Weird Freshman Problems: I don't know how to study!

Weird Freshman Problems:  I don’t know how to study!

New Series starting today, going to list out the weird problems freshman encounter, and give my two cents on how to fix them!

I write this post at 11:43 at night. I’m in the last 15 minutes of my sorority’s study hours for the night, and very excited to go home. Study hours are great because they keep me from procrastinating (having to be the academic role model for 90 women really makes Tumblr less tempting), but they can be very long.

I am the scholarship chair for my sorority, which basically means that I’m in charge of keeping people’s grades on track (see previous, Sororities are not just Elle Woods post). I have to meet with individual girls about grades and work out plans for them to succeed in the future. But I always want to hear their side of the story first.

One girl, a freshman now in her second semester, answered me “Honestly, I don’t really know how to study, I never had to before”

Which is something that I don’t really relate to… I definitely have always needed to study for everything.

But I’ve been reliably told this is actually the case for many college freshman… I need to ask you all high school students who follow me… Do you study?

In college I definitely learned to study smarter. I learned that flashcards are magic tunnels into storing things in your brain (especially because the action of physically writing the information helps you learn, Psych-Majored), and can be improved by dividing each sub-topic for a test into a different color.

For example, these are the flashcards I made tonight during study hours (ignore my terrible handwriting).

They’re for my first Cognitive Psych Test. Which I’m nervous for, because neuro based classes are definitely not my strongest suit.

I never did flashcards in high school, I drew webs of connecting ideas, or made lists. But that left my ideas jumbled and vague. Flashcards (and color coding) definitely were my best way to learn, and they didn’t come about until I was stranded in the library with flashcards and crayons (that kept breaking).

Happy accidents.

Other things that really help people in college is that there is a chance to find somewhere quiet to study. You have a big library with chairs and desks and tables at your beck and call, when before you may have only had your house (which, at least in my case, was always very loud).

Of course, college is also a kiss of death to some.
Suddenly it’s all up to you. No one is holding you accountable but yourself. You don’t have parent-teacher conferences. The difference between success and failure is all on your shoulders.

And that can be really scary!

Some do what I did, and way overcompensate. I probably worked harder than I really needed to in my first semester of college, and missed out on a lot of fun, because I was so scared of failing. I’ve toned it back a bit now, and have finally found the perfect work/fun balance.

The issue is, of course, taking your freedom and running with it. This can lead to some very scary academic realities. The first semester of college can go very poorly for people, particularly ones who didn’t need to work very hard in high school.

College classes usually have 2 or 3 tests (for math/science) or a test and 2 big papers (for humanities). There’s no extra credit. No class participation. No soft factors. And there’s no room to screw up. Failing one test can make you pray for a C.
And that’s terrifying, and causes many to shut down.

So what should you do, to ensure academic success in your first year?

1.     KEEP TRACK OF YOUR ASSIGNMENTS

I can not stress this enough. Get a calendar. Take your syllabuses and a pen. Write EVERY SINGLE THING you need to turn in on the calendar. You won’t miss assignments this way, and you’ll know when you have a busy week coming up (see: my two neuro tests on Monday)

2.     Seek help (even if you don’t think you need it)

Another great resource at almost every school is a writing center. College writing is hard. And it’s different. I’m still not great at writing for humanities at a college level (I’ve finally gotten Psych down). Get all of your papers looked over. Even if they’re only nit-picky issues, its best to nip them in the bud now. Even if it’s a small mini-paper that’s graded for completion, you don’t want to slack or make any big mistakes.
Also, seek out tutors and mentors! I can call the most academically driven person I know at any time when I’m freaking out, and she can give me great advice and point me to where I need to go.

Also, office hours. Go to them. Yes they’re scary. Yes, usually you can answer the question on your own (thanks internet!). But the face time with your professor and the extra help will be a positive influence.

3.     Over-prepare

I know I said I went overboard my freshman year. But take a tip from a brilliant freshman friend of mine. She was freaking out Monday about an upcoming test, she had pages of dates to memorize and was really worried. Tuesday afternoon? “Oh, it was easy, I feel really good about it,”

You can’t study too much for a test. Physical and mental health come first, but don’t be afraid to push yourself.
Study for quizzes. Write practice outlines for open-note essays.
Each little assignment should get your attention. Don’t blow things off.

Also, things I learned sophomore year, the vocab lists and chapter summaries in your textbooks are the best study guides (aside from professor-given study guides, but those are few and far between).

So I really need to ask all of you to leave a comment or an inbox with your answer!

Do you study? How do you study?