Best Semester ever

29 Aug Best Semester ever

We asked some of the most successful recent grads we knew…

“What’s one tip you’d give a current college student to make it their best semester ever?”

Here are some of my favorite responses around the concept of rocking the schedule:

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“Well, being type A, I love my planner and I would take every syllabus and fill in my agenda for the entire 16 weeks. This helped me identify when I should start working on projects and set time lines so I didn’t procrastinate too much lol I also was able to pre plan around events I already had scheduled.” – Kaila B

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“Schedule your ‘free time.” – Patrick J.    

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“I would put all of my classes/exams/appts on my gmail calendar. Then I’d make sure its sync’d with my phone so I would get reminders & then I could always reference it.” – Chris M.

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“I looked at when I had free time and scheduled in workouts or made note of the areas I would be at and if there was a gym or trail nearby. As the weeks went on I also got friendly with those in class who were down to study and found some study buddies. Still best friends with one of those peeps today.” – Rachel G.

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“Starting a consistent routine early. There is a little work load early in the semester but scheduled myself like I had a heavy work load. E.g. 7am-3pm class. 3-4pm work out. 4:30-7pm part time job. 7-8pm dinner. 8pm-11:30pm homework and study at the library. If no homework then get ahead on reading textbooks and prepare for the next exam. Work weekends but give yourself a night off and time on Sunday to do school work. One day off per week from everything prevents burn out. Repeat each week trying your best not to deviate.” – Brett R.

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“I always print out each syllabus for my classes and go through and put all of my due dates and assignments if the professor gives you that in advance! It keeps me so much more organized and from missing assignments and staying on top of reading. Also an avid believer in hard copy planners that you actually write in! I try to stick to one five subject notebook and one large binder divided for all of my classes so I don’t have a million notebooks and binders to worry about!”  – Rachel R.

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“Buy a planner and fill it with the deadlines you know as of right now. That means assignments, tests, and projects. You’ve got the syllabus! Be proactive!” – T.J. W.

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 “Keep sight of your hobbies and other interests outside of school and continue to schedule them and do them on a regular basis! That has kept me sane during my first year of medical school.” – Greta D.

Here are a few strategies for standing out in all the right ways:

“A friend and I went to our college career center and knocked on doors to introduce ourselves. Our plan was to tell them that we were not regular freshmen. The first door we knocked on was the IT internship coordinator. We told her we didn’t know much but that we would put in the time to learn. Two weeks later we each had an internship in two different non profits.” – Diego C.

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“Introduce yourself to the professor/TA within the first week and let them know you’re excited to take the course and ask for any recommendations or tips to get an A. This will put a face to a name and open a good line of communication.” – Kyle H.

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“Volunteer! There are at least 20 good reasons to do this, for starters: get connected with other community-minded students, get to know community folks, contribute to something positive, expand your understanding of your new home community.” – Cheri D.  (Truth in Advertising: Cheri is actually the Director for Community-Based Learning at Central College… but she couldn’t help but chime in on our research!)

Hey… if you’re reading this… you’re a rock star student too!

What suggestions would YOU have for other college students for making this the best semester ever?

Click on comments and share you’re ideas.  I’d love to hear from YOU!

Keep dreaming bigger, thinking better and doing more of the cool stuff you were put on the planet to do,

Mitch