Published: June 28, 2008 10:56 pm            

The College Answer Guy

I was recently sent a question about students who do very well academically in high school, but struggle when they get to college. And further, what resources are available to help in these situations and from whom students should seek assistance?

I would start by saying that it is probably closer to the rule than to the exception to have at least SOME difficulty with school during the transition from high school to college (and there can be another transition experienced when transferring from a junior/community college to a university). For some students, figuring out how to fix the problem(s) takes longer than for others. When the issues are academic in nature, my contention is that most of the difficulties have little to do with the material being too complicated, or the student “just not getting it,” as is often reported by students. More often than not, the problems fall into one (or more) of several categories:

• Becoming overwhelmed or behind in a class (or classes), coupled with the inability to overcome it.

• A lack of understanding of what the professor wants or expects, or a gap between what is expected and what is delivered.

• Test anxiety or other stress-related problems that prevent students adequately communicating what they know.

• Making the choice to do other things – extracurricular activities, partying, etc.

• Simply NOT doing the work (or enough of it).

The good news is that each of these areas (and for that matter, even the too-complicated material and “not getting it” too) can be addressed using resources that are widely available on college campuses, and some fairly basic strategies for success. However, the keys to the solutions lie with the student. They must first recognize and admit/accept that there is a problem, and then they have to go seek help. This step may be much more difficult than you might expect for (formerly) high-achieving students, as a significant part of their identity may be wrapped up in being “smart,” whether internally or in how they are perceived by others.

The answers to where to go for help and what resources are available are myriad, and, frankly, different on each college campus. But the primary resource should be the student’s academic advisor/counselor or the advising office if no one person is assigned as the advisor. After course advisement and degree planning, one of academic advising’s main functions is to help students identify and address barriers to their academic success. Through information provided verbally, through flyers, posters and the like, as well as information listed on departmental Web pages and numerous other media, these offices try to distribute information about academic resources as widely as they can.

Continued next week…

Submit your questions to lance@collegeanswerguy.com, and visit www.collegeanswerguy.com and www.collegeprep101.com.

        

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