What every college student needs to know
Your Academic Responsibilities ―
Unlike in second grade, middle school, or even high school, in college all academic responsibilities are yours ― not your parent’s, not your advisors’ or your professor’s. If you have a problem, are falling behind, or have questions it is your responsibility to get help. Do not delay; you will be further behind and at the end of the semester it is too late.
Set yourself up to succeed. It is your responsibility to plan your schedule and choose the courses that you take. If you have trouble with this, go back to your advisor. You can still change your courses the first week of school. Make sure that you have time to get from class to class. It is unacceptable to always leave a class early to get to the next class or to constantly arrive late. Make certain that you don’t sign up for too heavy a load. The semester always starts out easy but you want to be able to handle the load when everything is due at the end of the semester. Everyone is busy and everyone has the same number of hours in a day; so the excuse that you are behind or need extra time on an assignment because you are taking 18 hours, have a job, or have other commitments falls back on you. How you choose to use your time is your choice. You have the same amount of time in a day as each of your classmates. It is your responsibility to carefully schedule your time and to use your time wisely. You also need to be sure that you have the required materials, text books, etc.
Attending class is required. Class attendance is not optional. It is your responsibility to get to class. The main reason students flunk out of college is from not attending class. You may need to go to bed earlier, buy another alarm clock, or not go out the night before. If you are sick and miss class it is your responsibility to get the notes from someone in the class and to catch up. The most important advice for a college student is: Never miss class.
Do not schedule appointments during class time. An academic advisement appointment is not a reason to miss class. Never schedule academic advisement appointments during your class. It is your responsibility to ask your academic advisor for an appointment that is not during any of your classes. If you have a job, schedule your work time outside of your class time. An excuse from your boss is not acceptable.
It is your responsibility to read the text and stay caught up. If we are covering chapter 3, it is your responsibility to read chapter 3 without officially being given a reading assignment. Read ahead so that you have already read the material before it is covered in class. In college you are expected to read and study the text without being reminded.
If you have special circumstances and had to miss class or have fallen behind, it is your responsibility to contact the professor to ask for help. Don’t wait until you are way behind, do this as soon as you can. At the end of the semester it is too