4 Tips For Preparing For College

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College classes are known for being quite demanding – typically incredibly more demanding than the ones offered in high school. No need to have a meltdown over it, though. As with most things in this life, with a bit of preparation, you’ll be able to succeed.

To that end, here are a few tips to get you ready.

Brush Up on Whatever You’re Academically Weak On

Even if you’ve been an amazing student in all of the subjects you took, when it comes to college, you’ll want to take practice tests, especially the MCAT practice test if you’re considering a career in the field of medicine. However, if you have a weakness or two in your academic background, you’ll want to take a few more steps to address those before you get to college. For example, if you struggle with math, look at a few ways to improve in that area before you start taking math classes at the collegiate level. Some of the options might be to use free websites and/or apps to tutor and test yourself, work with a tutor, or take a summer course at the community college in your area.

Determine How to Pay for It

If you’re going to strive for a higher education, you have to have a way to pay for it. Some people are lucky and come from families that can afford to pay for college with no problem. Most of us will have to find other ways. Some students will want to work their way through college and take classes as they can afford them. Most people will end up getting student loans. There are also all sorts of scholarships and grants that can help.

Read

Colleges prepare students for real life. One way to prepare for college though is to simply read. If you haven’t been an avid reader, college might pose an issue because there is quite a bit of reading to be done for every class. One way to get used to that is to do a bit of advance reading in the summer before you begin classes. Some schools will encourage their incoming students to do this by actually assigning a book to read to their freshmen before fall term starts. If yours doesn’t do this, you can always get a jump start on any of the articles or books that will be required for your classes. If you already know your courses, you might be able to locate the syllabi and/or reading lists on the school’s website or the website of the specific department. This can reduce stress and save time.

Get Organized

Once you’ve made the decision to continue your education, one of the best things you can do to prepare for college is to learn how to manage your time. It can be quite helpful to have a handily placed calendar where, once classes start, you put each assignment, test, quiz, etc. Make sure that you look this calendar over each day so that you always know what is coming up and when to expect it. You also need to stay on top of each of your assignments, and even work a chapter or two ahead if possible. If you walk into your classes with at least a basic knowledge of what will be discussed, it can make those classes quite a bit easier.

Yes, there is a lot more to do to get ready for college, but if you brush up on your academic weak points, know how you’re going to pay for school, read, and ensure that you’re organized, you’ll be off and running.