Going to college is one of life's great adventures. You are about to spend three to four years of a very important developmental stage in your life with other young people.
There are a number of challenges to be met. On the one hand there is the challenge of maintaining a balance in your daily life. Third level is not just about attending lectures and studying; it is also about taking part in the extra curricular activities and sporting life of the college.
In the year in which we will enjoy the spectacle of the Olympic games, there is serious concern that young people are finding it increasingly difficult to keep their interest in sport alive with the increasing demands of gaining the points to get into college and surviving there.
So it would be a real pity should you feel it necessary to abandon your sporting or other interests because of the demands of the course on which you have embarked.
In order to achieve the appropriate balance it is important to have an overall plan from day one. The first shock you will get is that third-level college is so different to anything you may have experienced in school.
There is little chance that there will be somebody asking why you are so late for class or why you didn't turn up yesterday.
You may be in a theatre that accommodates some 300 students wondering should you be listening to the lecturer or recording every word he/she utters. You may have a lecture at 9 a.m. and then a break until noon.
Coping with the freedom such a schedule offers is one of the first challenges faced by the new student. If, for instance, you have a grade A in accountancy and accountancy is one of the subjects of your course, you may find that on the first day the lecturer starts ab initio. This is to facilitate students who may not have taken the subject in their Leaving Certificate.
The temptation is to say to oneself, "I'll come back when he/she has covered what I already know," and head off to the nearest coffee shop. The problem is that when you decide to rejoin the class you may find that the lecturer is now covering new material which you have missed.
When you do your tour of the college's amenities one of your first ports of call should be the library - not a place you discover in January. Making good use of the library not only ensures that you are keeping your studies up to speed, but it will save you money by being able to consult the more expensive books.
So what should be the main elements of your plan for success at college? If you are going to live away from home for the first time and you are sharing a house you must have ground rules laid down in advance as to how the daily chores are shared.
You cannot afford to have bitter rows brewing over paying bills, cooking meals or keeping the place habitable.
Terms are short in college so you must attend all your lectures/tutorials right from the beginning.
Do not let yourself be distracted from your primary reason for being in college in the first place. If you are experiencing a difficulty with a subject early on, look for help. The tutor system in college is specifically designed to help. Help is also available from the counselling and chaplaincy services.
When you finalise your daily programme look out for time gaps in your schedule. These are breaks that are meant to be used for further study arising out of the lectures and to prepare material for any upcoming essays and projects. There is nothing more frustrating than to leave a project/essay to the last minute only to discover that the book you want to consult is not available.
You should have your own copy of the texts prescribed for your course. Take good care of them and you will always get at least a proportion of your outlay back when you sell them secondhand.
Good note-taking is probably one of the most important skills you will require at college. There is always the dilemma whether you should listen to what is being said or take extensive notes. Probably the best compromise is to note the important points being made and to flesh these out when you go to the library afterwards. You should have loose-leaf notebooks for each section of the course - these will prove your saviour as you approach exam times. During Freshers' Week many overtures will be made to you to join one of the many societies in college and even the banks will offer you "freebies". Have an idea beforehand of the areas of college life you would like to participate in and the sports you will continue to play.
Apart from getting the balance right between your free time and your study, there are two further areas of concern. If you are living away from home there is the temptation to return home every weekend. You may want to make the trip for various reasons - Mum has promised to do your washing for you, the girlfriend/boyfriend is based in the home town, or the local minor team just cannot survive without you. As the term progresses think seriously about whether or not you can afford the time.
The second area is a more contentious one - that of working part-time. In recent surveys it has been shown as one of the main reasons for first-year failures. It is easy to justify a few hours just to fund the social life - but when the hours increase so as to impinge negatively on one's performance in college it is time to consider priorities!
As you embark on the final preparations for your new adventure in college, enjoy every minute of the experience. Just keep focused on that day when on graduation you will throw your mortarboard in the air and you will know that it has all been worthwhile.
