College Survival Guide/Choosing a Class

Don't Choose a Class you Hate

Like high school, college is full of classes people must take in order to earn a degree. Many students don't like taking these courses because they do not relate to their major. Students, nonetheless, have to take courses that don't relate to their major most of the time.

How do you choose a class that doesn't relate to your major?

Do not choose a course you are NOT good at.

If you didn't do very well at history growing up, then don't take a history course. College history is very different than high school history.

If you ever found the names of people, geographical regions and developments, battles, and other information to become an overload, then maybe history isn't your thing.

If you are interested in becoming a biologist, but you've always had an interest in abnormal behavior of people such as cutters, drunkards, and schizophrenics, then maybe Psychology would be a course you would like and be interested in.

There may be courses you are interested in taking, but how do you know it is the right course to take? Is psychology the right course to take to learn about people who are cutters and drunkards? It was stated that those people may be linked to psychology, but how do you know the author was correct? How is Psychology different than Sociology? Is Psychology the right course to take? Before choosing a course, make sure you know what the topic is about.

• Sociology studies society as a whole and how it all things combine.
• Psychology studies the behavior of an individual.

A rule to remember in college is to take courses that you like. You pay for the courses, you have the ability to choose the courses; take the courses you like. When you have fun with courses, then you'll be able to enjoy what you are doing more. Stressful and dull courses often lead to dull grades.

If no courses are offered that you like per se, then there may be courses you are good at. For example, let's say you know Japanese but Japanese is not offered. Do you consider yourself an expert at mastering languages? Have you studied the Spanish language before? Did you do well in Spanish? Then maybe Spanish will be an ok alternative, for now.

By choosing courses you are good at or are deeply interested in, you find a sure-fire way to keep your grades top notch. People may say this is cheating yourself of learning things in college; however, the paradox exists where doing homework and studying for tests happens more often than learning for fun in college. College after all, is a beginning place for people to go to a university. If a person wants to go to a university, then he or she has to have decent grades.

College has a lot to do with understanding your capabilities and skills. Many of the things "taught" in college can be learned on your own time. Some people don't go to college because they wish to study independently and practice chemistry or foreign languages on their own time.

College and Hobbies

The interesting thing to remember here is that some people study things outside of college that don't earn them a grade. Focus only on the courses you are taking in college and don't spend extra time dabbling in hobbies. Of course, most people who dabble in hobbies find student clubs around the campus to join for fun.

The lesson here is many people will study courses, earn their degree, and then later on take courses that relate to a hobby of theirs. While in college, focus only on class material. Do not dabble in building computers, welding, or etc. unless it is part of the class material. What is not part of college work should be put off until you earn your degree unless they are house chores or part of your paycheck.

Those who like to dabble in hobbies will try to find a college course that relates to that hobby. For example, if someone likes to build cars, then he or she could find an auto mechanic course in school. Why spend time outside of school dabbling when you could be in college earning college credit for it?

Now, some people take courses at college for fun, because they relate to a hobby of theirs. Another important lesson to remember here is that not all courses transfer. Sometimes courses people take out of interest and fun do not transfer; therefore, people become angry that they wasted money and time on a course that does not transfer.

The central idea of going to college is that it builds credentials. College creates a status for a person. It's better to—study the course materials, review and discuss them, and finish them before the course is over—than to dabble efforts in something, watch your grades go down because you were side-tracked, and then think you ought to have spent more time on school than on hobbies.