Comments and Questions to: John Protevi
LSU French & Italian
LSU Women's & Gender Studies
Protevi Home Page
 

7 Hints for success in college

1. Time management: semester chart; weekly planners; daily lists.

2. Body awareness: what combos of food, drink, exercise, sleep, naps, fun work best for you?

3. Emotional support: have a support network; talk about your issues and listen to friends.

4. Know your teachers: stop by office hours; do good work; speak up in class.

5. Join a club or organization: best way to make sure you're not caught in dorm/class/work rut.

6. Minimize your credit load per semester. The world will still be there!

7. Don't obsess about grades. They don't reflect on your worth as a person nor do they have much impact on your future earning capacity or chances for happiness in life!
 

14 Hints for success with papers:

1. Plan ahead; start early; do multiple drafts; trade help with classmates.

2. Use prewriting (notes, free association, talking with classmates) to develop material.

3. Use concept mapping to see connections.

4. Write a loose, easy first draft--with only a topic to guide you--to see what you have to say.

5. Draw your thesis from this first draft (a thesis is a narrow, arguable claim).

6. Write subsequent drafts that support the thesis with a definite audience in mind.

7. Use outlines to make sure later drafts have a reasonable order to the argument.

8. Be reader-friendly by including forecast statements and transitions.

9. Make sure paragraphs are unified (stick to one idea set out in topic sentence).

10. Save grammar and spelling checks to the night before (not as you rush into class!).

11. Don't obsess about word counts. Just do a good job supporting your thesis.

12. Use a simple and clear reference system.

13. Don't bother with graphics, fonts and title pages; I'm not impressed and they waste your time.

14. Don't forget your name and section #!