In high school, they teach you a wide array of information to set you up for your future as a student, and as an adult in the working world. When I graduated in 2014, I had no idea what college was going to hold for me, because there were a lot of important skills that I didn't have going into my freshman year at WMU. For some, they were privileged enough to have learned these things in high school because they may have been required to in the curriculum, or they come from a family that encourages and instills these important tidbits about life, education and college learning. In meeting these people, I felt like I had missed something. Like a day of class that taught us these different learning tactics, or gave a lecture on balancing your life (or a check book, for that matter).
I have compiled a list of eight thing I have learned over my last two years in college, that I wish I would have known, or better understood, before starting over in a university environment.
1. Learn the concept of time management as early as possible.
This is the most important skill that will literally follow you through every day. If you can't focus enough time toward your school work, and your job and your social life you're going to run into a lot of problems. I still have issues managing my time when life gets overwhelming and a thousand things seem to happen at one time. Just understand, and organize your priorities as best you can to fit your schedule. Keep calendars and lists -- they actually help!
2. Learn how to properly build a resume.
This is a skill that every person looking to be employed after college needs to have. A lot of high schools now are requiring that you learn this in English and business classes. The way that you present yourself on paper is the first step to how an employer may perceive you, and how they may consider you for the position.
3. Every professor teaches in a different way.
Every class is going to be different, and every professor is going to have different expectations of the students and their work. You need to go into every class and find out about the teacher. You need to learn what they like, dislike, and what they have to offer so that you can best take advantage of your experience in the class, and actually learn something.
4. Everyone learns and studies in different ways.
You need to go out of your way to find out how you best retain information. You also need to understand that your habits will have to change for each class you take. Because every class will provide a different kind of educational experience, you can't expect to be able to study and learnt the same way every time. Sometimes, I'm better suited taking notes on my computer because I can easily search for information later. Other times, I'm better off writing the information because I have to think about it more to write a letter out into a word rather than focusing on hitting the right key.
5. Have work experience!
Even if it's an unpaid internship, a week long intensive or a job at a restaurant in town having something to put on your resume is so important. In today's competitive employment pool, you have to try and have something on your resume that sets you apart from others. So, anything that you can do to make yourself special, or make your skills seem imperative to the future of the company gives you a much greater chance of getting the positions you want.
6. How to build a budget and properly build savings.
This is a pretty basic thing that they should try and incorporate into more high school math classes and business classes. Kids should be encouraged to understand money, and how both planning and saving will help you in the long run.
7. The importance of having good credit.
My parents have been the greatest example for me when it comes to maintaining credit. It seems ridiculous that this is something that we have to consider right out of high school. But, when it comes to getting an apartment, applying for a loan, mortgage or credit card you need to have something that proves you are able to uphold an agreement, that involves paying bills and paying them in full, in a timely matter. If you come out of college with bad credit, going on to get a car, or make big life changes, you're not going to find many people willing to take your word for it.
8. Take advantage of the time that you have before you have to settle down into a real life job.
College often comes with a lot of responsibility. Remember, just because society is forcing us to grow up, doesn't mean you have to take on everything at once and become an adult right away. Make the most of the time that you have as a young person, because you'll never get this time back.
So, I didn't learn most of these until later in life, but the more we teach people, now, the higher the chance of success for us later. I don't know many people today who can say that they left high school knowing what goes on a resume, but because the work force is now so diverse, having little pieces of advice to help you through college can really make a difference when it comes to graduation time and making our way into the working world.
