Preparing for the First Day
What now?
More than 20.5 million young adults are getting ready to head for college this fall according to the National Center for Education Statistics. A little over 7 million of those will attend a community college like BC3. If you are one of them you have now applied, tested, scheduled, arranged finances, and attended to many other details to prepare for your college journey. It’s an exciting time, but it can be a bit stressful as well for both students and their families. With that in mind, we would like to offer a few helpful tips for first time students to help make the transition to college just a little easier. These are simple, common sense suggestions on which most institutions would agree.
- Attend Welcome Day to orient yourself to campus and even find someone to walk your schedule with you.
- Read your student handbook that is provided to you on Welcome Day. It lists important rules and regulations and goes into detail about available student services. By the way, it has a calendar to keep track of important dates to remember too.
- Find out about tutoring resources and don’t hesitate to use them. BC3 offers one hour of tutoring per subject FREE of charge.
- Get organized…know the necessary requirements of your courses and assignment deadlines by reviewing your course syllabi.
- Ask questions of your advisor, faculty, and other staff who are all engaged in helping you succeed.
- Don’t skip classes…common sense dictates that you’ll certainly miss out on vital information if you don’t attend.
- And perhaps most importantly…ENJOY the experience! Create a balance between your academic and social life. You are gaining knowledge to begin a career, or perhaps you have returned to upgrade your employment skills and opportunities. Whatever the circumstances, the experience will help you reach personal goals and perhaps spark achievements that might not have been possible otherwise.
Here are some further resources to explore:
Business Insider
Forbes
Beloit
For those starting this fall, your journey begins soon. Between now and then, please know that we are here to help you every step of the way. Please contact these offices should you need any assistance. Good luck to you all!
- BC3 Main Phone Number: 724.287.8711
- Admissions Office: 724.284.8501
- Academic Center for Enrichment (ACE: Placement Testing & Advising): 724.287.8711 x8606
- Financial Aid: 724.287.8711 x8329
- Records and Registration: 724.284.8510
-Jerry Johnston, Admissions Representative/Business Relations