Transition from High school to University

[Vanitas]

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Hey viewers of Smashboards

I have spent my last Friday at high school and just realized how shocking it is that high school is over...
I was always so excited that i was going to ditch high school eventually but im actually really sad now.
Next year is going to be so weird...making entirely different new friends, having much more freedom...etc...
Was the transition from high school to university hard for you guys?
Anyone would like to share some past stories, tips, anything that can help an undergraduate?

Thanks alot in advance

- Vanitas

 

[Jim Morrison]

High School is pretty cool IMO and I'm glad I can appreciate it.

 

[Vanitas]

yea :/
I never fully appreciated how much fun it was until now

 

[highfive]

Last year of Highschool for me. I'm ready for College but it is quite a big step forward isn't it? I mean, your friends in College may just end up being your career peers or superiors!

 

[mzink*]

If you have a big college campus, try to come up with simple ways to remember where everything is quickly. I got lost a lot on my campus. And it is usually A LOT of walking so a lot of times people drop pounds when they hit college.

The transition seems to not be a big deal for some but a shock to others, IMO not a big deal. Just be cool with all the people living around you and try to get to know them early.

Also, random crap tends to happen, just go with the flow or stay out of it. Just be expecting some crazy ****.

Most people love college life (minus the sometimes insane work load), being friendly with the other newbies there will most likely make everything a lot smoother and more fun.

Have fun dude

 

[Vanitas]

Last year of Highschool for me. I'm ready for College but it is quite a big step forward isn't it? I mean, your friends in College may just end up being your career peers or superiors!

Its such a big step forward, like you become an adult and tons of responsibility falls on your shoulders...ugh
Yea i hear the friends you make there are quite unbelievable and stuff :O

If you have a big college campus, try to come up with simple ways to remember where everything is quickly. I got lost a lot on my campus. And it is usually A LOT of walking so a lot of times people drop pounds when they hit college.

The transition seems to not be a big deal for some but a shock to others, IMO not a big deal. Just be cool with all the people living around you and try to get to know them early.

Also, random crap tends to happen, just go with the flow or stay out of it. Just be expecting some crazy ****.

Most people love college life (minus the sometimes insane work load), being friendly with the other newbies there will most likely make everything a lot smoother and more fun.

Have fun dude

LOL i forgot how big university is...and we only have like 5 minutes to move from class to class...>_<

Yea i fall in the category in which its a huge shock lol

Random crap...? like what?

Thanks alot for the advice!

 

[#HBC | ZoZo]

High School is pretty cool IMO and I'm glad I can appreciate it.

I don't get how you can appreciate dutch high school :/
30 mins of homework per class wut?

 

[Jim Morrison]

I don't get how you can appreciate dutch high school :/
30 mins of homework per class wut?

I appreciate it because I have vacation now


trollface.jpg

 

[#HBC | ZoZo]

...

fils de pute.

 

[#HBC | Acrostic]

Get a good nights rest (8 hours) so you're awake during class. Grab an early breakfast. Go to class. Write notes in class. Go to next class. Writes notes in that class. Take a lunch break if you can. Continue process. After classes end go to the library or back to your dorm room, rewrite and read pages that were covered in class if you haven't done it yet in addition to homework. Work out extra problems if you don't understand the material and plan to ask questions in recitation or before/after lecture about a specific problem or concept. After you finish, work out and do a little exercise. Play some videogames if you want and then eat dinner. Go to sleep and repeat the process. On Friday nights do laundry weekly so that you don't accumulate too big a pile at once that will take you forever to finish. Prepare for midterm exams a week in advance. In fact, write out all your exams as soon as you get the syllabus so you know what is going on. Study a little bit for each exam a half a week to a week in advance depending on the difficulty. Some exams are easy enough to study the day before. Look at exam results and see what you got wrong. Ask questions. Don't think you'll do better on the next exam because you screwed up the first time. Finish homework and complete everything else. If you have time, you can get a part-time job or try to look for one on campus. If you go to a big school, they usually have tons of spots managing the cafeteria or running a computer lab. Send your application in and see if you get in. You might also want to apply for scholarships at the end of the year in order to make your education cheaper. But you should have fairly good grades before this happens. Yeah. That's more or less the basics. Also try to get to class 5-10 minutes early. Professors like to ask questions word-for-word from lecture sometimes and you might miss a question if you come late. Oh. And don't take drugs. Especially ritalin or adderall. That stuff will screw you somewhere down the road. If you're seriously stressing out, the n you need to scale back. You can scale back by dropping classes, changing your major, becoming introverted and abandoning social life, lowering your standards, or becoming a cynical pessimist.

 

[Geist]

Remember that transition from middle school to high scool that was overhyped?
Surprise.

Spoiler

well unless you're moving out to college Out of State or Country.

Good luck in University

 

[Jam Stunna]

Your experience will depend alot on what your college plans are. Are you going to a big school, a community college, will you be commuting or living out of state? All those things will make big impacts.

 

[Nidtendofreak]

The first year tends to be the year they try to flush out as many people, so that they only have those serious about university/their major in the second and third year. Be prepared for a lot of stuff to remember, particularly in Math and Science courses. Honestly, your best bet will be to basically memorize the text book, or at least the parts of the textbook they cover in class.

I should also point out that if you were one of those kids who had to study to do well in high school, you actually have a bit of an advantage over those who didn't need to study in high school. I went through high school basically never looking at the textbook, and getting A's and B's. I tried that the first semester of University...and found out that style only works with English. Even then, it was only because I can think up, and type up entire essays in about an hour to an hour and fifteen minutes. The rest of my courses I did horrible in: I couldn't figure out how to study. I never had to, so when it boiled down to it...I couldn't study the textbook in an effective way. My grades showed this fact.

It helps if you have a fast reading speed, and fast typing speed. For example I can read 750+ wpm and can type 50+ wpm. So many courses now require large amounts of reading daily, and even courses like Math are often online now. If you're a slow reader, I'd advise you start reading novels during the summer. You will pick up some amount of speed doing that, as long as you enjoy the book. If you're still henpecking away at the keyboard, better learn how to type properly.

Don't be afraid to go to the tutoring place every single day if it's needed. If you have a problem: it ain't going to go away. It's just going to be worse. Study groups also work, as long as you can remain focused in one.

 

[El Nino]

Stay the h*ll away from credit cards.

I am serious.

 

[July]

The transition from high school into a university can definitely be stressful, especially the time in between the two where you are preparing yourself for the change. Your experience and how tough it will be will definitely be affected by how big the university is you are attending, if you are living at home or in a dorm, your major, and a lot of little things as well. However, I can tell you its a great opportunity to learn more about yourself, experience more independence, meet new people, and learn about things that are genuinely interesting to you.

The only thing about college is that thing its your responsibility now to fix things if they are broken. If your grades are hurting then you have to find out what you can do to fix them, whether its changing your study habits or talking to the professor for help. It can be hard to get to know people in class, so you have to go out and make friends in your college house, by joining clubs, attending social events, anything to socialize with people.

I just finished my freshman year of college this year so I remember the feeling of sadness about leaving high, but that goes away once you find your place in college. And you can still keep those connections too, when I'm home for vacation and stuff my high school friends and I reconnect and its as if nothing really changed except we have even more awesome stories for each other. I know that may not be possible for all friends and all situations, but if you try to keep those connections stronger, you'll likely succeed.

 

[#HBC | Acrostic]

I have a question. Did anyone become increasingly cynical as the years progressed?

 

[El Nino]

I went in as a cynic.

I left a nihilist.

Sometimes I think the only reason I finished was because I knew my family would need my financial support. Turns out I was right. Too bad my degree wasn't as profitable as one would have liked.

Edit: Oh yeah. More advice. Don't get kicked out and don't fail a class. Withdraw if you have problems; talk to an academic counselor about other options. That **** stays with you.

 

[SuperBowser]

It was the biggest change of my life so far.

Remember the social life is just as important as the academic. Screw the people who say otherwise. You need to find a balance that's good for you.

 

[Vanitas]

D: you guys make it sounds so scary >_<
Thanks for the advice so far...takes notes* its good to have advice from people who have experience

 

[SuperBowser]

I should have added it was a positive change!

I'm more confident, I'm more independent, I no longer get stressed with work and I've made amazing friends I'll stay in contact with long after university is over. There are skills you can pick up/improve at university that are arguably as useful in the real world as the qualification you came for and you shouldn't ignore those opportunities. It's a cliche but a large part of university is what you make of it.


...If you are a super outgoing or lazy or struggling student, my advice would be like the others in this thread though - do some work too

I have a question. Did anyone become increasingly cynical as the years progressed?

Always been a realist.

 

[DarkLouis331]

I have a question. Did anyone become increasingly cynical as the years progressed?

I guess you could say I have. I'm going into my 3rd year of college this fall and not looking forward to it. I go there by car everyday. Pretty much everything about high school was better. Our high school marching band could kick our college marching band's ***, and (most) of the professors are quite dull. The only thing I like about our college is the gaming club and that I'm doing rather well GPA-wise.

You'll have a heaping pile of debt to take care of once you graduate, especially if you're American, and you'll still probably be making minimum wage after you graduate due to the economy.

I'm quitting marching band next year bc my peers restricted themselves to low standards as did the director. Yeah, I have a few friends in college, but I'm having a much easier time staying friends with people in high school right now.

I hate college. High school was sooo much better.