Advice to pnms beginning their College/University experience… - Page 5

KSUViolet06 · #61 08-03-2006, 08:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Munchkin03

One thing that I thought about when writing out rush recommendations--

After you graduate from high school, NO ONE cares what clubs you were in or what your parents did. Really.

Agreed. Honestly rush is probably the last time any of that stuff will ever matter to anyone.

adpiucf · #62 08-04-2006, 10:16 AM

Are you 110% sure that what you're majoring in will be your career for the next 40 years? That you'll never, never ever change it or consider going back to school?

I didn't think so.

I know you English majors hate math, or that the engineering students could care less about diagramming a sentence, but DO take classes outside of your field of interest. Take some challenging courses, like Philosophy or Economics instead of the fluff courses like Tennis & Self Defense for Women. This will help you learn to think more analytically, and if/when you go to apply to graduate school, these courses will be more seriously regarded. Whatever classes you do take, take them seriously. Grades are of little importance for post-graduation entry level classes, but they become HUGELY important for advanced degrees. And again, unless your 10000000% certain that you'll never, ever have any other career than the one you are planning now, take this advice. (See, I was one of those people-- completely sure--- and 6 years post-grad, I'm going back to school! I'm glad I got good grades then, but if I had to do it over, my course selection would be more varied.)

Also, rah-rah-Hooray for Greek Life. Get involved, but you need to get involved with other activities, too. Most (not all, but a decent chunk) employers and graduate admissions offices see Greek Life as frivolous or they buy into the stereotypes, so your 4 year membership in ABC can be viewed as trite, when someone else with the same grades has had internships and leadership in honor societies, pre-professional organizations and student government. Make a life in the sorority and have fun and hold offices, but also get involved on campus. This will help you to become more well-rounded and also keep you sane (living and working with 60+ women during the school year can be fun and draining at the same time).

Sailboat Sis · #63 08-04-2006, 12:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stef the Pef

So, what is Pick-A-Prof? Address? Link? TIA.

www.pick-a-prof.com

ufdale · #64 08-04-2006, 02:01 PM

Don't go to college and pick easy, bs classes/ majors with the intent to find a husband, be a trophy wife, and never have to work. This is 2006- you never know what will happen later in life! It's nice to have a major that you love, feel proud of and will enjoy working in that field in the future.

AlphaFrog · #65 08-04-2006, 02:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ufdale

Don't go to college and pick easy, bs classes/ majors with the intent to find a husband, be a trophy wife, and never have to work.

I didn't think that thought crossed the mind of anyone born after 1970.

ufdale · #66 08-04-2006, 02:22 PM

lol That's what you'd think, but it's very, very common! Many girls still go to college to find nice, educated husbands. There's nothing wrong with wanting a nice, educated husband, but when that's the ONLY thing you're going to college for (oh yeah and the parties and social connections too)... I have several friends (who will remain nameless) who honestly just can't wait to be Mrs. Trophy Wife.

AlphaFrog · #67 08-04-2006, 02:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ufdale

lol That's what you'd think, but it's very, very common! Many girls still go to college to find nice, educated husbands. There's nothing wrong with wanting a nice, educated husband, but when that's the ONLY thing you're going to college for (oh yeah and the parties and social connections too)... I have several friends (who will remain nameless) who honestly just can't wait to be Mrs. Trophy Wife.

agzg · #68 08-04-2006, 02:59 PM

I'd say MAKE FRIENDS WITH YOUR ROOMMATE. Even if she's the weirdest person alive. Even if she smells. Even if she's annoying as all get-out. Make nice, talk to her, share a little bit about yourself, and hope that she shares as well.

My freshman year roommate and I should not have been friends. At all. But, we used to have pizza at least once a month, just the two of us. It worked out well for me, because I spent most of my Freshman year with some sickness or another. I caught the flu within my first two weeks, and it was my roommate who took care of me. She even walked to the health center to get me when I got there, saw the doctor, and didn't know if I could make it back on my own (it was that bad).

Wash your hands, often. Even if people think you're compulsive. Carry some sanitizing gel in your bookbag. You'll get sick, freshmen all tend to mix all their diseases together because they live so close together and you haven't had all of their diseases. Also, other people don't necessarily have the same hygeine as you. Not washing their hands after they use the potty? It'll happen. Coughing all over everything? Yup. Don't let someone else's bad habits become your illnesses, if you can help it.

DO NOT SHARE CUPS/SILVERWARE/DISHES WITH ANYONE. If it's a cup, you don't know what's in it. One of the fastest ways to get mono. Remember, too, that a lot of people can be carriers of mono without having symptoms. Don't go around kissing all the boys on campus. You get it from one of them, and before you get symptoms, you'll have passed it along to half of the Freshman class!

Also, make sure you check the reading list before going to class, regardless of whether or not you did the reading. A. You don't want to carry all your books for every class around with you. B. You'll look like you didn't do the reading if the professor refers to a certain book, everyone else pulls it out, and you don't have it. Make sure you have the right book for each class! It should be on your schedule that's part of your syllabus.

Rollergirl2001 · #69 08-04-2006, 03:57 PM

-You can use ratemyprofessors.com for info about professors, but don't rely on it too much. Some students that put poor ratings are either:
1. not attending class
2. not studying
3. procrastinate
4. other things

I have a professor that have receive poor ratings, but I disagree with them because she is a good professor. Some of the things on ratemyprofessors.com are true and some are not.

-Also, DO NOT PROCRASTINATE!!! After a professor gives you guidelines for the paper, start on it NOW!!! Do not wait until 3 days until due date.

-DON'T even think about copying off work (i.e. internet). This rule have been stated before in high school, but when you're in college, and if you plagarize, you will be in serious hot water (i.e. fail the course, get on academic suspension, or worse, expelled). Some schools use a website called turnitin.com to catch plagarism. For the first rough draft, 18% of my work is considered plagarized. When I got to the final draft, only 4% of my work is considered plagarized (and that's from bibliogragpies only).

-Take your paper to a writing center (if there is one avalible) for proofreading. I don't care if you have grammar problems or not. This is helpful, because tiny mistakes can be the difference between an A and a B (or a B and a C, and so on).

-Another thing, if a professor ask you to write a 3 page paper, WRITE 3 pages. If you don't, you will get penalized. I've got penailized 10 points for not having 3 full pages in one of my classes, and my final grade was a B+, and I miss having an A- by 2 points. And those penalty points can hurt your final grade. On a side note, when I had to write a 20 page paper for my History of Psych, I nearly wanted to quit, but I was not doing well in the class and I had to write 20 pages so at least I will come out with a decent grade. And so I wrote 23 pages and ended up getting a B. The others that did not write a miminum of 20 pages got low grades.

Dionysus · #70 08-04-2006, 04:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ufdale

lol That's what you'd think, but it's very, very common! Many girls still go to college to find nice, educated husbands. There's nothing wrong with wanting a nice, educated husband, but when that's the ONLY thing you're going to college for (oh yeah and the parties and social connections too)... I have several friends (who will remain nameless) who honestly just can't wait to be Mrs. Trophy Wife.

We have that as a facebook group. "I'm going to college to find someone rich to marry".

Dionysus · #71 08-04-2006, 04:53 PM

Did you know it's considered as plagiarism to submit one of your OWN works more than once, without acknowledging it? Like if you did a paper on Legalizing Marijuana in your criminology course, and eventually submitted the same work in a debate course or something.

adpiucf · #72 08-04-2006, 04:53 PM

I have a sorority sister who at age 19 was crying, "I'm past my prime." She's 26 now and when I remind her of that, she laughs and says, "I'm so glad I'm still single and didn't get married out of high school like all of my friends did. All of them are unhappy or divorced or on their second marriage already!"

There are plenty of young women who come to college conditioned by their families that unless they are married or engaged by 22, they should resign themselves to being an old maid. As a result, a lot of girls start husband shopping the minute they get to freshman orientation... only to find that the guys that were the relationship-type in HS have ditched their sweeties to sow some wild oats, and that with a very few rare exceptions, you won't find true love over brews at the fraternity party.

Drolefille · #73 08-04-2006, 05:05 PM

When looking for your textbooks, check first online at www.bigwords.com

I love it. It searches the used and new book sites (you can specify which you prefer) and finds the best deals. I always called ahead, or visited campus early, to get my book list and then bought them online. Make the judgement about whether it's worth it to get them shipped or pay a few bucks more in the bookstore.

Think about which books you may want to use later. My intro Bio/Chem books got shelved but my 400 level Psychology books stayed with me. Sell back what you don't want but do think about keeping some.

Rollergirl2001 · #74 08-04-2006, 05:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by adpiucf

I have a sorority sister who at age 19 was crying, "I'm past my prime." She's 26 now and when I remind her of that, she laughs and says, "I'm so glad I'm still single and didn't get married out of high school like all of my friends did. All of them are unhappy or divorced or on their second marriage already!"

There are plenty of young women who come to college conditioned by their families that unless they are married or engaged by 22, they should resign themselves to being an old maid. As a result, a lot of girls start husband shopping the minute they get to freshman orientation... only to find that the guys that were the relationship-type in HS have ditched their sweeties to sow some wild oats, and that with a very few rare exceptions, you won't find true love over brews at the fraternity party.

That is true, especially here in the south. There is plenty of time to find the right man. It's not like we're living in the 1950s, thank God. During that time, if you weren't married by age 25, you're considered old. I'll be 24 in a couple of weeks, and I haven't found a man yet. Do I consider myself old? I think not. Now, I've been impatient a few times because I've seen many couples of campus and many of my friends have boy or girlfriends, and I was jealous and desperate, but I have learned to value myself first before I can value others.

AlphaFrog · #75 08-08-2006, 03:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ucfpnm

That's lame...I did that several times in high school. I wouldn't call it "plagurism"..."lazy" perhaps. Plagurism is defined as taking someone else's work and calling it your own. How can you do that to something you wrote? Silly rule.

No, it really is Plagiarism. There was a football player in my Public Speaking class that failed because he gave a speech that he had given before and didn't acknowledge it.

No comment on the Brit Lit term paper that also became my highschool and college Music Appreciation theses.