Advice
It's OK to Change your Mind and Other Advice from the Experts
By Marcy Kraus, dean of freshmen
The start of the new academic year is an enchanting time for those of us who work on a college campus. Each new class of freshmen brings excitement and optimism: "finally, I'm in college!" Many new students want to try everything. After all, as high school seniors they participated in a variety of activities, earned high grades in their classes and managed it all successfully. Why should college be any different?
College is different and while the vast majority of college freshmen will do just fine, it is the rare student who doesn't experience a bump or two in the road during the first year. Many freshmen, in their eagerness to dive into their college experience and get a head start on their academic plans (and LIFE), run the risk of taking on too much, too quickly. The result? Capable and smart students are disappointed by their freshman year and wish they knew in August, what they now know in May.
What advice would rising sophomores and juniors give to their pre-frosh selves if they had an opportunity for a "do over?" As the College's dean of freshmen I enjoy asking this question when I have the opportunity to speak to our current students. They have shared much thoughtful wisdom including:
- Don' t worry about how people around you are doing, just focus on doing the best you can
- There is a lot to do and it is better to sample things a bit at a time
- It's OK to say no
- You don't have to know everything now
- Remember how you wanted to be a doctor last year, but now you are SURE you want to be a psychologist? Remember that next year when you decide on the next thing you want to be
- Take an art class
- No one will wake you up in the morning
- Trust yourself
- School is a full time job
- Get to know one professor really well each year
- Try something you never thought you would try
- You don't have to take the same courses as everyone else
- Take a study skills course—even if you don't think you need one!
- Don't expect to do what you did in high school and be a successful college student
- If you think you need help, ask for it—don't wait
Parents can play an important and supportive role in helping their students understand that college is very different from high school, and that it is far better to take some advice from the "veterans" than to assume that life in college won't be much different from life in high school. New college students will find that there are a multitude of resources available to provide guidance on every topic from picking first semester courses to finding help in math; academic advisers, faculty, resident advisors, the dean of freshmen, and other campus administrators and peers are a few examples of helpful resources and good people to get to know. When your students arrive for Orientation in August, they will be "oriented" to the campus and begin to get to know who these helpful people are. We look forward to the privilege of welcoming your sons and daughters to campus very soon!
