Traveling abroad this past month has been such an epic opportunity. I look forward to sharing some details on the outstanding places we had the chance to experience. However, before I go on recounting those experiences I wanted to discuss something far more pressing.
It’s August, and for some of us that means it’s back to school.
Yes, the upcoming school days are approaching & summer is coming to an end, but fear not my blog spot scope-ys. I have come up with tips for tackling the ever-increasing angst that accompanies academic uncertainty.
If I haven’t already lost you, thinking these tips don’t apply to you, I invite you to explore how you could use them in other aspects of life.
Get Organized. Stay Ahead.
My first few tips are nerdy, but very useful – stick with me here.
1) Do not be afraid to reach out & ask questions.
Stay ahead of the game & get in contact with your counselor, a mentor, or a peer before school begins. This tip has been especially helpful for me this year. There are people at your disposal prepared to answer any questions you have.
2) Check your email regularly.
Checking your email on a regular basis is particularly important as school approaches & checking it everyday while school is in session is key.
This is a no brainer for some, but you’d be surprised how many people overlook this simple task.
3) Tour the campus.
Let me tell you, the process of being a new student on a new campus can be daunting & as someone who does not do well with new social interactions (shout out to my introverts out there!) I need time to get myself acclimated to the hefty changes.
If you can find yourself to be anything like me, it can be mentally supporting to get familiar with the campus prior to attending classes.
Challenge for Continuing Year Students:
Find a new spot on campus – scope out a place to meditate or have personal time between classes.
4) Read your syllabi.
I don’t think it is just my type-A personality that finds this piece of advice to be so useful… okay, maybe it is, but it never fails.
Always read your syllabus before school begins.
If your professors do not email a syllabus out the week before school you can search the college website & find syllabi from prior years.
I’ve also searched through past syllabi to determine if I would register for the class or not.
Ground Yourself.
5) Join a club.
Joining a club not only helps you meet new (most often like-minded) people, but it also builds your social experience.
Bonus, extra curricular activities look great on your resume.
6) A good pep talk never hurt anyone.
Pull yourself together & channel that inner Beyonce. Nothing good ever came to those who didn’t try. Pep talk yourself right into your next accomplishment.
Ensure consistency.
7) Sign-up for at least one class you’re excited to attend.
This is pretty self-explanatory – I took a darkroom photography class & screen printing class as part of my electives. This helped to break-up some of the daily mundane.
Get Hyped.
8) Plan a party!
A seemingly opposite piece of advice in regards to prepping for school, but having a “study party” the weekend following your first day(s) in class will give you something else to be excited about.
Invite your friends over & toast to the new semester.
9) Get on rate my prof.
Now is your chance to (literally) write the wrongs that have been done & be kind to the professors who were kind to you.
Plus you can look up the professors you will have next.
10) Buy yourself a cute planner.
You can head to your local Target for a day of back-to-school shopping or jump on PurpleTrail to customize your own planner.
11) Make a back to school playlist & jam out.
I hope you find this soothes the blues. Leave me a comment, tell me what you dislike most about heading back to Uni. & how you overcome the back to school blues.
