Five resolutions to succeed in college

Many college students spent their winter break with friends and family, and are returning to campus more committed and energized. But far too many others are not. Unsuccessful students may be contemplating taking a break from school or dropping out altogether.

Academic ability, while important, is only part of the picture when it comes to being successful in college. Jasmine Stirling, chief marketing officer at InsideTrack, which offers technology-enabled student coaching services, suggests five resolutions to help any college student be more successful.

3. Utilize the university's support system

When students find themselves falling behind in a particular subject, or struggling emotionally with a bad breakup, they may find it embarrassing or difficult to reach out for help. Our research has shown that students who seek support are much more likely to be happy and successful in college, whether that be working with a tutor for their calculus class or talking with a counselor to help them work through feelings of homesickness. Our coaches help students understand that seeking help is a sign of resourcefulness and strength – and that many of their most successful peers are doing it, too.

Particularly for students who were at the top of their class in high school, adjusting to academic challenges in college can be a blow to their confidence. But often just a little extra support will keep them on track and give them an even more important life skill – knowing how to get help when you need it.

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Dear Reader,

About a year ago, I happened upon this statement about the Monitor in the Harvard Business Review – under the charming heading of “do things that don’t interest you”:

“Many things that end up” being meaningful, writes social scientist Joseph Grenny, “have come from conference workshops, articles, or online videos that began as a chore and ended with an insight. My work in Kenya, for example, was heavily influenced by a Christian Science Monitor article I had forced myself to read 10 years earlier. Sometimes, we call things ‘boring’ simply because they lie outside the box we are currently in.”

If you were to come up with a punchline to a joke about the Monitor, that would probably be it. We’re seen as being global, fair, insightful, and perhaps a bit too earnest. We’re the bran muffin of journalism.

But you know what? We change lives. And I’m going to argue that we change lives precisely because we force open that too-small box that most human beings think they live in.

The Monitor is a peculiar little publication that’s hard for the world to figure out. We’re run by a church, but we’re not only for church members and we’re not about converting people. We’re known as being fair even as the world becomes as polarized as at any time since the newspaper’s founding in 1908.

We have a mission beyond circulation, we want to bridge divides. We’re about kicking down the door of thought everywhere and saying, “You are bigger and more capable than you realize. And we can prove it.”

If you’re looking for bran muffin journalism, you can subscribe to the Monitor for $15. You’ll get the Monitor Weekly magazine, the Monitor Daily email, and unlimited access to CSMonitor.com.

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