6 Tips to Prepare You For College

College is a big commitment, and it's important to succeed. However, so many college students have trouble adjusting to the workload and the environment, that they simply  don’t thrive in their first semesters of college. 

I see so many people really have a hard time because they couldn’t find a document that they left on their dresser, or they can’t adjust to the new responsibilities. Don’t let yourself get left behind. 

A lot of the struggling that students deal with comes from not being prepared, so here are my tips for preparing for college!

READ. A LOT.

I know, it’s not exactly what you may want to do, but I’m not talking about classic literature. Read anything, current news, long-form journalism, current books, ANYTHING. 

One of the most essential skills you need is reading comprehension. A lot of the workload you’ll receive comes from reading a few chapters from your textbook a night and being able to retain that information. 

If you have discussion classes, chances are you need to read what you’ll be discussing first. 

The more you read, the better you’ll get at it. Read as much material as you can, soon enough, you’ll be able to read a 30 page chapter in 20 minutes with full comprehension.

PUT A LOT ON YOUR PLATE.

Trust me. Being in college means having to do lots of things like clubs, sports, and work ON TOP of your academics and social life. Putting a lot on you plate now will help you be able to manage your time better in school. 

Time management is something that is much easier to learn by doing. Sure, you might feel like you’re drowning sometimes because you haven’t slept in three days and you still have two essays to write, but, just consider it part of the learning process.

Putting a lot on your plate also makes you manage your money better too. Allocate funds towards priorities, try to save a little, and remember that a social life isn’t free. 

WRITE. A LOT.

Another skill that is crucial in college is writing. You need to be able to effectively convey thoughts and ideas in your writing. 

Make your life easier, and don't get stuck on writing. College requires a lot of writing, especially essays. Master writing a thesis, master writing with detail, master citing your sources. 

You can really easily work on your writing skills by just writing a short journal everyday. Not necessarily a diary, but just a story, something that interests you, an idea. Just write something.

GET ORGANIZED.

I’m sure you’re heard this before, but you have to be able to manage a lot of things at once in college. Your education will require effective notes, physical organization, and digital organization.

Your notes are your key to success in college. You will use them to study, you will use them to be able to actually understand the content better, and you’ll be able to use them for reference. Make sure they’re legible, but not too wordy, and that they get the point across in a way that you can understand. 

Your physical organization is more of keeping track where everything is. You don’t need to have an impeccable desk area, but you do need to have all your books, notes, papers, and things in a place where you can find them. 

Digital organization is more important now than it ever has been before. Your computer, or whatever drive you use, will let you create folders. USE THEM. I cannot stress this enough. Keep your school work separate from your other photos or documents. Don’t save everything to your desktop. Make sure the document is easy to find and edit. 

LOOK AT YOUR CREDITS.

I made the mistake of taking AP Literature my senior year of high school when I could have taken English 101 and 102. It would have been fine, but my university does not accept AP Lit as credit, so I have to take the class I could have taken in high school. 

Chances are, your high school won’t charge you by the credit hour. Colleges do. Stock up on lots of college and AP credits, and make sure they’ll transfer!!!

GET A PLANNER.

Digital or print. Keep all your homework and work schedules and club meetings in one place. It makes it a million times easier to not let assignments fall through the cracks if you do this. 

Go through all your syllabuses and put in every single assignment and due dates through the rest of the semester. 

Planners make it easy to see tasks and to use your time to accomplish those before they're due. 

How To: Decorate Your Dorm

Lets face it. You'll be spending a lot of time in your home away from home, and you want it to look nice. 

Let me just start by saying: DON'T BUY ALL YOUR STUFF IN THE SAME DAY. 

Space your purchases apart. That way, you dont have a $300 hole in your bank account all of a sudden, and you can find more eclectic and interesting pieces (often at better prices). 

Something that I've always found: SIMPLER IS BETTER.

Get your big pieces, and stick with a more simple pattern. 

For me, that meant picking a solid white comforer with a simple square stiching to be perfect. 

Plus, if that's the look your going for, it's a lot cheaper! I got my comfortor for $20 from TJ Maxx instead of paying $50+ for an elaborately patterned one. 

>> Side note, selfies on a white comfortor are better too. You gotta show yourself off, and white is the perfect background.

After I got my simple comfortor, it was easy for me to accessorize with cute pillows, patterned sheets, and throw blankets. 

Pretty much all of my stuff was in black, white, or grey, with a little bit of other color thrown in. 

This works out well for me, especially because everything looks cleaner, and it doesn't clash with my roomie's stuff. 

The next staple of my college experience: GO FOR COMFORT.

Splurge on an extra nice mattress pad and memory foam pillows, trust me, it's worth it. You spend a lot of time laying on your bed hanging out, sleeping, doing homework, or trying to sleep even though people in the hall won't shut up. 

No matter what, the extra padding makes a huge difference, and you deserve it. Also, bringing an extra lamp or two is great for having comfortable lighting for you AND your roomie. Treat Yo' Self to comfort.

You'll also need to: MAKE STORAGE ACCESSIBLE 

Storing winter clothes and extra hangers behind your dresser is great, until you need to get those cute boots or to hang up some of the free tee shirts you'll get (seriously, you'll get thousands). 

I've found that storing these things under my bed, but behind my dresser is a nice way to keep clutter out of the way. I also think that accessing these things would be much more inconvienient if the storage I brought didn't have wheels. 

I know that it's all over Pinterest, but seriously, get an IKEA RÅSKOG Utility Cart. I keep my cleaning supplies, snacks, makeup, hair stuff, and so many little things on this cart. It's fully adjustable, so that you can make sure your paper towels will fit on the bottom shelf of it, and it comes in lots of cute colors!

IKEA really has the storage thing down. Check some of their simple file boxes out and look at their desk organization.

Finally, ADD PERSONAL TOUCHES. 

Don't make your dorm something that could be in a catalog, add pictures of your family, friends, pets, experiences. If your boyfriend gave you a cute stuffed animal, put it on your bed or desk! 

Your living space is about YOU!

Don't forget your memories, and don't forget to make new ones. I mean, seriously, it only costs like $0.19 to print a picture. 

____________________________________

Make your dorms shine with your personality and taste!

Until next time...

*** More pictures may be added to this post for clarity of content ***