Your college student has completed their first semester of college. Congratulations! Hopefully, it was a good semester, but there’s a chance it might not have been. A rocky first semester is not unusual for many first year students. But whether or not the semester was as successful as you and your student had hoped, having the first semester under your belt is a milestone on the college path.
As your student prepares for their second semester of college, this is a good time for you both to take stock, think about the past semester, and to create a plan for the fresh start that a new semester brings.
Returning to college for the second semester may loom large for your student. Beginning college for the first semester is stressful, but exciting. Everything is new, students look forward to their independence, opportunities to make new friends, and the new experiences that a new environment will bring. Returning for the second semester may mean that your student needs to make some changes, break some habits, sharpen some skills, or get out of a possible rut. This time, your student knows what’s ahead and knows some of the challenges they may face.
Understanding the new opportunities a second semester can bring can be both encouraging and intimidating. Recognizing this as a possible turning point can be important. You can help your student prepare for ways to make this second semester different than the first. If your student had a great first semester, they may want to find ways to make the next semester even more fulfilling — to supersize their experiences. If the first semester did not go well, your student may need to turn things around.
But making changes for a fresh start involves more than understanding the problems of first semester, it even involves more than just setting goals for the new semester. Making changes involves creating a specific action plan for how to replace poor habits with better, more productive habits. It involves continual refocusing of intention and efforts. It involves recognizing that plans often need to be readjusted and re-evaluated. It involves recognizing that the decision to have a better semester is not a one-time decision, but a daily decision.
Take time with your student to think carefully about how they will institute changes next semester. How will they use the fresh start that a new semester offers? What decisions do they need to make — every day?
Here at College Parent Central we recognize that staying focused and on track throughout an entire semester is difficult. Students often need help sticking to and readjusting those early action plans. That’s why we’re offering FreshStart!, our weekly subscription newsletter for students in their second semester. FreshStart! can be there providing help to your student each week for the entire semester. As you and your college student think about the semester ahead, consider whether a few weekly reminders and suggestions might provide the guidance that can make a difference and help them stay on track.
Read more about FreshStart! and sign your student up now. Don’t leave this opportunity for a successful second semester to chance.
But whether or not you include FreshStart! in your student’s plans for next semester, this is the time to help them reflect on the past semester, set some goals, and most importantly, create an action plan for reaching those goals.
Related Posts:
9 Ways to Help Your Student Get a Fresh Start for Second Semester
What to Expect from Your College Student’s First Semester Grades
Helping Your College Student Jump Start the Second Semester
Thanks, Dion. You are absolutely right that great principles never change – we just need to keep passing them on to each new generation of college student. Good luck with your college career!
I can use so many of these principals even though I’m a non traditional second semester sophomore. There are a ton of distractions everywhere, but an effective action plan can prove to be most useful. It’s funny how lessons like these never really get old while your in school. Great read.