It’s graduation season, which has many of us at Galin Education thinking back to our own high school graduations and college experiences. We wanted to take a moment to highlight the best advice we wish we’d received to pass on to our grads. From classes to clubs to calling home, we reflect back on some of the things that make the college experience so unique.
(We want to acknowledge that everyone’s college experience is unique. The opinions expressed here are the opinions of some of our tutors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of our organization as a whole.)
“Don’t be afraid to shop around at college—both for classes and extracurricular experiences. By purposefully taking a variety of classes my freshman year, I was able to find my niche in the English and History departments fairly quickly. Outside of the classroom, though, it took me a while to find my place. I stuck with a few clubs for too long and didn’t find the right group of extracurricular experiences until my senior year. While I do not regret much about my time at college, I think I would have been able to capitalize on my experience to a greater extent had I been more proactive in searching for and trying out a bunch of activities right away.” – Eric L.
“Remember to call your grownups now and then and send the occasional picture!” –Lynn K.
“Find a balance between academics, extracurriculars, and fun with friends. Don’t be afraid to visit professors or tutoring. College is much less about “impressing” than high school is, so be yourself and seek out opportunities that challenge you, are out of your comfort zone, and that introduce you to new people!” –Hannah H.
“Go to office hours! Remember there is more than one library when finals time comes around. Take only the tech you need.” –Steven F.
“Don’t be afraid to hone in on what you’re good at academically–you should try to take a variety of stuff, but this is also your chance to become an expert in something you care about that you (probably) will never have again (unless you go to grad school). I can say for sure as a TA of an intro level course that there’s a lot of stuff you’ll learn in an intro course in any given field that just makes more sense when you stick with the field awhile.” –Griffin B.
“Find a good study buddy/group, and go to office hours! This is pretty standard advice that anyone will give you, so don’t phone it in. It’s good advice for a reason. Get a planner, make to do lists, stay organized, and manage your time wisely!” –Jackie M.
“College will be rigorous in a lot of different ways, and you are probably really used to being intense about everything in high school so that you can get into the college you want, but my recommendation is that you reward yourself a little for making it to this last step in your educational career. The skills you learn in college and how you can apply them, and who you meet in college, will be what matters when you’re ultimately searching for a job. Try to enjoy it! The ~4 years that you’ll spend in college is really unique time. Prioritize making time to relax and enjoy social time. If you’re not entirely “sold” on making time for socializing…think of it as “networking” which will serve you in ways that you cannot even fathom once you are on the job market and years down the line.” –Allie C.
“College is such a great time to rediscover who you are and what you love doing. There are so many clubs, sports leagues, and electives you can try out to find your right fit within your school. Also, make sure to say thank you to the faculty and staff who go out of their way to help you! A hand-written card at the end of the semester goes a long way.” –Hannah B.
We hope our graduating seniors enjoy their summer and all the new, exciting experiences college will bring! We will be celebrating our new grads on Sunday, June 9 with a party here at Galin Education (in our new office). To RSVP, please follow this link.
