I graduated high school at the age of 17 with a 3.9 GPA. However, I had a non-traditional high school experience. The majority of my high school career was spent at an arts high school where I majored in Theater. While there, I took CCP courses or College Credit Plus classes. College Credit Plus is Ohio’s dual enrollment program that provides high school students the opportunity to earn college and high school credits at the same time by taking courses from Ohio colleges or universities. At the end of my Junior year, I was given the opportunity to graduate early. Instead, I decided to transfer to my neighborhood school to experience the “traditional” high school experience. At my new school, I had a full schedule of all AP and IB courses. Even with all of the AP and IB classes I took, I never taught myself how to properly study. I think during my time in high school, I was too focused on completing all my assignments with good marks and not dedicated enough to absorbing the knowledge I was receiving.
In college, my experience has been completely different! Maybe it’s because I actually have an interest in what I am learning, or because I am paying $61,000 a year for my education. Either way, in college, you will have the desire to absorb the information you are learning. That does not mean that your desire to acquire knowledge makes it any easier to study.
With that being said, my main goal for this semester is to develop a passion for studying. Now, what does that mean? Let’s dissect the term (I’m such a nerd). Passion is when you channel a significant amount of energy into a task where you would like to achieve a goal. Therefore, passion is ambition that is demonstrated through actions, okay? Next, studying is when an individual sets aside time to focus on a particular subject with the goal to acquire knowledge. When you combine the words, we can define Passion for Studying as: setting aside a significant amount of time and energy to focus on a particular subject with the goal to acquire knowledge. There are so many instances where you study in life, whether it is in your profession, with a group of other Christians with an open bible, or in a crowded library. So why not master the skill while you are young?
How will I achieve this goal? Two words. Take Control. Take control of your study habits. Whether this is planning out a daily study schedule, effectively using a planner, or simply living at the library, you need proactive plan to be an effective student.