How will I survive college?

You can survive college! There are two important things that will allow you to prepare for your survival:

• Getting to know yourself better to develop a clear career focus and then talking to people who are working in that area to get to know what they do, how they got there, and see what suggestions and advice they might have for you.
• Learning to balance life in college to accomplish your goals and have fun doing it.

Getting to know yourself and how your personality traits relate to people involved in various career opportunities is very important in your decision making process. During my many years in Human Resources and College Recruiting, I ran across too many students who had skipped this very important step and ended up in a job situation which for which they were not well suited. Selecting a career area is like buying a pair of shoes. First you have to be properly fitted for the correct size, and then you need to try on and walk in the various shoe options to determine which is fits the best and is most comfortable for you to wear. Following are some important steps which I developed during my career which have been helpful to many .

Joy,

That is an awfully broad question! Are you talking academically, socially, financially, being away from home, or the overall stress?

Basically, you will survive it the same way you have survived everything else so far. You will talk about it with friends and family, make to-do lists, analyze and re-analyze situations, and make decisions. They might not be the right decisions, but, at least you will make a decision and move on with life, because stressing over what to do has never worked in the past and it won't work now!

The key is to get as much credible information as possible to guide you in making these decisions. Asking another 19 year old how to manage money may not be the best way to go. (Although I imagine there are a few who have figured it out!). Find reliable on-line resources, talk to counselors, etc. Time management and money management will be key.

Also, figure out what type of studying works best for you, and when your body is most alert. Don't take 8 a.m . classes if your brain doesn't wake up until 10:30! Make good use of your time between classes to study, so you can keep your evenings and weekends as free as possible for social activities and/or working. I liked having at least a two-class break between classes, to give me time to grab a bite to eat plus do some reading or studying. So, if I had two classes from 9-11, I would not schedule another class until 1 or 2.

Get contact information for other people in your classes, figure out who takes good notes so you can borrow them if you miss a class, and do what you can to help others out as well. As to test preparation, I recommend asking the professors on the first day where they draw their test material from. Some like to assign tons of reading, but test totally over the lectures. While you should keep up with reading assignments, you don't want to waste time reviewing them for the test! Oh, and that is the other thing. Whatever you do, do not fall behind! Do readings prior to class, and the lectures will make more sense. Take your own notes - don't rely on what the professor posts on-line, as it may not make sense to you without your own explanations added to it.

Financially, make a budget, and stick to it. Allow yourself some going out money, but don't go overboard with it! Find inexpensive things to attend. Check out on-campus music and theatrical performances, for example. The same goes for meals. Find the best deal. Do some cooking.

Bottom line: yes, you will make it!