College Success What’s it all about???

College Success Why are you in South Texas College? You’re here because you want to be here, nobody made you do it! You’re here because you want get more education to get a good job and have a successful life. In other words, make more money than you would with just a high school education.

THIS TAKES WORK! Make no mistake about it, a good life takes hard work. It isn’t going to fall off a tree like a ripe orange. If you start college with the attitude that you are going to work to get the education you want, you will do fine. Just don’t give up!

What kind of work does it take? First, attitude is everything! You’ve got to motivate yourself to get up and get going and stay going! And nobody else can do it but you! Next, you need to get your mind and your brain to work with you. This takes effort and willpower.

Remember… Grades and numbers may be a big deal in school, but in the “real world” they don’t mean ZIP! What’s really important is learning how to “think things through” and then applying that thinking to do things well…

The Syllabus A syllabus is an outline or “guide-book” which tells pretty much all you need to know about a college course. Even if you think it’s long and a little boring, it’s a really good idea to keep checking with the syllabus to see what’s going to happen next, so you can plan ahead…

So what are we going to do? Self-Discovery: what are “learning styles”? Do you learn by seeing, hearing or touching? The more you know about yourself, the more you have to use to make yourself a better life… Time Management: getting a handle on scheduling your time… Do you procrastinate or get it done right now? Can you set deadlines for yourself and stick to them? Do you plan ahead or let things go to the last minute?

What else will we work on? Note-taking: if you really want to remember something: WRITE IT DOWN!!! And the more organized your notes are, the better you can use them to get ahead in your classes. Test-taking: Dealing with “test anxiety” – don’t let tests get to you! How to study and prepare for tests… Tips and strategies for kicking “you-know- what” on tests.

Now we work on the mind… Memory: is the mental glue that holds everything you learn & know together. The trick is to learn how to control and organize your memory so that you remember what is important and necessary and forget what isn’t. Critical thinking: your brain is a far better computer than anything invented so far by man. But, like any other muscle in your body, it needs to be exercised to be strong. That exercise is called “THINKING”! To know, comprehend, apply, analyze, synthesize, evaluate and organize are all parts of the thinking process.

The Research Project To research is to make a thorough and extensive investigation about a subject. In this class, you will do a research project about what it takes to succeed in college. The best place to do research is the STC library. We will go to the library so you can see how to use it. Your research will involve books, periodicals (magazines & journals), the Internet and personal interviews to discover the secrets of College Success. Finally, you will publish the findings from your research in an essay and a in-class presentation.

A Final Word: Choosing a Career Choose a career in something you really like to do. If you can get an employer to pay to do something you already like to do, you are way ahead of the game…