The end goal of a college student is to graduate. This entails keeping up with your studies and maintaining your grades at an acceptable level in order for your objective during your college years to be achieved.
There are many things a college student must learn other than academics in order to avoid failing. Success is a matter of being able to adjust to the college life from the high school one. It is not always an easy task. The following are traits to avoid if you want to succeed.
Expecting the Professor to “Teach” You: Students need to take ownership of their own learning. College professors are the facilitators of the learning, but students need to take ownership of the learning process and follow through on it themselves.
Regarding Assigned Reading as Suggested Reading: At times professors will not lecture on assigned reading, but put questions from that reading on exams. This means you should be reading all assigned material, the information is usually important.
Do the Bare Minimum of Work: Some students have the audacity to believe that they can actually calculate what they can do to get a C in class to pass. This is not a smart way to treat your education. Many times unexpected situations occur where your calculations fail. Or at times students do the bare minimum in a lower level class and find themselves in a lot of trouble keeping up in their upper level classes. Thing do not always balance out.
Exhausted in Class: It will be the death of your educational career if you are tired and exhausted in class. In one ear and out the other is what usually happens. Get your priorities straight, if your exhaustion is due to partying the night before. Sometimes there is no getting out of being exhausted, but try to get your rest when you can and assign priorities to your life’s choices. Focus in class will become much easier when you are well rested.
Poor Attendance: Do not think that you can make up a missed lecture with extra studying. Professors do not always follow textbooks chapter by chapter, but add to its material to supplement it. Even though in most colleges you are not graded on attendance, it is important to get the information for each class from the professor. Depending on a friend or just skipping it all together can negatively affect your grade.
Waiting for the Last Minute to Study: Do not take studying for granted. Absorbing information is a process. Some students feel that studying too early they will end up forgetting the material that they learned when it comes to a test. The fact is the more time that you spend learning the information, the more likely you will be able to recall it when needed.
Take heed in what to avoid. Remember why you are there. Your graduation should be your number one priority. A good student is not necessarily the most intelligent. Use your brain and make the right choices. College can be fun and educational. Good luck!
