We had our first real event of the 11-12 school year today. It was an open q&a with new students and their parents. This was an event added by my prior boss that hadn't been part of orientation previously. She discovered that although orientation does a fairly good job of prepping students a lot of the information students get during the process doesn't make it's way back to parents. So now we talk to parents too.
Some things that didn't come up that I was thinking:
If you feel like you have a lot of time on your hands in the first week or so, don't be too quick to load up on additional commitments. School takes a little while to get going, and before you know it you will have more to do than you can really cope with. Take the calm time before the storm to build yourself a good foundation for work. Get your bearings. Meet as many people as possible. There will be an urge to sign up for three more classes or to join a dozen clubs. Take a breath. This is a marathon, not a sprint. It's always easier to add things than it is to shed them after you take them on.
So that's one thing. Here's another:
No matter what you might think, regardless of the impression you get, however what you are hearing doesn't match what you think it should be, your advisor is never out to get you. Ignoring, contesting, lawyering, evading, and any other adversarial postures are never the strongest choice. We want everyone to succeed. Sometimes that's going to mean that we're not going to put you into the assignment you want. Sometimes that might mean we're going to have very critical things to say. It might even mean we ask you to take some time off - or maybe leave the program entirely. But all of that feedback is to get you the best experience we can. Turning on your advisor or the faculty automatically means you are getting less than our best work. I can't stress how important it is to keep yourself pointed in the same direction as your mentors.
That second one, it's too dark for the first day. But it is something I really wish everyone understood.
2 comments:
David -
Would you mind if I copy/paste the first half of this article over to the Class of 2015's Facebook page? It's something Doc and I were talking about to his first years after the orientation session. I've taken the second part in personally, but as you said, it's dark for the first day, so I'll leave it be for the moment.
Thanks,
Brian
It's on the internet, I guess it's fair game.
Post a Comment