Chapter 1 Understanding the College Scene: Right from the Start
Source: © Shutterstock, Inc.
Self-Assessment: Challenges and Opportunities
Step 1: Describe the three greatest challenges that you have faced since you arrived on campus.
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Step 2: Think about these challenges. Can you identify some solutions? Explain your solution to each of the challenges presented above. If you aren’t sure how to handle some of the challenges, get suggestions from friends, family, an advisor, your professor, or college staff members.
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Step 3: Describe the three best experiences you have had since arriving on campus.
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Top Ten Tips from Seniors
Challenges occur in any major new situation. Handling these challenges constructively will give you a positive start as you begin college. When confronted with college adjustment challenges, more-experienced students can be especially helpful sources of useful advice. Here are ten tips from experienced students to help as you transition to college life:
Find a few friends, including one or two you can count on.
If you party, always stick with a friend and don’t let him or her out of your sight. This arrangement can keep you out of trouble.
Give a high priority to keeping up with your school assignments; it’s easy to get behind and tough to catch up.
Get involved in school activities and attend big events like football games; you’ll be happier if you get involved.
Stay healthy by exercising, eating right, and getting enough sleep.
Set up a plan for keeping in touch with your family; take control and communicate regularly.
Figure out how to manage your time and money as soon as you can. Plan ahead.
Having a part-time job can be a good way to meet people and earn your own spending money.
Be patient if everything isn’t perfect right away; it will work out if you give it time.
Smile!
As you begin your college journey, you will benefit by becoming familiar with key aspects of academic life. College environments feature a richness of thought and the pursuit and sharing of knowledge. In your role as a student, you will be asked to think analytically and critically. Just as Socrates, the ancient Greek philosopher and teacher, insisted that his students question everything about the world around them, your professors will challenge you to develop an intellectual curiosity that leads you to become an engaged citizen and a lifelong learner. Additionally, in the transition to college, you will find yourself in an environment that features little structure with many distractions, while simultaneously requiring considerable autonomy. Accepting personal responsibility for your academic and nonacademic behavior will help you adjust to campus life.
In your early days on campus, you have probably already encountered such strange titles as provostA high ranking university administrator., registrar, and bursar. It will be helpful for you to understand the titles and roles of college personnel who teach, advise, and support students and how to interact effectively with them. A great resource for accessing information about your college is its website. To understand the information you access, you will need to grasp the unique educational jargon used on your campus. Additionally, a major factor that will help you succeed in achieving your goals is motivation. The most successful students maintain an inner drive and desire to be the best that they can be. This chapter provides the basic information you need relating to a college’s framework and personnel; unique features such as college jargonUnique terminology used at each school., your rights and responsibilities, and your campus website; and the significance of motivation to your success.
Colleges are divided into many different categories. The box below helps you identify your school’s category and the nature of its programs.
Categories of Colleges
Note: While this textbook refers to all undergraduate schools as colleges, you probably attend one of the following major types.
UniversitiesResearch oriented academic institutions which provide degrees to undergraduate and graduate students. —Universities provide undergraduate degrees. They also offer professional degrees (such as those in law and medicine) and graduate degrees through the doctoral degree. Faculty members at universities are often deeply committed to research, and students are encouraged to participate.
CollegesForm of higher education emphasizing undergraduate education and culminating with a Bachelor’s degree. —Colleges emphasize undergraduate education culminating with a bachelor’s degree. While colleges typically do not have graduate or professional programs, some may have master’s degree programs. Colleges do not typically expect faculty to conduct extensive independent research.
Community CollegesTwo-year schools in which students earn an associate’s degree. This degree can be a step along the way to a bachelor’s degree via a transfer to a four-year college or university program, or it can be a terminal degree. —Community colleges are two-year schools, and students earn an associate’s degree upon graduation. This degree can be a step along the way to a bachelor’s degree via a transfer to a four-year college or university program, or it can be a terminal degree in career specialties such as fire science or medical technology.
Career or Technical CollegesSchools which emphasize training for specific career goals such as becoming a fashion designer or a chef. —These schools emphasize training for particular career goals such as becoming a fashion designer or a chef. Some schools are highly specialized in one type of field, while others maintain programs in a variety of occupational specialties. Faculty members must either have expertise in a specialty area or support the general educational experience.
Online Colleges and UniversitiesInstitutions of higher education in which academic programs are presented exclusively or chiefly online, and communication between students and faculty members usually occurs over the Internet. —The educational programs of these colleges are presented exclusively or chiefly online, and communication between students and faculty members usually occurs over the Internet. Otherwise, the types of programs offered by these schools and their faculties can be similar to any of those schools previously mentioned.
Other Distinctions:
Some colleges are publicAn institution of higher education run and financially supported under the authority of a state or federal agency. , meaning that they are run under the authority of a state or federal agency, while other colleges are privateAn institution of higher education run independently of a governmental entity. . Most private colleges are nonprofit institutions, although some are operated for profit. Usually, public colleges charge lower amounts for tuition than private colleges do. Also, some private schools are managed by a religious organization.
Schools can vary in identity or focus. For example, a few colleges only admit women or men. Also, some schools have historically emphasized admission and instruction of certain minority or religious groups. In terms of focus, there are some colleges that only offer liberal arts. Others offer specialized educational concentrations in fields such as the arts, military science, mining, engineering, or agriculture.