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How is college going to be like?
Will college be very different to High School?
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6 answers
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Briana’s Answer
Hi, Giovanny,
Yes, university is significantly different from high school in how it's set up. Firstly, there is a much larger variety of classes to choose from. You will have core distribution requirements and, after declaring a major, requirements for your major. But these can be fulfilled in many ways.
Your schedule is also largely up to you. You sign up for classes. You pick the times that work best for you, and you make sure that your distribution and major requirements are being met in a timely fashion. Unlike high school, you will likely not be in class for 8 hours a day, and you may even have weekdays where you don't have any classes at all. It is your responsibility to make sure this free time is used well and that you don't fall behind on studying, projects, homework, or any other jobs you may have. Here is an example of a freshman university schedule:
Monday
- Biology 101 lecture 10am
- Intro to Philosophy (Writing Credit) 1pm
Tuesday
- Psychology 101 10am
- Statistics 12:30pm
Wednesday
- Biology 101 lab 8am
- Biology 101 lecture 10am
- Intro to Philosophy (Writing credit) 1pm
Thursday
- Psychology 101 10am
- Statistics 12:30pm
Friday
No classes
As you can see, how you break up your day is quite different. Many students create schedules where they have all morning or all afternoon classes, or schedules where a particular set of days is free. As I said before, the onus is on the student to create a schedule that works for them, does not overwhelm them, and that they are able to reliably get to and do the work for on time.
Yes, university is significantly different from high school in how it's set up. Firstly, there is a much larger variety of classes to choose from. You will have core distribution requirements and, after declaring a major, requirements for your major. But these can be fulfilled in many ways.
Your schedule is also largely up to you. You sign up for classes. You pick the times that work best for you, and you make sure that your distribution and major requirements are being met in a timely fashion. Unlike high school, you will likely not be in class for 8 hours a day, and you may even have weekdays where you don't have any classes at all. It is your responsibility to make sure this free time is used well and that you don't fall behind on studying, projects, homework, or any other jobs you may have. Here is an example of a freshman university schedule:
Monday
- Biology 101 lecture 10am
- Intro to Philosophy (Writing Credit) 1pm
Tuesday
- Psychology 101 10am
- Statistics 12:30pm
Wednesday
- Biology 101 lab 8am
- Biology 101 lecture 10am
- Intro to Philosophy (Writing credit) 1pm
Thursday
- Psychology 101 10am
- Statistics 12:30pm
Friday
No classes
As you can see, how you break up your day is quite different. Many students create schedules where they have all morning or all afternoon classes, or schedules where a particular set of days is free. As I said before, the onus is on the student to create a schedule that works for them, does not overwhelm them, and that they are able to reliably get to and do the work for on time.
Updated
Doc’s Answer
Giovanny one of the biggest challenges you'll face as a new college freshmen is time management. Most students are surprised by the amount of "free" time they have compared to their lives in high school. In college, you may have three classes one day, and none the next. You might be tempted to kick back, but it's up to you to balance studying and coursework with socializing and free time. As a college freshman, you will be responsible for your learning. You’ll be expected to cover course material on your own with less hand-holding by professors and instructors than you might have experienced in high school. It’s common for some professors to assign material not covered in lectures (and to include that material in exams) and to call on you to explain readings, contribute to discussions, and debate key points.
While grades aren’t everything, they are important, and the philosophy behind grading in high school is very different from what most students encounter in college. High school classes are usually made up of daily lessons, a high volume of homework, projects, quizzes, and a few tests, plus some optional extra credit here and there. Point being, with enough effort, most students can maintain a pretty high GPA in high school, even if they don’t fully grasp the most complex material. Between homework, participation, group projects, and extra credit opportunities, students often have about 70% of their grade based off their pure effort and task completion. College is very different from this: while some college courses do include a participation grade or a group project here or there, the vast majority of college grades are made up of final exams or final papers. There are rarely opportunities for extra credit, and just showing up or doing the bare minimum work won’t get you an A.
Hope this was helpful Giovanny
While grades aren’t everything, they are important, and the philosophy behind grading in high school is very different from what most students encounter in college. High school classes are usually made up of daily lessons, a high volume of homework, projects, quizzes, and a few tests, plus some optional extra credit here and there. Point being, with enough effort, most students can maintain a pretty high GPA in high school, even if they don’t fully grasp the most complex material. Between homework, participation, group projects, and extra credit opportunities, students often have about 70% of their grade based off their pure effort and task completion. College is very different from this: while some college courses do include a participation grade or a group project here or there, the vast majority of college grades are made up of final exams or final papers. There are rarely opportunities for extra credit, and just showing up or doing the bare minimum work won’t get you an A.
Hope this was helpful Giovanny
Updated
Jason’s Answer
Great question! College is very different as there is far more to do and explore. However, there is also less structure. So you’ll have to learn to manage your time properly in order to maintain your studies while also finding time to pursue the various clubs and social interests you have. College is a wonderful place where you really get to explore the world around you and meet amazing and smart people. Your success is really up to you.
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Fernando’s Answer
It's rather liberating for the most part. Having the freedom to make your class schedule, the open campus along with the freedom to move around the town area is a great experience. The big thing that you'll learn in college, besides what you'll learn in your major, is time and money management. It will be tricky at first, but once you get into the beat of things it's gonna feel like second nature. When it comes to college tests and assignments expect to do more research and critical thinking. While your general classes will be near identical to the classes you took in high-school, the classes tied to your major will test you on different skills or ask you to develop new skills.
When it comes to classes tied to your major expect to be doing more projects, essays and tests that focus more on elaborating or expanding on previous subject matter. It wont be the usual multiple choice questions or questions you can easily clear by way of having a few cram sessions to bottle up the subject for the test.
When it comes to classes tied to your major expect to be doing more projects, essays and tests that focus more on elaborating or expanding on previous subject matter. It wont be the usual multiple choice questions or questions you can easily clear by way of having a few cram sessions to bottle up the subject for the test.
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Deborah’s Answer
The other people who responded gave really good answers for you. I agree with what they all said. I just want to reiterate Doc's answer: a major difference tends to be that you are now responsible for your time management and money management. This is typical, although there are some high school students who have gotten good at these areas for various reasons. If you can find ways to practice these skills over the summer, do so while you still have support hopefully from family or friends as you build these skills and possibly make mistakes. You'll learn so much from the mistakes, so hopefully you have resources of people etc who can have your back.
You will also be responsible for your choices around peers/friends and activities more than you were while in high school. If you had trouble with peer pressure, then practice this too over the summer. Not all the opportunities available in college are life-enhancing, so that will also be up to you ultimately. How good are you at saying 'no' to activities which may interfere with your goals? To people who are not keeping your best interests in equal balance with theirs? Are you good at forming a support structure for yourself? Practice over the summer, knowing all this will be new once you get to college. Great question!!!
You will also be responsible for your choices around peers/friends and activities more than you were while in high school. If you had trouble with peer pressure, then practice this too over the summer. Not all the opportunities available in college are life-enhancing, so that will also be up to you ultimately. How good are you at saying 'no' to activities which may interfere with your goals? To people who are not keeping your best interests in equal balance with theirs? Are you good at forming a support structure for yourself? Practice over the summer, knowing all this will be new once you get to college. Great question!!!
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Mark’s Answer
There are similarities and differences between high school and college. Brianna Pelle described the set up for classes pretty well.
One major difference is that you will be exposed to a number of new things, especially if you are going to school outside your city. There will be people from other walks of life with ideas that you may have never been exposed to. There will be more options for activities to participate in, programs to get involved with and student organizations to join. Unlike high school, some student organizations may be required to have a faculty advisor and some may not, either way the world of the organization is entirely student ran.
One major difference is that you will be exposed to a number of new things, especially if you are going to school outside your city. There will be people from other walks of life with ideas that you may have never been exposed to. There will be more options for activities to participate in, programs to get involved with and student organizations to join. Unlike high school, some student organizations may be required to have a faculty advisor and some may not, either way the world of the organization is entirely student ran.