I’ve been a college professor for over 40 years. As a cognitive psychologist, I’ve spent my career studying learning and memory and as a teacher, I’ve integrated my research knowledge with my practical teaching experience. When I took my last position at Samford University in 1993, the administration asked me to address the incoming students at orientation to get them in right mindset for a successful college career. I’ve just retired, and in cleaning out my files, I came across the handout I used over 30 years ago. I’m going to share some of what I told students (with some minor edits). In my humble opinion, I think the advice has held up pretty well even after all these years and the advent of AI. Feel free to tell me how well (or poorly) you think my advice has stood the test of time and what you would add or delete. Remember, this advice was for an audience mostly made up of traditionally aged first-year students from fairly affluent backgrounds.
