Are you about to start college soon? Are you wondering what changes you can expect? How is college different from high school? When you compare high school to college, you’ll notice several distinctions, some of which are evident, some less so. It’s vital to understand how high school and college are different from each other so you know what to expect and can have an easier transition when you attend college. In this guide, assignment helpers explained most essential changes between high school and college and provide you with ideas to help make this major life move a bit less scary.
How Is College Different From High School?
There’s a reason so many movies, plays, and books focus on incoming college students: many people regard the move from high school to college as one of the most critical turning points in their lives. You’re no longer a youngster living under your parents’ roof; instead, you’re an adult living on your own and expected to make real, crucial decisions about your future. You’ll have a lot more flexibility, but a lot will also be expected of you, both in class and out. Read on to uncover particular high school vs. college differences.
The Basic Differences
You’ll Have More independence.
The major shift between high school and college is that, in college, you’ll have considerably more independence than you did in high school. Many people emphasise the fact that you’ll be living away from your parents, and this is a part of it, but you’ll have independence in many other areas as well. You’ll have the freedom to determine what you want to major in, which classes you want to take, when you want to schedule those classes, if you want to go out with your friends, how late you want to stay out, and even what you want to eat at the dining hall. (I ate Reese’s Puffs cereal every day for four years since my parents never permitted it, and I was happy to finally be able to eat it for breakfast.)
You’ll Be Treated Like an adult.
Along with your increasing independence, you’ll also be regarded as an adult in college as opposed to a youngster under your parents’ care. In college, you’ll no longer need to bring your parents permission papers to sign; you’ll be trusted to make your own choices for what you want to study; and you can schedule meetings alone, without Mom and Dad helping you. For many students, it’s exciting to finally be seen as an adult, but it also implies an increase in responsibility. If you have an issue with or question regarding homework, classes, a grade you obtained, etc., you are the one who will need to solve it.
Larger Variety of Classes to Choose from.
In high school, you didn’t have a lot of options in relation to which classes you attended. You might perhaps choose a few electives, but your timetable was primarily packed with the regular math, science, English, and social studies requirements that all kids had to take. In college, even if you attend a smaller institution, you’ll have many more options. There’ll be a broader range of classes to choose from, and many of them will focus on more specific themes like astronomy, ancient Roman history, French literature, the geography of the United States, and more. Many college students welcome this increase in class possibilities since it makes it easier for them to choose classes on topics they’re actually interested in.
Classes Will Have Different Formats and sizes.
Each class you had in high school probably had roughly the same number of students and consisted largely of lecturing, maybe mixed with some individual or group work. This isn’t true in college. Classes might range from two to 500 students, and their format can vary greatly as well. Classes may be purely lecture-based, require hands-on lab work, or be discussion-based, where you spend most of your class time engaging in conversations or debates with your peers and professor.
Your Schedule Will Be More complicated.
In high school, school started and finished at the same time every day, and your class schedule was probably the same for every day of the week. In college, things get a little difficult. Some classes meet three times a week for an hour and a half; some meet five times a week for an hour; others meet once a week for three hours, etc. As a result, your class schedule may look different every day of the week, and the times you arrive and leave may also vary.