Freshman Warning Questions

I am on Freshman Warning?!! Questions to ask yourself

Why am I here? Why college? Why now? If you cannot say what the purpose of being in college is you may have difficulty finding your own purpose and find yourself simply going through the motions. What is the real reason why you are in college? Use this to help motivate you to succeed.

What do you want?
At the end of your journey through college, what is it that you want? What experiences do you want? What do you want to walk away with? What are your goals? Dreams?

Do you have career goals that incorporate your passion, talent or skill? Take a look at your career/major fit. Is your major something you are truly passionate about? Can you see yourself in that career in the future? If not, you may need to examine what your interests, hobbies, skills or talents are. How can you incorporate those into a career that is right for you? When you have a goal in mind that works for you, you will be more motivated and more likely to succeed.

What are you willing to do to get what you want?
Ok you know what you want out of college, now what are you willing to do to get that? What sacrifices will you make? How much effort are you willing to commit?

What went wrong and what went right last semester?
What was going on? Parties? Alcohol/drugs? Loneliness? Too much work? Too busy? Bored? Distracted? Not enough time in your schedule? Lack of focus? There are many things that could have affected your lack of success this semester, what was going on with you?

What is most important to you?
Family. Friends. School. Work. It can be hard to juggle all at once. What is most important to you? What sacrifices are you willing to make in order to balance all of your priorities? Do your actions reflect what your priorities are? If not, its time to make some changes so that in the long run you get what you want out of your college experience.

How will you balance your life and your grades?
Your life is not all about academics. You have other things that are important to who you are and other commitments to fulfill. How do those two things go together? Is it a smooth fit or do you never feel like there is enough time in the day? Are there things in your life you need to cut back on in order to make room for the things that need to be done in order for you to be successful?

What effort did you put into your classes this semester?
Did you go to class everyday? Did you sit in the front and pay attention? Did you study everyday for your math class that you hate? You should be studying 2 hours per week for every hour spent in class. Have you been devoting enough time to studying?

Academic Self Assessment

Before you can make any changes to better your academic standing you must look at what went wrong in the first place. This will be an important part of your action plan. If you don’t know what went wrong, you won’t know how to fix it!

There are many causes of academic difficulty such as:

Adjustment to college life
Poor study skills
Poor time management and/or organization
Low motivation or boredom
Personal issues
Career/major “fit”

Use the following Academic Self Assessment to evaluate what may be contributing to your academic standing. The assessment is designed to help you examine areas where you may be having difficulty and which contributed to your academic standing. For each statement, mark an X next to the statement if the statement is NOT TRUE for you.

Study skills

I read the assigned chapters before each class
I attend all my classes
I sit near the front in order to avoid distraction and to stay focused
I ask questions and participate in class discussions when appropriate
I take detailed notes from lecture and readings
I review notes before and after class
I organize notes and handouts in a notebook for each class
I use resources available such as tutoring and the Writing Center
I break up study sessions into 50 minute blocks and avoid cramming for tests and quizzes
I meet with my instructor during office hours if I am unsure of concepts or ideas
When an instructor lectures, I can get a clue as to what information is important for tests or quizzes
I study in a place free from distractions where I can stay focused and concentrate

Time management

I limit my work hours to under 20 hours per week
I use a planner or calendar to keep track of my assignments and other commitments
I read my syllabus for each class and take note of due dates and exams
I can focus on the task at hand instead of getting distracted and procrastinating
I am able to balance my social life with my academic requirements
When planning my day, I take into consideration my commute time

Low motivation or boredom

I have long term and short term goals which help keep me focused on on the larger picture of my education
I am confident that college is where I want to be right now
As much as possible, I choose courses based on the interest I have in subject matter and major choice

Career/Major fit

I have explored majors and have at least one in mind that may be appropriate for me
I use the resources available to me from the Career Development Center
I have examined my skills and interests to choose a major appropriate to me.

Personal issues

I have not missed class due to health or personal concerns
I am comfortable in my financial situation
I do not use drugs or alcohol
I feel a sense of belonging at FAU
I understand the real reasons why I am in college
Right now in my life, college is where I need to be
I have made friends and have a support system
I get along with my roommate/classmate/instructors

Take a look at the statements that you have marked an X next to. Is this a concern or issue which has affected your grades? Speak to an advisor about why all of these statements are critical to your success as a student and how to form an action plan to start on the path to improving your grades.