Additional Tips for College

Have a Point to Go to College
I went to college because, it was the thing to do after graduating from High School. I mean, everyone was doing it, right? Well I spent years not even knowing why I was there. I wasn't learning anything new, I wasn't happy in my major (I use to be graphic communications) and I had no idea what I even wanted to take up as an alternative.

College is a great time to learn about yourself and to help you decide where to go in life. I absolutely had no idea. When I say, "I wish I had a point in going to college" set on my mind I don't mean "I wish I knew what major I wanted right away."

I wish I had just goals in general such as learning, making contacts, or even "just to party". For a long time I felt like I was only there to go with the motions of life. I always felt I had no reason to learn about anthropology or probability. I felt that if I had at least some objective to going, other than doing it cause I felt I was "suppose to" I would've gotten a bit more out of college.

Don't just make friends - make the right friends
I was content with the people I knew before college, and didn't really give myself the opportunity to get to know too many more. All too often I see people getting stuck on friends who you can only count on to drink with or pop in a game of Halo 3 with, but when it comes to wanting to get together a group for a Birthday supper or someone to pick you up when your car breaks down, it is really good to have friends in town, that you can count on.

Now I am not saying I don't have friends I can count on, but I do wish I had more... and I think this could be a topic of its own with life in general. I think there is a definite difference between a true friend and just a hang out buddy. True friends are harder to come by. You can have 100 hang out buddies and for the most part feel content, but when your girlfriend or boyfriend dumps you, or when your tire blows on the freeway, or when you need a ride to the interview, or a place to stay for two weeks, or it's your 23rd birthday and you want to have a outdoor grill with friends.... do you know people who will be there the best they can.

Anyone can log in and play an online game with you, watch an evening movie with a pizza, or occasionally hit the bars with you. I think college is a great time to make your life long friends, but finding the right ones is not always easy.

Take Classes with a tougher schedule while living on campus before moving off campus
I use to work my schedule to the point where I would mainly only have classes Tuesday - Thursday. I might have had one class on Monday and then none on Friday. My earliest would be anywhere between noon - 2pm. I would do this while living on campus. But now I am forced to take classes that are only offered at 9:30 am and Monday Wednesday Friday classes. I wish I would've taken those classes first and got them out of the way while I was living on campus and easier to get to class. Now I am taking all my morning classes my final year in college when I am living off campus.

It is a lot harder to get up and go to class in the middle of winter for a 9am class where you have to drive on the ice, find a parking spot, and walk blocks to campus instead of just waking up out of the dorms and getting to class in 5-10 minutes.

Spend Time on Your Portfolio - Now
I made a lot of projects while in class. Some of my projects I would be confident enough to present to a future employer. However, I wish I would've taken all my assignments with the intention that I would be using them for not only a grade, but my portfolio. I am graduating in 3 weeks (hopefully) and though I have several pieces of good work, I do not have them organized or perfected for a portfolio presentation. I wish I would've slowly worked on a little website or some sort to show all my graphic designs instead of waiting until the last minute.

Fill Resume Gaps
Sure I've been a full time student and I am sure that will be forgiven as a reason to why my work experience is less than what it should be to some employers. However, I wish I would've kept the gaps closed. A lot of jobs don't really care that you graduated with a Marketing degree. They want to see your experience and what you did. I've had people tell me they weren't hired because of their college degree, but because of their work experience at a certain job they had. Sure I worked a couple months in the summer. It's not like I've been jobless for 4 years. And I highly recommend not letting your job take away from your school work either. But even having a very small part time job, internship, volunteering, or being part of some kind of club or organization will help keep those spots on your resume filled.

Go to class on the first day
You know how it goes. The teacher walks in, hands out the syllabus and then says you're free to go. It's kind of hard to be enthused to get up for a 9am class on the first day when you feel you'll only be there for 15 minutes. Well, go anyway. The first day of class is a great time to get your syllabus and see what the class is going to be about. You'll have a better understanding for everything as a whole and get a feel for the professor. Normally at this point you'll even have time to drop or change professors at this point.

There have been times I have missed the first day of class and I felt like I was behind everyone ever since. Somehow I felt like everyone had one step above me with that. The professor won't always have the syllabus the 2nd or 3rd day for the people that missed which means now you have to go to their office. Some professors even get into the material right away and even hand out assignments the first day.

Get to know your professors
I have found my professors to be very helpful and caring about anything. I have had many of mine say that you can come for them for literally anything. If your brother's football team won and you're excited, you can run in to tell them. If your dog died and you want someone to talk to, they'll listen. I've had some great professors say they'd be there for their students in any way to help them right from the get go. I wish I would have taken up on their offers because not only would it have been a great way to build contacts, but also help me through my classes and better prepare me for my future.

Appreciate Cafeteria Food
I hated going to the cafeteria at times. Standing in line or waiting 5 minutes for a cheeseburger because they ran out, or the pop machine being out of Mountain Dew so you had to switch to Root Beer all seemed like a pain at the time. But let me tell you, moving into an apartment and having to think of new meals for yourself and grocery shopping is not walk in the park. Yes, that is the real world for ya, but I wish I would have stayed with my meal plan just a little longer at least. I'd rather have all you can eat cafeteria pizza with a make it yourself sandwich than making a cheeseburger without a bun on top of instant mashed potatoes with no milk or butter to mix it with.

College was a reality check in a lot of ways and a good glimpse of what the real world is. It took a long time for me to see what the whole point of it was. I think college made me a well rounded person and helped me think about things in my different point of view and angles. I may not remember terms from anthropology or the formulas of probability, but after all this time I finally feel like there was a point in it all and that I took away much more than I figured I would from college.