Student Survival Guide 1

Student Survival Guide

Christopher C. Bewley

Axia College of University Of Phoenix

A Student Survival Guide is a practical and useful tool for students who are pursuing

academic goals. A guidebook serves as a functional roadmap for a student to accomplish the

desired outcome in his or her pursuit of academic success. This paper will discuss and give

practical examples regarding the topic areas of discussion assigned for this paper.

Educational Resources are the foundation to achieving a degree. Axia College has ample

educational resources available for a learning student. One of the resource tools that I have

found most beneficial in my learning process is the Axia Center for Writing Excellence. It has
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given me a greater level of awareness and understanding on how to appropriately credit another

scholar’s work and decide if they are a credible source. There are also other resources such as,

the Apollo Library, Axcess Course Materials, Course Syllabus, and Visual & Audio Tutorials. All

of which can be found at the ecampus for Axia College of University of Phoenix.

Axia College also provides a useful online library that distance learners can access to help

them with their studies. This allows Axia students the ability to research scholarly journal

articles, scholarly books and other sources of educationally based material. I have found this

resource to be of great value. It allows me the freedom to conduct research without having to

expend money for gasoline, and personal time away from my family.

I have also used a valuable website during my studies. http://bcs.bedfordstmartins.com is a

website that we used to help with our assignments and at times we even completed assignments

on this website. I found this website to be relatively easy to use no matter how hard the

assignment may have been.

I think every student could benefit tremendously from the educational resources I listed

above. Every student has the same resources; it is up to the student as to whether or not they

want to utilize the assistance that Axia College has provided. The educational resources that I

listed are important elements in helping a student to survive his/her undergraduate studies.

Academic honesty plays an equally important role in a student’s path to achieving success

within the framework of learning. In life as well as in the field of higher education honesty is

critical to achieving success on all levels particularly with regards to writing. Academic honesty

is a respected character trait that a student carries with him/her throughout their academic career.

It sets the tone for the quality of work that a student produces.

A piece of work created by a learning student should possess the quality of originality. A

student should at least write 85% of the paper and can cite the rest to meet the Axia
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requirements.Should a student choose to cite scholarly work created by another individual or

source it is important that the student give credit to the individual or source that created the work.

For example; Axia College’s Writing Style Handbook has proved to be a valuable educational

tool for me. It is simply written and provides a student with specific examples of American

Psychological Association (APA) style of writing. Moreover, it discusses the importance of

correctly paraphrasing another scholar’s work. Paraphrasing simply put is the art of

understanding a thought or passage of information written by another scholar and putting it in

your own words.

Managing time wisely and effectively is also a valuable tool to use when working towards

achieving a degree in higher learning. Time management skills are important qualities that every

student should possess. Managing time effectively involves dedication, patience, and planning.

Setting and achieving goals is crucial to the academic success of a student. Most students’

prior to entering a program of higher learning have set both short term goals as well as long-term

goals. A short term goal might be as simple as taking the initiative and applying to a specific

college. Once accepted, a student may start to create and set long term goals. A long term goal

might be to complete a Bachelor’s degree in a specific subject area while maintaining a 3.5 to 4.0

grade point average. In setting both short term and long term goals it is important to have a

concept of time or a completion date as to when you might expect to achieve the goal that has

been set.

It is important to set a timeline when setting short term goals as often short term goals can fall

by the way side. Setting a practical time frame will help short term goals be achieved more

easily. For example; a student may set a short term goal of completing a Free Application For

Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) by three months prior to registering for classes. Keeping goals

simple, attainable and concise will help a student to achieve the goal with greater ease. Writing
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down a goal or a plan of action will also be beneficial to a student who is striving towards

meeting a goal.

Having the ability to be flexible with achieving goals is another important component.

Sometimes life events transpire and may briefly interrupt a student’s progress towards reaching a

goal. In the event that this happens, a student must give him or herself permission to place the

goal on hold, attend to life event at hand, regroup and go back to working towards the goal.

Learning how to balance time wisely is an important key to being successful in the field of

academia. I refer to my syllabus on a daily basis to help keep me on track. I also plan out my

school week using my course calendar to help keep organized. I set aside a minimum of three to

four hours daily to prepare and plan out my lessons with regards to my education. The above

items help to serve as list or guide in helping me to stay on track. I also find it helpful if I write a

list of things that I need to complete in the order of importance or expected due date. In

practicing this simple tool I have been able to maintain focus and balance my time more

carefully and effectively.

A contingency plan is an integral part of time management. A contingency plan serves as

alternative plan of action or back up plan should the initial plan fail. Contingency plans are used

in all aspects of business from social and human services to government business. A good

contingency plan will consider factors such as time management and what to do if the original

plan of action failed.

Fostering reading comprehension and retention is yet another important skill that every

student should possess. Reading comprehension doesn’t always come easy. It requires a great

deal of patience and focus. I find that using the SQ3R worksheet helps me to retain what I read

because I can revaluate the way I study by breaking it down with this process.
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In order for a student to thoroughly comprehend a subject matter that has been assigned

he/she should actively seek out a quiet area, one in which there will be minimal interruptions. It

is also a good practice to be comfortable prior to beginning to read an assigned reading. A

student should eat, tune out the noise from the day’s events, and focus on the reading material

assigned.

I find it beneficial and useful to take notes of areas that are important during the process of

retention. This is a skill that I have found not only fosters reading retention, but actually helps me

to retain and commit to memory the information that I have absorbed. Every student should

practice this skill until he/she has mastered it. It is another key element that every student should

have in his/her Student Survival Guidebook.

Personality and learning style are probably two of the greatest keys to academic success.

Key’s that all students should have in their guidebook. Personality and learning style is a

reflection of one’s unique individual makeup.

Personality can make or break a student’s ability to be successful in the classroom. For

example; if a student is pessimistic by nature and always views the cup as half empty as opposed

to half full he/she will probably be two steps behind. However, if a student is more optimistic by

nature and always views the cup as half full as opposed to half empty he/she stands a greater

chance of achieving academic success.

In addition to personality style, learning style is equally important. There are many different

learning styles. Some students are visual learners, while others are auditory learners. Some

students choose to utilize all of their senses in order to comprehend and retain information. A

student needs to explore both personality style and learning style as it applies to that particular

student. Possessing the ability to be honest with one self will help the student be able to see and

better comprehend that which is unique within them.

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Learning styles also reflect and incorporate a student’s personality style. A student will be

most successful in achieving his/her academic success if they have a basic understanding of what

their learning style is and how their personality style can impact their learning style. Once a

student has mastered this skill it should make the road to academic success more smooth and free

of bumps and obstacles.

It is my hope that each student would take the time to understand the elements that contribute

to academic success. Each student is responsible and accountable for their own success story as it

applies to the world of education. By following some of the guidelines outlined in this paper a

student’s journey down the road of academic success should be a bit easier.
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