Beccastone asked a group of recent Black college grads “What do you wish someone had told you before you got to college?” In no particular order, here are some of the responses that you might pass on to the college students you know. While the pandemic has changed the college experience, these tips are still relevant.
Academics
“This is really basic, but read the syllabus thoroughly and really understand it. Listen when the professor goes over it. It may not seem that important, but this is what tells you things like how the professor is going to grade, what she is going to take points off for, required and optional course reading, when things are due, and the professor’s office hours. If it’s in the syllabus, you have to know it, and there are no excuses if you don’t.”
“I recommend that kids figure out early on what activities they are interested in and then pick some to fill up their schedule, especially if they are not athletes who have built-in practice and competition schedules. The busier students seemed to be more organized because they had more stuff to do so they had to set aside a certain amount of time for school work. It’s the students who had a lot of free time on their hands that did the least studying and got into the most trouble.”
“Pick a seat in your classes where you can hear and follow what is going on. You don’t have to be in the first row but you want to be visible and you want the professor to notice you.”
“Grades are important and you shouldn’t let anyone tell you differently. Employers look at grades and grad schools look at grades and that’s just a fact because grades are an objective measure. And grades are important from the beginning. I know a lot of kids who fooled around freshman and sophomore years and then decided to start working harder in their junior year and it was basically too late for them to really improve their grade point average.”
“I think you should take your core requirements during your first and second years and get them out of the way and get exposed to a lot of different areas. Don’t pick a major until second semester sophomore year. I knew a lot of kids who picked a major early and it didn’t work out and they ended up having to take extra time to get in all the core courses.”
“Experiment with scheduling your classes at different times to see what works best for you in terms of preparation and study time. Initially, on my parents’ advice, I scheduled everything in the morning but after taking an afternoon class, I found out that I was better prepared because I could use the morning to study. After that, I tried to schedule more afternoon and evening classes.”
“Get your textbooks electronically if you can. They are easier to carry around with you and you can still highlight the passages. As an English major, I also could have gotten a lot of required classic texts for free electronically as opposed to paying for them and then not wanting to lug them around anyway.”
“Look regularly at the school bulletin boards–both electronic and physical bulletin boards around the campus. You can find out a lot about what recruiters are coming, what is happening on campus, meetings you would like to attend just by checking out the bulletin boards. Also, always, check your school email and your school mailbox to make sure you don’t miss anything important.”
The Social Scene
“Try to have a diverse group of friends. I don’t think you have to be best friends with everyone but this is a unique time to meet a lot of different kinds of people and learn how they approach things. I think back and I wish had made more non-Black friends.”
“You don’t need to get it poppin’ the first year. You will be there for 4 years and what you do will follow you for 4 years. Take your time and get the lay of the land when it comes to dating and see what people are really like.”
“The ‘Freshman 15’ is real. Just because there are soda machines everywhere and your dorm mates are getting take-out and pizza all the time doesn’t mean you have to eat those things too. Also, be nice to the cafeteria people. You might need them to let you in late sometimes or get you something special to eat.”
“Be careful about how much time you spend in other people’s dorm rooms. You can get a reputation without even doing anything just because people talk and make assumptions.
Career and Jobs
“Take advantage of career services from the beginning and get to know the people there. They get paid to help you. The better they know you, the better they can help you. Don’t wait until your senior year to see what career services has to offer.”
“You have 3 summers to try things before you have to decide on a job or grad school. Try different things each summer so you have a better idea of what to do after college. Don’t wait until senior year to think about your career. You can also see if there are opportunities in the area where you go to school to shadow mentors at their jobs. It doesn’t cost the employers anything if you shadow for a couple of days and you can get insight into another career option.”
“Get involved in the community where your school is located. It’s a good way to give back and you can get good experience. I got involved in local politics and it gave me experience and references that led to summer jobs and internships elsewhere.”
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