High School To College Transitioning

Transitioning from high school to college can be a bit difficult for some. They are both very different places, so you definitely have to change up some of the things you used to do. You end up having to learn some new techniques that should transform into good habits. Those good habits will then lead you into a successful college experience and, hopefully, a successful life. The transition between the two isn’t much different from elementary school to high school. Through good time management and becoming more responsible, you most definitely can smoothly transition from high school to college with little to no trouble.

Now, I didn’t necessarily decide to learn how to transition between the two, I just had to. We have to transition between elementary school to high school, high school to college, and college to a real job. Since this can be tough on some to cope with, I decided that I wanted to help inform other high school students about these differences and how to get through it easily. Going from high school to college can be hard for some, like me. College is like a whole new world. You are not prepared at all for the differences these two levels have. You have to learn how to deal with everything and get the hang of it. Everybody has to transition through it, and normally you don’t necessarily “learn” how to do it, it just comes naturally. But you do have to learn and practice different techniques to help you get through it.

I got started by asking my older brother what college is like and how his classes are. I was genuinely curious because college seemed so exciting and new. From there, he told me how different everything is. Whether it’s your classes, professors, people, work, etcetera. He warned me how you are more responsible for things in college, so pay attention to everything. Whether it’s something small or big, make a note about it. He explained to me that you should always do your class work right when you get it because you never know how hard it’s going to be or how long it’s going to take to finish it. For example, he had a six-page essay that he had to do in a week! At first, that sounded unbelievable to me, but here I am now writing long essays. Thankfully, I took all this new knowledge in fast because at the time I was a junior in high school, so I had to start preparing myself for when college comes around. Which I did by doing my work ahead of time in my classes and taking notes on small things in my classes.High school teaches you many helpful things to prepare you for college. In high school, you have to tackle six classes for about three to four years, depending on how many classes you have to take your senior year. You end up having a bunch of projects and homework being due around the same time, which can be stressful. Then, on top of that, most people end up getting jobs in high school, which can interfere with your school work time. This is where time management comes in and you need to find a steady schedule of how you are going to work things out. Learning how to cope with things like that will really help you for when you have to start college. I would know I got a job right when I was sixteen and had to manage my time wisely so that I could do my school work and finish it before I had to work. Sometimes I even took my assignments with me to work.Time management is essential for any person, whether you are a college student or a worker. It’s important because you need to find a way to juggle school, work, and a social life. For me, time management used to be difficult because I’m a full-time student and practically a full-time worker since my work has me working about 35 hours a week. On top of that, I tried to have time with my family and talk to my friends, which was stressful. Then, I sat down and actually planned out a schedule of when to make time for homework and a social life around going to school and college. Now I have set study and homework times and then have time on the weekends to be with family and friends, so it all worked out. This is exactly what good time management for a college student would be like. Always do the work right when it’s assigned so that you can get it out of the way and turn the work in on time! It will become a constant thing, which will allow you to have time to do other things.

In college, you have a lot more responsibility than you did in high school. You see, in high school, you are hand-fed everything. From information to notes to assignments, they practically give you a cheat sheet to it all. For example, being able to turn in your work late even if the teacher claims you can’t. That’s what happens in high school. But in college, they literally mean that you can’t turn your work in late at all. I have professors who won’t even let someone turn their work in a minute late in class. Now, your classes and professors aren’t too bad, just make sure to follow their rules. The syllabus for each class will be like your survival guide, so don’t lose it. Trust me, all my professors refer to their syllabus all the time. They will have important information in them like how many days you are allowed to miss, whether late work is accepted or not, when their office hours are, what textbook you will need, and much more. Also, make sure to keep your student email notifications on at all times, you never know when a class will be cancelled, or a due date will change. I have my notifications turned on because most the time I will get emails about new assignments in my classes, so that I can start working ahead on them.From this process I have learned many helpful tips and habits to help me adjust to college. Some my brother gave me, others I learned on my own. I learned to never be late or miss class, which I already knew from elementary and high school, but they are stricter about it in college. Especially since if you miss about two to three days, you can get dropped from your class or fail. I even learned in my College Strategies class about a “plan b” for when you could possibly be late or miss school. I learned to always do my work ahead of time and not wait until last minute because your class work can be difficult and sometimes very lengthy. More than likely, you will have a lot of work due at the same time, so you better get started as soon as possible. Most of my classes mainly have homework due on the same day, but different times. Sometimes, it can be overbearing to have a lot of work like that due, but it’s all about making a good schedule of which to do first and what’s going to take longer. I learned to always take notes, so I don’t forget anything. To ask questions when needed, figure out what I have to read or look up, make time to study each day, and more.

The significance of what I learned is that high school and college are different, and you need to address that ahead of time or else you’re not going to make it through college. You need to own up and be responsible for everything you do or need to do. I immediately became more responsible after my first week of college because I had to get my work done on time and no longer procrastinate. Also, I had to retain information for my classes that would sooner or later help me. Adjusting to college from high school has had a very positive impact on my life because I learned how deal with the big differences and not be stressed over it. I finally know what I’m doing, so I won’t mess up on anything and finish on time. College has really helped me with good time management. I can successfully manage school and work at the same time. Transitioning from high school to college is not as difficult as it seems. Although, it’s hard at first, you can surely get the hang of it with some tips. The information my brother gave me is the only reason I am surviving college so far. Also, the fact that your first year, most people end up taking a College Strategies class, which would help you out a lot. If you follow good tips and techniques, you can become very successful with many things. Through good time management and becoming more responsible, you most definitely can smoothly transition from high school to college with little to no trouble.