The New York Times, By Jeffrey Durso-Finley and Holly Burks Becker
September
6, 2012 5:58 am
Jeffrey Durso-Finley and Holly Burks Becker are co-directors of college
counseling at the Lawrenceville School
in Lawrenceville, N.J.
Dear High School Graduate:
Whether you and your college-bound classmates
are heading to a research university across the country or a small liberal arts
college just up the road, it's exciting (and potentially a bit intimidating) to
think about a completely new academic environment.
Accordingly, we have compiled some advice to
help guide your success in the next phase of your life. We've distilled some of
our own experiences from working at high schools and colleges, along with some
of the feedback we've received from college students, to give you the essence
of what you need to be successful over the next four years.
Combine these suggestions with your ability
and best efforts, and you will succeed brilliantly over the next four years. We
wish you the best of luck.
A college education is a classic
process-versus-product paradigm. Plenty of students complain about their work
or obsess about their G.P.A., but that's just wasted energy and time. Don't get
caught up in any academic ennui. Instead, focus on your assignments, papers and
projects for their intrinsic learning value; the grades will come naturally.
Unless you have a spartan single and
concentration powers of steel, your room is the worst place to study because of
the comfort and the distractions.
Given the realities of dorm life, it's far
too easy to wander across the hall and talk to your neighbor, or to have
Facebook on while you glance back and forth from your book to the screen.
Find a spot that works for you, and call it
your "homework home." A carrel in the upper stacks of the main library usually
works perfectly; there are no distractions. Oftentimes, smaller, more lightly
used libraries on campus have great study spaces and light traffic. Unoccupied
classrooms or common areas with less traffic can have excellent lighting,
privacy and plenty of space to spread your materials.
Every college has opportunities for
undergraduates to do research or to assist in large-scale academic endeavors,
so actively seek them out, even if you haven't been on campus very long. You'll
be rewarded by the people you'll meet and the insight you'll gain on the
institution as a whole.
If your financial aid package includes
work-study opportunities, look for employment in departments and libraries
instead of going to dining services or the athletic department. The connections
you'll make outside the classroom could even lead to study opportunities.
It's a classic picture of undergraduate life:
a student leafing through the course guide, picking classes for the next term
based on what looks interesting and also fulfills curriculum requirements.
Don't follow that model.
Find the best professors on campus and take
their classes, even if they don't seem interesting at first read. You may find
these professors by talking to your adviser, using the school's faculty review
resources and asking older students about their favorite faculty members.
Follow their leads.
A good professor will turn neutral subject
matter for you into a joy; a poor professor will blunt your interest in a
subject area you love. As a corollary, visit several classes the first week or
two of a term. Most colleges have some sort of shopping period when the class
rosters haven't been finalized. Visit 8 or 10 or even more classes during that
time before you settle on your final schedule.
You are only going to take 35 to 40 courses
during your time in college. Why waste one on a poorly designed class or a dry,
energy-sapping professor?
Academic clubs, social organizations and
professional associations take on a larger, more applied and energetic meaning
in college. You should jump in with both feet, even if it means getting outside
your comfort zone a little bit.
The breadth of opportunity for student
interaction is outstanding even at the smallest of colleges. Getting involved
will dramatically increase your enjoyment and experience.
It may seem silly to remind you to go to
class. But it won't be quite so obvious as you settle into college life, when
you realize that there's no detention or punishment for missing classes, when
you discover that the professor's lecture notes are online and as your roommate
pulls the covers over his head when the alarm clock rings for an 8 a.m. class.
Your class hours drop by more half when you
go to college. You have access to some of the most accomplished experts in
their field, and you are paying a tremendous amount of money to have access to
them. Don't waste it.
Professors like talking to students.
Seriously. If you go to office hours with questions, ideas or just to find out
more about the course material, you'll be surprised at how enthusiastic (most)
professors are to sit and talk to you. More important, you may be surprised to
learn how they'd like to get to know you beyond the paper or lab assignment
you've handed in.
Take advantage of ways to talk to professors
outside the classroom. You'll learn more, have a greater appreciation of your
academic experience and have more ways to find mentors, professional and
academic references, and employers for research projects.
Part of college life is learning how to take
care of yourself. Regulate your diet by eating healthy foods and resisting the
temptations of the unlimited and unsupervised dining options. Exercise to
maintain your physical health: sign up for a gym class, join an intramural team
and find people who share your athletic interests. Don't forget to sleep.
Keeping your body well cared for will help you stay healthier and be more
successful academically.
Many students report that their high school
experience is both a blessing and a burden as they make the transition to
college. Whether you graduated from a comprehensive public high school with
3,000 students or a small private school with 35 seniors, you will find that
college life is simply different and that you'll need resilience to acclimate
to the differences.
This next stage for you is about living and
learning independently, skills that develop over time. Be patient as you and
your classmates settle into college life. Don't expect to be perfect, but draw
strength and inspiration from your previous learning experiences. Good luck!
