To be successful in college, you must get used to living on your own and discover what it takes to become independent.
One of the things you’ll have to get used to is doing your own laundry… Perhaps the biggest doozy of all the things you must do is learning how to do laundry, but this is definitely something you should figure out now rather than later.
A lot of kids do their own laundry, but if you’re one of those lucky enough to have a parent or other family member do it for you, it would be a smart choice to start figuring out how it’s done.
Ask your mother (or whoever does it) if you can help her the next time she does laundry. Learn how to separate your clothes and what constitutes different sizes of loads. Learn how to wash towels and bedsheets as well. Learn how the dryer works too.
Make sure you understand what to put in the wash as well for each type of clothes. Chances are laundry supplies were on your college dorm checklist too, so understand how to use them.
For more help on laundry, you can always check out eHow’s page on laundry, right? Well, so far for a bit of practical advice, but not to what it’s all about, taking college classes!
What college classes should I take first?
Unlike high school, you’re now paying a lot for college, so if you aren’t taking the right classes, you’ll be throwing the money that you may have earned with hard work at your part-time job, right down the drain.
Most colleges and universities use a semester-based academic calendar and before you begin your first semester at college, at some point, you’ll need to decide what classes you want to take.
After your first semester, you’ll understand well how to choose classes, but at first, you might be a bit confused. Depending on if your school uses the quarter or semester system, you’ll probably be taking somewhere between three and five classes.
The key to making sure that you’re taking the best classes you can is to prioritize. In order to decide which classes you should take, ask yourself what you want to get out of the classes you want to enroll in.
Look through the whole course catalog
You’d be surprised at what interesting classes your college or university might offer. Instead of taking a literature class, perhaps you can take a themed writing class that you’d enjoy more.
Perhaps your school offers classes on other topics that you’d find interesting. If you don’t look through the catalog, though, you’ll never know. Today, many courses are also available online but don’t forget to protect your laptop properly. Theft is, unfortunately, all too common, also in college!
Have backup classes
Most colleges give enrollment priority to upper-classmen, meaning incoming freshmen choose their classes last.
Popular classes fill up fast, and if you’re not prepared, you can quickly find that three of your four classes are already full.
So when possible, find alternatives in case your preferred classes are full and be prepared to choose an inconvenient section time.
As said before, college tuition and other costs are expensive enough, so explore all available scholarship and grant options available to you. To learn more about the relevance and importance of college rankings, check out this post.
Keeping a calendar is crucial in college
Once you’ve secured your high school diploma and secured great SAT or ACT scores, you may go to college.
But with tons of midterm dates, finals, varying class schedules, homework due dates, and various other events going on, it’s easy to forget a few important dates and miss out on something important.
Last year I learned how important it was for me to keep an active calendar going, one where I could plot out events that I could otherwise forget. This not only serves your accuracy. It may also be helpful to remind you to eat healthily (don’t fall into the Freshman-15 trap!) and work out regularly, key factors in your freshman year!
Before I started keeping a calendar, I would occasionally forget that my homework was due the next day or that it was a friend’s birthday.
I found that my best bet to keep track of everything was a calendar. Since I personally spend a ton of time on the computer, I wanted one that would integrate nicely with my computer and that I’d see often. I discovered that there was a program that did this well —Rainlendar.
Rainlendar allows me to easily enter dates, events, and other items and keep track of them. And when you’re planning to make a research paper, it comes in very handy to stay on top of everything. It’s easy to add recurring events, and it looks downright sexy.
This isn’t meant to be a Rainlendar advertisement, though, but rather to encourage you to keep a calendar. If using your computer works best, use that. If you need a paper calendar, use that. If you like a small planner, use that.
As long as you’re active in writing down the dates you need to remember and as long as you check the calendar frequently, you’ll be okay.
More competition
At different stages of our school career, we have to defeat our competitors to achieve our career goals. Over the years, due to the limited number of seats, the intensity of the competition has increased manyfold.
Situations have become more difficult because now everybody has become career conscious and try to make the best use of the situation. The fact of the matter is that usually, students who managed to create a good study plan are more successful.
To stand out in the crowd it is important to have a proper plan to prepare for competitive exams. With the right strategy and proper hard work, you’ll be able to tackle these exams more effectively. Check out the following few basic steps that will help you become more successful.
Preparation steps for competitive exams
- It is important to lead a disciplined life (however hard that may be at times in college…)
- Time Management is important
- Draw a proper routine to cover up the whole syllabus
- Collect proper notes and reference books for in-depth study and maybe the Pomodoro Study Technique is right for you
- Practice by clearing as many exams as possible, also consult the previous exam question papers
- Refer to proper guidance or professional help to apply the most effective and faster way to solve any question
- Mental stability, determination, confidence is essential
Keep also in mind that often, we spend a lot of time doing an in-depth study which can be controlled more efficiently by dividing the topic under several subheads to cover the whole topic easily.
Achieving a competitive edge
With university and college places increasingly at a premium, the quest to achieve a competitive edge over other candidates is particularly pertinent.
Popular courses are continually oversubscribed so give yourself a fighting chance from the beginning by dazzling during the application process.
Every college and university will have slightly different criteria for determining their choice of undergraduates. Successful applicants will always need to comply with a certain level of academic achievement.
This indicates to the admissions staff that candidates are likely to be able to adequately cope with the demands and difficulty level of the course in question.
If adequate grades have been achieved and strengths in the relevant disciplines demonstrated, chances are, admissions staff will consider non-academic achievements to help sort the wheat from the chaff.
Progressing through the selection process
With college and university places in such high demand, it’s important to reach the interview stage in order to be able to shine. Meeting with a university representative allows the opportunity to demonstrate crucial strengths of character, such as the ability to be articulate and personable.
An interviewer will look for those personality traits that suggest a candidate has the chance of sustaining a successful university career. Bear in mind that a community college or trade school education could well be your best option for a rewarding career.
To increase the likelihood of progressing through the selection process, ensure your application portrays your achievements, interests, and personality in a way that highlights your potential.
Extra-curricular activities are increasingly important. Involvement in non-academic organizations demonstrates interest beyond school and academic achievement and suggests a well-rounded individual with the potential to contribute positively to university life.
Having and sticking to a good timeline during your senior year in high school is crucial and voluntary experience always looks excellent on your resume!
The inclusion of voluntary work in personal statements is also viewed in an increasingly positive light. Work undertaken within the vocational sphere of your chosen subject or for a local cause close to your heart will add an additional element of interest to your application.
Voluntary work speaks volumes about a candidate’s character. Giving generously of your time suggests a sense of community and commitment to a cause. Voluntary work as part of your application will paint a picture of a kind-hearted, interesting, and mature individual whose presence is bound to be of benefit to campus life and beyond.