The words “back to school” conjure up images of summer’s end and September mornings that are just a bit cooler and crisper than the lazy August days just left behind. For most of us, mid-winter is more about recovering from the holidays, staying warm, and watching the Superbowl.
But for many college students, the “big game” this time of year isn’t just something on TV. Most colleges and universities begin a new semester January or February, and students are loading up their backpacks and starting anew.
Many students are returning to college carrying a heavy dose of reality in addition to overloaded bookbags. Their fall semesters weren’t quite as successful as they had hoped, and transcripts full of less-than-stellar grades haunt them as they make their way back to the classroom.
For most college freshmen, the fall semester was spent adjusting to life after high school. They may have just learned the hard way that the study habits required in college are quite different from those that worked well in high school. But it isn’t just freshmen who struggle. Transfer students who have several terms at another institution under their belts may still find themselves unprepared for the academic culture of a new college or university. Sophomores, juniors and seniors who have been fairly successful all along can find themselves in academic slumps due to overconfidence, taking on outside work or activities that complicate their schedules, or the inevitable “senioritis.”
Regardless of the reasons, many college students enter the spring semester hoping to recover from a troublesome fall. If you or a loved one are in this category, you’re far from alone. Below are some tips on regrouping and setting yourself up for a much better grade report this spring.
1.
Identifying your problem areas
Sure, this sounds easy. A glance at your transcript tells you where you didn’t do so well. But there’s much more to understanding what went wrong than just looking at your grades.
Be honest with yourself when reflecting on your academic performance. Are most or all of last semester’s grades lower than you would have hoped? If that’s the case, then you probably need to examine your overall habits. Did you plan enough time into your schedule to study and complete assignments, or did you find yourself racing through projects and cramming for exams at the last minute? Were your eating and sleeping habits healthy, or did you live on fast food and coffee and socialize into the wee hours of the morning several nights a week only to drag yourself to your classes barely able to keep your eyes open? Did you fall prey to the trap of assuming that a course was “easy” because it was in a subject you tend to do well in, and choose to skip that class more often than you should have?
Understanding why you had an overall poor semester can be humbling. But making up excuses or ignoring these issues will only hurt your future success. You can change your study habits and lifestyle to improve your performance this semester, but only if you first acknowledge where things went wrong.
On the other hand, maybe you did allot plenty of time for study, attended class regularly, and took care with your mental and physical health, but still did poorly in one or a few courses. In some ways, this is an even tougher fate to accept. It tends to mean that you struggled with the subject matter rather than personal habits that you can change. But even this isn’t cause for despair. There are plenty of options for those who experience weaknesses with a particular subject matter. Read on.
2.
Plan a schedule for success
Your recipe for a good semester is put together long before you step into your classes. The process begins when you sit down with your advisor or at your computer to plan out what courses you will take over the semester. There are many things to consider when putting together your schedule.
Degree Progress
Ideally, you should select courses that help you progress towards your major or degree program. It is important to review degree requirements in the catalog each semester and compare them to what you have taken so far and what you still need to complete. Many colleges and universities provide automated degree audit systems online as well as academic advisors to assist you with this. Knowing what you need for your major and other requirements is the first step in planning an appropriate schedule and can keep you from wasting time and effort studying for courses you do not need instead of those that move you closer to your degree.
Courseload
For many students, it is important to maintain a full-time course load. You should know how many credits constitute a full-time semester before you enroll. Failing to register for a full-time credit load can impact your financial aid, and your eligibility for health insurance if you are still dependent on your parents. The stress of finding out that you aren’t registered appropriately halfway through a semester can cause you to lose focus on your academics.
Likewise, those students who intend to be part time because of family or work obligations should avoid overloading on courses. Both part-time and full-time students must be careful not to bite off more than they can chew when selecting courses.
Generally, academic professionals advise that you should plan to spend a minimum of 3 hours per week outside of the classroom for each hour you are in class. This means that if a course meets three times a week for an hour, you will need to devote approximately 9 hours a week towards studying and completing assignments for that course in addition to attending the classes. Of course, this is a generalization. There will be some courses that require less of you and some that require more, depending upon the subject matter, the professor, and your aptitude in the subject area. But it is a good rule of thumb to employ when planning your course schedule.
Personal Preferences
Are you a morning person or a night owl? Are you more likely to be attentive and focused in class at the start, middle, or end of your day? Do you do best when taking courses back-to-back or are you more able to stay attentive when you have longer breaks between courses?
In many cases, the times courses are available will not be a perfect match for your preferences. If you need a science class and prefer not to have to sit in the classroom until after noon, but the only open science classes meet in the morning, you’ll have to adjust accordingly. But knowing what works best for you can be helpful in planning a schedule that is as close to ideal for you as possible.
Other Obligations
Are you a student who is also involved in sports or other activities on campus? Do you have a job that requires you to work a certain number of hours per week? Are you a parent or a volunteer for an organization?
It is critical to weigh your courseload against your other obligations. You may want to take six classes to get closer to your degree, but if you also have to work twenty hours a week to help pay your tuition and your other bills this could be setting yourself up for a very rough semester. Would you rather complete four classes with good grades, or six classes with poor grades?
The Types of Courses You Choose
The types of studying and work involved in courses can vary greatly. In literature classes, you’ll be focusing on reading and writing papers. In math and science classes you’ll be completing problems, analyzing data and doing lab work. In an art or music class you might spend more time in a studio.
When you are able, it is important to balance your schedule. Even if you love writing, taking four or five classes that require three or more papers each over the course of the semester might be tough. Consider choosing two writing-intensive courses and two or three other types of classes instead. Likewise, if you struggle with science and math, avoid taking more than one or two of these types of courses when possible, and balance out your schedule with humanities or social science courses instead.
3.
Review Syllabi and Course Outlines and Plot Your Semester
Most instructors provide a course outline or syllabus within the first week of classes. In fact, many make this information available online well before the semester begins. Textbooks are often available in your campus bookstore weeks before the start of the semester.
Take a paper or electronic calendar, whichever works best for you, and make note of when your quizzes, midterms and finals are to be held in each class. Next note when papers or major projects are due. It helps if you also make note of important dates at work or on your social calendar. When you’ve finished, you’ve created an “at a glance” view of your entire semester. You can refer to this to see when you’ll need to reserve extra time for study and school work. Perhaps you can request a few days off from your job or not to commit to extensive social activity during these time periods. Having your full schedule in front of you also helps you to plan ahead academically. If you know that you’ve got two exams and two papers due in the same week, get a jump start on the papers so that you aren’t trying to handle everything at once.
4.
Communicate With Your Professors and Instructors in Problem Areas
Many students are embarrassed to admit to a professor that they have struggled or are struggling in a course. But remember that your professor is there to teach you the subject matter at hand and to help you succeed. Most professors hold office hours where you can meet with them for extra discussion of course material or assignments. Others have graduate teaching assistants on board who do the same.
If you’ve struggled in science classes before, and are enrolled in one this semester, share your concerns with your professor. He or she will most likely appreciate being aware of your concerns and may be able to provide you with study tips or extra resources that will help you succeed.
5.
Use Campus Resources
If you aren’t aware of them, it is possible to go through your entire academic career without taking advantages of resources right on campus that are designed to make your life easier. Most colleges and universities offer advising centers, tutoring programs, organized study groups, learning resource centers and study skills courses to help students who are struggling academically.
Make time in your schedule to research and take advantage of these resources. Talk to your academic advisor about referrals. Network with other students. Talk with your professors, and browse your university’s web site.
When you are already struggling to manage a busy schedule, these extra steps may seem overwhelming. But the added effort can pay off dramatically in the long run.
6.
Take Notes
Some students attend class religiously, complete each and every assigned text reading, and still find themselves struggling to grasp the subject material. If you find yourself in this scenario, maybe you’re just going through the motions.
Passive attendance and reading usually will not lead to academic success. Think about it. If you are in a room with a television show playing in the background, but aren’t paying a lick of attention to the TV, can you later give a friend a play-by-play of the action on the show? Probably not. School work is the same way.
When in class, be an active learner. Take notes about what the professor and other students are saying. Make notes of areas that you don’t quite understand. Later, review and organize your notes. When you are reading assignments, highlight and make notes of areas of interest or material that you may need to re-read or discuss further. Seek out additional information in the library or online. Ask yourself, other students and your professor questions about lectures and readings. Try summarizing what you have learned and explain it in writing or out loud to a friend or family member. Have someone quiz you on course material. Involve yourself in your coursework the same way you would a hobby or other interest.
7.
Form study groups
If you’re struggling in a class, there’s a good chance that some of your classmates are too.
Group study has many benefits. Different people bring different strengths to the table. One student may have found an excellent library or online resource that helped him grasp the material. Another may have excellent study or note taking skills and can share tips with the group. Yet another may have a unique method of memorizing key facts that she can teach others.
In addition, study groups provide structure and accountability. Getting together with others to regularly discuss course material keeps the subject matter and key points fresh in your mind. Let’s face it, there are times during a busy semester when the temptation to blow off studying and play computer games or catch a movie with friends is overwhelming. If your plan for the evening was to sit alone with your textbooks, it is easy to rationalize that you’ll just be hurting yourself or that you’ll make up for it later. But if you agreed to meet a group of fellow students to study, you’ll be letting them down as well. That accountability can be the gentle kick you need to follow through on your study plans.
8.
Allow leisure time
Remember the old saying “all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy?” Well, all study and no leisure can do the same thing to your brain.
Our minds need time to rest, recharge and process the information we feed into them. Make sure you schedule this time into your semester. Every now and then, put down the books and watch a silly movie, or head out for some catch-up time with your friends. Sleep in now and then. Get out and take a long walk on a crisp sunny day. Walk away from a draft of a paper for a day or two, and then come back and read what you’ve written with new eyes.
You’ll be able to return to your school work with a clearer head and a fresh perspective if you give your mind and body time for rest and fun.
9.
Monitor your progress
Don’t let yourself be caught off guard by a less-than-satisfactory performance. This can be easier said than done, especially in courses where your grade is based primarily on a mid-term and final exam with few other opportunities to evaluate your grasp of the material in between.
Check in with your professor on your understanding of the material. Think about whether you seem to be grasping the knowledge at the same pace as your study group.
If you do find that mid-semester has rolled around and you aren’t doing as well as you thought you would be, evaluate your options. With tutoring, extra discussions with the professor, and more time devoted to the course, can you pull yourself up to where you need to be?
Be aware of the deadlines your school has in place for dropping courses. Dropping a course because you are not doing well is disheartening, and a “withdrawal” from a course is not always the best thing to have on your transcript. But in the long run, this option might be better than setting yourself up for a situation where you are continuing to do poorly because of difficulties with the course material or an overloaded semester.
A mid-semester check-in with your advisor to make decisions about your current course load, get tips and referrals to help in areas where you are struggling, and to being planning for next semester is almost always beneficial. If you do not have an advisor assigned to you, check out your university’s counseling resources or ask a trusted professor if he or she could work with you or make a referral. If you are considering dropping a course, always discuss the ramifications doing so might have on your financial aid, insurance or campus housing before you make your decision.
A bumpy start to your academic year is frustrating. But it doesn’t mean that you can’t end the school year on a positive note. If you manage your time well, choose your courses wisely, take care of your mind and your body, communicate with your professor and other students and take advantages of resources available to you on campus, you can turn things around.
