I have been a college professor for nearly twenty years. I say that only to give background to the piece of advice that I am about to share with you. I'm often asked by students that are about to head off to college if I have any words of wisdom or pieces of advice to share with them. Yes, I do. I have a lot of advice for students entering college. The college world is drastially different than life growing up with your family. There is much I could share, but I'll stick to one piece of advice that might surprise you: learn to love book summaries.



What? Not the advice you were expecting? Well, there you have it. My number one piece of advice (academically anyway) for students entering college. You are surprised by this because I have already said that I am a college professor. Well, I'll explain why book summaries can save your college experience. It is really quite simple.

College isn't easy. You've probably heard that from every person you know that has been in college and lived to talk about it. It is not high school anymore, and so everything is cranked up a level and you'll find that more is required of you in college. Having more required of you also means that more books are assigned to you and that more reading is required of you. Hence my advice about book summaries.

Book summaries are one of the greatest tools you can use to get the most information out of all there is to know. For example, if you have a week where you are assigned a different book to read in each of your five classes, then there is no way that you'll be able to read each book entirely. Instead, go for book summaries.

Book summaries can often be found in libaries or at online sources. Do some research before you head off to college and see what sources of book summaries you can find. Another tip that one of my own college professors gave me during college was to read the introduction or opening chapter of every book, then read only the first and last sentences of each paragraph throughout the book until you reached the summary chapter which you would read entirely. He gave me this method and I used it throughout college and then in grad school. It is a way of making your own book summaries when you cannot get ahold of one.

College is hard enough without having to balance all the reading that is required. Get your hands on book summaries and your college experience will be easier, less stressful and more full of the things you want to enjoy.