Present your Formula for Achieving Success in College

Exemplification Essay: Write an essay presenting your formula for achieving success in college. You may, if you wish, talk about things such as scheduling time, maintaining a high energy level, and learning how to relax. Use examples from your own experience to make your point.

Purpose: The main focus of this essay will be supporting a thesis with examples to illustrate or explain a general point; demonstrating focused, organized and developed paragraphs; and successfully incorporating quotes into your writing.

Laid out in front of you is one of the most important examinations in your course. With

sweat dripping and your palms perspiring, you anxiously flip through the pages of this never

ending examination. Your mind spins and you are overwhelmed by the questions that you have

no clue how to do. You know you should have studied, but it is too late now. You had your

chance, but you missed it because you were busy playing video games and shopping while you

were supposed to be studying and doing your homework. Have you ever experienced this sort of

situation before where you felt helpless? By developing good study habits such as managing

your time efficiently, preparing and organizing, being aware of and applying your learning style,

and maintaining your health, you can become a strong and confident student.

One of the main factors contributing to success in college is managing your time

efficiently. This allows you to balance between your studies, work, and personal activities. How

you use your time reflects on the kind of person you are, and by wisely distributing your time,

you can become the person you aspire to be. An instrumental tool for success is a schedule,

which can be used to record and keep track of all your assignments and tasks that you are

committed to completing. In order to make the best use of your time, it is important for you to

know what you want. This helps you set your priorities and become committed to obtaining your

desired outcome. Next, you should choose realistic and achievable goals and plan strategies that

will help you achieve that goal. It is important to also plan for problems that might arise in order

to achieve that goal. One of the most common and serious problems you may encounter is

procrastination. Other distractions include the television and other external noises. A quiet and

distraction free environment is an ideal studying area. In my first year of high school, I had poor

time management skills and suffered from extreme procrastination, which resulted in me

achieving low grades. However, after imposing several changes in my life, I began to see drastic

changes in my academic life. For one thing, I began to set a timer to cue me in on how much

time I should spend on each assignment and how long my study session would last. This helped

me finish my work quickly and fight procrastination. In order to combat procrastination, you

need to be assertive and take self-control. Don’t wait until the last minute to work on assignments,

but rather work on them early on so you have more free time. In order to have time for recreation

and fun, planning ahead is important. This includes writing down important dates in your

schedule and planning how much time you will devote to each assignment or task.

In addition to time management, organizing and studying are part of the stepping stones

of success. My binders, folders, and cabinets used to be chaotic and disorderly. As a result, I

often could not locate my homework assignments. This soon got to a point where I knew I had to

change in order to succeed. I insisted on keeping color coded files for my assignments, tests, and

other schoolwork and set a cabinet next to my desk with materials ranging from highlighters to

rulers in each separate file. Organizing your papers will help you keep track of your grades and,

ultimately, progress in your course. Organized notes are a vital studying tool. Knowing and using

all your resources is one way to helping you achieve your maximum academic potential. Other

ways to enhance your skills are to preview and review the chapter, take adequate notes, and do

your homework while the information is fresh in your memory. However, it is not profitable to

study a subject for a big chunk of time, having breaks, switching to other subjects, and breaking

down chunks of reading will enable you to pay attention better. Another dilemma I was faced

with was the inability to concentrate in long study sessions. As a result, I thought of creative

ways to help myself concentrate better. I made color coded sticky notes in my textbook and often

participated in study sessions. Involvement in a study group with your classmates and asking

questions if you don’t understand something are ways that you can become more active in your

learning. By developing a habit of regularly studying and having all supplies and

materials available, you will become more of an active learner and will soon harvest the fruits of

your hard work.

Furthermore, in order to learn more efficiently, it is important to know and place

emphasis on your learning style. My learning style is auditory. If you are an auditory learner,

your best way for learning is to hear the information. Reading the notes out loud or listening to a

lecture can help you comprehend the information. If you are a visual learner, you learn best by

seeing it in pictures or in action, such as watching a clip or looking at pictures and diagrams. If

you are a kinesthetic learner, you learn best by using incorporating all your senses. By using

techniques such as conducting an experiment or going on a field trip or tour, you can learn

precisely interpret the information. By trial and error, I learned my learning style during the

course of my high school career. By reading my notes and chapters out loud, listening to

recorded chapters available, and watching clips, I began to unfold a greater learning potential

within me. There is one final element that is critical to a successful journey through college.

Not only is it important to manage your time efficiently, prepare and organize, and apply

your learning style, maintaining your health is just as important. This could include regularly

exercising, eating healthy meals, and minimizing your stress. According to a study by Yale

University, “The most important predictors of academic achievement were having no television

in the bedroom, maintaining a healthy weight, being physically fit, having a secure source of

healthy food, and rarely eating at fast-food restaurants. Other significant factors were not

drinking soda or other sweetened drinks and getting enough sleep” (Yale School of Public

Health). However, most college students overlook the importance of health and as a result, lead

an unhealthy lifestyle. By not getting enough sleep, eating junk food, watching television, and

consuming alcohol and drugs, they are prone to many ailments such as emotional and physical

stress, obesity, malnutrition, and brain fog. These cause them to lose their ability to focus in class.

In addition, most college students suffer from stress due to their hectic schedules. Stress can be

minimized by exercising, proper sleep, taking breaks in between work, and meditating. Besides

reducing stress, eating healthy is also an indicator in academic success. During breaks I have

between study sessions, I snack on healthy foods like baby carrots with ranch or celery with

peanut butter. Moreover, exercise is the key to leading a healthy lifestyle. No matter how hectic

your life may be, always find a few minutes a day to go out for a walk. I go for a jog after

studying to clear my head. By eating healthy and exercising, you can increase your focus and

concentration, which leads to a higher energy level and ultimately, higher grades.

Imagine the same student from earlier, this time with: better time management, more

organization and preparation, and a healthier lifestyle. By eating fruits and vegetables, setting

time aside for exercise several times a week, keeping a planner at hand with all his assignments

and events written down, he has turned his academic life around. He used to get anxious

about taking tests, but this time, he has studied for the test every day for the last two weeks, and

knows he understands the material and has nothing to fear. He is confident in his ability to do

well because he has structured his life to optimize for academic success.