Welcome to the first week of term! You prepared. You know where your classes are. You’ve read all your syllabi. Even so, there are still going to be some growing pains. You’re in a new environment, don’t worry if not everything is going perfectly to plan. The following will help you lay the foundations for a successful college term. Do what you can and remember to breathe.
This week, there are 7 things that will help set you up for success. A few of the items are just diving a little deeper into things that you worked on to prepare for this week. This things include becoming familiar with the syllabus, office-hours, and knowing where things are on campus. We also will be dipping into time management and study skills. We will even be touching a little on financial management. It is an extremely important skill for everyone. It is especially important for those of you who are living away from home.
Let’s start in class. The first time your class meets for term, there are three things that should have your special attention. First, the LMS login, be sure you know how to login to the LMS, such as Canvas, Blackboard, or Moodle. Second, familiarize yourself with navigating the LMS. Third, become an expert on the syllabus.
For the LMS, familiarize yourself with the home screen. Most LMS have tabs for Dashboard, Courses, Calendar, and an Inbox. I’m going to focus on the Courses tab because this is where all of your course information will be. Generally, on each course, you’ll see Announcements, Modules, Grades, Syllabus, Assignments, and Discussions if they’ll be used in the course. Sometimes, the Grades page will allow you to enter your own scores. This way, you can see exactly what you need to pass. You can also estimate what final grade you will receive. If your instructor has mentioned that assignments must be submitted through the LMS, ensure you understand how to navigate to those pages. Also, know how to upload files and join the discussion board to provide responses.
The LMS should also have a digital copy of the syllabus. In university the syllabus is almost a type of contract between you and the instructor. It will list policies and expectations of you but also of the instructor. For instance, in my syllabi, I always told my students that they could expect a response from me within 48 hours. Students also knew when I was going to have exams and what we were going to cover each day in lectures. The syllabus also has the grading information. This is really important. Let’s say that the total points for the course is 1000 and that the grading scale is 90-100 for an A, 80-90 for a B, 70-80 for a C, etc. That means that if you want an A in the class, you just need 900 points.
I don’t believe it’s common, but for one of the classes I took, that meant that I didn’t need to take the final. I only needed to score high enough in the other exams, assignments, and discussion boards. Playing the point game in this way can alleviate stress. This is especially true if you’re the type of student that worries over every missed point. It’s extremely important to note that some instructors don’t count all points equally. This means that some of them will state that exams will equal 60% of your final grade, even if the points only count for 30. So, be extra careful when seeing how different things are weighed in the grading scale.
The syllabus will also have information about office hours and best ways to contact your instructor. Go to the office hours the first week, just to drop in and introduce yourself. Start the relationship on the right footing. Also, this will make it easier to go to office hours later in the term if you have a question or need help on a topic. Beyond just this semester, it’s beneficial for your instructors to know who you are. They can provide a reference for an application if needed.
You’ve read the syllabus. You know all the meeting times and assignment due dates. You can start updating your calendar. Your class meeting times will be your timeblock anchors. These cannot be moved or missed. Once you have all your anchors listed on your schedule, you can start planning your work, studying, and friends around those anchors. You really start to see clearly how much time you have in your week. You can also add all the assignment and exam dates. Set reminders a week or two before exams to remember to study. I would also put a note of when office hours are. This way, you have a quick reference spot instead of having to search the syllabus each time.
Before we leave the class, there’s one final thing we need to do. Meet classmates! I usually would talk to the people next to me, in front, and behind me. Generally, you should meet at least three people. However, I’ve had classes where I’ve just met one person before and it was manageable. It doesn’t have to be people who are sitting next to you either. I’ve created groups just from the people who always arrived at class at the same time as me. Knowing people in the class can be extremely helpful during the course.
Exchanging contact information, even if it’s just the messaging system built into the LMS, is beneficial. Your classmates can help explain topics to you and you can explain topics that confuse them. Teaching others is a great way to learn. In addition to helping each other with studying, you can also remind each other of upcoming due dates. If one of you misses a class or zones out during a lecture, the others can fill in any missing information.
This leads into a study system. A lot of students find that their way of studying in high school doesn’t work well at university. Don’t be discouraged, just be willing to try something new. Use what has worked for you in the past and adapt it to university. Personally, I would always spend a little time after each class reviewing my notes. This would typically take no more than 20 minutes. I would also fill in anything from the lecture that I remember but didn’t write down. It’s good to put this information down while it is still fresh in your mind. Then, later when I was actually studying for the class, my lecture notes were more accurate.
Also, remember the earlier schedule with the timeblock anchors? Add study time into that schedule. Don’t forget to add in study breaks, those are important. A helpful way to schedule study and breaks is the Pomodoro Technique. This will have you studying for 25 minutes. Then, take a 5-minute break. You can also choose to study for 50 minutes. After that, take a 10-minute break. Choose what works best for you.
While on campus, look for convenient places to study. The library is the obvious choice. The student center may also be a nice space. Depending on the weather, studying outside could work well too. The important thing is to find a place that is comfortable but also has what you need. For instance, if you have a laptop with low battery, sitting outside away from any outlets probably isn’t the best choice.
Also while on campus, just like how you went to the first office hours, also drop by the tutoring or writing center, or any other place that is set aside for student services and academic support. It’s extremely helpful to be familiar with these places and the people before you need help. When you do need help, go to them right away. Don’t wait until you are drowning in assignments. Reach out for help early. They are there to help you year-round. You don’t need to be failing a course to get help. In fact, a lot of writing centers will proofread your essay before you submit it. They will give you ways to improve your writing.
The final thing that you want to figure out before the end of your first week is your budget. This is mainly for students who aren’t living at home, but it’s always good to know how to budget. It’s important to be familiar with your rental agreements to see what is covered and what’s not. Generally, the university covers utilities and internet. Be sure those aren’t expenses that you’ll have to cover. You’ll also want to budget for groceries. Even if you are on a university meal plan, you may need to supplement that.
This first week of term is a great way to test how much you’ll be spending day to day. Cutting out coffee won’t save you enough money to buy a house. However, skipping the coffee a couple of times can help you save up for a campus event. For instance, during my first week, I learned that at the end of the year, there was going to be a huge party on campus. This party was to celebrate the end of term, but it was going to be $200. So, instead of going to a coffee shop on campus everyday, I went to the student center. They had some instant coffee and tea available for free. I quickly had the money saved that I needed for the party after final exams.
