Angela Duckworth, the worlds leading expert on grit, gives this advice to incoming freshman. It is easier to be an A student at an Ivy League college than a b- student. She discusses when you are a b- student at a school, you have a weak foundation, so when you go to the next level of classes it is now harder for you to perform. The A student however, has a strong foundation of knowledge which allows them to perform well as they increase the level class. So it really pays to master the material freshman year so that you have that strong foundation to work off.
Dr. Duckworth than goes on to speak about racing your strengths but working on your weaknesses. That if you hate math you should not become a math major. Once you have picked your major however you should work on specific weaknesses so that they now can become a strength. She discusses how you need to be really specific, not I am going to get better in economics. You need to say I am going to master the monopoly graph. When you pick these specific points it allows you to really focus on your skill.
Thirdly, from one of her associates, the warning that most students will struggle their first year in college. It might be academically, socially or both. That we tend to look around and think that everyone else has made this easy adjustment. The truth is that some people are just better at hiding it than others, and that some of the people you think have adjusted well are going through tough times.
Realize that the admissions examined your application and you are definitely academically qualified. The social part sometimes takes a little longer. We tend to remember the end of high school where you had many friends some that went back to elementary school. So give yourself some time and both the academics and the friends will work out.
To comment on the third point: it is very easy for all of us to get caught up in the competative nature of college, because in reality, we are competing with each other for college spots and jobs and always will be. However, it's even more important to remember that we have so much in common and are on the same team in that we are going through the same experiences and are all human. We all will fail, so we shouldn't be so embarrassed and worried about it. We all will succeed, so we should be proud of each other about that. Thanks for reminding me that I am not the only one who is worried about college, and that it will be okay.
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