(ThyBlackMan.com) This blog’s all about being broke and fabulous and what’s more broke than a student? Few things. But we all know that as a student you’re going to have to tackle budgeting and little money more than ever before. What about the other issues you’re going to come up against? What about the psychological and personal troubles that can really bog down the experience? Or how you actually do well in your course? It doesn’t always come naturally and that’s okay. You just need to find your groove. Which is what these tips are all about. We’re going to look at how to get those worries out of the way and make college the great experience it should be.
Homesickness
Homesickness is a big one. Particularly for the new students but not always. Unsurprisingly, a lot of people suffer homesickness at college so there are a lot of tips that are passed down. The best one, I find, is to simply ingratiate yourself with the area. Make friends and get out. Explore the town on sunny days to get more used to it. However, it’s always a good idea to have those home comforts, too. Care packages and Skype let you bring the best of home with you wherever you go as you wean yourself onto your new environment.
Isolation
I may have just recommended making friends, but some of us know it’s not all that easy. A new environment can easily make us feel a little smaller, a little more prone to social anxiety. But you have to take that leap. A great way can be using your interests and circumstances. Join a study group and mingle with the other people doing what you do. Find hobby and interest groups that match your own passions. Remember that everyone at college feels a bit more cut off and nervous. They’re all experiencing the same thing as you. The only way that they, or you, get out of that is by taking the initiative. Go to where your future friends are, don’t wait for them.
Better studying
For some people, getting into a new place and making friends is the easy part. The hard part might come when it actually comes time to study. I’ve found many people saying the same thing. That studying in school sort of comes naturally and effort was optional. But when college rolls around, people are pushed to their limits. The key is to study smarter. First, do it in a group. Communicating aloud can get people helping one another out and explaining it in terms that make sense to each other. Having the discussion lets you build those mental links much better than sitting and re-reading on your own.
Critical thinking
Another big academic hurdle that people find in college is the sudden reliance on critical thinking. Essentially, the art of making an argument using a reference system and volumes of past academic studies. It’s how most degree dissertations will take form. And it’s a nightmare for a lot of students. However, there are a lot of resources online to help. To understanding how to structure essays to finding argument essay topics. Your college should have online guides on how to use the reference system, too. It’s not a lot of fun, but doing practice runs can really help you get to grips with the process.
Test anxiety
No matter how well you study or how good you are acing your essays, test anxiety can rear its ugly head. Some of us are just more prone to it than others. Sometimes, it can due to how we actually study for it. Develop a schedule of studying over weeks, instead of doing it all the night before. Having a good night’s sleep and a long morning before the test can make you feel a lot less hurried and hassled when it comes time to take the test itself. Mostly, you need to give yourself the space and time to prepare.
Networking
We’re all in college for one reason. That’s not because it’s just what we expected to do. It’s to give us the skills we need for that big bad world. However, savvy folk realize that those skills don’t just revolve around getting a degree and specific knowledge. One of the other key skills you had best develop is how to network. Most importantly, make good connections to your professors and the other golden students. Be attentive and take part. These connections can be a lot of help in your future career.
Your skills are what separate you from your competition. This includes all important soft skills as well as hard technical expertise. Once you’ve finished college, you’ll be competing with many other students that have equally impressive degrees so you’ll need to do something to make yourself stand out. Many people end up taking online training courses to give themselves an edge over their peers. For example, let’s say you’ve studied entrepreneurship and are looking to start your own e-commerce business. You could take one of the many popular online training courses (such as the Amazon Selling Machine) to arm yourself with practical real-world strategies that are working right now.
Staff Writer; Greg Love