Please pick one of the following questions and answer it in 75-100 words. Please submit your post as a comment to this main post. If you like what someone else wrote, feel free to post a reply to them. Remember to take pride in what you write and spell check it please.
Monday
A) Share a sound piece of advice regarding a strategy or approach for achieving success in college that someone has told you.
B) What are the issues related to college that you are anxious about and explain why.
A) Even though college definitely involves a lot more commitment individually that one needs to fulfill, I was told that (especially here in the Center) to never be afraid to reach out and ask for help. Especially if you feel that you are struggling at the beginning of freshman year, it is best to seek help immediately - from professors, administration, tutors, etc. Most of all, Judy April (from what I've heard) is the ultimate resource to use with any dilemna. She is the "go-to" person and is always there. :) The Center seems really friendly, and is there to help you.
ReplyDeleteCollege is an overwhelming experience for many incoming freshman and this new experience leaves many, if not all students with some anxiety about their upcoming first semester. Several of the issues that I feel are causing me anxiety are the “getting used to things” aspect of college, where for the past 12 years we have dealt with the same public school experience, with a set time of day to have a class. College on the other hand is a totally different experience and there is no “regular” everyday schedule, which leads to a daunting obstacle, of trying to schedule a class and when to schedule it just right, whereas in the past everything was done for you. This, along with the problem of not knowing what is going to be covered during the semester, to a certain extent, from a syllabus or other guide, gives me some anxiety about the upcoming college semester.
ReplyDeleteA lot of people told me that the college years are the best years of your life.. What they also told me is that if you don't do the work you'll be living in the worst kind of hell there is. Those same people told me that the work will be stressful, but that doesn't mean you won't have any help along the way. You can always see your professor if you have any questions or you can see tutors to help you understand the work presented in front of you. The work is what's gonna make me anxious because it was already quite stressful trying to get to this blog due to using the wrong Google account. But here I am so no more worries.
ReplyDeleteB.) While I am eagerly awaiting to start college, I am anxious about a few things. I’m one of the students who will be living on campus come August, and because of that, I’m a little nervous because I would be entirely dependent on myself keep my own schedule. Also, in case of an emergency, I would have only one nearby family member to assist me (my uncle who works on campus). I’m also slightly worried about keeping track of the many assignments that I would have for several classes at a time. Rather then have classes daily and being constantly reminded about them, I would have to make an extra note of any major and minor assessments.
ReplyDelete- John Peterson
I once read somewhere: From Prekindergarten until 12th grade you’re on a free trial of education, then you graduate and that trial is over. Being that I will be the first in my family to make it to that extra step, make it passed the free trial, I made it my goal to go around and ask for as much advice and help as I could from multiple college alumni, especially my mathematical teachers who are also Kean alumni. One advice I repeatedly got was: You’re becoming a part of the STEM Program, that’s not easy, but you’re capable of making it past the five years and so is everyone else if you take advantage of what is being given to you; tutors aren’t there to look pretty or make fun of you, but to help; use them. Use every piece of help you can get.
ReplyDelete- Stephanie Roman
A good friend of mine during my high school career gave me a couple words of advice that I will never forget and it deals with our time and stress topic from today. Those words of advice were “Stay ahead in your school work and you will be better off in the long run”. Those are simple but powerful words that I have lived by in everything that I do in including academics and sports. By following this advice I even have time to do the fun things. Try it, it does work.
ReplyDelete-Jared Warner
A.) Many people have told me about the stress of work in college especially as a freshman. It is very different than high school and a lot of people have difficulty with the transition. I have always received advice telling me how to have a smooth transition. It consists of a few pieces that together help make you successful in college. Never fall back on anything because it will be difficult to catch up. Also, take advantage of the opportunities and resources present because they can really help you in college. One thing specific to the STEM program people have told me is to never be afraid to go to the Professors with questions. I heard that they are really nice and are willing to help you every step of the way.
ReplyDeleteTime, time and time! That is probably the number one factor that I am anxious about. Professor Hassinger gave us quite a vivid picture of the value of time during college. I came to realize that if I had to succeed and make it through the next couple of years I will have to manage my time very efficiently. That means no more television show marathons for me. I will have to learn to manage working a part time job, studying and having a social life. Finding a good balance between these three will probably be the most endeavoring of all.
ReplyDeleteRaymond Bangs, a chemistry teacher, once told me that success is about how well one can prepare himself for the gauntlets ahead, regardless of difficulty. Success is made; not given: luck plays no role. I have taken this advice to heart and have learned to prioritize tasks at hand; I have also learned to make sacrifices such as giving up a weekend with friends for late nights vehemently reviewing notes. My advice, which I heed and blazon, is to prepare ahead of time: do not procrastinate.
ReplyDeleteOver the past few months as graduation dates approached, my peers and I have received many different pieces of advice about college, living on campus, and the importance of education--many of which included going to the gym as often as possible, studying in a quiet area, etc. However, one of the most touching words of advice weren’t recent. About five years ago my late grandfather told me that when it comes to education, I should be “working hard when working, and dancing hard when dancing”. At the time I thought he was only referring to my dance performances, but now I begin to see that he meant that I should be enjoying life’s happiest moments whenever I looked up from a textbook.
ReplyDelete~Shilpa Mathew
A) During the last week of school before graduation, my chemistry teacher, Mr. Bangs, read the class Steve Job's commencement speech for Stanford University. He emphasized one phrase in particular: "stay hungry, stay foolish" and said that they were words to live by. Mr. Bangs told us that in order to be successful in life and in college, you have to be curious and keep aspiring to do bigger and better things. He said that we should never stop learning, or lose the will to want to learn. He told us to “stay hungry, stay foolish.”
ReplyDeleteAfter my high school graduation, my family came back to my house so that we could all go to dinner and celebrate. Before we left my uncle pulled me aside and told me, "Once college starts, you must keep your focus, I know you'll want to have fun and that's fine, but you must understand that your education comes first". I've taken those words that my uncle said to me and I began to think on it. In my thought I have come to realize that he's right. If someone wants to succeed, they must put their education first and when all is said and done, if that person still has time to do whatever they want to participate in they are free to do as they please.
ReplyDelete-Patrick Bigg
Upon graduating, Mr. Woods, a teacher whom I worked very closely with since 7th grade, pulled me to the side and gave me advice to achieving success in college. He told me, "No one in college looks after you but yourself.The only one who can make your 4-5 years successful is yourself. The only one who can achieve greater things for you is yourself". Without prioritizing the main tasks in life, one could lose valuable time and not realize it. To achieve success is to put yourself in front of everything and do what is necessary because everything else can wait.
ReplyDelete- Neil Pascual
A.) Don't slack during the first semester of college! Apparently, freshman courses are some of the easiest, making the first two semesters a great opportunity to get your GPA up. So then if you do not do so well in classes during your later years, you will at least have a decent GPA from the start of your college career to balance it out (somewhat). Despite this, the level of difficulty during the first semester of college can be very hard compared to high school, so come to class prepared and willing to learn.
ReplyDeleteSomething that I recently became anxious or worried about is the time. Managing it, I believe, will take some time getting used to for me. Personally, I never really paid much attention to time in high school. It was never an issue, but I think it will become an issue if I don't take managing my time seriously in college. I can work at managing my time by first writing down a schedule of things that I have to do during the week and then organize my working schedule and my free time according to the classes I have.
ReplyDeleteI am a little worried about all of the challenges that college brings to the
ReplyDeletetable. It is a new found freedom, however, it may be hard to adjust to doing
everything on my own. Also the classes and work will most likely be far more
difficult when being compared to the simple tasks and worksheets that high
school required. One of my biggest concerns personally is balancing all of my
school work with playing softball here at Kean because both are very time
consuming. I can usually adjust to change but college is one change to my life
that I am very anxious to make.
B) I am slightly anxious about all of the completely new connections and acquaintances I will have to make. I often hear from the adults in my life about how some of the best relationships in their lives began in college. I also here a lot from my current, but slightly older, peers that college really isn't all its cracked up to me and that it's actually very easy to feel alone in a sea of people that ultimately have the same goal as you. However, the common ground I share with other students in the NJCSTM program will hopefully boost at least a few friendships that will help me feel a little more welcome to the University atmosphere.
ReplyDelete