Color Coating, Note Taking, and Snoozing, oh my! by Donavan

Color Coating, Note Taking, and Snoozing, oh my! by Donavan - January 2014 Scholarship Essay

Until college, I never studied much. I had an easy time in high school and ended with a 3.8 GPA. I was home schooled, so I had an advantage of doing the work as fast or slow as I wanted. Starting college, however, was a different story. Everyone goes so fast, and there is a multiple variety of courses that covers completely different subjects. Pair that with a part time job and practice time for music majors like me, who has time to study? It took a while, but I finally found the study plan that works for me.

For non-instrument classes, one of the most important things I can stress is taking notes. It is very easy to space out in class, especially if it is really early in the morning. The teacher drags on with a boring monotone, and it is obvious he/she doesn't want to be alive at that moment either. If you take notes, you will force yourself to pay attention to what the teacher is saying. Writing it down also helps you to remember it more. I have also read that you should use colored notes, so you will associate certain things with colors.

Studying is very important to a person's college career. You may have been able to get by without studying in high school, but things change. Taking notes is the first step to finding your own study process, and it has helped me tremendously in the classes I have taken and will for the future.