Transition to College

What did you expect college would be like 14 weeks ago? 

14 weeks ago, I expected college to be extremely challenging. I expected the work in my classes to be very difficult and time consuming. And especially due to the pandemic, I expected college to be very discombobulated. Fortunately, my classes are not as challenging as I thought they would be. If I manage my time correctly, I will have enough time to thoroughly complete and understand my classwork as well as do other activities. My professors and advisors, knowing the challenges related to the pandemic, allowed me to have a smooth transition from high school to college, and they have guided me to stay on track to become a successful student. 

What is something you wish you knew 14 weeks ago? 

Something I wish I knew 14 weeks ago was knowing the severity of the coronavirus and how it would greatly impact many activities around ODU. Before the semester, I was excited to join clubs and participate in other events, but the coronavirus changed that. Many organizations are resorting to virtual meetings, I still want the full, in-person college experience and make new friends. I have only had one class on campus, so I didn’t have many opportunities to meet new people and make new friends. This has been a disappointing experience for my first semester, but I hope that things will safely come back to normal soon. 

What is a resource or activity you have found helpful this semester? 

A resource that I have found helpful to me is the Health Learning Community Teams chat. The resource has provided me with a lot of information on current events and activities around campus. The chat also serves as a great reminder for important deadlines so that I don’t miss any important assignments. It also provides students with PowerPoints from guest speakers so that we can learn more about different career fields and other opportunities.  And our peer mentor has also been very helpful in answering any of my questions or resolving any problem that arises. 

What is a resource or activity you have found unhelpful this semester?

Most resources and activities have been helpful to me this semester, but something that was not as helpful was study groups. Although study groups allowed me to get new study techniques and bounce class related ideas with my peers, it felt like a waste of time. I did not really gain any new information and was not able to build on previous knowledge learned for a specific course. I usually attended study groups before tests, but I found them unhelpful because they did not prepare me for a test or exam. I feel like the way I study and practice for a test is beneficial to me because it allows me to achieve passing grades. 

Name something you have learned this semester that will assist you next semester? 

With the help of my advisors and professors, I have enhanced my knowledge on how to manage my time and organize my daily schedule. With their guidance, I have been able to complete my assignments on time without procrastinating. Organizing my daily schedule allows me to study for all my classes while having the opportunities to do other activities. I believe these skills will help and benefit me next semester and beyond. My classes will only get more challenging in the coming years and I will have to utilize time management and organization skills in order to be successful.  

Study Habits

How much time do you spend studying for each class now vs. at the beginning of the semester? 

Since the beginning of the semester till now, I spend relatively the same amount of time studying for classes. In the beginning of the semester, I was more stressed because everything was confusing and challenging, so I spent more time studying for each class. Although I have overcome that stress, I still spend the same amount of time studying for each class. For each class, I spend about 2-3 hours studying per week. It mainly depends on the class because I spend more time studying for some classes but less time for other classes depending on how difficult the class is. For some classes like biology, I need to spend more time because it is a difficult class for me, and I want to achieve the best grade possible.

How have your study habits changes?

My study habits have somewhat changed since the beginning of the semester. I still spend the same amount of time studying for each class, and my study techniques have been the same throughout the semester. A study habit that has changed is that I study and work on assignment for some classes over the weekend instead of studying for each class every day. I study and work on assignments for classes that meet once a week or classes that are asynchronous over the weekend. This gives me more time to study for more time consuming and difficult classes over the week. 

What specific study techniques do you think work best for you?  How do these vary from class to class?

The study techniques that work best for me are taking notes, making visuals, and watching course related videos. For classes like biology, math, and sociology, I usually take notes and try to understand the concepts, so I don’t have to memorize and keep recalling those notes. For classes like English or Health 101, I try to read more so that I increase my vocabulary because a lot of writing is involved in these two classes. 

Health Profession Learning Community

• This semester you were enrolled in at least SOC 201S, and HLTH 101. Many of you were also enrolled in CHEM 105N and CHEM 106N, and some of you were enrolled in HIST 104H with Professor White.
  • On the surface these classes do not appear to be connected however this semester each professor was intentional about drawing connections between content, and subjects discussed. Discuss the ways in which these courses are tied together.

I was only enrolled in SOC 201S and HLTH 101, so I will only draw connections to those two. Sociology and Health 101 are connected because both talk about the health and medical aspect of life. Our sociology professor emphasized the importance of utilizing sociological concepts when perusing a medical field. He told us to keep in mind the various backgrounds and experiences people go through so that as medical professionals, we don’t assume and stereotype people and their actions. He emphasized the importance of considering a peoples’ past history to understand the reasons for their actions so that we don’t jump to conclusions.

• This semester we provided events (Health Chats) for you to hear from health professionals from ODU. 
  • Which Health Chat was most beneficial for you as a student, and why?

The most beneficial health chat for me was when the guest speaker discussed the public health and health services administration majors. I am interested in both majors and am open to putting public health as a backup major. Obviously, nuclear medicine technology is by far my first choice, but I also find public health to be interesting because of how much people in that profession are involved in controlling the COVID-19 pandemic. The public health major is important and rewarding knowing how much people in that profession protect and serve the community from diseases.