getting good grades in college

[Jman437]

I'm one step closer to get to college. I don't know if I'm in or not.


There are some thing I need to know:
-how do I get good grades in college(min. B, max.A)- how do I study(study methods);
-how do I have time for myself(time management);
-how do I get motivated to do it.

[Jess]

I apologize in advance if my advice sound lame, or is bad...just trying my best, since I'm in college (and unfortunately for me, I didn't do too well the first year)

To get good grades, I suggest you study well for exams and do all homework. Try not to procrastinate, in order to manage your time well and get homework done. For motivation, just think how much better you'll be if you had a high GPA. It'll feel good if you have some A's and B's.

[SammieRose]

This was the advise I got from my sister last week, I'm heading to college this fall.

Unlike HS, in college you are in charge of everything study-wise, professors will give you assignments with due dates and, even though they expect you to hand them in, they will never get on your case about it. You can do it or not, but if you do not, there is normally no make up, is just like real life, you chose to do or not, but you have to pay the consequences if not. Many people look at the weight those assignments have on the final grade and fool themselves into believing they will do amazing on exams so they will not need those 10-15% to maintain the 2.5 GPA needed in undergrad. Fact is, because they ignore the practice, when they get to apply the theories they studied they cannot figure it out most of the times and get lower than expected grades on exams, get desperate and lose confidence.

They will give you in advance the whole semester's plan of study and will expect you to follow through. The chapter/lesson of each week does not mean he/she will go in detail over everything, but only where the questions arise while you were reading it to prepare for class. They do know if you have prepare or not for class and will tell on you with no problem. So you have to have read the lesson/chapter before going into class and taken note of your questions. DO use all and any practice questions on each lesson that you can get your hands on as this will make it easier to study for midterms and finals.
It is college, and is the last time you will be able to "party" without worrying too much, you should worry a little so you do not screw your life. So enjoy your last years of having low amount of responsibilities, but also study so you can pass every class with good grades.

Remember the faster you can get rid of the classes with the highest GPA, the fastest you can get to work in reasonable paid jobs.

[Jman437]

One thing I don't really get is: how do I study for something?
My course is computer science, and it has classes like algebra, programming, and introduction to computers. How do I study for these? What's the most used method of study?

And how do you find time to relax? I mean, studying in college is like a shark: if I stop, I'm screwed...

[SammieRose]

One thing I don't really get is: how do I study for something?
My course is computer science, and it has classes like algebra, programming, and introduction to computers. How do I study for these? What's the most used method of study?

And how do you find time to relax? I mean, studying in college is like a shark: if I stop, I'm screwed...

Most classes in a science major require some theory and some practice, theory you just read, practice, you do the freaking exercises at the end of the chapter or given by the professor.

A good math for that is putting at least twice the time it takes for the class to study that subject. So for example, lets say you have three hours of algebra classes per week, then you study six hours per week for that class. You normally have 15 hours of classes per week, so you will also put 30 hours more for studying, if you keep and 8 hour sleep schedule, you will have 56 hours a week of sleep, that adds up to 101 hours.

A week has 168 hours. That will give you 67 hours for doing whatever you want, lets say you spend 7 hours eating per week, that is 60 hours for you.

You get a part time job, that will use up 20-27 hours, so you still have 33+ hours, or about 5 hours a day to do whatever you want.

[Jean Poutine]

Just continue doing what you are doing. The difference between high school and college is greatly overblown and is mostly just a question of academic autonomy. It only gets confusing if (like me) you spent high school with both thumbs deep up your arse because you are not used to studying/doing any kind of work.

My uni also suggests a ratio of 3 hours class/6 hours studying, but I always thought that was way too much. The only time I study 6+ hours a week for a subject is midterms/finals period. I personally spend 3 hours class/2 hours studying and I get good grades, despite being in a generally demanding major. I like to reread the day's notes once I am home so I make sure it settles. For some classes, I also like to reread the entirety of my notes after each class for that subject, since I'm already in the "x law" mindset and fresh concepts building on the old ones are swimming in my head, it's incredible the number of connections you make this way.

I work part-time and I live alone so my free time is mostly split between working and doing chores. One rule that I maintain to keep sane is that after 7PM, I do nothing that requires any effort at all. In fact, after 7PM, I'm generally pretty high, such as right now.

Also, college is harder than high school for sure, but not THAT much harder. Don't freak out over it.

[Jman437]

Well, guess I'll just have to hold on and hope for the best... :b