Hello everybody! Today we will talk about how you should prepare yourself for a new
school or starting out college. For school advice and tips follow me on Instagram
and Tumblr where I post every day. Also, don’t forget to subscribe and click the bell button
to get notified for all my back to school videos coming up this summer. I will post
twice a week until the mid of September so you can kickstart your school year fully prepared.
For a full schedule just check the description box below in case you are curious about a
specific topic.
Going to a new school or starting college can be daunting and, for some people, terrifying.
There are a few things you can do to ease this process, though, and they are all very
simple.
First of all, make your research. Every school is different and adaptation varies between
them. Make sure you know the campus grounds beforehand – you can either do this by simply
going to google maps and panning around the location or schedule a visit before you start
school. Get a friend to tag along or search for college groups or the local students association
for help beforehand. Also, if you are moving out of your parents
house into a dorm or a flat, make sure you know the area around your place – get to
know a few restaurants or diners, shops, pharmacies and get acquainted with the neighbourhood.
Don’t start school supply shopping right away. Every school, college and course is
different and they all have different supply requirement or different study schemes. Although
it’s great to go school supply shopping before your start your classes, it can definitely
backlash at you when you find out that you spend a lot of money on things you won’t
need, like investing in a good laptop in a school where it’s forbidden to take notes
in electronic devices. This applies to textbooks as well, which are rather expensive and in
many cases will not be required for your to excel in your class. The best way to get prepared
is talking to a few senior students who have attended those classes before and try to understand
what you really need.
Plan beforehand. Scheduling visits, move in days, meet & greets, textbook shopping, etc
requires good time management skills so the introduction to your new school goes as smooth
as you can. If you are still unable to decide what’s the best planning system for you,
this is the time to figure it out. You can either use a paper planner or download a good
planning and time management app. Today I wanted to show you this app called iStudiez
Pro. It’s basically an organization app for students that combines a planner interface
with assignment lists and organization, grade and homework trackers, an academic calendar,
your teacher contact list, etc.
The full overview mode tracks your college schedule during the day giving you full overview of
the classes or events you need to attend and assignments you need to complete.
The homework assignment area is also very useful, letting you organize your homework
details, due dates and related subjects in a way that lets you easily manage all of your
work in one place. In your schedule area, you can plan and manage
your courses and classes details, locations, instructors info, holidays and grades.
It also includes a GPA calculator and tracker so you can set out your GPA goals and work
towards them using the app.
It’s available for all devices, so whether you have a mac, an ipad or tablet, a windows
pc, an iphone or android phone, you will be able to download it and use it right away.
iStudiez Pro also syncs all the app data between these devices. Once input in the app on any
of your devices, your data is synced to all of the others where iStudiez Pro software
is installed. If you are interested, theirs is a link in the description box below where
you can download the app.
As I’ve said in a previous video about fitting in, it’s a bonus if you are able to get
yourself out there and get into a group - Joining a club, an association or a hobby at campus
will immediately integrate you with enough people to jumpstart your school year. We are
all social creatures and none of us really likes feeling alone in school grounds – so
even if you are a really shy person, gather just a tiny bit of courage to enrol in one
of those groups and in a couple of months you will think that was one of the best decisions
you could make.
Go slow during your first 3 to 5 weeks in a new school. Since this is a new place and
you aren’t acquainted with your classmates, professors and overall rhythm of your classes,
it can be a mistake to enrol in too many classes, extracurricular activities and sports. In
most cases you will spend a lot of time in your new school, so try to spend the first
few weeks getting to know the place around you, feeling comfortable, making connections
and getting to understand what the best study methods and study spots are. Make sure you
know the college grounds well enough, experiment all the library spots until you find the perfect
one, learn the shortcuts between buildings and get to know the quirks of your school.
If you jump into tons of activities you will soon feel overwhelmed and you’ll risk burnout.
Start building your contact list. This contact list should be your go-to resource whenever
you need help, be it academic, professional or for emergencies. Make sure to make a compilation
of your professors and teaching assistants contacts, most of your classmates, a few recruiters,
as well as emergency contacts, if you are in a pinch. Make copies of that list and keep
them in your dorm room, wallet or inside your planner. You never know when you may need
them and your phone, like your machines is fallible or may get stolen.
As a rule, I don’t study over the summer, nor do I study before a new term or semester
starts. However, if your professors provide the syllabus or any information regarding
your classes beforehand, I think it’s a great idea to read the provided documents
and doing some research on the class and its contents. You will feel more prepared in your
first day of school and the jumpstart will get you into a more productive mood.
So these are all my tips on how to get prepared for a new term in a new school. For more school
advice and tips don’t forget to subscribe to my channel and I will see you next week.
Bye!