My 18-year-old just started college. He’s enrolled at a public university here in New York City, and already we’re navigating the complexities of the freshman experience. Everything is new to him. Ironically, he’s fairly used to working independently. One of his assignments for his First Year Seminar, a class designed to help him acclimate to college, asks him to indicate how he spends his time, dividing between school, work, personal, and social time. He had to watch a video on time management, outlining how college can be a bit of a learning experience for students who are not used to having unstructured time. As a homeschooled student, my son is very used to organizing his own schedule, figuring out how much time he needs to allot to his different subjects, and balancing between school, work, and other activities. What’s less familiar, of course, is Blackboard, the learning management system that his college uses, and the process of having to work with a whole range of different professors and learning tools all at once. That is definitely an adjustment.
The first week of college is made more difficult, though, by a number of specific challenges that I think all students face. First, there’s the fairly substantial difficulty of getting around campus. Most college campuses, because of the size of most institutions, are quite large. Even if they’re not all that big, if they don’t cover a vast area, they probably still have several buildings. When they get their schedules, students have to learn to navigate the building codes and rooms. I’ve seen it myself all week with my own teaching.
Then there’s the difficultly of accessing and reviewing all of the paperwork that you get from college professors. The first day of every college class is pretty similar for everyone – teacher and student alike. College professors have to review their syllabi, typically, and students have to review them, too. To minimize difficulties later in the semester, I actively encourage my own students (and now my son) to carefully read through course policies and take note of upcoming assignments. Yet, this week, I’m also watching my son struggle to access courses and course syllabi. A few of his professors haven’t provided their syllabi yet (even after the first day of class), and that actually makes it particularly difficult for students to then navigate the initial assignments for the course. On a good day, on Blackboard, it’s tricky enough trying to figure out what’s due.
Fortunately, though, for all of the potential challenges in the first week of college, there are plenty of things that students can do to make their lives easier, and hopefully there are a few students who eventually read this in a search for guidance on how to make the most out of the first week.
First, be prepared.
Preparation for college is a little different from preparation for a K-12 experience, because you’re also adulting for what may be the first time. You may be learning to live on your own, away from home, figuring out stuff like groceries and laundry. But from an academic point of view, preparation is having a computer, having a planner and a calendar to lock down your schedule; taking some time to work out where the library is and also listening in on freshman activities that introduce you to other key resources on your campus, such as tutoring and mental health services. Mapping where you’re going, getting to know your campus layout, is massively helpful, because it will save you time on your first day (probably your second day, too) as you are working out where to go.
Second, ask questions.
I always tell my college students that if something doesn’t look right on the syllabus, they should tell me and I will check it out. Chances are it isn’t right and I will have to correct it. I also tell my students that there’s no such thing as a stupid question, which there isn’t. And by asking questions, especially of your professors and peers, you start a dialogue that can lead to the formation of a positive and productive relationship. It also reduces anxiety, of course, so if there’s something you’re unsure of, ask!
Third, and related to the second point, make a point of meeting your professors.
There’s a world in which every college student is treated equally, given equal support and benefit of the doubt in tricky situations. That’s not necessarily where we all live. In fact, and I found this myself as a student, you’re way more likely to get help from a professor if they know you, if they can put a face to a name when you email them. Professors are humans (really!) and like most humans, they have more empathy, more flexibility, when they feel a connection to whoever is seeking help. Plus, getting to know your college professors is also how you get to know what their expectations are when it comes to assignments, so it’s a time investment that really pays off. Go to office hours. Talk about the course assignments, the readings, and your interests, and the chances are you will get more out of your semester with your professors’ support.
Fourth, work on your time management skills.
Especially if you’re not used to managing your own schedule, if being in a traditional school setting is what you’re most familiar with, spend the first couple of weeks evaluating how much time you actually need for the homework for each class and other things like eating and sleeping. Use a calendar and a to-do list for assignments, and perhaps also a time-management tool like Pomodoro to help you stay focused on tasks. For more tips on time management in college and other contexts, check out our earlier post.
Finally, yes, reach out to tutors. You don’t need to reach out to professional tutors, necessarily. Your college will typically have tutors available to you free at the point of service. But your first few weeks are also an ideal time to get to know tutors who can help you with assignments as the college semester ramps up!