Problems Are Your Friend
Working and re-working problems is important for technical courses . Be able to explain the steps of the problems and why they work.
In technical courses, it is usually more important to work problems than read the text . In class, write down in detail the practice problems demonstrated by the professor. Annotate each step and ask questions if you are confused. At the very least, record the question and the answer .
When preparing for tests, put together a large list of problems from the course materials and lectures. Work the problems and explain the steps and why they work .
Youll Strengthen Your Integrity
Furthering your education may test your limits. At times, you may even be tempted to cheat or take shortcuts to lighten your load. College gives you plenty of opportunities to strengthen your personal integrity and stay true to your values.
Roberts warns that bad habits like cheating or cutting corners will follow you into your career. Luckily, youll be able to rely on your discipline, perseverance and help from others to get you through the tough times and earn your degree the honorable way.
You Are Your Greatest Advocate
I walked onto the team, which meant that my participation was at-will. I almost quit midway through my freshman year when I realized that my times weren’t fast enough to qualify for the conference meet. Instead, I talked to the head coach about my frustrations. She and I both decided that I should try switching from middle distance to long distance.
Instead of leaving the track team, I became a three-season athlete and joined the cross country team as well. My times and stress level both went down, because I had found an event and an environment that was a better fit for me. If you’re passionate about something, find a way to make it work.
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How To Accept And Appreciate Others
High school was a comfortable, familiar place for me, full of familiar faces. It threw me into a whole new environment, filled with new people from thousands of different places, backgrounds and lifestyles, who had a million different personalities and perspectives.
I was in classes and group projects with people who were completely different than me.
While I began to realize that I couldnât possibly be best friends with all of them, I could learn about them and appreciate their differences.
Itâs easy to think that there should be more people like you in the world, but once you open your mind to groups of unfamiliar people, you become able to see that our differences are what make humanity so beautiful.
Answers Are Readily Available On The Internet
Years ago, college students would have to look hard to find answers.
You would notice college students spending hours of time in the library trying to gather the information that they needed to answer the questions on their exams and papers.
Todays college students can simply log into the internet and get the answers they need in a matter of minutes.
The time it takes to get the answers makes the learning process much more simplified, and for this reason, people dont tend to soak in as much information as they did in the past.
Essentially, you dont have to study quite as profoundly, and because of that, it makes information harder to understand and remember.
Some colleges have very large classes with hundreds of students in them.
This means that you will not be getting very individualized attention from the large class size.
If you are a person who needs the help of a professor for some one-on-one studying, then college is not always a great fit.
If you went to a school that has a substantial student body, you might have found that you got lost in the information that was being presented.
Getting out of college and realizing that you did not learn all that much is a bad feeling.
Sometimes it could be because the large class sizes made it difficult.
The larger class sizes are a problem that many colleges are trying to work on fixing.
If they are not able to fix this issue, more and more people will complain about graduating and not learning anything.
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How To Say No
I used to be the girl who couldnât say, no â until I had to. College places demands on you that can be unreasonable sometimes. You do not have time for everything and you will not be able to please everyone.
It took me some time to realize that thatâs okay. Saying ânoâ isnât about being weak, missing out or offending others, itâs about being smart and understanding what you reasonably can and cannot accomplish.
College hones your priority-making skills and teaches you how to make smart decisions, even when they involve saying no.
Who I Am Not
As you grow and try new things, you experience successes and failures that not only teach you who you are, but who you are not.
In college, I learned that itâs useless to try to be something youâre not. By trying to be like other people, you stifle the inner strengths that are unique to you.
Being yourself will leave you much happier and people around you will sense your genuineness and appreciate you for what you bring to the table.
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Didnt Ask Enough Questions
If you did not learn anything in college, you might not have asked enough questions.
The more questions you ask, the more you will hold on to the information and be able to remember it for quite some time.
Those students who are really interested in college and paying attention to what is going on will be asking lots of questions.
In addition, if you dont understand a topic, you should also ask questions.
Those who realize they have not learned all that much will likely find that they did not ask enough questions during their college years.
How Can I Learn More About Law School
The activities and resources below can help you explore your interest in law school.
- Subscribe to the Pre-law Listserv to learn about upcoming events, scholarship opportunities, and important updates.
- Sit in on a real law school course. There is no better way to learn about what law school is really like than to attend. Many schools will allow you to sit in on a class during a scheduled visit to the school. Consider sitting in on a class at one of Penn States law schools: Penn State Law at University Park or Dickinson School of Law in Carlisle.
- Meet admissions officers from law schools at Law School Day during Graduate & Professional School Week held in the HUB each October.
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Top 10 Things You Can Learn In College Outside Of The Classroom
While the education gained in the classroom is without a doubt beneficial, using what was learned and applying it to real-world learning opportunities will lead to a more robust and well-rounded education.
Student loans have become more accessible than ever before, the amount of recent graduates with degrees in hand has increased, and the amount of available jobs has declined. A degree will always be an asset, but a degree backed by extracurricular, real-world, and hands-on experience will take a recent graduate much further.
Employers can no longer gamble like before the stakes are high and competition is always around the corner. Employers want graduates backed by real-world experience that are ready to hit the ground running. There are many skills and abilities best learned through extracurricular involvement. These skill-sets can be bolstered, but not replaced, by a classroom education.
It would be a shame if universities turned into job/skill factories. We need to teach ppl how to think. #innovatED#sachat
Heather Shea Gasser
We have compiled a list of the top 10 skills students learn outside of the classroom in detail below.
You Dont Have To Know Exactly What You Want To Do
I know Ive been asked many, many times what Im going to do for my career after graduation.
Ill answer the question right now: Ive always known that I wanted to go into writing of some sort, but thats as far as Ive gotten.
I know firsthand how scary it is to try and figure out what you want to do, but another one of the things Ive learned in college is its 100% okay to not know what you want to do. Most of us are in this boat!
College, after all, is about experiencing new things and trying stuff out. Maybe youll learn what you want to do along the way, maybe you wont, and thats fine. One day youll find the thing youre meant to do, but until then, you can try out things you enjoy and see if theyre a fit. If they arent, you can keep trying.
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How To Be Successful In College: The Recipe For Future Students
By Ashley Brooks on 06/03/2019
You have an idea of what the perfect college student should be like: always early to class, the first to contribute to a discussion, able to write papers with ease and using color-coded notes to study for tests.
The mental image of this perfect college student might have you intimidated as you prepare to embark on your college journey. Youre worried you wont be able to live up to those high expectationswhat if it turns out you dont have what it takes to be a successful college student?
Figuring out how to be successful in college doesnt have to require a special skill set. You might be surprised to discover you already have many of the traits it takes to find student success in college! Calm your nerves by looking at our roundup of tips for how to be a successful student. You might already have everything you need to start your college career on the right foot.
How To Live My Life To The Fullest
College provided me with four of the richest, most fulfilling and best years of my life. For those four years I underwent more social, academic, mental and emotional stimulation than I had ever experienced before in my life.
I faced novel situations, amazing opportunities and all different kinds of people. College opened up the world for me and showed me a new way to look at it.
Now that I have graduated, Iâm ready to continue living my life in the full, rich way that I did in college. So, thanks, college, for teaching me more than I than what I learned in class.
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Friends To Support You
Making friends within your degree program means youll always have support and accountability, whether its studying for tests or swapping stories about the highs and lows of college life. Youll always have someone to rely on for help when needed, and it makes coursework more enjoyable when you have someone to relate to, Martinez says. Plus who knows? You might end up finding someone thatll be a friend for life.
Curriculum May Not Be Thorough Enough
Depending on the high school that you went to, the college you choose may not be nearly as difficult or demanding as your high school.
Therefore, you may find that the curriculum that was offered by the college you chose was not all that good.
You can enter into your career and realize that you dont know nearly enough to be doing what youre doing.
It is often assumed that if people go to college, they are ready to start a career the day they get out.
So many college graduates will tell you that, when you get out of school, the first few years of real work are what will teach you everything you need to know.
College should give everyone a good understanding of specific topics, writing, and math concepts.
College students should know how to research, report, and present themselves.
However, the curriculum may still not be thorough enough to make you feel as though you really learned while you were in college.
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These Lessons Are Actually Not Taught In Courses Theyre Learned Throughout The Experiences Throughout Your Coursework Social Life And Other Activities
Elizabeth Hoyt
May 07, 2016
BudgetingIndependenceMulti-taskingMotivationyou gowantsNote-TakingPrioritizing Working with OthersResourcefulness Can you think of any other valuable life skills you had to learn in college?
Divide Up Group Work Early
Along those lines, its also important for groups to divide up different tasks in an appropriate way so that everyone is responsible for their fair share, and so that everyone understands exactly what theyre responsible for completing.
Make sure that when youre doing group projects, you look far ahead so that you can divide the work up and coordinate your efforts, says Small. That way, if something isnt due for a few weeks, everyone can use their available time to chip away at their tasks when they are able to.
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How To Dress Professionally
I spent the first 13 years of my education attending private schools with a strict dress code. This reduced decision fatigue , but it also meant that I didnt learn how to buy quality clothes and put together outfits until I was in college.
The unfortunate reality is that people do pay attention to what you wear and make judgments based on it. So you might as well do your best to dress in a way that gives the impression you want.
For advice on what to wear in a variety of business and professional settings, check out this guide.
Chemical Plant And Systems Operator
As a chemical plant and systems operator, you can make anywhere from $33,000 to $75,380 with a median annual salary of $54,390. The responsibilities include to control or operate entire chemical processes or systems of machines. Hiring has slowed in this sector, but if you can get one of these jobs, theyre worth keeping. The vast majority have high school diplomas or the GED equivalent, and they typically start in an entry-level position before moving up the ladder.
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How To Make And Use Spreadsheets
Spreadsheets used to intimidate me. I assumed I needed some kind of advanced math or programming knowledge to use them, and I never thought about creating my own.
Once I learned how to use spreadsheets, however, I found myself unable to live without them. Theyre a great tool for organizing information, automating calculations, and even making data-driven decisions. I use them to plan complex trips, manage my personal finances, and track certain projects at work.
To get started learning, I encourage you to find a project that a spreadsheet could help you organize. Making something to model your expenses and budget is a good start .
Unless you have a reason to learn Excel specifically, is our recommendation for beginners . When you get stuck, just google your question theres almost certainly an answer out there.
Real Estate Sales Agent
Real estate has been a tough sector since 2008, but the market definitely shows signs of picking up, and when it does, the average salary of $42,680 per year is likely to increase. Of course, pros who are able to crack the commercial real estate market can earn far more than that, but it gets highly competitive at that level. Still, youll never reach it unless you take that first step, and when it comes to becoming a real estate agent, that step includes having a high school diploma, being at least 18 years of age, and passing the licensing exam in your state. You will also need to take several hours of real estate classes as determined by the guidelines within your state.
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Things I Learned In College That Weren’t Taught In A Classroom
Looking back on my four years of college, I realize how many countless hours I spent in the classroom, doing group projects, finishing homework, and studying for tests and quizzes.
Okay, maybe I didnât spend as much time on those things as I should have , but still, it added up.
When I think about all that time I spent working toward my degree, I wonder, what did it really leave me with? A piece of paper and a cap and gown that will continue to gather dust in my closet for the next decade?
Upon entering the workforce, I also came to understand that for many employees, skills are learned on the job, from experience and on-site training.
No one asks about your GPA and suddenly, the majority of those homework assignments you did over the years become irrelevant.
Despite all this, I know my tuition dollars werenât spent in vain. I learned many things in college, even if they werenât the kind of things I could write about in a term paper.
When I ask myself what I learned during those four years, I donât think of proper syntax and derivatives. Here are some of the things that do come to mind:
Improving Project Management Skills
Participating in internships and having key roles in student organizations will help students gain project management skills that can only be learned through experience.
Learning to use and apply Project Management is a valuable and essential life skill. Students need these skills because theyll use them life-long, on the job and off. Everyone who works deals with projects, but projects extend beyond the job to include personal projects, family projects, volunteer projects and so forth.Project Management skills help you achieve better results. Mastering the art of Project Management can help you become a better parent, neighbor, and citizen as well as a stellar performer at work. Terry Schmidt, Author of Strategic Project Management Made Simple: Practical Tools for Leaders and Teams
How Its Learned:
Project management can be learned through internships, participation in student organizations, leading new initiatives on campus, combining efforts with others on campus, and hosting events.
Why Its Important:
Organizing your team, setting goals, and managing task lists are skills essential to any leader, young or old.
Key Project Management Skills Include:
- Budget Management
- Volunteer Management
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