Special to the Thunderword 

Students will sometimes ask if it was worth it getting a doctorate. And I’m like, “What do you think? I get to do this! I get to read about things I find interesting and then I get to talk to people about that!”  

From my first day in college, 46 years ago, I loved college. I loved learning and finding new things and then getting to talk about it with classmates and professors.  

Nonetheless, it took me a while to realize that it’s college that I really love, by which time I stumbled back to Highline and into a teaching career.  

You may not love college like I do, and that’s OK. And everybody doesn’t have to get a Ph.D. (though aim high – graduate school keeps a lot of doors open).  

But as I’ll try to explain below, college is worth it for many folks. Here are some tricks to get through.  

1. Understand that you belong.  

Most thinking people have doubts about whether they’re good enough, smart enough, whatever enough to do something, including going to college.  

So you have to believe that you belong. And you do. You have all the tools you need to succeed in college. You will learn that as you go.  

A former student of mine expressed her doubts by saying, “I’m not big enough.” She was, and now she’s an attorney for a nearby city. Why not you? 

2. Show up.  

Go to class; log in; do what’s required. Students who succeed begin by showing up, and continuing to show up, even when they’re tired and cranky and not at their best. College is a bit like a job – you have to show up to get paid.  

3. Do the work.  

Students who succeed do the work – turn in assignments, take the tests. No matter how ugly, just do your work. The more you do this, the better you will get at it. And then it will become easier.  

4. Take notes!  

Take notes in class and, especially, take notes when you read.  

I wish I had figured this out much sooner. All of college would have been easier if I had taken notes while reading. Taking notes while reading keeps you focused on the reading and also helps you remember more. The physical act of writing, during which we often translate the text into our own words, is proven to help with remembering and comprehension.  

If you think of something, write it down. I like to use an asterisk in my reading notes, so that when I look at it later, I remember that it came from me, not from the author of the book or article.  

5. Read.  

College is much harder if you don’t do the reading, and it’s so easy to put it off. So you have to make college and reading for college something of a priority. Going to college means putting off current fun for future gain.  

Students sometimes complain about “too much” reading, but the longer you stay in college, the more reading you’ll be expected to do.  

But like anything, the more you do it, the easier it becomes. The first book I read in graduate school just threw me. I didn’t understand what the guy was on about, and I didn’t like his writing.  

And then I got assigned a work by the same author as I neared the end of my studies. I thought, “Oh no! Not him again!” But this time, although I disagreed with his conclusions, everything made sense.  

Finally, it dawned on me: With a little exercise, the head muscle gets stronger too.  

6. Demonstrate your understanding of the material.  

Most of the questions you will ever answer as an undergraduate student revolve around one thing: Convincing the professor that you understand the material.  

Unlike high school, where apparently you get a pat on the head for saying something coherent, in college you’re expected to show that you understand the subject, not that you have an opinion on it.  

So your answer to a question should never begin with “I think it’s…” because it’s not about what you think. In many classes, there are basic concepts and ideas that you need to understand before you can venture an opinion.  

Our opinions should lead us to questions, not to answers.  

7. Build on what you know.  

It’s all a bit easier if you continue to move forward with the subjects that interest you most, and which you have already studied.  

It’s always great to learn new things, but if you build knowledge incrementally, you won’t have to continually break new ground. Trust me from experience, that’s a bit more work. Most of us only have so much time and energy in our lives, so sometimes it’s better to be like electricity and seek the path of least resistance. 

8. Every class is an opportunity to learn something.  

There are few boring classes, just bored students. When you are relatively young, it should be difficult to predict what knowledge will prove to be useful. (If I had to do it all over again, I’d have taken more math. Turns out it’s really useful!)  

So every class you take has the potential of providing you with some nugget of information that will someday be valuable to you.  

9. Find and stick with the folks you can work with.  

Not every student and professor click. I had professors I liked and those I didn’t care for as much, and certainly I’ve had students who felt the same way about me.  

So if you find professors with whom you’re on the same page, stick with them. Part of that is personality; part of that is similar academic interests; part of that is knowing that this professor won’t ask you to do more than you can reasonably expect to do.  

The professors you click with will help you succeed and get through it all. That matters.  

10. Ask questions.  

Be brave. Students are often afraid to ask questions because they don’t want to sound stupid.  

But honestly, if you have a question, probably other people have the same one. Be brave, be the student who’s willing to say “I don’t understand this.” Most professors will be happy to answer.  

11. Understand why you’re here.  

Certainly if you major in something, you learn useful information.  

But the biggest reason to get an undergraduate degree is to learn how to learn. That’s really what we get out of college. And that’s a skill you can take with you anywhere. Most of us will shift careers at some point; learning how to learn will make that much easier.  

12. Keep going.  

Above all, just keep at it. You will learn things; you will get better at it; you will come out smarter and stronger and tougher, with a better chance of making a good life for you and yours.  

I didn’t earn a doctorate because I was a brilliant scholar. I got a doctorate because I kept showing up; because I chose my professors carefully; because I tried to do what was asked rather than complaining and being a pain in the ass.  

Like a lot of you, I’m really just another kid from South King County who started at Highline and just kept going. You can do it too.  

T.M. Sell, Ph.D. teaches political science and economics at Highline.