Starting College; What Should You Be Doing Before? So, you’re off to college in a few months, The application process was tedious and overwhelming, but now it’s finished and you have been accepted into one of the institutes you applied to. Now, you may be asking yourself what you’re going to be doing with your summer. Although college and schoolwork may feel like time away yet, there are a handful of critical things you should add to your checklist to smoothly make the transition to college.
Let’s have a look at some of the things you could be doing before starting college:
Familiarise Yourself With Your Requirements
Knowing your requirements is the first step to success when starting college. You should get yourself familiar with the core curriculum or required courses before you start choosing your classes. Colleges are designed to expose students to a wide range of disciplines to provide a well-rounded education, you will choose your major later. Although you may not like the idea of taking a science course when you’re ultimate goal is to study creative writing, you should take some time to understand what a well-rounded education looks like.
Register For Classes
Your course choices are quite vast compared to what you see at school. You need to look at the general requirements as your guide to choosing the classes you want to attend. You should always choose your first classes according to what you need before optional extras. Freshman year is the time to get other options out of the way, but you need to have your major in focus at all times. The spaces are unlikely to be available, to begin with, but you can register for these at a later date. Looking at summer pre-college programs could be a good idea before selecting your course as it will give you a better indication of your likes.
Get Yourself A Calendar
If you haven’t already, start to get organized! When attending college you will need to keep a strong focus on deadlines for registrations, financial aid, papers, and much more so, it’s a good idea to start getting yourself organized right from the start. If you start to focus and managed then you’re more likely to continue that way throughout your studies. If you’re someone who struggles with timekeeping then you’re going to have to put even more effort into getting yourself organized and a diary is a perfect way to start this.
Purchase Your Textbooks
There is often a rush in the first week of college, as people are rushing to get the books that they need. Do your research and buy your books in advance instead. You will save time, and money and be able to guarantee that you have the right books for the right courses. Search the web for better deals, or even consider renting them as a cheaper option. Professors will often require their students to have all the materials they will need right from day one, so don’t show up unprepared.
These are just four of the things you should be thinking about getting ready before college. Do you have any others that are vital that you can share in the comments?
