college advice from someone who’s been on both sides of it
So I’m finishing up my Ph.D. and preparing to depart for the real world (no, just kidding, I’m going to be in school forever, only in a different capacity) and I thought I’d put together a list of some college tips to share with you all. I graduated with my B.A. in 2012, magna cum laude, with 2 majors, 1 honours thesis, 2 on-campus jobs, and 3 music things. Since then, I’ve gone to grad school and also taught six semesters of first-year seminars. Now I’m going on the job market for teaching positions. All of this means that I’ve seen both sides of the college experience, as a student and as an instructor. There are a lot of great & useful college advice posts going around studyblr this time of here, and I wanted to add my own. I hope it’s useful. So here we go, with a “read more” because it’s long (sorry if you’re on mobile):
find your classrooms ahead of time (profs’ offices too)
figure out how long it will take you to walk between places
figure out where your best seat will be & claim it
say hi to the people next to you, learn their names
take advantage of extra credit
try your best not to fall asleep in class (and if you do fall asleep, apologise to the prof afterwards)
bring your glasses if you need them, don’t be stubborn about it
check out the library, wander in the stacks, talk to the librarians
figure out how & where to print
buy used books/textbooks, or rent them, but be careful with ebooks (some profs don’t allow them)
plan breaks into your class schedule, or block everything together, whichever works best for you
work out the pros & cons of 8am classes and/or night classes
plan ahead – have a planner, put things in it, do them
fake deadlines are a thing (write down earlier deadlines, trick yourself into meeting them, bask in satisfaction)
grades won’t be what they were in high school
keep in mind GPA values: a 3.5 will see you graduating with honours
be nice to the departmental administrative staff, thank them for helping you (even with small things)
office hours versus emailing profs: both will get your questions answered (probably) but if you can go and talk in person, do it
profs & TAs are people too, they have lives, they have bad days
if something comes up, talk to your prof, be honest but don’t overshare, just show them you’re trying
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