ac . a . dem . ic pro . ba . tion
noun
the taboo situation that enough college students are dealing with for it to be important, but not something anyone wants to talk about
So let’s talk about it.
College isn’t easy for anyone – that much is obvious. It may be paced in a less-threatening way compared to high school, but with that comes a lot of added responsibility that can be overwhelming for students that aren’t prepared for the change. Many people manage this transition well enough (albeit with struggles here and there), but what about those who don’t?
Sometimes we miss the mark. Sometimes we drop the ball.
Sometimes we realize that our major isn’t right for us. Sometimes we realize that the study habits we built up in high school aren’t gonna cut it anymore. Sometimes we underestimate our course load, or we assume that the professors are more empathetic and forgiving than they actually are (tip: don’t ever rely on that assumption).
Whatever the reason, there are some students that end up falling just a bit too far behind, and they end up with that scary little email in their inbox informing them that they are on academic probation.
This is not a fun message to receive, and with it comes a lot of stereotypes: “Oh, she must have been slacking off all the time.” “He’s obviously not smart enough to be in this major.” “Some people just really don’t have what it takes.” I mean, there’s a reason why nobody likes to run outside and shout to the world that they’ve been put on probation in college. It’s a hush-hush topic, something you don’t want your friends and relatives to hear about, because what will that say about you? Shouldn’t you be embarrassed?
No. You shouldn’t.
This is hard for me to write because I, like many others, do not want people to see me in a less-than-bright light academically, but I am one of those students dealing with the pressure of academic probation. I am pushing myself out of my comfort zone a bit here because I want anyone struggling with this right now to know that they are not alone, I promise.
This doesn’t mean you’re stupid, it doesn’t mean you’re not cut out for what you want to do, it doesn’t mean that you can’t fix things academically. There are steps you can take, there are things you can do, and I want to be someone that lets y’all know that you are not in an end-all be-all situation.
There are a wide variety of reasons why students can find themselves in this kind of predicament. I can tell you that for me personally, my situation boils down to a mixture of improper study habits and personal issues, but like I said, it’s different for everyone.
If you’re currently fighting through a semester with probation-mandatory requirements slapped on top, I completely get your struggle. You have added academic and personal pressure on top of the general uphill battle all students have to face in order to succeed, and it can be daunting.
I wrote this mainly to tell people to not give up and to never feel embarrassed about being in this situation. I know I’ve been struggling with that myself, but I also know that I have working hard and pushing myself to the limit every day this semester, and that is nothing to be ashamed of.
For our campus specifically, there are resources available for us to use. I encourage you all to use them, even if asking for help is not something you’re normally comfortable with. Go to the office hours that no one goes to, ask all the extra questions in class even if it seems like everyone else gets it but you, be that loud voice in the group me that no one talks in. Work with your advisors and professors, become a thorn in their side if you have to, but do it.
I can’t say that you won’t face any judgement from professors or peers. I’m honestly worried about what some people might think of me if they read this, but nothing will change the fact that I am a hard-working student at A&M who is determined to succeed regardless of what path she might end up taking. I’m an engineer, and engineering is hard. So I’m doing my best not to give myself a hard time over struggling in genuinely complex coursework on top with the other stressors I have to deal with.
To anyone else that’s pressuring themselves over this and what it might say about them (or what other people might say about them), I hope you can take heart from this and be able to adopt a more optimistic headspace (I say that as a raging pessimist, so you know I mean it).
I wish every student dealing with looming shadow of academic probation the best of luck.
We got this.