College Success - CaMDEN College Support Services

Getting into College is Hard. Thriving Once There is Even Harder.

2009-10-26T12:03:00.000-07:00

Listen to high school senior Mitch on the benefits of our How to Read Like a College Professor course.

It's surprising but true that nearly half of all students who begin college in the United States each year fail to graduate (NPR, All Things Considered 09/02/09, see also "Diplomas & Dropouts," the American Enterprise Institute's 2009 report).

When so many students fail to graduate, it's not because they're not smart enough or well-enough prepared academically. As I've learned in my nearly 20 years of experience helping students thrive at The George Washington University, the University of Minnesota, UCLA, and Normandale (MN) Community College, college students can perform below their abilities because of:

Arriving at college without goals or a plan to reach them. Poor time management skills. Bad scheduling/course management decisions. Roommate issues. Personal problems. Depression/Anxiety. Misinterpreting the behaviors and expectations of professors. Failing to meet deadlines. Under-using campus resources.

CaMDEN College Support Services can help. Our preparatory seminars and workshops help students make the transition to college. Once on campus, we continue to support students with our private online consulting center, virtual support groups, skill-building short courses, and one-on-one and small group coaching.

With proper preparation and support, students’ intelligence and academic abilities—not their ability to negotiate the bureaucracy—can be the determining factors in their educational outcome.

CaMDEN serves all kinds of students: first-in-the-family to college, non-native English speakers, super-ambitious students, struggling students, adult learners returning to college, or military servicemen and –women making the transition from the battlefield to the university.

Why Choose Dr. Eric Drown and CaMDEN College Support Services?

2009-10-25T12:18:00.000-07:00

I know how to help students of all ages and experiences succeed at college. In my almost twenty year career of college teaching, I’ve taught every kind of student at almost every kind of post-secondary institution there is—from a private research university to a great state university to a local community college. For the last five years, I’ve focused exclusively on helping first-year students at an elite Washington DC university reach their super-ambitious goals. I know what makes students successful, why they fail to perform up to expectations, and how to teach even struggling students how to be successful at everything they do at college.

Today I work one-on-one or in small groups to train college-bound students to perform at their best and get the most out of their expensive education—whether they’re first-in-their family to college, non-native English speakers, super-ambitious students, adult learners returning to college, or military servicemen and –women making the transition from the battlefield to the university. With proper training students’ intelligence and academic abilities—not their ability to negotiate the bureaucracy—can be the determining factors in their educational outcome. And that’s the way it should be!

Click on my picture to listen to me talk to students at The George Washington University about how they should aspire to take part in "The Work of the University" from their very first semester.

Graduate School Admissions Essay Coaching

2009-10-24T18:01:00.000-07:00

Applying to Graduate School can be intimidating. You know you're competing with some really smart people for just a few spots in a highly-coveted program. What's more, there's real fellowship or scholarship money on the line. And the people reading your essay are among the smartest people you'll ever meet in your life. Talk about stressful!

But you can relieve your stress and be assured of writing a great application essay. I, Dr. Eric Drown, have helped dozens of students apply to (& get into!) Ph.D. & Master's programs in business, law, the humanities and the social sciences at prestigious universities including Brown, NYU, UCLA, USC, Cornell, Columbia, & The George Washington University.

A former professor and Ph.D., I know how graduate admission committees work & what faculty are looking for in prospective students. A professional writer & writing coach, I teach you how to use proven writing methods to discover what's distinctive about your intellectual self. And what's even more important, my rigorous process enables you to embody your brainy persona in a compelling short essay. Work with me and your essay will show you to be ideal graduate student material. You'll come across as smart, thoughtful, resourceful & intellectually resilient.

Book a Graduate School Essay Session

Contact Us by Email

2009-10-24T17:03:00.000-07:00

Book a Graduate School Essay Session

2009-10-24T13:15:00.000-07:00

Book a College Support Session

2009-10-24T13:14:00.000-07:00

Testimonials

2009-10-24T12:23:00.000-07:00

What Clients and Students are Saying About Eric Drown

"Eric is a phenomenal advisor. Creative, intelligent, provocative, and demanding of only the highest quality, Eric truly pushes students to their full potential. I have fully supported and recommended Eric in the past, and I will continue to do so in the future. He has touched the lives of me and my peers, and we are grateful for him." --Meg Smith, former student

"Using the techniques I learned in your class, I have cut my reading time nearly in half and was actually shocked when studying for an exam in another class the other day by how applying some of the techniques you taught us made even the most laborious of reading easy."--Elisa Valero, former student

"I just wanted to really thank you for your help on my personal essay. Seeing how each draft progressed really rewarded me for the realization that so much writing is required to generate really significant ideas. Thanks for pushing me to be my best self." --J. M.

"Thank you for all your hard work with me. I really enjoyed the process. I had always thought of myself as not much of a writer but your help and advice has boosted my writing confidence. I now have a procedure to follow that can lead me to produce a great essay whenever I need it. I will be recommending your classes to others. Thanks again." --Rahiba Noor

"I just wanted to let you know that your help improved my writing tremendously and prepared me completely for the writing tasks I've had to complete since . Thanks again!" --Katie Serra

"Your work with me two years ago was a gift that keeps on giving. I'm still using your advice on writing process and idea-generation to wow my professors." --Jasmine Maze, GW class of 2011.

"Every now and again - not often, but occasionally - you get a truly excellent teacher. That's exactly what Drown is. Great human being."--from anonymous evaluation survey

"Eric Drown is amazing. He is tough but understands students. He's realistic about how they work and what they think." --from anonymous evaluation survey

"Dr. Drown shows a real interest in his students; he respects them as academics and people." --from anonymous evaluation survey

"Dr. Drown is very helpful and wants you to succeed." --from anonymous evaluation survey

"I've never been so well prepared for a research essay and I had no idea what I was missing!"--from anonymous evaulation survey

"The activities and course materials couldn't have prepared me better for the work I had to do." --from anonymous evaulation survey

Services for College Students

2009-10-24T12:21:00.000-07:00

Total Package: College Support Services (per semester)

Whole life scheduling, choice of one topical seminar, choice of one short course, participation in one or more online support group, email/phone support, intervention services, three one-hour consultations.

Long Courses

College Success Strategies
Turn it Around: From Struggle to Success

Short Courses

How to Read Like a College Professor
How to Write Like a College Professor

Topical Seminars

First Year DOs & DON'Ts: How to Start College on the Right Foot
How to Build a Supportive, Useful, and Rewarding Social Network at College
Communicating & Negotiating with Professors

A la carte Services

Whole Life Scheduling
Writing Coach: Academic Papers or Theses
Editing & Evaluation: Academic Papers or Theses
Crisis Management: Solve Big Problems Fast
Email/Phone Support: Ask Up to 5 Questions a Month
Writing Coach Services
Graduate School Admissions Essay Coaching

Support Groups

First in My Family: First Generation College Students Make the Transition to College Life
Academic and Organizational Support for Student-Athletes
From the Battlefield to the University: Making the Transition from the Military to College
Back to School: How to Succeed in the College Classroom After Years in the Workplace
First Year Students

One hour Custom Consultations

Get the advice you need to solve your individual problem: face-to-face; virtual conferencing, live text, or by phone.

Services for High School Students

2009-10-24T12:19:00.000-07:00

Four-year High School Planning Seminar (for rising HS first-years)

Plan your high school career to get into the college of your dreams.

Personal Essay Coaching (makes a great summer course for rising seniors)
Get the help you need to write a great personal essay for your college application

College Transition Planning Seminar ($300 - for graduating seniors or first-years already on campus)
You're well prepared academically. But even smart students make dumb mistakes that cost them money, time-to-degree, and grade points! Learn to anticipate (and avoid!) the pitfalls of first-year college life. Take control of your transition to college. 6 sessions over 3 weeks.

College Reading Prep ($300)
Read complex texts faster, better, and more productively. Take better notes. Learn what college professors expect you to be able to do with readings from the first day of class. Helps students get better grades in high school, too. This course is limited to just 6 students, so each student can get the individual attention she or he needs. 6 sessions over 3 weeks.

College Writing Prep ($300)
Meet the high standards of college writing your very first semester. Learn the techniques professional writers use to overcome writing anxiety, reluctance to write, writer's block, lack of ideas, feelings of inadequacy, and uncertainty. Understand what college professors expect you to be able to do in your writing from the first day of class. Helps students get better grades in high school, too. This course is limited to just 6 students, so each student can get the individual attention she or he needs. 6 sessions over 3 weeks.

Book a Session: Essays, Research Papers & Theses

2009-10-24T11:03:00.000-07:00

Whether you need guidance from start to finish, help with a research problem, or a sharp editorial pen, call 207-423-0019 or contact us by email for a quote. If you choose to contact us by email, please describe your project, word count requirement, what you've already done, what problems you're encountering, deadlines, and any other requirements. Please include phone/chat/skype contact information in your message.

Writing Coach Services

2009-10-24T07:39:00.000-07:00

Having a hard time getting started or coming up with ideas? Can't stay on task? That nasty little voice inside your head is telling you that what you're writing is no good? Not sure what to do next? Need an objective view of your piece?

You need a writing coach.

Whether you choose the full coaching package or just want a little advice, you'll produce better essays, papers, and theses with a writing coach than if you wrote on your own.

Essays, Research Papers, Theses & Dissertations

Write a Winning Personal Essay for Your College Application

Graduate School Application Essay

Free Resources for Students, Guidance Counselors, Teachers & Parents

2009-10-20T09:50:00.000-07:00

Handling Quotes in Academic Writing	Three Keys to Writing a Winning Personal Essay for Your College Application

First Year DOs & DON'Ts	College Supplies Checklist

Differences Between HS & College	Goal Setting for College

Ask Dr. Drown

2009-09-01T17:22:00.000-07:00

Have a question about how to succeed in college? Need help solving a problem? Wondering how to word that crucial email to your professor? Not finding your niche at school? Ask Dr. Drown. I'll answer your questions and offer advice designed to help you succeed in college and beyond.

Coach Wooden's Success Pyramid - One Key to College Greatness

2009-06-09T10:19:00.000-07:00

Coach John Wooden's Success Pyramid works for more than just basketball.

Competitive Greatness

Poise Confidence

Condition Skill Team Spirit

Self-Control Alertness Initiative Intentness

Industriousness Friendship Loyalty Cooperation Enthusiasm

If you've got a student heading off to college this fall, make sure she's got a copy

Even better, take time to talk with him about it

Ask your son or daughter how he or she will demonstrate these qualities every day in the classroom and on campus.

College Transition Planning Seminar

2009-05-28T13:08:00.000-07:00

25% of first-year students don't return for their second year! Why?

Because their first year was so disheartening.
Because they didn't find the right people.
Because they didn't manage their life/class balance well.
Because they got sick.
Because they approached college like it was high school.

Studies show that students who take control of their transition to college and plan how to cope with the challenges of first-year college life are happier and more successful.

In our College Transition Planning seminar, college-bound students learn everything they need to know to make the transition from high school to college and prepare to thrive at college.

Students leaving the course have learned how:

Forge academic values,
Set meaningful goals for their first year, and realistic plans on how to achieve them,
Make connections and build relationships,
Manage their time,
Diversify their learning style,
Manage their mental and physical health,
Develop a resource list for their college

This course is limited to just 6 students, so each student can get the individual attention she or he needs. 6 sessions over 3 weeks. Register Today.

You might also be interested in our College Reading Prep and College Writing Prep Seminars.

Online Ticketing for College Transition Planning Seminar powered by Eventbrite

Get a FREE Consultation with Dr. Eric Drown

2009-05-19T11:14:00.001-07:00

Ready to learn more about how CaMDEN College Support Services can help you and your college student get the most out of his or her time at university? Fill out this College Success Contact form (click "Submit by Email" at the end of the form) and we'll schedule a FREE 30-minute consultation (a $79 value).

This month's featured article: First-in-family HS Valedictorian Feels Out of Place at Harvard.

Also: Top 12 Excuses from REAL First-Year Students Explaining Why They Couldn't Submit Their Paper on Time.

Why Ambitious Students NEED Coaching to Write a Winning Personal Essay for Their College Application

Personal Essay Coaching

2009-05-18T18:06:00.001-07:00

WHY DO HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS NEED PROFESSIONAL PERSONAL ESSAY COACHING?

» Because fewer than 25% of applicants are accepted at even moderately-selective colleges. At elite schools, the acceptance rate is even lower!

» Because in the first (elimination) round of application review, each admissions officer reads 1000 applications. S/he spends an average of 10 minutes reviewing each one and just 2 to 4 minutes on the essay.

» Because 90% of the essays admissions officers read treat the same few topics in the same few ways. In the vast majority of cases, students' personal essays do little to distinguish them in the eyes of the college. Many students’ essays even harm their chances of acceptance.

» Because most applicants have never written anything like a personal essay. How can you make all the right moves in your essay if you don't know what they are?

» Because the importance of the writing situation causes the kind of stress and anxiety that can paralyze even experienced writers.

WHY SHOULD DR. ERIC DROWN BE YOUR PERSONAL ESSAY COACH?

1. I'm a professional published writer. I know how to put words together to get your message across to admissions officers.

2. I've been a college writing instructor for more than a decade, including five years at the elite George Washington University in Washington, DC. At GW, I specialized in first-year students. That means I'm an expert in getting great results from people just learning to write for college audiences.

3. I've developed a proven step-by-step idea-generating and writing process that makes the task of writing the personal essay faster, far less stressful, way more productive, and ultimately highly rewarding.

4. As a college teacher for almost two decades, I've helped hundreds of students from all kinds of backgrounds and with all kinds of experiences write personal essays for college, internships, and study-abroad programs. I have insider-knowledge about how busy admissions officers read these important essays and what they're looking for. I know the moves that a successful personal essay must make and the elements it must have for it to capture the attention of its reader.

5. Because I work with just a few students each year, I can offer individualized coaching and attentive support that over-burdened guidance counselors and teachers just can't match.

6. I come recommended by students who have been successful at college because they learned how to conduct themselves as intellectuals in ways that colleges understand, admire, and respect:

“I just wanted to really thank you for your help on my personal essay. Seeing how each draft progressed really rewarded me for the realization that so much writing is required to generate really significant ideas. Thanks for pushing me to be my best self.” J. M.

“Thank you for all your hard work with me. I really enjoyed the process. I had always thought of myself as not much of a writer but your help and advice has boosted my writing confidence. I now have a procedure to follow that can lead me to produce a great essay whenever I need it. I will be recommending your classes to others. Thanks again.” Rahiba Noor

“I just wanted to let you know that your help improved my writing tremendously and prepared me completely for the writing tasks I've had to complete since . Thanks again!” Katie Serra

“Creative, intelligent, provocative, and demanding of only the highest quality, Eric truly pushes students to their full potential.” Meg Smith, GW class of 2005.

“Eric Drown is great in pushing for effort and discipline.” From anonymous evaluation survey.

“Your work with me two years ago was a gift that keeps on giving. I'm still using your advice on writing process and idea generation to wow my professors.” Jasmine Maze, GW class of 2011.

“Dr. Drown is an amazing teacher—incredibly intelligent. He really challenges students (while also helping them along the way).” From anonymous evaluation survey.

Dr. Drown, I Can’t Submit My Paper Because…

2009-05-18T09:31:00.000-07:00

Top 12 Excuses from REAL First-Year College Students:

Here's the most startling excuse I've ever heard from a student explaining why she couldn't submit her paper on time...

“… My dad said you would give me an extension.”

College students come up with all kinds of reasons for why they can’t get their work done. Some of them are funny, some serious, some downright shocking! But what they all indicate is that something is interfering with students’ ability to manage their academic effort. Whether the cause is bad decision making, poor scheduling, misplaced priorities, personal problems, or misjudgments about their educational needs, a student’s inability to meet academic deadlines is an early indicator of emerging academic problems.

CaMDEN College Support Services helps students keep on track with custom online tracking tools: whole-life scheduling, assignment sequence tracking, weekly work logs, and semi-monthly virtual appointments.

CaMDEN helps students thrive at college and get the most out of their expensive educations. Because getting into college is hard; but being successful once there is even harder!

Get in touch with CaMDEN today.

HS Valedictorian Feels Out of Place at Harvard

2009-05-14T09:45:00.000-07:00

By Eric Drown, Ph.D.

First in his family to graduate from high school, Harvard first-year Miguel Garcia "navigated a minefield of class chasms" on campus, according to the Boston Globe. Harvard officials say more must be done to support students like Garcia so that intellect and hard work, not social identity, determine student outcomes.

Universities are social institutions. Students not only learn together, they live together. All day, every day. As in the larger society, success at college is still shaped as much by such social factors as class, race, gender, age, nationality, ethnicity, native-language, and sexuality as by native intelligence, discipline, and hard work.

While university officials are working hard to establish a level playing field for all college students, I've witnessed stories like Miguel Garcia's first hand at every institution at which I've taught--from community colleges to elite private universities. Last year, a student of mine was a distinguished Navy ROTC cadet, who wanted to honor his family's tradition of naval service. When he was "outed" as gay and expelled from NROTC, his course work suffered for more than a year. Despite years of outreach to young women, gender disparities persist in science, math, & engineering departments. Most African Americans attending college do so as single-digit minorities on campus, making a sense of social isolation a distinct possibility. In order to forestall a sense of social isolation, young Blacks on so-called "majority" campuses need to employ community-building strategies consciously and effectively, a task on which "majority" students need spend considerably less effort. For some tips aimed at supporting African American students in this endeavor, read this US News & World Report blog article by University of Arkansas history professor Charles Robinson.

All students can benefit from learning how to build a social support network at college. But it's particularly crucial for students who bear markers of difference or who are first in their family to go to college to learn how to do so because the rules, procedures and cultures of most universities are historically and essentially upper-middle-class institutions. Assumptions about how things work, what values are central, and what counts as knowledge are all inflected by class-specific ideas.

CaMDEN College Support Services not only prepares students to create a support network for themselves, we also teach students how to understand and meet the imperatives of their university communities in ways that foster involvement and personal success without having to give up their culture of origin.

Strategies for building a viable support network at college:

Immerse yourself in campus culture to try new things and find people with interests that match yours. Go to events, games, lectures, film series, dances, and language groups. Join clubs and organizations. Even Facebook can help you locate people you might like to meet f2f.
Find a faculty mentor--it could be your advisor, or the professor who teaches your favorite class. Visit her or him in office hours. Not all your questions need be about the class. Ask him or her what living the life of the mind is like, what the purpose of general education requirements are, what her or his department's students are like and what they tend to do after graduation. Ask your faculty about current matters of interest on your campus.
Try to meet sympathetic sophomores, juniors, and seniors. Get the scoop on university life from a more experienced student's perspective.
Form a study group--especially for difficult courses. You'll not only spread out the work and share knowledge, you'll meet people too.
Read both the student newspaper/blog and official publications of the university and try to see things from both sides. In doing so, you'll learn how to understand what the university thinks it's doing and why, as well as to see how different kinds of students interpret the institution.
Start or join a student organization that celebrates your culture of origin. There's a long tradition of such organizations serving as communal-spaces for students separated from their home-communities, as well as enriching the wider campus community with culture, tradition, wisdom, and perspective.

For more advice, contact us.

Read the Boston Globe article about Harvard and Miguel Garcia.

Top 5 Books Every Freshman Should Bring to College

2009-05-07T12:27:00.000-07:00

Take these books to school with you and your college life will be more rewarding!

Life Skills 101: A Practical Guide to Leaving Home and Living on Your Own by Tina Pestalozzi

Forgot how to do your laundry? Know when to change the oil? Worried that you might be damaging your credit Solid practical advice without the lectures!

College Cooking by Megan & Jill Carle

At some point you're going to get sick of the fast food that passes for food service at most colleges. You're going to need to good fresh food. Something that you can cook quickly, easily, cheaply, and using not much more than a microwave and your dorm's kitchen. Megan and Jill will show you what to buy and teach you how to cook it. Yum!

The Core Performance by Mark Verstegen & Pete Williams

The right kind of exercise will certainly help you fight the freshman 15. But this workout will keep you healthy and happy. People who exercise regularly feel better, enjoy life more, can concentrate longer, and get better results at school and work. This quick and fun workout can be done using equipment found in most college fitness centers or better yet done in your room using body weight and basic, inexpensive, and easy-to-store equipment.

Writing Analytically by David Rosenwasser & Jill Stephen

In every class you'll have to do analysis. But almost none of your professors will teach you how to do it. But David Rosenwasser & Jill Stephen will. They offer a fool-proof step-by-step method for conducting analysis of complex materials that will work in any discipline. Don't miss the "Reading Analytically" chapter. It'll help you get more out of your reading and prepare you to do more with it than just remember facts. Great writing advice too.

They Say/I Say by Gerald Graf & Cathy Birkenstein

Although they don't often realize it, college professors use formulaic sentence patterns to express complex ideas every time they write. With easy-to-use sentence templates Graf & Birkenstein teach you how to make the intellectual "moves that matter" in academic writing. You'll learn how to write sophisticated papers that professors will appreciate from the first day of college.

Click here to request your FREE comprehensive "College Supplies Checklist" today.

CaMDEN Recommends...

2009-05-03T12:48:00.000-07:00

Amazon.com Widgets

College Success Consultation

2009-04-15T10:39:00.000-07:00

It's Getting Cold, and All Around the Country, Bright College Students are Getting Ready to FAIL their Midterm Exams

2009-04-13T12:00:00.001-07:00

By Eric Drown, Ph.D.

Learn why even academically well-prepared students are at risk to fail or underperform on crucial end-of-the-semester exams, papers, and projects. The answer has nothing to do with how smart they are, or what they have learned in the semester. With final exams and projects being worth 30%, 40%, or even 60% of a course grade, it's vital that students receive the support they need to excel at the end of the semester.

But few colleges and universities systematically prepare students for the rigors and challenges of the exam period. And, in my experience, many professors feel little to no responsibility for students' success. In fact, a few take pride in weeding out the "stupid."

Not entirely students' fault, these needless early failures in college permanently weaken GPAs. They can also result in academic probation, suspension, or plagiarism. The worst result of all is the damage to students' confidence in their ability to excell at school, confidence that takes a long time, and skilled, careful guidance, to restore.

Contact CaMDEN College Support Services to learn what you can do to ensure that you (or your son or daughter) is prepared to succeed in school. Fill out this College Success Contact form (click "Submit by Email" at the end of the form) and we'll schedule a FREE 20-minute consultation to start you and your family on the road to college success. Not sure? Send us an email with a question and I'll answer it for free and send you our FREE First-Year DOs and DON'Ts: How to Start College on the Right Foot.

So why do so many students needlessly fail--especially in their first 3 semesters in college? Some of the answer can be attributed to a mismatch between students' learning expectations and faculty's. In this blog posting, Dale Yerpe, an English Professor at Jamestown Community College draws on years of experience to explain how students' disposition towards the college-level work assigned to them often sabotages their ability to work hard. According to Professor Yerpe, students who fail:

"Aim for the least they must do [to pass the course]."
"Overestimate how much credit they can generate in the last few weeks of the course."
"Overestimate the grade they have already earned."
[Refuse to believe explicitly course policies and advice for attendance, no 'extra-credit', how much prep-time is required.]
"Trust in what worked in high school: particularly in terms of high school standards, but also high school study methods, amount of homework, self-esteem grading, layers of safety nets, and a conviction that the responsibility for students passing the course rested with the faculty and not the students."

In my experience, much of what Professor Yerpe says is true. But more important than that is that his view is representative of the ideals and attitudes of lots of the university faculty I've met.

It's crucial to understand that faculty collectively define what "student success" means at the university. Most faculty have gone through years of rigorous academic apprenticeship and come to the classroom with the incredible facility in analysis, problem-solving, creative-but-disciplined thinking that is indispensible for people who's life work it is to create new knowledge.

As a result, their expectations about what skills, habits of mind, and disciplines are necessary for academic success are much more specific and demanding (which is not to say "higher") than even the most rigorous high school teacher. Consequently, Professor Yerpe's last point--about failing students tendendency to trust what worked in high school--is of particular importance.

In the first few years, many college students believe that college is just incremently more difficult that college, whereas, most faculty I know would say it is an order of magnitude more complicated). To be very successful in the learning situations they're likely to encounter in college, students need to do more than simply accept and adapt to the new expectations and learning responsibilities placed on them by their faculty, they need to embrace the values of the academic institution they're living within.

Because of this mismatch between student/faculty expectations, it's also true that students consistently underestimate both the value and the complexity of the tasks facing them. (And, to be frank, many professors misestimate the source of the value of what they're asking undergraduate students to do, locating the value in content rather than process or skill development). As a result, students allocate too little time to complete their work effectively and to the high standards demanded of them.

I have seen some students, unable to meet faculty standards using the strategies that made them really successful high school students (and earning, perhaps, the first C or D or F of their academic lives!), decide that faculty standards are idiosyncratic and unreasonable (which largely they are not) and take a cynical attitude towards their work, thereby setting themselves up for failure.

This understandable but ultimately unproductive disposition isn't the only challenge students face at the end of the semester. Consider that by the last weeks of class:

Students are inevitably deeply tired from weeks of late-nights of hard (but often ineffective) work.
The vast majority of students fuel their efforts with sugar, caffeine and worse!
Stress-relieving exercise becomes a low priority.
Last-week classes (where course wrap-up, reviews, and exam-prep are being done) get skipped to make time for paper-writing and cramming, or just to catch up on sleep.
Lots of students are literally sick (and the few first- or second-year college students who know how to access student-health-services are reluctant to take the time to use them).

The upshot is this: as exams approach, students are at their mental, intellectual, and physical weakest. They may have had their confidence and optimism tempered by academic or personal struggles, too-cool-for-school attitudes of peers, or indifferent instruction.

So what can be done about this situation? How can students finish their first few semesters strongly and acquire the habits, skills, and discipline they need to be successful throughout their college career and beyond? Students need to match their expectations to those of their faculty, and they need frequent coaching and support to enable them to adapt and embrace the highly-specialized intellectual values of a highly-unique institution--the university.

So, if you're getting ready to send a son or daughter off to school, or if you are (or have) a struggling college student that you care about, ensure that they have the support they need before they start their next semester. Fill out this College Success Contact form (click "Submit by Email" at the end of the form) and we'll schedule a FREE 20-minute consultation to start you and your family on the road to college success.

Not sure? Send us an email with a question and I'll answer it for free and send you our FREE First-Year DOs and DON'Ts: How to Start College on the Right Foot.

Courses Prepare Students to Make the Transition to College Reading and Writing

2009-01-01T11:43:00.000-08:00

Students who enter college underprepared in critical reading and writing skill experience difficulties across the curriculum. For most students, the problem isn't that they don't have sound reading and writing fundamentals, but that they aren't reading and writing in the highly specialized ways that their college professors expect. Unfortunately, most college students get very little effective instruction in how to read and write up to their professors' expectations.

In College Reading Prep, students learn everything they need to know to make the transition from reading as high school students to reading critically and actively as emerging scholars. The course explains why professors read the way they do and teaches students how to do it themselves. Students leaving the course have learned how:

to be active and inquisitive readers,
to increase their reading speed while enhancing their retention, especially of long or complicated texts,
to know what to look for in a given reading by deploying a step-by-step analytical reading method that reliably identifies the most essential aspects of any text,
to ask productive questions of their reading, questions that lead to deeper understanding and original thought
speak and write about what they've read like scholars do.

In College Writing Prep, students learn everything they need to know to make the transition to college writing. The course explains why the 5-paragraph essay structure that got them through high school and the SAT just won't work in college. It also explains why scholarly writing is so frustratingly complicated and ambiguous. Students leaving the course have learned how:

to have a writing process that reliably enables them to produce lots of high quality text fast,
to use low-stakes writing-to-learn strategies to eliminate "writer's block" and reluctance to write,
to use quotes effectively in academic writing and avoid plagiarism,
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Each course is limited to just 6 students, so each student can get the individual attention she or he needs. Both courses have 6 sessions over 3 weeks. Register Today.

Airman Target of Hostile Comments for Wearing His Uniform to Class

2009-01-01T06:14:00.000-08:00

By Eric Drown, Ph.D.

College is tough enough without people giving you a hassle about what you're wearing. And when the person doing the hassling is your professor and the clothing in question is a United States Air Force uniform, something more than fashion commentary is happening.

Do you have a story about the difficulties of being a military service person on campus? Tell us your story. Please donate to the Wounded Warrior Project.

I was shocked the other day when J. C.*, a US Air Force Reserves large-engine specialist and a second year student at a local community college, told me that his professor had a problem with him wearing his uniform to class. Like a lot of community college students, J. C. is holding down a day job while attending school at night. As a reservist, he serves one weekend a month, and two weeks a year of temporary duty. Sometimes that means he has to go to class directly from base. Understandably, that means he's wearing his uniform while learning to write for college.

Last week, J. C. took his seat in uniform a few minutes before the class's scheduled start time. "What's with the uniform, Joseph? Are you trying to intimidate me?" his professor asked. Maybe it was joke; maybe not. The professor's reluctance to call J. C. by his preferred name suggests personal disrespect. But whatever his intent, the professor's words created a hostile atmosphere in the class.

A student walking in approached J. C. and said, "You're sitting in my seat."

J. C.'s response? "I didn't know there were assigned seats; I'll move if you really want the seat."

"No, don't bother; a guy like you could kill me."

Do you have a story about the difficulties of being a military service person on campus? Tell us your story. Please donate to the Wounded Warrior Project.

J. C. stayed in the class that night. But the next day he went to the registrar's office to drop the class. Now, dropping a class can have lots of ramifications for someone like J. C. It will certainly increase his time to graduation. He may need to reimburse his company for tuition costs. It may affect his financial aid.

None of that happened to J. C. But something worse did. This incident happened on the last day of the college's add/drop period. Unable to drop the course without penalty, J. C. is stuck in a course where he feel's disrespected and persecuted. What's more, he suspects he's being graded arbitrarily and capriciously. He's doing his best not to let the poisoned atmosphere of the course affect his work. But he's only human.

Let's face it. Colleges and universities are filled with all kinds of people. One thing almost every college-attending soldier, sailor, airman or -woman, or marine will have to face is someone with strong negative opinions of military service who takes it out on the person wearing the uniform.

At most colleges and universities, provisions in the student code of conduct give students recourse to harassing behavior. And faculty ethics should prevent such behavior. Unfortunately, it falls to the complainant to initiate formal proceedings, the results of which may or may not solve the problem, but which certainly will result in the alienation of the service person.

Coping with such behavior is not the only challenge militray service persons and veterans face on campus. In order to thrive at college while serving, they must learn to switch between two very different modes of critical thought and they must adapt to the cultural differences between the military and the college. If they fail to do so, they tend to stop attending classes, and ultimately to drop out of college.

During my nearly 20 years as a professor, I helped hundreds of service people and vets make the difficult transition from the military to the university. Why? Because the people who serve our country deserve the best from the people who serve them in higher education. And because training and support can make a big difference in how well miltary sevice people and veterans do at college.

At CaMDEN College Support Services, we teach soldiers, sailors, airmen and -women, and marines how to make the transition between the habits of mind and styles of interaction of military life and the habits of mind and styles of interaction of campus life. And we offer virtual support groups so that military service people can share their campus experiences, exchange problem-solving strategies and tactics, and develop the sense of community they need to thrive.

Do you have a story about the difficulties of being a military service person on campus? Tell us your story. Please donate to the Wounded Warrior Project.

*Names have been changed to protect the privacy of those involved.