#college hack

I have a class where I have to write creative assignments all the time, and let's be honest, I don't always have the motivation to write something super original.

My solution? Write fanfiction and change names and specific details. And you know what? Most college teachers won't even know.

I definitely just wrote a shortened version of a MHA Vigilante!Izuku Dadzawa fanfic and changed names and ages and genders.

I've done it before, and you know what? I got full credit. She didn't even notice.

In conclusion, work smarter not harder. This way, you still practice your writing skills, you practice plot conventions, and you don't have to world build. Plus, if your teacher does notice, you can be like:

I have to give at least one informative speech every semester, some of them science related, some not so much. And every time, I'm worried about deciding a topic or idea I just come to tumblr, search random shit up, and find that one niche post/person that looks interesting and do a presentation on that.

Guaranteed interest and full marks every time.

AND I have to put a little less effort into researching facts from fiction because most of the niche posts have articles/papers linked to them, and I can just Google the validity of most of the things posted.

Advice on Advisors

The first thing you should know about college advisors is that they aren’t like high school advisors. Most advisors are just professors who applied to be an advisor for extra money. I’m not saying all of them are like that, but I’m my experience they can be

You don’t have to take everything they say to heart. At the end of the day you know you. You know what classes you like and what you want to do with yourself in college (or at least what you don’t want to do) their advice is just advice. Listen to it, consider it, and do what’s right for you.

Always dig around for answers. I’m an arts major who ended up taking one of the most difficult science gen eds bc my advisor was misinformed. I was under the impression that it was one of the easiest ones and it turns out I was very wrong

Most advisors don’t know who you are. In my school you are required to meet with your advisor twice. First right before your 2nd semester as a freshman to go make sure you are setting yourself up correctly for the future. Like to make sure you are taking all the into classes in your major so you can move up to intermediate classes, that you know what major requirements you need to graduate and that you are getting in all gen ed requirements. Then again when you are a junior moving on to senior year. That’s it

It is SOOO important to make connections in college. Here’s a comparison between my relationship with my advisors and my friends relationship with her advisor.

The first thing I did during my very first semester was set up a meeting with my advisor. I introduced myself, talked to him about what I want to get from this major and just asked questions. When I took on my second advisor I did the same thing. (Two majors two advisors)

You’re advisor is never going (or most likely never) going to reach out to your first unless they are required to at a certain time in your academic career (for example like when i just stated in the bullet above).

Advisors are usually just professors who take on more work. They still have classes to teach, still have papers to grade, and still see so many faces daily they you have to make them remember you.

When I see my advisor in the hall (my other one) she asks me how I’m doing and checks in on me to see how I’m doing in my classes. We’ve become such good friends that she’s offered me a job when I become a junior.

Now my friend, she’s never met her advisor in person. It takes her advisor days to respond to emails. She doesn’t check in on my friend and is honestly pretty useless. My friend was literally panicking because she needed some basic information on a class she was trying to sign up for and needed the information by a certain time or else it would be too late to register and she’d be set back a whole semester. Any good advisor would have understood how dire the situation was and that by making my friend wait for an answer she could be jeopardizing when she gets her ducking degree, but she still acted this way.

And the only reason her advisor acts this way is because she doesn’t know my friend. They don’t have a relationship. No ones going to prioritize the problems of a person they have never met, over an advisee they know personally

Relationships in college are SO important. Knowing people is how you get a leg up. It’s how you hear about scholarship opportunities, it’s how you get recommendations and find work in your field.

College is like life and it’s honestly not fair. Her advisor should care about her in the same way she probably cares for her other students, but the fact is she doesn’t.

#DearFreshman | How to Get A’s in College | College Hacks

Watch my Video Using This Link or keep reading.

Description: How to get A’s in College. Here are my tips on how to start your semester off right and set yourself up for a 4.0 GPA.

Go to Class: In college, no one is waking you up and forcing you to go class so set your alarms and make sure you have enough time to get ready and be on time. Go to class everyday. Professors can cover multiple chapters in one class period so missing a class can put you really far behind. If you have to miss class, contact your professor so that they know why and ask them what you missed. Going to class can also leave a good impression on your professors. Some professors dock your grades for absences and tardies and some schools fail you automatically for having too many absences based on their attendance policies. On the flipside, I’ve been in a class where so many people were missing that the teacher gave those present extra credit so being in class even when you know others won’t be, for example the day before spring break, can benefit you.

Read your Syllabus: A syllabus is to students what a bible is to Christians. It’s that serious. It has the expectations for the entire class and lays out when assignments are due and when quizzes, tests, and days off are. One thing I like to look for is the grading scale because a 90 is one class can be an A, but be an A minus or B in another class. There may also be hidden extra credit in the syllabus because professors like to test if you actually read the syllabus.

Get a Planner and Use It: Write down all important dates from class to personal life so you can better manage your time. Plan out study time and time for HW and create lists with the office hours of all your professors. Bring your planner with you everywhere. If you don’t like planners use a Calender App in conjunction with a to do list app like Any.Do to manage everything you need to do. There’s nothing worse than forgetting about an assignment or planning to work on homework the same time your club meets.

Know your Resources: Your school wants to do good so 9 times out of 10 they already have resources in place to provide you with extra help. Learn where they are, when they’re open, and how to use them. At my school, Winthrop, we have several places that can help you with your work. The main place is the Academic Success Center that offers free peer tutoring in every class that’s known to be difficult. Then both the Foreign Language, Math, and Chemistry Department all have their own tutoring labs. There’s also a Writing Center at my school that helps review documents for grammatical errors. That means they’re no excuse not to get an essay proofread before turning it in. All these places help with improving your grades. Every school is different, but don’t be afraid to ask for help because it could make the difference between a B and an A.

Ask Questions: Whether it’s in during class or during office hours, ask questions. If something in class is confusing you, ask about it. You don’t want to misunderstand something and then take that wrong information with you to an exam. You’re probably not the only person confused so you’ll be doing everyone a favor. Plus, asking questions is a good way to get your professor to know and remember you, which  helps when it comes to grading.

Read the Chapter before Class: This gives you a basis of information to expand on in class and makes class way smoother. This is really important in your more difficult classes because it gives you less to learn new material in class. Plus, you’ll actually have meaningful questions to ask in class and the professor will know you’re actually prepared, especially when you start a question with “I was reading in Chapter 6 and I didn’t understand what xy and z meant.” Your professor will be very impressed.

Ask Professor to review your work: You can do your assignments a week in advance and ask your professor to review it for you. That way you can make sure it’s done correctly and you’re not missing anything. This especially helps with essays because every professor’s expectations are different. Getting this extra help also shows that you care about your grade.

Avoid Procrastination: Don’t avoid doing your assignments because you know they will involve a lot of work. Instead, break your assignments into smaller pieces and set dates to finish each piece so it’s less intimidating. This prevents you from having to turn in a rushed, low quality or unfinished project and helps you maximize the best score possible.

Take HW Seriously: In most of my classes that gave me daily homework, which was mostly science and math classes, the homework problems mirrored the problems on my exams. This means if you’re not understanding the homework, you’re going to run into problems so make sure to fix these issues before your tests. Also, in a lot of my classes, the professor didn’t grade homework at all or only checked for completion. In those cases, go to the professor’s office hours and ask them to grade yours. That way, you know if you’re actually doing everything correctly.

Study the way that works for you: It is very hard to tell people how to study because we all have different preferences, but when you’re studying pay attention to what helps you and what distracts you. If friends distract you, study alone. If you need extra motivation to actually study, find a study partner or start a study group to help hold you accountable. If you’re tempted to fall asleep while studying, move somewhere outside of your room like the library, a bench or swing outside, Starbucks, the Bookstore, or any study room on Campus. Always bring snacks, a sweater, headphones, gum, or anything else that makes you more comfortable. Turn your phone on silent and put it face down so you can’t see when you get notifications. Other than those tips, just experiment with the different ways you can study. Utilize Quizlet, flashcards, practice tests, your old exams, quizzes, and homework as guides. If you feel your brain needs a break, get up and take a walk or move to a new location. Me and my friend Bri would often get up and take a few laps around the library when we felt we needed a break.

Teacher: Okay, does anybody not understand how to divide these numbers?

Student: I don't.

Teacher: Well, okay, you see, these are NUMBERS. You have to DIVIDE them. Does that help?

Student: ...not really.

Teacher: Okay, okay. What do you do with the numbers?

Student: Divide them, but I don't know ho-