The College Decision - Balancing Your Schedule

Simple tips that can help making your schedule easier on you:

Be Choosy when Picking Your Employer

     Search for an employer who is flexible, and willing to work with your class schedule since your workload will vary. It is important to find an employer who will understand when you need to take a few days off to study for exams, or rearrange your schedule due to class projects or homework.

Limit Your Hours

     You may find it tempting to add a few hours of work here or there to your schedule, but be wise about it. Sometimes it may be hard to say no to your employer if they ask you to work a few extra hours, but always remember that academics come first. Place a strict time limit on your work hours to ensure that your job does not interfere with school.

Schedule Your Time

     When planning out your work schedule, chart your expected amount of homework and work around that. Exam times and heavy homework periods will mean fewer available hours you can work. Work may not always be as flexible as you would like, so prioritize your schoolwork, or you may find yourself in a time crunch.


Work Weekends

     If possible, try to work on the weekends. This will allow you to feel far less stressed during the week.

Make Time for Fun

     A busy schedule deserves some down time as well. Stress-reducing activities will help keep your life in perspective and in balance. Breaks from the everyday pressures of work and school will likely improve your performance and attitude toward your goals.

The College Decision - Majors

     Before you embark on your college adventure, you should already know what career you are interested in pursuing. That would make the process of choosing a major much more easier because than you would simply pick one that regards to the same field as your career. Your major basically sets the classes you will be taking throughout college, because in order to get the degree you would need to fulfill the classes required for that major. Not deciding on a major before you begin college will leave you in a serious disadvantage from other students and make your college experience difficult. Your selection of classes would be far less, leaving only general education classes and electives, which can make your college stay even longer than the traditional four years.

   

     If you are one of those who have not yet decided your major and are about to enter college, or even is currently in college, don't worry cause I am here to help. Even if you are unsure about what career you wish to pursue don't worry, most individuals come upon their dream jobs by experience through different college courses. So when choosing your major you would need to ask yourself a few questions in order to know if it is the right one for you.

   

• Why do I want this Major?

     Possibly one of the most important questions to ask yourself when choosing a major. You want to make sure you have a legitimate reason, otherwise I'm sure you will regret it in the future. I've known many people who couldn't decide on a major so they chose one because they felt it would be easy to complete. This is one of the biggest mistakes someone can make while in college, you should never choose a major solely for the belief that it will make you earning a degree easier. Another thing I hear allot is "my mom/dad told me it's a good major to pick". In fact its quite common for a student to choose a major because a family member told them it was a good idea. This is also not recommended, letting others decide your major is basically like letting them decide your future; and since it's your life  your the only one that should be controlling that decision.

• Am I good at this Major?

     Although wanting to be challenged in college is a good thing, there is no reason to choose a major you feel you are not good at; no matter how cool it sounds. Doing this would just make your college experience difficult, when it should be exciting and different. Also it is never worth going through the multiple courses of stress and frustration, if you are struggling than your chances of doing well in the course will not be likely.

• What are the career opportunities for this Major and how strong are they?

     If you are interested in a major, you should always know what career paths it provides for you to follow. You can't major in something such as Music and expect to get a job as an Engineer, every major has there own field of career choices to choose from. That is why I always recommend on deciding what you want your career to be, this way the process of choosing a major would be much easier. Also try to do as much research as you can about your career you choose. Many students think for the moment and not the future, so when the four (or more) years are up and they get their degree, that once successful career is in it's dying days.

• Have I talked to someone in this Major?

     No one should ever commit to choosing a major with out first speaking to someone who has went through the experience. Try to learn as much as you can about the major itself before actually deciding in it, this way you know what you will be facing and nothing will take your by surprise. You can talk to anyone from graduate students of the major to professors who actually taught in it. This way you will know the good, the bad, and the ugly of the major.

     Starting college is like a new adventure one where you make the decisions and lay out your future. In it you will make important decisions, in doing so this will make you more comfortable and ready to make big decisions in your everyday life. Choosing your major is one of the first important decisions, and in the end the decision is up to you. So choose wisely!

The College Decision - Choosing A College

     OK, I am sure everyone knows the process of deciding which college you want to attend can be a stressful one. Not only do you want to pick one that fulfills what your looking for, but also one that you will be happy and satisfied with. After all it has to be a good learning environment in which you feel comfortable so you can get the best experience possible. Choosing a college to attend is a important decision, and it is not one that should be done last minute; I can't stress this enough. When choosing a college there are a few things you should take in consideration, such as, whether or not you can afford to attend, location, whether or not it offers the major you are interested in or any classes you are interested in taking. You can even look at such aspects such as, it's social scene, many feel that college should be an experience where you expand your horizons, meet students of different backgrounds, and be in a city that's new to you.

     Now college is not for everyone, some may feel they do not need a college degree to pursue their career, which is true, although a degree would be beneficial one is not always needed. Some on the other hand may be on the fence about the whole: "Should I attend college?" dilemma. Well the suggestion I can give for those of you facing that problem is, to ask yourself "Who am I?" and "Is college right for me?". Everyone is different, we have our own opinions, we think differently, we learn differently etc., and with this being college may not be right for you. Some people say, "well you can only be successful if you go to college", I personally don't find that to be true. One person can go to college and graduate feeling like they learned many things and grew as an individual, whereas another can graduate feeling as if it was a total waste of time; and this is something that happens allot. Many feel the need to go to college right after high school because they believe it is what is socially expected, so they attend with a sense of it being the right thing to do, even if they feel they are not ready.

     Choosing a perfect college really calls for you to know your self and the limits you are willing to take to attend one. Some you may not be able to afford so you would have to work extra jobs or even take out a loan, some may require you to leave your home even if you don't want to leave, some may require you to change you whole lifestyle; it's up to you to know how much your willing to sacrifice. Now lets look at a few things to ask yourself to make the decision an easier one.

• Is Prestige important to me?
• What type of lifestyle do I envision for myself?
• Would a perform better in a smaller or larger classroom setting?
• Will I enjoy being here?

     Ultimately the decision is up to you to decide which college you want to attend. The way I see it is, if your smart enough to consider college you will most likely make the right decision. After all no matter how high or low a colleges rating are they all have one goal which is to educate the student.

The College Decision - An Introduction

     Ah college, one of the most important gateways in one's life. Not only does it lead to you getting a better job but also most importantly it's where you go to further your education, something no one can take from you no matter what age you are, what your economic status is, or whatever occurs in life. The college decision is a timeless event throughout history, it's one that almost every successful person, or anyone who aspired to be successful/educated further, has made; and people will continue to make it so why not make it the right decision. So ask yourself a few question's; do I know what college I'm going to attend? if so is it the right one for me?, how will this college benefit me? and does it satisfy what I am looking to attain from it?, am I willing to take that loan or work those extra hours to pay the tuition for the college I am more interested in yet can barely afford? All these questions must be considered when making a decision that can, in all senses of the word, change your life.

     Before I get into the important stuff I'd like to tell you a little about me, a college student who went through the whole, as I like to call it, "Preparing for College Struggle". Now in high school, let's just say I was not the best example of a good student; I slacked off and never took my education or even my future into consideration. My whole four years of high school seemed to fly by, and not once during that time did I think about college, my major, or my career. On that note, here's some advice high school students; start thinking about your college now. Whether your a freshmen or senior it's never to early or late, in fact the sooner the better; trust me it helps you in the long run you do not want to have to go through what I did. 

     Anyway about me, my name is Daljit Singh, and like I stated earlier I am a college student who attends York College in New York. To be honest, if you were to ask me whether or not I was happy with my college decision my answer would probably be no; but that's a long story which not the topic of this blog; although I guess with out those experiences I wouldn't feel urged to write this to help others. One thing I am happy with is my major, which is Communications Technology with a minor in Pre-Law. Discovering this major was possibly one of the best things that could ever happen to me it really interest me and with it I was able to choose my career path, which is to one day be a computer programmer. It shows that no matter how late you are into the game you can really find good out of a bad situation.