Austin Community College: 5 Killer Tips to Stay on Track

by Chad Agrawal

Austin Community College has many great benefits to offer you and is a great route to take when first picking a place to start your higher education.  It allows you to save some serious cash while still being able to take the necessary classes need to transfer to a four-year university and complete your degree.  However, if you don’t stay focused on your goal and desired timeline, it is easy to get off track.

These simple tips will help you stay on track while attending Austin Community College and help you reach your goal of transferring to a four-year university.

5 Killer Tips For Attending Austin Community College

Develop a relationship with your advisor. You don’t want to map out your degree on your own, so to make the most of your time spent at community college you want to meet with an advisor and make goals with a timeline so you are able to stay on track.  Make sure that your advisor is able to answer your questions thoroughly and goes the extra mile for you in making sure that everything is on track to transfer to a four-year university.  Your advisors can direct you to outside resources such as tutoring and interning, which are also very beneficial.  You’ll see they have a great network that can help you in many different areas of your college life! If your assigned advisor isn’t able to help you don’t hesitate to ask someone else you may work better with.

Plan ahead and know which classes will transfer.  Don’t wait to start planning for your move to the next institution; you’ll thank yourself for looking more into your future than just where you will be transferring. Research what your degree requirements are ahead of time so that you only take the classes that are needed.  Remember every school’s requirements vary; do your research so that the classes you take match up to the general requirements of your desired school.  Check the school’s website for more information or ask your school’s advisor to help you get on the right track. It is a good idea to check ahead because you may not need some classes, or they may not even transfer.

Know your funding options. Austin Community College can offer funding just like four-year universities can so explore your options in federal funding, grants, loans and scholarships.  It is also important to fill out your FASFA forms first, as recommended by many experts who say to try and utilize federal options.  Get on this early because it can really benefit you. Despite the fact that yes, you are saving money by attending community college, you want to be smart about paying for college and try to maximize your savings.

And as always, your advisor is a great person to help you discover options you may not know about. Did you know many of them have a book of scholarships? Ask to see if they have one on hand; you’ll uncover countless scholarships that you may have never even heard of. Also, tuition isn’t the only check you’ll be writing, be smart about spending! Compare textbook prices through your school, different bookstores, and online at sites like CollegeFocus.com. Another great tip is looking for jobs on campus that are geared towards students. Many schools know the work loads students have, so they tailor a work schedule that is flexible and caters to a busy college student.

Get your records in order.  When planning your college path with your advisor, it is critical to find out all the necessary documents needed in order to make your transition into a four-year university go smoothly.  Call your prospective school ahead of time to find out what documents are needed such as tax records, income records, W-2 forms and transcripts.  This can make the transferring process a lot easier when you prepare everything ahead of time. Your community college advisor probably has a lot of your records together from when you started school with them, so that could help eliminate some steps for gathering your paperwork.

Stay focused.  The most important thing when attending Austin Community College is to stay focused and stay on track.  It is absolutely imperative that you stick to your timeline and goals so don’t waste any more time and money than you need to.  If you don’t understand a concept in class, meet with your teachers and teaching assistants to ask questions; they are there to help.  Also, make yourself recognizable and show your interest in the class by engaging, that proves to your teacher that you are committed to doing well in the class.

Staying On Track At Austin Community College

How well you do in Austin Community College is going to transfer to your next school. If you don’t take things seriously there, your GPA could suffer or you might not get in. For many students, it is a great opportunity to boost your grade point average, since the classes are most likely smaller than university lectures and sometimes a lot easier. Take advantage of what great opportunities and resources are available to you at the beginning of your college career at Austin Community College. Take this advice and it will be a great launch off the ground for you but if you don’t stay focused it could break you!

Do you have any more tips to share? Please do so in the space below!

About the Author:

Trae Lewis is a recent graduate from the University of Colorado at Boulder, where she majored in journalism. She is currently a staff writer for CollegeFocus and an active community blogger. You can find CollegeFocus on Facebook at www.fb.com/collegefocus.

This post was written by Chad Agrawal

Chad Agrawal is the founder of CCTS, helping students transfer from community college to Ivy League, tier 1 or anywhere else by following this community college guide.

{ 1 comment… read it below or add one }

Tammy Diaz October 21, 2012 at 9:58 am

Great Post!

Reply

Leave a Comment

Previous post:

Next post: