How To Be Successful In College Tip #5: Change Your Perception of Pressure

Many college students like to wait until the last possible minute to start an assignment, write a paper or study for a big test. They justify this decision by repeatedly telling themselves that they “work best under pressure.” This statement is actually true for most students and for most people. When someone feels pressured to do something or feels like a matter is urgent they are much more likely to devote their full attention to it than if it is perceived as unimportant. The funny thing about working well under pressure is that it has absolutely nothing to do with waiting until the last minute! Students wait until the last minute not because they work well under pressure but because they simply don’t want to do the assignment! It is important to understand that LAST MINUTE WORK IS NEVER YOUR BEST WORK!!The key is to adjust your perception of pressure. Generally speaking one full week is enough time to adequately study for most tests and complete most assignments. So if I was assigned a paper on Monday (April 1st) to be turned in next Friday(April 12th) then I would usually start writing the paper that Thursday (April 4th). The first day I would write an outline and an introduction to the paper. The 2^nd and 3^rd day I would work on my 1^st draft. After that I would edit my first draft on the 4^th day. Then I would have a professor or english major edit my paper on the 5^th day. That same day I would revise my paper. On the 6^th day I would review the rubric and make sure that I followed all of the rules and turn my paper in early on the 7^th day. As you can see, it would be impossible to do all of this the night before the paper is due. Once you understand that creating your best work takes time, you’ll start to feel the “pressure” much earlier than the night before. Pressuring yourself to start your work early is a surefire way help you be successful in college.

How To Be Successful In College Tip #5: Use Fun As A Reward

When I was in college there was a crazy party every weekend. One weekend there would be a big outdoor foam party, the next weekend an upscale party at a fancy hotel and the weekend after that a reggae party at a local club. Partying is definitely a big part of the college experience and if approached the right way, can actually help you achieve higher grades. The key is to use your desire to have fun as a reward for completing work. For example, if I knew there was a big party on Saturday night then I would tell myself that I could not go unless I completed a certain amount of school work. I’d then get up at about 8am on Saturday, eat breakfast, go to the library and begin my work. I would stay in the library until about 5pm or whenever my work was done. Every time I felt like quitting and heading back to my dorm to play PS3 I reminded myself that I had to complete this work if I wanted to go to that party. This would give me the motivation to push through tough assignments.

In order for this to work, however, you MUST stick to the goal that you set for yourself. You won’t get ahead in your school work or in life if you try to take shortcuts. There were several times when I told myself that I would not got to the party unless I did both my physics and my English assignments. After completing my physics assignment I’d think “well I think I did enough today. I mean that physics was so tough that I really deserve to go to that party now and I can always do my English assignment later.” This type thinking is counterproductive. No matter how accomplished you feel you have not done enough until you’ve met your original goals. If you adapt this attitude then this method will help you improve your grades!

How To Be Successful In College Tip #4: Make a Plan

One of the most important steps to achieving academic success or any kind of success is to identify what needs to be done and make a plan to do it. For example, let’s say you’re not doing well in your calculus class. You first want to figure out why you are not doing well. So you go through some old quizzes and other graded assignments to find out what you are struggling with the most. Let’s say you find that you missed nearly every question on the last quiz that dealt with partial derivatives. Now that you know what the issue is you can create a plan of attack. Below is an example of how a plan to solve this particular issue would look.

1)      Re-read the chapter on partial derivatives

2)      Read articles online about partial derivatives to see if those articles can explain it in a way that the book could not.

3)      Email or call your professor and set up a time that you can go by her/his office hours to review the concept.

4)      If the teacher is not available to meet with you then ask her/him to recommend one of their colleagues, who may have a more open schedule, to help you.

5)      If she does not respond to your emails or phone calls then visit the math department at your university and ask them to recommend a math teacher to help you

6)      After receiving help, practice the concept by doing 20 different problems dealing with partial derivatives and then check them for correctness.

7)      If you are still having trouble, reach out to a student that is excelling in the class and ask them for additional help

If you make a thorough plan and stick to it, you will be able to overcome any obstacle that stands between you and academic excellence.

How To Be Successful In College Tip #3: Read

When I tutored freshmen college students I used to tell them that the best ways to get high scores on tests was to look up the answers to the test before hand, memorized them and spit them back out on test day. When I say this most students assume that I’m encouraging them to cheat and fall into a shocked silence. Other more bold students would lean toward me and whisper “where can I get the answers?” This is when I’d jump up and say “the book!” It may sound lame, but it’s so very true! All the answers to the test lie somewhere in your notes and textbook. If you read and memorize them then you will have all the answers to the test. 

How To Be Successful In College Tip #2: Suck Up To The Professor

Sucking up to the professor is absolutely crucial to being successful in college especially in classes that you are struggling in. Now what do I mean by “suck up” to your professor? Sucking up to the professor consists of doing three main things.

1)      Be Friendly

Believe it or not professors are human beings just like the rest of us. Subsequently, they should be treated with the same respect as everyone else. This means greeting them when you walk into class or see them in the hall. If you show up to their office after class with a question then ask them how their day was before asking your question. Doing these simple things will help you come off as friendly and professors don’t mind helping friendly students.

2)      Share A Little About Yourself

When done correctly this a great way to stand out to your professors. All you have to do is share something non-controversial, relevant and unique about yourself in causal conversation. For example, one summer I traveled to India to study microfinance. I often shared my experiences with my professors. They were intrigued by my experience and remembered me as the student that went to India. The two keywords to remember here are “relevant” and “non-controversial”. In addition to going to India I also have a very sculpted abdomen and a burning dislike of George Bush. While these things may be unique, they are not at all appropriate for sharing with a professor. My sculpted abs are not in any way relevant academics and my dislike of the 43^rd president may upset a professor. As a general rule, if you stick to things like involvement in college organizations, academic interest and unique academic projects you should be fine.

3)      Ask Questions

Engage your professor with relevant questions. The subject your professor teaches is most likely a subject that they are passionate about. Show them you are interested and they will notice you. It’s also good to talk to your professor in private and get to know exactly what they expect. Some professors like flowery writing while others like concise writing. Some like original ideas while others prefer a regurgitation of the material. Talking to your professor will reveal theses preference and a help you score higher grades. 

How To Be Successful In College Tip #1: Understanding

The most important thing any student can do is aim to understand. Many students see their classes and classwork as things they have to “put up with” in order to get a degree. Let me be the first to tell you that you won’t get far with that type of attitude. You have to look at your classes like a mechanic would look at a car. To become a mechanic one must learn the parts of a car and understand how those parts fit together to create a moving vehicle. Once a mechanic comes to this understanding, then figuring out how to repair anyone one part of the car becomes easy. It’s the same with school work. When you understand syntax, grammar, and essay structure then writing a term paper for English class is relatively easy. So before you can learn how to be successful in college you must commit yourself to truly understanding the subject matter of all your classes. 

How to Be Successful In College

I sat motionless at my kitchen table, staring at an unopened envelope from my university. I was nervous; beneath the seal of the envelope were my grades from my last semester of college. In all previous semesters I had earned straight A’s and this last report would determine if I graduated with a 4.0 gpa or fall short of the goal I’d tried so desperately to achieve. A few moments went by before I reached out and grabbed the envelope. I ripped it open and read its contents. A smile slowly stretched across my face as I sat the letter down on the table. Not only had I graduated early but I had done so with a perfect 4.0 gpa.

When I first stepped onto campus freshman year I knew the answer to the question “how to be successful in college.” Now I want to share the answer to that question with you. It takes a lot of hard work to be successful in college but the following tips will put you on the fast track to graduating with honors.