[Need] Advice/Tips for College!

[Posghetti]

Hello GBATemp,

I go by the name of Posghetti or Pos on GBATemp, but my family and friends like to call me Elijah. I'm here making this thread tonight because I am in need of advice or tips that anyone may have for me for college, whether you're a freshman in college, still in college or done with college. I will be a graduating senior next year (WOO CLASS OF 2K17!) and have had no experience with college what so ever. I have visited campus' already and have talked to a few advisers and students from each campus I've visited so I some what have a small glimpse of the "college life". All tips/advice are welcomed in my world, just be truthful, formal and keep it adult-like is all I ask

Spoiler: Background Information About Me and My Education:

I am a hard working, dedicated student and have always put education before anything else, even family events. I've had a cumulative GPA of 3.2 nearly every semester since freshman year in High School averaging to about a 3.0/3.1 accumulative GPA (which is pretty good) I have never took the ACT because here where I live, it's not required, but I did take the SAT however and initially scored a 1035. I decided to re-take the SAT (for free since I get 2 waivers) and scored 1140! 530 in Math and 610 in English & Writing respectively. I plan to major in Computer Science (4 yrs) and Computer Programming (2 yrs) upon entering College and just stay that way for now until I require a higher level of education in my field.

GBATemp is really the only online place I know that I feel comfortable talking about this stuff with since there are a lot of great people on the temp despite all the negative trolls who make the temp seem like a bad place when it's actually full of great people and valuable information about our handhelds/consoles that help us all understand more about how they work and what we can do to them.

Also just wanted to say that I've been using this site to help me better understand subjects that I am troubled with at times. I'm pretty sure a number of people know about this site already but some don't, so feel free to check it out! It's for all grades and all ages and it's very informational so I would keep it bookmarked if I were you. The best part about it all? IT'S FREEE. #PiracyIsARight

Thanks for reading, best regards,
- Posghetti

 

[Noctosphere]

tl;dr

 

[invaderyoyo]

Been a college student for 5 years now. My major is Civil Engineering and I'm probably gonna graduate next year.

For math, engineering and physics courses watch Michel Van Biezen on youtube. I owe this dude so so much. He got me through Electricity and Magnetism, Circuits Analysis, and Differential Equations. I wish I'd known about him when I was taking Calculus courses. He does videos on pretty much everything to do with engineering.

This coming semester I'm taking Fluid Dynamics and some other engineering courses and I'm gonna count on this guy.

That's honestly my only tip. Idk if he can help with programming, but for sure with everything else.

Out of curiosity, what is the max score you can get on the SAT, now? When I took it, it was out of 2400 and I got 1750. I think it changed.

 

[Posghetti]

Been a college student for 5 years now. My major is Civil Engineering and I'm probably gonna graduate next year.

For math, engineering and physics courses watch Michel Van Biezen on youtube. I owe this dude so so much. He got me through Electricity and Magnetism, Circuits Analysis, and Differential Equations. I wish I'd known about him when I was taking Calculus courses. He does videos on pretty much everything to do with engineering.

This coming semester I'm taking Fluid Dynamics and some other engineering courses and I'm gonna count on this guy.

That's honestly my only tip. Idk if he can help with programming, but for sure with everything else.

Out of curiosity, what is the max score you can get on the SAT, now? When I took it, it was out of 2400 and I got 1750. I think it changed.

Max score IIRC for the SAT is still 2400 because of the 2 max individual scores you can receive (800 each)

Thanks for the advice! Will definitely check him out sometime (:

 

[invaderyoyo]

Max score IIRC for the SAT is still 2400 because of the 2 max individual scores you can receive (800 each)

Only 2 individual scores?

 

[Posghetti]

Only 2 individual scores?

Yeap.
English & Writing and Math.
Those 2 are the only ones we're tested on and determines our final SAT score.

 

[invaderyoyo]

Yeap.
English & Writing and Math.
Those 2 are the only ones we're tested on and determines our final SAT score.

Hmm, there was also an essay when I took it. So it's 1600 or English and Writing are counted separately?

 

[evandixon]

According to all the propoganda my college gives, the best way to succeed is to *leans closer to the microphone* go to class.

 

[Posghetti]

Hmm, there was also an essay when I took it. So it's 1600 or English and Writing are counted separately?

I don't know about anywhere else, but here in Michigan, there's two variants of the SAT.
One with the essay and one without the essay. You only needed to do the essay variant if the college you're going to attend required an essay upon applying for it, otherwise, you'd take the other.
They're counted separately, but they're mashed in the same category, if that makes any sense lol.

Pretty sure I'm not revealing what's on the material (as I had to sign legal documents about not revealing what was on it) but if you took the SAT w/o essay, for the "writing" category, you just read a passage and there would be underlined words that you would have to decided if it "needed a change" or if "it didn't need a change" and if you took the SAT w/ essay, then the writing portion would be the essay (which is basically your personal statement practice)

--------------------- MERGED ---------------------------

According to all the propoganda my college gives, the best way to succeed is to *leans closer to the microphone* go to class.

Best advice yet

 

[evandixon]

Best advice yet

All joking aside they've found that those who skip class make far lower grades than those who regularly attend. It makes sense of course, and you're probably thinking "well, duh", but many students skip class anyway.

 

[FAST6191]

Do you know how to cook?
Do you know how to operate a washing machine?
Do you know first aid?

A surprising amount of your peers will not. Don't be one of them.

Everything else. Sounds like you already have this learning lark down, though I will say the memory test that is high school can twist to mean you have to actually know something and how to apply it in college/university. Friends wise, I actually don't know how it plays out now everybody can look you up on facebook and see whatever inane drivel you have posted rather than being in a place where nobody knows you and you all get to be yourselves.

 

[Quantumcat]

I studied a Bachelor of Science (majoring in Physics and Maths) for a few years then gave up for a couple of years and and now doing a Bachelor of Computer Science part time while working. I lived for two years on campus and had an absolute blast. Funnest time of my life. Had to work a lot since it was quite expensive (board was more than my student allowance) but way worthwhile. Unfortunately that fun led to low grades. So I do actually have some advice.

1. Live on campus, extra cost is worthwhile. You can't make the same kind of friendships being a townie.
2. Don't say yes to everything that sounds fun - put studies first. Don't stay up till 3am every night.
3. You might be the smartest in your school, but you won't be at university. I was used to getting 90+% on tests at school without ever studying. When I started the maths courses at uni, it was all stuff I already knew and I thought it was going to be easy. I didn't bother preparing for tutorials and did my assignments the day before they were due. But they were just covering stuff that people might have missed out on at school and as a refresher for everyone else. By halfway through second semester it was all completely new and I had no good study habits. Make sure you form those study habits now. Even if you find things easy now and don't think you need to study hard you WILL need to at uni. Better to learn how when it doesn't matter so much.
4. If you're a shy sort of person then do the opposite of #2 and look for interesting experiences with people. University is an incredibly unique time when everyone is open to making friends and anything can happen. High school kids are stupid and when you're an adult you don't have time for making new friends and you're not open to having fun. Now is the time to step outside your comfort zone. If you don't do it now then you'll just be a lonely adult in a few years.

 

[Posghetti]

Do you know how to cook?
Do you know how to operate a washing machine?
Do you know first aid?

A surprising amount of your peers will not. Don't be one of them.

Everything else. Sounds like you already have this learning lark down, though I will say the memory test that is high school can twist to mean you have to actually know something and how to apply it in college/university. Friends wise, I actually don't know how it plays out now everybody can look you up on facebook and see whatever inane drivel you have posted rather than being in a place where nobody knows you and you all get to be yourselves.

I do know how to cook and know how to operate a washing machine. Don't know too much about first-aid honestly, but I'll definitely better my knowledge in that sometime before I go to College. Yea, I'm not too worried on friends, but it's good to have em Thanks for the advice (:

--------------------- MERGED ---------------------------

I studied a Bachelor of Science (majoring in Physics and Maths) for a few years then gave up for a couple of years and and now doing a Bachelor of Computer Science part time while working. I lived for two years on campus and had an absolute blast. Funnest time of my life. Had to work a lot since it was quite expensive (board was more than my student allowance) but way worthwhile. Unfortunately that fun led to low grades. So I do actually have some advice.

1. Live on campus, extra cost is worthwhile. You can't make the same kind of friendships being a townie.
2. Don't say yes to everything that sounds fun - put studies first. Don't stay up till 3am every night.
3. You might be the smartest in your school, but you won't be at university. I was used to getting 90+% on tests at school without ever studying. When I started the maths courses at uni, it was all stuff I already knew and I thought it was going to be easy. I didn't bother preparing for tutorials and did my assignments the day before they were due. But they were just covering stuff that people might have missed out on at school and as a refresher for everyone else. By halfway through second semester it was all completely new and I had no good study habits. Make sure you form those study habits now. Even if you find things easy now and don't think you need to study hard you WILL need to at uni. Better to learn how when it doesn't matter so much.
4. If you're a shy sort of person then do the opposite of #2 and look for interesting experiences with people. University is an incredibly unique time when everyone is open to making friends and anything can happen. High school kids are stupid and when you're an adult you don't have time for making new friends and you're not open to having fun. Now is the time to step outside your comfort zone. If you don't do it now then you'll just be a lonely adult in a few years.

Thanks for the advice! I won't guarantee that I won't say yes to everything (; bwahaha just joking, my education comes first, even before family events
And I'm definitely going to live on campus. I can get away from my family (xD) and if I need help or the resources I just walk on down by to the next building and it's all there for me to use to my satisfaction.

 

[FAST6191]

Don't know too much about first-aid honestly, but I'll definitely better my knowledge in that sometime before I go to College.

I am not necessarily talking about skills more commonly seen in paramedics and other medics but more the basic stuff like being able to clean and dress a wound, sort sprains, have stuff on hand in case you get the squirts, have stuff on hand in case you are all clogged up and maybe the squirts sounds like an improvement, have something for when you find yourself with a splitting headache and so forth. And if you recall the cooking thing then many will not know it, which means many will get bitten by knives, not aided by the fact most people will not keep sharp knives and try to use a blunt one, or possibly give up and try to live (at considerable expense actually) on processed crap and then end up with the squirts or the opposite. I don't know what the US calls fresher's flu (you get a few thousand people having just travelled all over, otherwise from all over the country in one small location, add in a crap diet, poor hygiene, sex and drugs and rock and roll and a better place for the formation for disease you will not find) but it will happen and a bottle of cough syrup, a box of sudafed (if it has not been banned there yet) and a packet of paracetamol will be the most desirable drugs there are, outside of ritalin come finals.

On living on campus then in the UK that would kind of be known as living in halls of residence (commonly just called halls). Had a ridiculously fast internet connection for the time (and probably still faster than DSL today) but that was about all to recommend it for me, other than not having to find a house from halfway across the country when I had never rented one before. Having a flat of my own and sharing a house with others, now that was fun. Mind you from what I have seen college in the US is rather different to the UK way of doing things -- having an enforced code of conduct beyond "don't cheat on exams and coursework" is (or maybe was, I hear bad things nowadays) a laughable notion, and most are in the heart of cities and you function no different to some other poor bastard with a 9-5 job.

 

[gnmmarechal]

I've gone to university this year.
Well...
Just don't do what I did and actually do try to meet and know the people in your class and course. I'm kind of regretting what I did already, but... yeah.

 

[FAST6191]

Just don't do what I did and actually do try to meet and know the people in your class and course. I'm kind of regretting what I did already, but... yeah.

A lot of the time people will drop out over the summer/as results come in. Anybody that comes back will probably be there for the rest of the time there and thus you have spared yourself some aggro.
Also "class and course" is doable but compared to the amount of people there are doing such things then maybe instead try to find those with similar interests.

 

[gnmmarechal]

A lot of the time people will drop out over the summer/as results come in. Anybody that comes back will probably be there for the rest of the time there and thus you have spared yourself some aggro.
Also "class and course" is doable but compared to the amount of people there are doing such things then maybe instead try to find those with similar interests.

Well. I barely know anyone in my class soooo it's not exactly good. And those that I do know, I don't know their names either.

Sent from my cave of despair where I collect souls

 

[Deboog]

Do you know where you're going? Try talking to people in a school you want to go to to see what they are like. Don't just pick a college because it's popular or it has a pretty campus or some crap like that. I did that and it was the worst mistake of my life.

 

[Posghetti]

Do you know where you're going? Try talking to people in a school you want to go to to see what they are like. Don't just pick a college because it's popular or it has a pretty campus or some crap like that. I did that and it was the worst mistake of my life.

Oh for sure. I've talked to a very good amount of people over my College campus visits. I have two ideal places where I would like to go, both have their own pros and cons and such.
My picks for College weren't based off if they're popular or have a pretty campus, but rather what the College will offer me and what it has to offer me. That was probably the biggest deciding factor of them all.

 

[Quantumcat]

Well. I barely know anyone in my class soooo it's not exactly good. And those that I do know, I don't know their names either.

Sent from my cave of despair where I collect souls

Yeah this is the reason is great to live on campus. I didn't really make friends with the people in my classes (during class you want to concentrate not socialise), but with people in my college (this is synonymous with a UK "hall"), since we ate together and hung out in the evening together. If you live off campus you have to make a big effort to see people after classes instead of it just happening by default. So it's a lot harder.

BTW I'm so jealous of you @Posghetti. I wish I could be 17 again and be about to start uni for the first time.