The transition from high school to college can be one of the most trying periods in a student\u2019s life.\u00a0 Having recently experienced this shift in lifestyle, I can personally attest to the fact that major adjustments both academically and socially need to be made during such a time.\u00a0 Andrew Roberts, assistant professor of political science at Northwestern University, is author of the widely known book \u201cThe Thinking Student\u2019s Guide to College: 75 Tips for Getting a Better Education.\u201d\u00a0 Throughout this book, Roberts divides his advice for college students into seven categories: choosing a college, choosing classes, choosing a major, being successful, interacting with professors, learning outside the classroom, and going to graduate school.\u00a0 However, in my opinion the category most relevant to incoming freshmen at any college is \u201cBeing Successful.\u201d\u00a0 Reflecting back on my first semester at Trinity College, the most useful tip in Roberts\u2019 book has been \u201cTip 45: Manage Your Time.\u201d<\/p>\n
Throughout high school I had my routine firmly established.\u00a0 I went to school, participated in my after school activities such as sports practices, then I came home, ate dinner, and dedicated the two hour block from 8pm to 10pm specifically to my studies.\u00a0 However, upon arrival at college, I realized that I needed to establish a new routine.\u00a0 Instead of being in school seven hours a day with each hour of my time clearly structured until it was time to go to sleep, I found myself spending three to four hours a day in the classroom with free, unstructured time in between.\u00a0 In the beginning I did not know what to do with myself during those idle hours in the middle of the day because they were a foreign concept to me.\u00a0 I found myself using that time for socialization more frequently than schoolwork because I was not accustomed to studying in the middle of the day.\u00a0 However, the issue with not utilizing those hours productively in terms of homework is that directly after dinner most of your friends will be around, thus opening up many more opportunities for socialization than earlier on in the afternoon.\u00a0 As a consequence, I frequently found myself wondering where the day went.\u00a0 In reference to this issue, Roberts writes \u201cThe key to success is to set aside several hours each day that you devote fully to your classes.\u201d [1. Andrew Roberts, The thinking student\u2019s guide to college 75 tips for getting a better education (Chicago\u202f: University of Chicago Press, 2010) page 96.]\u00a0\u00a0In order to take advantage of your education, it is imperative that you possess self-discipline and force yourself to delve into your studies for the appropriate amount of time each day based on your personal workload.\u00a0 It is true that it is hard to factor enough study, sleep, and social time into your day in college, but if you establish a routine for yourself that you follow religiously, balancing these three aspects of daily activity will become much more tolerable.<\/p>\n
After reading through Roberts\u2019 75 tips and experiencing my first semester of college, I believe a critical piece of advice is missing from his book.\u00a0 Based on my experience, I would add \u201cTip 76: Be Open to Constructive Criticism on Essay Drafts.\u201d\u00a0 One of the advantages unique to Trinity College, an intimately sized private liberal arts college in Hartford, Connecticut, is the First Year Seminar program.\u00a0 In our writing intensive seminar, \u201cColor and Money,\u201d we wrote multiple papers and had our essay drafts reviewed by our peers both within our class, and in another seminar we partnered with throughout the term.\u00a0 In high school I never took peer reviews as seriously as I could have.\u00a0 However, I realized that college is a prime opportunity to improve your writing skills.\u00a0 First year programs such as this require you to have your work read over by other students.\u00a0 Nevertheless, even if it is not required, I highly recommend you find someone to constructively criticize your writing in order to improve its impact on the intended audience.\u00a0 Taking full advantage of your liberal arts education means opening your mind to new ideas, and demonstrating the willingness to admit that there is always room for improvement.<\/p>\n
The most critical part of a paper is frequently the thesis statement.\u00a0 The thesis statement usually sets the tone for the rest of the paper while serving as a means of judgment for the effectiveness of the supporting details.\u00a0 Therefore, having a well-developed, clear and concise thesis is essential to every valuable essay.\u00a0 Before my paper on perceptions of race and social class on Trinity\u2019s campus was edited by a peer within my seminar, my thesis statement was as follows:<\/p>\n
Our study of Trinity sophomores\u2019 perceptions of race and social class on campus revealed not only that most students categorize themselves as middle class, but also that when asked to describe their racial backgrounds, white and non-white students respond in very distinctive ways between the two groups.<\/p>\n
Clearly, this thesis is lacking in clarity and effectiveness.\u00a0 Undeniably there is plenty of room for improvement.\u00a0 However, after the essay was edited and I took my classmate\u2019s advice into careful consideration, I was able to improve and therefore further develop my thesis into:<\/p>\n
Our study of Trinity sophomores\u2019 perceptions of race and social class on campus revealed not only that most students categorize themselves as middle class, but also that when asked to describe their racial backgrounds, non-white students generally provided more elaborative information than whites.<\/p>\n
The revised thesis provides the reader with much more clarity and precision, thus setting a more persuasive and informative tone for the rest of the paper.<\/p>\n
After a full semester at Trinity College, I feel like an improved student.\u00a0 With Roberts\u2019 advice on time management and my own tip regarding openness to constructive criticism on essay drafts, I am confident that a student at any university can find academic success.\u00a0 College is a time for exploration and development, so it is crucial to take full advantage of the multitude of opportunities you will be offered to improve your writing.\u00a0 No matter what field you choose to dedicate your professional life to, the ability to be a concise, effectively persuasive writer is a highly regarded skill.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The transition from high school to college can be one of the most trying periods in a student\u2019s life.\u00a0 Having recently experienced this shift in lifestyle, I can personally attest to the fact that major adjustments both academically and socially need to be made during such a time.\u00a0 Andrew Roberts, assistant professor of political science … Continue reading The Keys to Getting a Better College Education<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":63,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/commons.trincoll.edu\/colorandmoney\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1132"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/commons.trincoll.edu\/colorandmoney\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/commons.trincoll.edu\/colorandmoney\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/commons.trincoll.edu\/colorandmoney\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/63"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/commons.trincoll.edu\/colorandmoney\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1132"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/commons.trincoll.edu\/colorandmoney\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1132\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1139,"href":"https:\/\/commons.trincoll.edu\/colorandmoney\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1132\/revisions\/1139"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/commons.trincoll.edu\/colorandmoney\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1132"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/commons.trincoll.edu\/colorandmoney\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1132"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/commons.trincoll.edu\/colorandmoney\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1132"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}