GPS for Navigating College
Wouldn’t it be nice to have your own personal GPS to help guide you through the challenges you face in college? This undoubtedly would make life easier. Here’s the good news: just as a GPS can guide you to your destination by car, the college also has tools that can help get you where you want to go.
How are you feeling at this point in the semester? A little lost or overwhelmed by the work? Don’t panic! Your hard work is important but there are places where you can go to help navigate your classes.
If you are struggling with the coursework or just feel “lost” in class, the first stop on your destination is meeting with your instructor. Because of busy schedules, you might not be able to speak with the instructor before or after class but they all have office hours and are more than willing to meet with you to help.
Remember, your instructors were all college students themselves and many may have felt lost or confused at some point. The truth is that many of them went to their own instructors for some extra help. This one step can make a big difference.
You may not want to ask questions during class. Rest assured that there are no dumb questions and your instructors will take time to answer questions and try to clear up any confusion during class.
If you want to wait until after class to ask questions, here’s a tip: leave a few inches in the margin of your notebook to write your questions. Often times, questions can be cleared up by going back to the textbook after the lecture. However, there are other times when you need to sit down in a quiet place with your instructor to clarify a point.
It is important to clear up any confusion and get your questions answered well before finals. Oftentimes, the material that is presented becomes the foundation for the rest of your college career. This is particularly true with introductory classes. Most courses will build on the knowledge presented early in the semester.
What can you expect when you meet with your instructor? You will find them to be very approachable. Meeting with them is not scary. What is scary is feeling lost early during the semester and not knowing how to get help.
You may be surprised that meeting with your instructor can clear up any confusion or answer any questions in just a few minutes, but they will work with you for as long as it takes. All students can learn. Some just learn in different ways. Meeting one on one with your professors can help you find the way that you learn best.
If you don’t want to meet one on one, ask them if they will meet with a few students at a time, sort of a mini class. This is another great way to help ease the stress of college. Get to know your classmates. It may help to know that others may have the same questions or concerns as you. Small study group meetings can also be very helpful, especially when it comes time to study for finals.
Another tool to help guide students to success is the availability of tutors in the Marvin Library’s Learning Assistance Center (LAC). So, in addition to having faculty available to help answer questions, the LAC tutors can also help with specific classes.
Some of the types of strategies used to help students include giving sample questions and reviewing answers as well as giving helpful suggestions for approaching assignments and tests.
Now that you have your own GPS to guide you on the roadmap to academic success, soon you will be hearing “You’ve arrived at your destination!” Good luck.