Graduation is not just an ending, it’s also a step in a larger journey. If the plan for your journey includes college, there are some things you should figure out sooner than you think. Check out these 7 things you should know before you go…

1

Why are you going to college in the first place?

What’s your goal? Not the goals you have in common with pretty much every student (graduate, be successful, blah blah blah), but what’s your endgame? Will going to college really get you there?

If the answer is a solid “yes”: go forth and graduate!!!

If the answer is a soft “yeah”: ask yourself “did I choose this because everybody—in my family, at my school, who makes good money, etc.— goes to college?” Think about how you can pursue your goal both in and out of college. Then, choose what best fits your circumstances and your true self. Now, what’s your next move?

If the answer is “no”: same question, what’s your next move?

2

Where are you really gifted?

Everybody and their grandmother keeps asking you what you’re going to major in. You have chosen your answer and you give it with conviction. But, what’s really inside of you waiting to get out? Figuring out your natural gifting can help you learn if you’re in the right major and how you can use that education most effectively.

How can you find out what’s inside? There are countless books and tests that can help. If you’re not up for that, start by asking yourself questions like:

What comes most natural to me?

What am I doing when I feel happy or productive?

What do I enjoy teaching to others?

What do I enjoy doing for others?

Break your answers down to their most basic parts. You’ll know you’re there when your answers are all “what you’re doing” not a “how you’re doing it.” Once you get that, you may have a good start on knowing what’s inside you waiting to get out.

3

Do you think you’ve chosen the right school?

Does this school meet your basic academic, social, location, and after-graduation placement requirements?

Does it have the degree plan you need?

If it’s not the perfect school, is staying there justified by something that’s truly worth it?

4

How do you feel about drinking and drugs?

When you decide how you feel about drinking, smoking, and drugs, you’ll be more likely to choose what activity you want to engage in, instead of being sucked into something your best self does not want to be a part of. Much like decisions about sex, you make better choices without in-the-moment pressure, so know before you go.

5

How do you make your bad day better?

Sometimes, you’re gonna have a bad day. The quiz you take in your first class won’t go well. People will see you hurling at a bus stop. You’ll turn something in late and drops your grade a lot. The bus will be late/your car won’t start and you’ll miss half of a test.

When any of the million things that can ruin your day happen, how will you recover? You can’t always shut down when things go wrong. Adulting 101: you gotta pull it together and keep going. This is much easier when you can sort of reset yourself. How are you gonna do that?

6

How do you study most effectively?

• With or without music?

• Music with or without words?

• At the library or in the courtyard?

• Alone or with a study group? Always or just once a week?

• 6:00-10:00 a.m. or p.m.?

• Flash cards? Paper or digital?

• What really helps: re-reading the problems or re-working them?

• Long study sessions or short ones?

If you don’t know the answers to any of these questions, you may have an even bigger problem: you may not know how to study.

Even the smartest high school students can hit a wall in college when they don’t know how to study. Figure that out up front and get some help if you need it (academic advisors and upperclassmen are good resources for suggestions).

7

What will you do if it all starts to fall apart?

The potential to succeed does not guarantee success. Add to that the fact that we all screw up sometimes and you have the very real possibility that you will fail something. Sometimes, you’ll fail multiple things all at the same time. When that happens, what are you going to do about it?

The answer is not: turn up your inner superhero, shout “I got this!”, then change nothing. You need a real plan, of which determination is just one part. How will you study differently? Will you reach out to a professor or TA? Will you speak to an academic advisor?

Don’t be caught off-guard.

Did I leave out something completely obvious or necessary?
Tell me in the comments.