New Semester, New You

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Hope everybody had a relaxing and rejuvenating winter break! I remember back in my high school days, I’d watch enviously as the college students with semester-based academic calendars relaxed and hung out. Now that I’m that college student, I’ve got to say I had a nice time at home, but I’m more than ready to get back into the swing of things here!

It’s no secret that second semester is harder than first semester (unless you’re a senior, which means you’re golden once applications are sent out and senioritis hits). Now that you’ve been through half a year, your teachers will expect you to know your way around the block! Keep these tips in mind, and you’ll be just fine:

Before school starts again, get organized.

How did using binders for a class work for you this past semester? Would a combination of folders and notebooks would be better? Whether it’s remodeling your system of making annotations or stocking up on bright new highlighters, it’s a good idea to clean up your act for the new semester. You’ll have time to prepare during break and the first couple weeks of class before the workload starts piling up again. When you can navigate your desk quickly, you’ll be much more efficient during the rest of the school year.

Explore campus for your next classes.

At my high school, all seniors took U.S. Government or Economics for their history requirement, one semester each. It was a first-time glimpse into my current schedule at college – I had to find a new classroom, adjust to a different teacher’s style, and learn unfamiliar material. The change also forced me to change some of my paths around campus, especially since I heavily used my locker to carry around fewer things during the day.

If this type of schedule change applies to you and your school, too, it’d be a good idea to scope out these changes before school is even back in session! The classroom number and teacher should be information available to you already, so if you have some free time, you can drop by school with your friends and check it out. My Econ and Gov classes were in entirely different areas of campus, so this was something I did, too. Pretend you’re walking through your day, going from class to class, and you’ll know what to do when you get to the real deal.

Ask older friends and alumni for help.

Which leads me to what you’re going to do once you get to the right classroom. Seek out friends (in my case, it’d be people who had already taken Econ, since I took Gov first semester and had friends do it vice versa) and alumni who took the class with that particular teacher before graduating. No matter what kind of class, from literature to math, the teacher strongly affects your learning experience. To get the most of your classes and pump up your grades, get a good idea of what you’re up against this coming semester.

If you don’t change teachers or classes during the school year, it still wouldn’t hurt to get this kind of intel on teachers you’ve had so far. You never know what past and current seniors can offer you if you don’t ask, and maybe you’ll find a way to do even better in your classes for this coming semester. If anything, it’s a valuable glimpse into your future exams and projects.

Reflect on first semester and change for the better!

Life goes in ups and downs, and school is no escape from that. Whether your grades were stellar or you didn’t do as well as you hoped during first semester, there’s always room to maintain or improve your accomplishments for second semester. Time management in particular is an issue many students run into, and I know I was no stranger to whiling away times on things like the Internet or my dog. You should also be thinking about how much time you spent on extra-curricular activities – while your sports and clubs are important, maybe you need to dedicate more time to your studies this time around. Or, alternatively, you’re doing well in your classes so it wouldn’t hurt to go to extra sports practice or join a new student organization. It’s up to you to decide and make the necessary changes.

No matter what, second semester will be a roller coaster of old friends and new challenges. As for you second semester seniors, don’t forget that school is still a thing you have to do even though college applications are (almost) all out the door. If anything, you won’t be able to escape your AP exams!

What are you looking forward to during this new semester? Let us know in the comments below!

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