in the trouble areas.
• Look closely and honestly at your approach to the class. Are you truly putting quality time and energy toward learning the material and earning the grade you want?
• Multiple learning resources are readily available for most classes. Are you reading the textbook? If your textbook has free online supplements for students (most of them do), are you using them? Are you taking good lecture notes? If the class uses an online learning management system such as Blackboard, are you logging in and checking for updates frequently?
• Talk with more successful students in the class. Find out what their approaches to studying for the class are and see if their suggestions will work for you. You might want to see if there are any active study groups or if there is interest in forming one.
• See whether you are still able to drop the class without a penalty of some kind on your transcript. It would be a good idea to talk with your academic advisor before you do so.
• If none of the above is possible, you may simply have to retake the class. Consult with your academic advisor. Being aware of what went wrong the first time you took a class can be a powerful tool to use in successful completion of the class the second time around.
What NOT To Do with a Syllabus
**SARCASM ON**
• Space out, talk, text, and/or sleep while the instructor is reviewing the syllabus in class. Better yet, don’t even show up the first day of class when the syllabus is likely to be reviewed in detail.
• Don’t read it – in fact, go ahead and lose it or throw it away. That way, you can use not knowing what is in the syllabus as an excuse for a variety of things the entire semester.
• Don’t bring it to class. After all, who needs to keep track of when things like due dates for tests and major assignments are changed?
• Don’t transfer test and assignment due dates from your syllabus to your planner or calendar. Everyone knows that the work required for one class has no relationship to what you need to do for other classes.
• Don’t look at all your class syllabi together at once to get the big picture of how you need to organize your time and energy for the semester. It’s just too overwhelming!
**SARCASM OFF**
Should You Stay or Should You Go? Part 2
We're now past the halfway point of the semester at both colleges where I teach. Those of you who are on the quarter system should be just about at that point as well. It's time to take a close look at how you are doing in all of your classes.
Hopefully, you have been diligently tracking your own grades throughout the semester or quarter and have a good idea of where you stand. Whether you have done so or not, I strongly suggest checking in with your professors or instructors as to what your present overall grade is in each of your classes now that you are near or at the midpoint of your classes.
First of all, even if you've kept your own grade records carefully, you could have made a mistake. Guess what? Your instructors or professors may have made mistakes, too. It's definitely worth it to make sure both sets of grade records match up.
Knowing what your current grade is in each class can provide you with valuable information as to how to approach the rest of the term. Some instructors or professors post grades on Blackboard or other course management software; some want you to come to their offices in person; some will provide you the information via email. It depends on their individual preferences and policies.
If you are on track with what grade you want to achieve with a particular class, keep doing what you're doing - it seems to be working. Don't get lazy though -- keep up the same level of effort and the same kinds of activities you've been doing all along. A good grade at midterm is no reason to sit back and take a break.
If your present grade is somewhat lower than you want, it's time to explore your options for doing better. Be honest with yourself. If you simply have not been putting in the appropriate effort with reading, studying, reviewing, completing assignments, and working on projects, get it in gear. Map out a battle plan for the rest of the term that has scheduled times for reading, studying, writing, research, and whatever else it takes to complete the class successfully. Ask for help from the instructor, other students, and tutors if you need it. If study groups work well for you, organize one with other students in your class and share study techniques and energy.
If your present grade is a lot lower than you want, be realistic about what your chances are for finishing with an acceptable or even passing grade. Keep in mind that in college, any final grade lower than a C is a tremendous weight pulling your GPA down. In core classes in your major, a C for your final grade may also be unacceptable for your long term plans.
In my teaching experience, I have noted that the majority of students who are earning anything lower than a solid C (at least 75%) at the midpoint of a class do not tend to finish with final grades above a C. Many of them finish with even lower grades. Have there been exceptions? Absolutely! Have there been many exceptions? No. So what's the answer in this situation?
If you honestly feel you can put forth the concentrated extra effort to do exceptionally well in all the remaining gradable tasks for the class, make a plan and go for it. You should first definitely check with your instructor as to whether it is possible for you to attain the final grade you want before committing to this course of action.
If the final grade outlook is not favorable, see whether you are still able to withdraw from the class. At the colleges where I teach, students can drop with a W on their records between the 6th and 12th weeks of a 16 week semester. After the 12th week, students can no longer drop, instructors can no longer drop students, and the students must receive a grade for the class. Every college and university has different policies, of course, but I have never encountered an institution that does not have something similar in place.
The main advantage to withdrawing and having a W on your transcript is that a withdrawal has no effect on your GPA. If you simply stay in the class past the withdrawal deadline, you will wind up with a grade for that class even if you stop showing up. Granted, it's not a good idea to be toting up too many withdrawals on your record as it may give an unfavorable impression about your commitment levels to future employers or grad school evaluators, but a couple Ws on your transcript is much better that racking up GPA-destroying Fs.
If the withdrawal deadline has passed, you will need to plan to re-take the class. Visit your academic counselor immediately. However, do remember than when you re-take a class, the first grade you received for it and the second grade you received for it are averaged together on your transcript. For example, if you take a class and initially receive an F, then you re-take it and receive an A, it will affect your GPA as if you took it once and received a C. Also keep in mind that individual colleges and universities have policies about how many times you can re-take a particular class and how many re-takes are allowable in your time at their institutions. Planning to re-take a class is a last ditch strategy that should be avoided and can be avoided if you track your grades closely throughout the term and opt to withdraw from a class in a timely manner if necessary.
Should You Stay or Should You Go?
It’s the first day of classes. You’ve had two classes so far and feel pretty good about what you will need to do during the semester and your ability to learn from the instructors involved. You go to your third class of the day hoping for more of the same. But as that first class meeting goes on, you are a bit uneasy. Maybe it’s something about the instructor’s teaching style. Maybe it’s all those out of class group assignments that won’t fit well with your busy work schedule. Regardless of what particular aspect of this class makes you unsure that you should continue with it, it is important to think carefully about whether you should stay (keep the class) or whether you should go (drop the class). Here are some steps to take in making that decision.
Look at the syllabi for all of your classes and assess what your academic workload will be for the semester and also consider your non-academic obligations (family, work, faith activities, etc.). Be realistic about the time it will take you to study and complete assignments. If your schedule seems to be mind-blowingly full, you may want to consider dropping a class.
If you cannot drop a class without compromising your financial aid award, be prepared to immediately add another class to replace the units of the one you will be dropping. That means having an add code/permission to register in hand and ready to go. If you are doing the drop and add on paper, submit them simultaneously to registration personnel. Even if you can do the drop and add over the computer, I would still recommend going in person in case there is something that needs an override by registration personnel.
If you decide to drop the class, do it the right way and do it promptly. You enrolled yourself for the class, so it’s your responsibility to unenroll yourself. While some instructors will drop students if they stop showing up for class, they are not obligated to do so. You could wind up with a nasty F slamming your GPA down at the end of the semester just because you didn’t bother to formally drop a class. Going through the proper procedure to drop a class may also free up a space for another student who really needs it. Be mindful of drop and add deadlines and how they might affect how much of your money will be refunded. If you’ve held off on your decision to drop a class until you won’t be getting any of your money back, you might want to reconsider.
There also can be some compelling reasons to keep a class even if you’re feeling uncomfortable about it. Here are a few:
Are you close to transferring or graduating? If this is a class you need to accomplish either of those, you might be better off hanging in there so you can finish up on time.
Is the class not offered every semester? This is quite common, especially at the university upper-division level. It can be a nightmare for seniors to get into these classes, so dropping a capstone class can set you back significantly.
Is it a class that serves as a prerequisite to other classes? Dropping a prerequisite class will limit your ability to enroll in some other classes in the future, including required classes in your major.
Is the class only taught by one instructor? If you are uneasy about the instructor’s teaching style and he/she is the only faculty member who teaches that class, you might as well keep the class and find ways to get through it.
The Parking Maze
Parking lots at colleges and universities are some of the craziest places on earth. You have an extremely large number of people traveling in and out of campus at set times all vying for what seems to be very few decent parking spaces. As an undergraduate at Western Michigan University, I remember driving around at 3:30 pm with my lowly W sticker (commuter student permit) looking for a halfway reasonable parking spot near Sangren Hall. I would barely make it to my 4:15 pm class on time. (If any Broncos past or present are reading this, you know exactly what I mean.) I even left work extra early on class days to allow for hunting down a parking space so I could try to make it to class on time. Ah, memories.
Nothing can completely eliminate the pain of parking on campus, but here are some tips to make it a little easier.
Include time to look for a parking space in your travel time to campus. Some days you will hit it lucky and find a perfect space right away; other days will not go so well. If you plan ahead, you are saving yourself from the frustration of running late to class, which can be particularly stressful on exam days or if you have an instructor who is strict about late arrivals.
Do not park in restricted spaces. You will get busted. Maybe not the first time, maybe not the tenth time, but believe me, your luck will run out and you will have a hefty parking fine on your hands. It is true that faculty and staff parking spaces are often more convenient to campus buildings than student spaces, but there are good reasons for that. Their time deadlines to be someplace on campus are much more stringent than students' time deadlines. If you've ever complained because an instructor was late to class, consider that a possible reason was a student was unfairly taking a faculty parking space.
Many campuses give a one week grace period after the start of classes for parking permits. It's a good idea to get your parking permit as soon as possible. It is all too easy to let the grace period slide by and then get the unpleasant surprise of a ticket on your window. I am in the habit of obtaining my campus parking permits on the first or second day of class. Contrary to what many students believe, faculty and staff generally have to pay for parking permits too.
If possible, try to carpool or use public transportation to get to campus. This is not a good solution for everyone, but in some cases, it works great. Most of the campuses I have worked at have nice incentive programs to encourage people who carpool or use public transportation. Even if you do it part of the time, it helps lessen the parking crunch.
If money is a concern, do a little math to see whether you truly need to buy a full semester parking pass. For instance, if your campus daily permit rate is $1.50, you are only on a campus two days per week, and the full semester parking permit is $60.00, you will save $12.00 in a 16 week semester by using daily permit. Buying daily permits will also save you money if you are carpooling or using public transportation part of the time.
The First Day of Class - Don't Miss It
Has another college student ever told you something like this?
I never bother going to the first day of classes. Nothing happens. The instructor hands out the syllabus and then lets us leave, or drones on and on about the syllabus and other unimportant things. No real material gets covered at all. No, I never bother going to the first day of a class. It's a waste of my time.
Wrong, wrong, so wrong. The first day of a class is essential in numerous ways. Here are a few major ones.
The syllabus sets forth the expectations you need to meet in order to do well in a class, and a review of the syllabus clarifies any questions you may have about those expectations. It gives you an overall feel for how much and what type of work you will need to do during the semester. This can be very important to maintaining your grades at a level you desire. For instance, if you will be balancing a hectic work schedule with your classes, you might find that a class that requires a lot of group work scheduled outside of class hours is not the best idea.
A syllabus, along with the instructor's overview of it, can also give you other valuable information in deciding whether this is a class you want to keep in your schedule. Not only will you get an idea of what the work for this class will be like, you also get a taste of the individual instructor's style and approach to teaching and learning. Sometimes, for a variety of reasons, the way a specific instructor teaches and the way a specific student learns is not a good match. It is better to find this out right away while there is a possibility of successfully adding another class to replace the one you feel won't work for you. There is no one perfect way to teach material, nor is there one perfect way to learn material.
Much important information that is not on the syllabus is often provided the first day of class. For example, I routinely demonstrate how to log into the course management system and access the student areas of my website during the first session. I will often have a college procedures question and answer session. I often talk about specific features of the textbook and give suggestions on how to best use it to maximize success. When time allows, I show the students how to search for and obtain a scholarly journal article online. So much of what happens in class, not just on the first day but during any class session, consists of non-repeatable events.
While some instructors may simply hand out syllabi and dismiss class on the first day, many of us are going to dig right into introductory material that lays the foundation for the rest of the semester. Time in the classroom is precious, and I for one firmly believe in getting the learning underway as soon as possible.
I saved the most compelling reason to attend the first day of class for last. Quite a few instructors will immediately drop students who do not show up on the first day and immediately take adds to fill in their places. In today's climate of an increased number of students trying to register for a smaller number of classes, keeping a seat in a class is becoming more competitive. It has become routine for full classes to also have a waitlist of 20, 30, or more students. While it's nearly impossible to get everyone on the waitlist into an already full section, many instructors will try to reasonably accommodate at least some of them. Therefore, if you choose not to go to the first day of a class, don't be too surprised if someone else has taken your place when you finally show up.
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