I can still remember my two lifesavers throughout college. I looked to them for guidance and help throughout my entire four years of undergraduate work. They are two things that a successful student cannot live without.
First off, the thing that I looked to the most for guidance and reassurance in my major choice was the Frostburg State University 2006 version of the undergraduate catalog. I got it during student orientation and have used it 100 times since then. It is about 200 pages thick, worn, torn, and has seen better days.
Every single time that I had a question as to what classes were required for my major or when the classes were offered, I would look to the catalog. Each time that I questioned what classes I should be taking during freshmen year, sophomore year, junior year, and lastly, senior year, I would open up to page 74 (yes I had it memorized). Anytime I was unsure of whether a British literature would be a better choice over an Enlightenment class, I would read course descriptions in my catalog.
My point is that a college catalog is important for a student who wants to graduate on time. Some students just take whatever classes and hope that their adviser is doing the work for them. However, some students get bad advisers that don’t check all of the requirements (not my case, my adviser was amazing). I’ve seen students graduating a semester behind because they and their adviser missed scheduling a required class. If you have the catalog in front of you before it is time to schedule, you will know exactly what you need to take for each semester. You can generally map out a tentative schedule for your entire 4 years.
Aside from my college catalog, I also depended heavily on my flash drive. I would give each class their own folder (example: English 416 Editing) and every assignment, paper, or work that I did would be saved under that folder. I never questioned where the work was saved or what happened to it. I knew exactly where to go to find it and print if needed. I watched other students struggle, losing their work, and missing out on easy points because they were not organized.
You don’t have to be the smartest kid in the class to get an A. You just have to be the most organized. If you have an organization system on your flash drive, then you will be set to go. You can take your flash drive from home to school to printing labs. It will hold all of your assignments and guarantee you never lose valuable information should you have a computer malfunction.
Although I used my catalog until it was nearly worn out, I wonder why colleges couldn’t combine my two lifesavers? Colleges could upload the student’s particular year of catalog onto a flash drive that they could always look to for guidance. Students could simply plug the flash drive into their laptop or a desktop in a computer lab and look at the catalog. They could even make check lists of what classes they have completed and what needs to be done.
Many colleges, like FSU, are now taking green initiatives to make their campuses more environmentally friendly. Well, printing out hundreds of thick catalogs wastes pages of paper and ink. If colleges offered the catalog on a flash drive, they would be taking their green initiative even further.
The flash drive would store the catalog, but the student could also use it to organize their coursework over the semester. The great thing about a flash drive is that content can be added, edited, and deleted at any time. Colleges could choose to have the catalog be a feature that is not deletable. However, they can allow enough space that students could still use the flash drive for their school work.
The college could have CFgear customize a flash drive that is in their school spirit colors that features their name and logo. College freshmen are often confused as to their course requirements and how to stay organized. Colleges could make life a little easier for their incoming students and even student advisers. They could offer an environmentally friendly solution to the much used course catalog.
Head over to CFgear’s website to discover the many ways that your college can customize a flash drive that will actually be used by each of your students.
On a side note, check out College Connecting’s college tip blog for valuable college related helps for incoming freshmen.
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