3 Weeks To Go: Be ready
for college-level study! August 11, 2008
Prepare yourself for academic success...
It's exciting to think about the new world opening up to you
as you begin classes at the University this fall. Maybe you're wondering what
college-level classes will be like. The majority of students don't know what to
expect from their courses as they enter college, so if you aren't sure either,
you are not alone!
One resource to help you evaluate your courses and workload
is the University
of Minnesota Course Guide:
(http://onestop2.umn.edu/courseinfo/courseguide_selectsubject.jsp?institution=UMNTC). The course guide can provide you with
valuable information about the course for which you registered: prerequisites,
course equivalencies, requirements fulfilled, course description, and
more. For some courses, it even shows an
estimate of how much class time will be devoted to lecture, lab, or discussion;
how much reading is assigned per week; how many exams, quizzes, papers, and other
homework is assigned; and whether exams are short answer, multiple choice,
fill-in, matching, short essay, or other formats.
Also keep in mind the differences in course levels, which
suggest the level of difficulty for a course:
-1xxx and 2xxx level courses are appropriate for first and
second year undergraduate students.
-3xxx level courses are primarily for second, third, and
fourth year undergraduate students.
-4xxx level courses are generally for third or fourth year
undergraduates.
-5xxx level courses are high level courses usually taken by
graduate students, but fourth year undergraduate students may also be able to
take them.
As a freshman student, you are probably enrolled exclusively
in 1xxx level courses this fall. We
suggest that students do not take upper-division courses (3xxx-5xxx level)
until they've completed their first year of undergraduate study.
The most common observation freshmen make at the end of
their first year is that they had not anticipated how much they would need to
adjust their study habits to do well in college. To help you be prepared, one resource you'll
want to check out this summer and throughout your first year is Student
Academic Success Services (SASS) at http://www.uccs.umn.edu/education/sass.htm.
SASS offers tips for studying, reading, note-taking, test-taking, and for
transitioning from a successful high school student to a successful college
student. The Center also offers several courses for credit that can help you
enhance your already-established study strategies. Explore their website before you come to
campus and you're sure to feel more prepared for the year ahead.
Lastly, you should also be aware of the numerous academic
support resources available to you. As
you get started in your course work, at the University, you may find these
resources useful in becoming a successful college student. Be sure to review the resource links below to
become familiar with some of these campus resources.
SMART Learning Commons: Provides free academic support in a
variety of subject areas via workshops and peer learning consultants. Also provides individual and group study
places. http://smart.umn.edu/
Math tutors: There are a variety of places on campus that
can assist students with mathematics.
Check out these links to learn more: http://www.math.umn.edu/undergrad/tutoring_schedule/
http://www.education.umn.edu/PSTL/student/math/default.html
Writing
Center: Provides
face-to-face and online collaborative consultations to help students develop
effective writing habits.
http://writing.umn.edu/sws/
Next week, get advice from peers who have done it before:
"What I wish I had known…"
