Best College Environment

A TALENTED MIND Your Talents Realized

Michael Cerreto, MS, CSC, Edu-K, CLC Applied Performance Counselor

A Talented Mind, Inc.

2500 Castle Hill Road Midlothian, Virginia 23113

804-272-3927

[email protected] www.atalentedmind.com

YOUR BEST COLLEGE ENVIRONMENT What Is The Best College Environment For Your Talents?

CLINIC FOR STUDENTS

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

CLINIC AGENDA Page 3 INTRODUCTION Page 4 TIME MANAGEMENT Page 7

Your Likely Time Management Needs At College Your Checklist

HOUSING Page 8

Your Likely Housing Needs At College Your Checklist

SOCIAL RELATIONSHIPS Page 9

Your Likely Relationship Needs At College Your Checklist

CLASSROOM AND STUDY ENVIRONMENT Page 10

Your Likely Classroom and Study Needs At College Your Checklist

OTHER SOCIAL AND LEARNING ACTIVITIES Page 11

Your Likely Needs For Other Activities At College Your Checklist

MONEY MANAGEMENT Page 12

Your Likely Money Management Needs At College Your Checklist

RELATIONSHIPS WITH FACULTY AND ADVISORS Page 13

Your Likely Relationship Needs With Faculty Your Checklist

PRESSURE AND COMPETITION Page 14

Your Preference for Pressure and Competition At College Your Checklist

CAMPUS AND SURROUNDING COMMUNITY Page 15

Your Likely Campus and Community Needs At College Your Checklist

ABOUT A TALENTED MIND Page 16

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Welcome and Benefits Of the Clinic: The clinic facilitator welcomes the students and explains how they will benefit from participating in the clinic.

Group Talent Discovery Activities: Students get actively involved in a series of creative activities that enable them to discover each other’s talents. These activities are designed to help everyone learn more about each other and discover all of the unique talents in the room.

Importance Of Understanding Your Abilities & Talents: The facilitator explains the three different types of abilities that, when put together, influ-ence the talents each person possesses. The facilitator explains how under-standing your talents can positively impact the decisions you make through-out your life.

Finding The Right College For Your Talents: The facilitator explains the nine critical areas of a college’s environment the students need to evalu-ate to assure a college is the right fit for their talents and learning style.

Determine Your Best College Environment: While working in groups of two, the students complete the following:

Survey of their preferred college environment

Card for each of the nine areas of a college environment that asks the students to describe what they need to look for (based on their survey results) when evaluating colleges. The students can use their cards as guides when visiting and evaluating colleges.

Closing Exercise: A closing exercise is conducted in groups of four to help the students appreciate the different college environments they all need for their unique talents.

AGENDA

Introduction (30 minutes) Environment That Matches Your Talents (30 minutes)

Your Best College Environment (1.5 hours)

Closing Exercise (30 minutes)

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INTRODUCTION

If you ask a hundred different college students what criteria they used to select a college, you will probably get one hundred different answers. The reasons why students pick a college are unique to each person. Some stu-dents make the selection based on one or a combination of the following rea-sons: college’s reputation, geographic location, campus, parent’s influence, friends, sports coaches, athletic programs, graduate programs, majors avail-able, admissions standards, TV commercials, size of the student enrollment, college website, tuition, scholarship, friendships, etc.

When I explore more deeply into these general reasons with my counseling clients, I discover that other more personal factors influence their selection:

Personal Style: Their personal style of interacting with people and groups influences the type of social environment they want.

Natural Talents: Their natural talents and gifts influence their perception of which college will provide them with the majors and classes that use their strongest abilities.

Learning Styles: Their dominant learning styles influence what type of edu-cation environment will make them feel most comfortable and successful as learners.

I have also learned that many students and parents are not fully aware of the specific areas of a college environment to evaluate in order to deter-mine the right fit for the student’s personal style, natural talents and learning channels. They occasionally make a college selection by feel. In other words, they know it when they see it. This can be a risky way to invest six figures and a young adult’s development.

Like an athlete who needs to find the sport that best leverages his or her strongest athletic talents, students need to find the college environment that best leverages his or her personal style, natural talents and learning style. The college environment needs to be fertile soil for the student’s talents to grow with acceptance, challenges and positive nurturing. The environment needs to fit who the student is as a total person.

By attending this clinic, you have taken the first step in consciously developing your own set of criteria for selecting a college based on your unique personal style, natural talents and strongest learning channels. This publication is used during the clinic to help you start evaluating your desired college environment in the following nine areas:

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Time management

Housing

Social relationships

Classroom and study environment

Other social, learning, and affiliation activities

Money management

Relationships with faculty and advisors

Pressure and competition

Campus and surrounding community

Each of the following sections gives you a brief introduction about one of the areas above, and provides you with a checklist to evaluate what environment you may need in that area.

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YOUR BEST COLLEGE ENVIRONMENT CHECKLIST Evaluating the best college environment for your talents

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TIME MANAGEMENT

Most college students spend less time in the classroom each week than when they were in high school. This means that they have more time outside of a structured class schedule to manage their time, and they no longer have their parents near by to help.

College students have many options for how to spend their time each day. On one extreme, some students choose a combination of studying, membership in a club, socializing, working at a job, and meeting with profes-sors. On the other extreme, some students focus more on sleeping, hanging out with friends, studying at the last minute, and shopping.

How you choose to manage your time to be productive and grow as a person in college is impacted by your values and goals, personal time manage-ment skills, and the college you select.

Based on your talents, personal and learning styles, please use the check list below to choose the option that best describes what you need at college in this area.

YOUR CHECKLIST

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I like to focus on the most immediate thing that needs to be done. I rarely schedule my time each day. I also get dis-tracted by whatever comes up at any given time. I need a college environment that helps me schedule and manage my time, and has lim-ited opportunities for me to get distracted.

I like to schedule my time from day to day and to achieve most things on my list. I may occasionally get distracted by other things at times. I need a college environment that gives me the flexibility to manage my own time and schedule.

I like to schedule my week and month in advance. I stay on schedule, and rarely deviate from what I originally planned to do. I need a college environment that gives me the flexibility to manage my own time and schedule. I also need an envi-ronment that gives me some options to deviate occasionally from my schedule to help me explore opportunities outside my strict schedule.

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HOUSING

Colleges have many different housing alternatives for students. Most colleges require freshman to stay in dorms their first year, and room with one or more roommates chosen by the college. After the freshman year, students are usually able to select roommates and other alternative housing arrange-ments such as other dorm halls, on-campus suites, off-campus apartments and houses, property rented from the college or privately. Some colleges even hold lotteries for certain types of housing.

In addition to the four walls you live in at college, the choice of roommates is important. Your transition to college will obviously be more comfortable with roommates you enjoy and share similar values for studying, relationships, music, resolving conflicts, etc.

You may also benefit from roommates who have qualities that you don’t have but need to develop. For instance, a shy student may benefit from an extroverted roommate who encourages him or her to get out and meet people.


YOUR CHECKLIST

1 2 3

I like a quiet room and hous-ing. I like to spend more time alone than with others. I like a roommate who is similar to me.

I like a room and housing envi-ronment that gives me a bal-ance between being with oth-ers and being alone when I want it. I like a roommate who is sociable but gives me space and time alone when I want it.

I like a very active room and housing situation with a variety of people and activities. I like to spend most of my time with other people and don’t like being alone. I like a roommate who is a little different than I am for some variety.

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SOCIAL RELATIONSHIPS

As you move from your family and high-school friends into college, you enter a world of more diverse people, personalities and backgrounds. Among this diversity, you choose the type of relationships you want to form similar or different from the ones you had with family and friends back home. Your relationships with some people will be intimate. Other people will sim-ply be acquaintances because they share a similar class, major or dorm with you.

Your personal style, interests and values significantly influence the friends you hold closest and furthest away from you. Some of your relation-ships will be with people who you say “...are just like me.” Other relation-ships will be with people who are very different but open your eyes to other beliefs, cultures, personalities, and talents.

The differences among your friends can help you learn more about yourself and others, and influence you to be a better student and person. Some friends, however, can be poor influences and cause you to be less suc-cessful in college. So, forming strong and healthy social relationships in col-lege is important to your overall enjoyment and development as a person.


YOUR CHECKLIST

1 2 3

I like to socialize only with people who have the same interests and values as me. I am not interested in having friendships with a diverse group of people. I have only a few close friendships, and also like to spend some time alone.

I like a combination of know-ing many different types of people and having some close friendships. I like to have a balance between being alone and being with other people.

I like to socialize with a very diverse group of people who have many different interests and values from me. I also like to have many close friendships, and like to spend more time with other people than alone.

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CLASSROOM AND STUDY ENVIRONMENT

An important issue to consider when selecting a college is the learn-ing environment (inside and outside the classroom) that best fits your strong-est learning channels and how you solve problems. For instance, universities with large class sizes and less access to professors require students to be self-learners, with strong reading memory. Smaller colleges that emphasize under-graduate teaching may provide more hands-on support for students who use listening and discussion to learn.

Some students are also “specialists” who require a more narrow cur-riculum in majors such as engineering, business, art, nursing, etc. versus “generalists” who benefits from a variety of subjects, ideas and people.

Based on your talents, personal and learning styles, please use the check lists below to choose the option that best describes what you need at college in this area.

YOUR CHECKLIST

1 2 3

I like to learn primarily in a classroom setting. I like to reading independently only to reinforce what I learn in the classroom. I like to have a lot of access to one-on-one tutor-ing and advising.

I like to learn through a bal-ance between classroom in-struction and reading inde-pendently. I like to have some access to one-on-one tutoring and advising for special situa-tions.

I like to learn through reading independently, and have the classroom instruction reinforce what I read. I need very little access to one-on-one tutoring and advising.

1 2 3

I like to focus my studies in a specialized area or major. I like to learn with students who share the same major as me, and do not like learning with students from other majors.

I like to focus my studies in a specialized area or major, but also like to take a variety of classes in other subjects to help expand my learning and get some exposure to other types of students.

I like to focus my studies in a lot of different areas and top-ics, and don’t like to focus only in one area or major. I also like to learn with students who have very different majors and expertise from me.

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OTHER SOCIAL AND LEARNING ACTIVITIES

Some college students benefit from other activities around campus that provide them with opportunities to socialize, organize and learn. For instance, some students like to be members of clubs, sororities and fraterni-ties, community action groups, learning groups, student government commit-tees, religious groups, sports and intramural teams. These memberships give students the ability to work with others, solve problems, challenge themselves, meet new people, and learn how to collaborate.

While some students seek out and get involved in these activities, other students have limited interest because they may be more introverted or want to specialize in a very narrow subject or group of friends.


YOUR CHECKLIST

1 2 3

I do not like to get involved in other college activities, clubs or sports beyond focusing my time and energy on my close friendships and studying.

I like to get involved in a few other college activities, clubs or sports beyond focusing my time and energy on my close friendships and studying.

I like to be involved in a lot of other college activities, clubs or sports beyond focusing my time and energy on my close friendships and studying.

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MONEY MANAGEMENT

Managing your money at college can be challenging as you face many options and activities on which to spend. It is not unusual for college stu-dents to call or email home half-way through the year pleading with their par-ents to “send money quick.”

Managing your money requires you to consider the long-term con-sequences of buying decisions and know how to organize your spending and savings. Some students make decisions by considering the impact on future needs. While other students live for today and find themselves with no money left to purchase books or supplies down the road.

Some students also find it easier to deal with tangible objects and concepts like money, rather than abstract ideas. To them, money is some-thing concrete and physical they enjoy managing. For the abstract thinker who would rather spend time with ideas, money is often managed or consid-ered at the last minute when vitally necessary.


YOUR CHECKLIST

1 2 3

I constantly run out of money and usually need a lot of help managing how I manage and spend money.

I usually make good spending and saving decisions but, occa-sionally, make an unwise pur-chase. I occasionally need advise about how to manage and spend money.

I am very good at making spending and saving decisions, and keeping track of my money day-to-day. I need very little help or advise about money.

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RELATIONSHIPS WITH FACULTY AND ADVISORS

Some college students have learning styles that enable them to be self-learners and require less one-on-one interaction with professors, academic tutors and advisors. Other students benefit from added discussion and ques-tion and answer sessions with professors and tutors because it enhances their learning.

Some students also like to develop close relationships with professors and advisors because they benefit from the mentoring they receive and enjoy sharing a mutual interest.

Each college has its own personality when it comes to encouraging and supporting students’ needs for relationships with faculty and advisors. Some universities are geared to graduate education, academic research and publishing and provide undergraduate students with less access to certain pro-fessors. These students may find themselves spending a lot of time running down professors for help, or relying on graduate assistants for tutoring and classroom instruction. Other colleges focus on undergraduate teaching and student mentoring in which students have greater access to faculty.

Academic advisors are another great resource to help students map out their learning. So it is important to explore to what extent students have access to advisors and how well the advisors get to know their students. Some students need more guidance than others and these advisors can be invaluable.


YOUR CHECKLIST

1 2 3

I am not concerned about hav-ing easy access to professors and advisors for help. I am not interested in developing close relationships with them. I also don’t care about the qualifications of the faculty as long as I complete the classes I need.

I would like a few close rela-tionship with professors and advisors. I also want to have easy access to them for help during special times I need it most. I want the best qualified faculty teaching classes in my major, but don’t care about the qualifications of faculty outside my major.

I would like to develop very close relationships with profes-sors and advisors. I also want very easy access to them for help each day. I want the best qualified faculty teaching all of my classes inside and outside my major.

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PRESSURE AND COMPETITION

College provides a great environment for people to become strong specialists in a subject, field or activity. In fact, college can often feel like eve-ryone has a very narrow expertise that they like to show-off to others.

This type of specialization at college can sometimes create a competi-tive environment between students, professors, departments, programs, etc. Some colleges have environments that encourage academic competition and pressure. While others create a more collaborative and un-pressured learning environment that encourages everyone to learn and share.

Some students thrive in a more pressured and competitive academic environment because it helps them stay focused and challenged. This same pressure and competition can hinder other students’ learning. So, it is impor-tant for you to assess your needs and the overall competitiveness of the col-leges you consider. You also need to consider the competitiveness of the ma-jors you want to explore. Some majors such as business and the sciences at different colleges may encourage competition among students more than other programs.


YOUR CHECKLIST

1 2 3

I like a highly collaborative learning environment in which students help each other learn. I do not like academic compe-tition and don’t need to be viewed by others as being the best or unique as a student.

I like to collaborate with other students to learn, but I am competitive at times when I think I know more about a subject than someone else. I like a balance between coop-erative learning and some com-petitive situations.

I like to show people my ex-pertise and knowledge. I want to be appreciated for being a unique student. I like to com-pete with other students and be at the top of my class.

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CAMPUS AND SURROUNDING COMMUNITY

Colleges spend a great deal of time and money creating a campus environment that is easy to get around, safe, and encourages a sense of com-munity among faculty, students, administrators, and visitors. Some campuses are located in urban areas; some are a short distance from a city; others are in rural country-sides.

With so much variety, students have an abundant number of campus settings to consider. Some students like the activities and resources available on a city campus. Other students want a more visually beautiful campus with brick towers and ivy. Student preferences are partly based on how the visual environment stimulates them and creates feelings that help them learn and live comfortably. Another consideration is how active students want to be throughout the day. Some students like the physical activity that comes from having to travel around a large campus, while others prefer less effort to get around.

The community around the campus is also important because some students want access to culture, food, activities, and people they cannot find on campus. Other students have a lower need for activities off-campus and are not as concerned with the surrounding community.


YOUR CHECKLIST

1 2 3

I like a large, active campus environment with many activi-ties and resources for students on campus. I like to have ac-cess to a large city that pro-vides other opportunities and resources.

I like a medium size campus with a variety of activities and resources on campus. I like some access to a local commu-nity that has resources and opportunities I can’t find on campus

I like a small, intimate campus with an average amount of activities and resources for students. I do not have a strong need to have access to other resources and opportuni-ties in the local community.

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A Talented Mind Your Talents Realized 2500 Castle Hill Road Midlothian, Virginia 23113 804-272-3927 [email protected] www.atalentedmind.com

ABOUT A TALENTED MIND

A Talented Mind helps people fully develop and perform their talents:

For athletes, we provide assessments, counseling and educa-tion to improve your mental skills in sports and learn lifelong lessons through athletics.

For students, we provide assessment, counseling and educa-tion services to help you identify the best college environment and ma-jor that appropriately fit your natural abilities, personal and learning styles.

For young adults, we provide assessment and counseling ser-vices that help you understand how to successfully move from the se-curity of family and school to the adult world, and create a life centered around your unique talents.

For parents, we provide counseling and education services to help you better support and nurture your children’s talents in school, sports, or the performing arts and, at the same time, teach your children important life skills.

To learn more, please contact A Talented Mind at 804-272-3927, email [email protected], or visit our website at www.atalentedmind.com.

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Best College Environment