Word to the wise: Don't quit while you're ahead.

Do me a favor—don’t let this post go in one ear and out the other.

In a nutshell, you are supposed to avoid clichés like the plague.  But I need to get through to you so that you know there is a light at the end of the tunnel.  Take it from me; you're in the homestretch.

Since you've got a lot on your plate as it is, this will be short and sweet.  It's time to take the bull by the horns and nip that final project in the bud!

I'm going to go out on a limb here by saying that you are most likely sick and tired of this vicious cycle of homework.  Day in and day out you work tirelessly to complete your tasks, but hey, there ain’t no rest for the wicked, so you’ll just have to grin and bear it.

Seriously, do not put off for tomorrow, what you can get done today—it's now or never.  The semester will be over before you know it and you’ll be kicking back and relaxing in no time.

Overall, you must bear in mind that it is not yet time to throw in the towel.  Believe in yourself and keep on truckin'.

One day soon, you’ll thank me for this. 

Wait...that makes no sense.

Advice you’ll hear in college that completely contradicts actual college life

#1 

What you’re told to do:  Make your own choices and embrace your independence.
What ends up happening:  In the first week, you call your mom for a “reminder” on how to do laundry.

#2 

What you’re told to do:  Schedule your classes so that you have Friday off for yourself. 

What ends up happening:  You schedule all extracurricular events for Friday. 

#3 
What you’re told to do:  Eat as healthily as you can so as not to gain the “freshman fifteen”.

What ends up happening:  Your meal plan card is only valid for cafeteria food.  Today’s menu—burgers and fries or pizza.

#4 

What you’re told to do:  Avoid cramming for exams.  
What ends up happening:  Two or three of your exams fall on the same day.

#5 

What you’re told to do:  Get a part-time job to help pay for your tuition.  
What ends up happening:  It seems McDonald's isn't handing out $12,000 bonuses to fry cooks this year…weird.

#6 

What you’re told to do:  Dress up on Group Presentation Day.
What ends up happening:  Your group members show up in their professional sweatpants.

#7 

What you’re told to do:  Avoid spending your refund checks; you’ll have to pay back loans.
What ends up happening:  Your car dies, your laptop breaks, your phone shatters or rent is due…$1,500 never looked so appealing.

#8 

What you’re told to do:  Set your alarm to go off early so you have enough time to get ready. 
What ends up happening:  You hit snooze until ten minutes before lecture and still make it to class on time.

#9 

What you’re told to do:  Avoid procrastination. 
What ends up happening:  Procrastination. 

#10 

What you’re told to do:  Listen to mentors' advice on how to be successful in college.
What ends up happening:  You make your own mistakes and learn for yourself what works and what doesn't.  

Do you have some examples?  Feel free to comment below!

Stuck in September

Right around this time of year, we college students start to feel pretty overwhelmed, stressed, exhausted, burnt-out...etc.  You're thinking, "I'm not even 1/3 of the way done with this semester!  I can't keep up like this!"  I'm here to say, that if this is you--you're doing it right, you may just need some encouragement.

#1 It is important to remember that you are NOT the only person feeling this way.  Many people have by now, done at least one of the following:

• failed a quiz or test (or for some of my Honors Society peers--"failed" a quiz or test)
• forgot to turn in an assignment
• slept through an alarm
• regrettably dropped a class
• had a dramatic meltdown
• gained five to ten pounds out of nowhere
• stayed up all night playing GTA instead of studying

Honestly, it comes with the territory; nobody escapes college totally unscathed.  So, ask around.  More than likely you'll find that one of your peers is "right there with ya."  The two of you can take the opportunity to hash-out all that is morbidly wrong with those essay requirements. 

SIDE ANECDOTE (for your present entertainment and future reference):

For me, last week was hell.  The front rotors in my vehicle snapped on my way to class--then a leak in the transmission line was spotted.  Five minutes later, my phone completely broke and my laptop followed by shutting down beyond repair.  I had a plethora of assignments due and exams to study for.  And--wait for it...I wore WHITE shorts on a day of torrential downpour.  I couldn't make this up, folks.  So when you think you've had a particularly rough go, consider an exceptionally frazzled Erica--clutching a fried phone and laptop, with soaking wet hair, running mascara, and shamefully see-through shorts, swiftly approaching you and asking in exasperation to borrow your phone to call a cab, so that she can get to her next class. There--some perspective.

#2  Do yourself a favor and go outside.  It is hard to justify being cooped-up when all you want to do is enjoy the last bit of sunshine before full-blown winter strikes.  The air is cool, the leaves are vibrant, and it feels like perfect go-for-a-walk weather.  So find a place to seriously breathe for a second; maybe take a stroll around the block.  It is amazing what a little blood flow and fresh oxygen can do for your mental and physical health.  Plus, when you find yourself amidst small talk about the weather, you'll actually have an opinion to contribute--compared to the usual blasé agreement with your correspondent.

#3 If you can't possibly endure another minute in the computer lab, change it up a bit. Some classes can be really sterile, making them very challenging.  But trying to focus on sterile subjects in sterile environments is even more of a challenge.  Don't allow your motivation to be stifled by a location.  Head to a local coffee shop, a nearby picnic table, a spot in the back of the cafeteria, a lounge, the public library--anything that can allow you adequate study time but also provide some variety to your study habits.  I could easily credit the passing of my statistics course to my being able to escape to one of my favorite coffee shops--thanks, Brew.

So suck it up, buttercup.  You've got this!  Now get back to work.

Homework...yeah, about that.

Homework 

In college, I have homework.  I have homework every day.

When I don’t have time for homework, I had better find a way.

So I get my homework done, at my job or in my room.

Sometimes I’m forced to do it in a restaurant or saloon.

Every morning when I wake, but what is this I see?

It’s an endless mound of homework staring back at me.

At night, I’m up for hours - typing, solving, and doing my best.

I hardly ever finish, so there is never time for rest.

I think I’d like to take a nap, for I had stayed up all night.

I had a lot of homework, so much it wasn’t right.

My friends say, “Take a break from all that homework!  Come out and have some fun!”

I tell them that I’d like to, but there’s homework to be done.

But I have finished all my homework!  The day is mine now - hip hooray!

At least, I’m done for the moment…tomorrow’s another day.

By: Erica Hamilton

_______________________________________________________________

I wrote this poem one weekend during the first semester of my freshman year.  At the time, I was feeling quite besieged by the seemingly insurmountable amount of homework that I had acquired simply by attending my classes.  The poem itself is a bit melodramatic, yes I'll admit, but you can tell that I was pretty taken aback by the load.  The thing was, so many of my colleagues would approach the subject in the same way saying, "Why are you always so busy?  I never have homework."  Well, from now on, I'm calling bull$#!+.  Can I say, "bullshit" in my own blog?

I only say this because in college, I have found that whether or not I have a physical assignment staring me in the face I always have something I could be doing to keep up or get ahead in class.  In fact, currently forefront in my mind is that I could easily be analyzing an article for my International Business course instead of blogging (but we all make sacrifices).  My point is: chances are, if I have to be keeping up on all of this tedious minutia in my courses, then so do you!  So what can we do about it?  How in the heck are we going to keep up when we have no set schedule?  It's hard enough to find time to eat!

#1 When it comes to college, you can forget regularity or normalcy.  You're trying to make sense of your schedule when there is literally no pattern to it.

- Monday, class from 8:00am to 10am.

- Tuesday, noon to 4:00pm, then 6:00pm to 9:00pm.  

- Every other Wednesday from 7:00pm to 10:00pm
- Thursday 1:00pm to 3:00pm
- a part-time job or two (or three)
- extracurricular activities
- social events
- your relationship
...you get the picture.

So now you must make due with what you've got!  This means that whenever you have an open time slot for homework, utilize it.  Set yourself in a quiet place with a good internet connection and have at it.  Even if you open up your laptop or textbook and seemingly gaze into the the abyss, you're bound to eventually put some sort of dent into your workload.

#2 Do not quit while you're ahead.  I used to hate when my residents from the halls would tell me that they finished ten problems with ease, so they chose to take a video-game break.  Or that they wrote two pages and decided to call it a night - at 7:00pm.  Why?!  When you're "on-a-roll" do not slow up; you lose your train of thought and put an unnecessary halt to productivity.  Also note that once you wander into a social place, you will be instantly reminded of obligations that are sure to keep you from your tasks - you promised to have lunch with so and so, you said you would peer edit your friend's essay, you need to get an oil change before you spend all of your money on paint, and yarn for crochet - oh, that last one was just me.  Anyway, when your brain is in "work-mode" take full advantage of the opportunity to get assignments done.

#3 I really had a tough time with this one in college and to an extent, still do.  So I am speaking from experience when I say that it's okay to say no.  Don't get me wrong, my friends are great - even though most of them just called me a hypocrite after reading my previous statement.  Still, every now and then I have to set boundaries so that I do not get overwhelmingly behind in my classes.  It can be quite challenging when you're offered a much more fun way to spend the day.  It is so easy to say, "I'll get to that paper later.  I have some time Thursday before class."  But take it from me that almost always, as if on cue, that extra time I thought I'd have Thursday becomes filled and I am left to resent the fact that I have not yet learned my own lesson on prioritization.  Your friends won't hate you for being a responsible student.  They may poke fun at you, they may whine that they never see you, but they will ultimately understand and eventually get over it.  And yes, you may also feel a little guilty bailing on plans or declining an invitation, but this does not even compare to the guilt you'd feel if you failed your class at the end of the semester. 

First things first, Freshmen!

Here are a few tips about college from a fellow undergrad who hopes to make your first semester a little easier...

#1 Introduce yourself to someone from each class and swap contact info with them right away—preferably said person will be sitting near you and at least appear to have it together.  Tell them that you will take notes for them if they can't make it to class or are late and ask them to do the same.  That way, they can text, call, or e-mail you the information that was covered that day.  It's always nice to know that someone has your back in case of an emergency - like sleeping through your alarm. 

#2 Everyone seems to say this, but that is only because it's true: Get to know your professors and stand out.  Whether this means answering 9/10 of their silly "let's see what my students already know" questions or simply shaking their hand at the end of the class, do something!  The worst thing you can do is remain invisible throughout the course; if you're invisible, you're forgettable.  Being forgettable is dangerous because like us, teachers are human and they may forget to grade an assignment of yours or forget that you mentioned you had an appointment on quiz day.

#3 If you’re serious about retaining information then NEVER read your textbook in bed.  You are going to fall asleep—every time.  And once your brain teaches itself that “study time” is also “nappy time” you’re in big trouble.  So find a place to study that is quiet, but not comfortable.  This way, you can train your brain to focus in places similar to a classroom setting and reward yourself with some solid, guiltless shut-eye later! 

BONUS TIP: Some professors will try to scare you the first day.  They will read the all-mighty, comprehensive syllabus that outlines dreaded exam dates and rules regarding proper class etiquette.  They will warn you that if you do not study a minimum of two hours per class hour that you may struggle in the course.  The teachers are weeding out the students who may not be willing to take the course seriously.  If they succeed in making you question your potential, talk to the professor personally and seek out tutoring services.  DO NOT drop the class without first testing the waters - they always make it seem colder and deeper than it really is.