Starting College Top Tips

Starting college – 5 Top tips you need to know.

By Olivia (TRC student)

TRC are excited to be welcoming new students into college in September and have collectively decided to share our top tips to help you prepare for college life.

As a former ‘newbie’ to college life myself, I can say that there were definitely some tips that would have come in handy when I first started. So, to save you all the trouble of learning these the hard way, I’ll let you in on the secrets.

1. Transport

Transport is a must however you decide to travel to TRC. It is important you get to know in advance which route you will take and how much travelling will cost. I would highly suggest practising the route before the start of term so that you are confident in where you are going on your first day.

College buses are also provided at TRC, so If you are interested, please look at the TRC bus timetables and additional information here.

2. Support

At TRC there is a dedicated team to help with any questions or worries you may have. If you want any careers advice, have any financial worries or just want to have a chat they have you covered.

Starting at college is a huge step and can be overwhelming, it is essential that there should be a safe space for you to go to get support. The TRC support team are amazing in their roles of helping students who have any questions or are feeling anxious. Feel free to email TRConnect (health and wellbeing team) here.

3. Get to know the campus

You’re going to be spending a lot of time at TRC so why not take this time to explore. This doesn’t include knowing where your classes, the toilets, or even the cafeteria are.

Although you should definitely know these, it is important to also know things like the distance between classes, to know what time to set off or how long it will take so you won’t be late, nice quiet spots for you to study or to relax and debrief with friends and where to go to if you need any support. Once you know where to go, you can make the most that TRC has to offer.

4. Take time to meet friends

College isn’t only about your academic studies. It is important that you use this time to socialise with friends or even make new ones. Don’t forget about keeping in touch with friends from secondary school as well as spending time together as time invested in relationships is never time wasted.

Loads of people make friends for life in college so it is essential that you don’t waste time.

5. Believe in yourself

Don’t Panic, college life is hard and you’re not alone. Its normal to find yourself having doubts about your abilities or about whether you belong in college. Reach out to teachers for academic help if you need it as well as family and friends for support. It is important to work on your self-esteem and self-efficacy, you will need to believe in your abilities to succeed even when you are struggling.

TRC believes in you!