I am going, to be honest, I do not study as far in advance as I should. I normally study a week in advance for a test or quiz and then do the review up until the day of the test quiz. Each day a week before the test, I study about an hour a day along with doing homework for the class and the review. My grades are not bad per se, but they could be better. I am not a good test taker in general so studying is not normally the problem, it’s my testing anxiety that is the bigger issue. I should put a few more hours a week into studying and maybe start studying and reviewing for a test sooner. Sociology and chemistry are the two classes I need to spend more time on.
I study in my dorm because if I study anywhere else I get distracted and don’t get my work done. I am a big people watcher , so that is all I do if I go to the library or the web. I do most of my studying after my 11:00 class on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, I study either in between my 11:30 and my 3:00 classes. I also study and do homework in the late afternoon after all my classes so I don’t have any interruptions.
The biggest change in my study habits has been preparing for my classes ahead of time. I look over the schedule and powerpoints. This way I go into class prepared and know what we are going to talk about. This helps me a lot because I can listen to the professor and not be as concerned with getting all the notes down. When I am stressed about getting all the notes I tend to not listen to the professor enough and then I get lost. I started using this strategy because my first quiz grades were not what I wanted and I realized listening helps more than just copying notes. This strategy works for all my classes so it makes it easier to fit into a routine.
College has not been what I expected to say the least. I won’t get into it too much but I have had an extremely hard time adjusting and if I am being honest I still am not adjusted. Being far from my family has been the hardest part. The workload is a big difference, but not being able to make things up that you miss and not being able to retake assessments is hard to get used to. I was surprised how fast friends from high school change when you get to college, ones who live here on campus and at other colleges. Although most things about being here I don’t enjoy, I do love the campus atmosphere and all the diversity I just wish the campus was closer to home.
My success coach has been the most helpful resource here. She has helped me with my emotional, personal and academic challenges. My roommate has been extremely helpful. She has hugged me when I cried, which is a lot, and cheered me on when I get good grades on assignments and assessments. I know I have her support when things get hard. My true teacher has a club called “Humanity Behind Bars” that I recently joined. They do a lot of powerful and inspiring things with people in prison and the whole corrupted system itself. The law and prison reform is a super messed up system so if I can help in any way I want to. It is a way I can help people in need of a support system and be the support that they might not be getting from anywhere else.