You’ve almost finished this book. You should now understand the power of words and why enhancing vocabulary and cultural literacy can have a positive impact on your academic, social, and personal success. You’ve reviewed the definitions of more than 1,000 words, and you’ve learned where a number of them originated.
Justin, a high school student, and Jordan, a college student, helped determine what words and phrases would be included in this book. In the sections that follow, these two young people — along with Joseph Lanning, an Assistant Director of Undergraduate Admissions at the University of Rochester — offer words to consider when seeking success in high school, during the college admissions process, while at college, and throughout the rest of your life.
Justin Nadler, having completed his junior year in high school, offers these words of wisdom:
realization (REE-uh-lie-zay-shun), noun
The act of bringing something into existence. Something that has been understood or accepted.
I have come to the realization that high school is an important time, upon which I will build my future.
Junior year is important. You realize that you are not far from college and what adults call “the rest of your life.” It’s not easy to look ahead when you are a teenager, because you don’t want to seem too thoughtful. Yes, you do think about how many months or days are left before you get your license or before the end of school. So there are some things you want to count down, but you don’t want to think too much about more school, about choosing a major, or about life after college. Realizing that you must think ahead is a bit scary, and I won’t admit it to my friends, but it’s something I know I have to do. Now, having helped with this book, I also realize that a good vocabulary will lead to better grades, better SAT scores, better college essays, and, if you think about it, a better future.
preparation (preh-puh-RAY-shun), noun
The work or planning involved in making something or someone ready or involved in putting something together in advance.
High school really is preparation for college and more.
Prepare yourself now for college. Start taking classes that interest you whenever possible, in addition to those you must take to meet requirements.
Take elective classes that might have to do with possible college majors or careers. Even think about taking classes in the summer through special programs at local colleges or community colleges. You don’t have to tell your friends you’re taking them because you want to; just say your parents are making you do it. By the time you are a junior, you should begin to prepare for and think about college. Look at college Web sites, visit a few schools in person with your parents or friends, and talk to seniors about why they applied to certain schools or why they decided to attend specific schools. Don’t wait until your senior year.
work ethic (WERK EH-thick), noun
A dedication to work, or a belief in the value of hard work.
Bad grades sometimes are a result of a poor work ethic, not a lack of intelligence.
High school students must start to develop, continue to build, and show others a good work ethic. Or, should I say a good homework ethic. Doing your homework at the same time, in the same place, and in the same way every night is a good habit to develop in high school. Good habits should never be broken; in fact, they can be strengthened when you get to college. By the time you are a junior, you should do homework because you want to, not just because your parents, teachers, or coaches say you have to. The work ethic you show on the field as an athlete, or as a club member or leader, or when you work on chores or special projects, should be as strong as your homework ethic.
independent (IN-dee-pen-dent), adjective
Free from authority, control, or domination. Able to operate or stand on one’s own; not forced to rely on another person or thing.
Independent decisions are not always easy when you are sensitive to peer pressure.
It’s about time that you begin to listen to the little voice in your head that sounds like your parents, teachers, and coaches, but it’s really you. It’s hard not to listen to all the voices of friends and to what you think others might say about you, but as a junior, you must begin to think for yourself. Being able to drive gives you independence from others for getting place to place. Independent feelings and responsibilities mean that you can get from high school to college with the help of others, but really through your own efforts.
confidence (KON-fuh-dents), noun
A belief or self-assurance in one’s ability to succeed. A belief in someone or something to act in a trustworthy or reliable fashion.
It’s hard to say which comes first, the chicken or the egg, or confidence and good grades.
Be as confident as you can, because positive attitudes can lead to positive outcomes. Coaches teach that getting psyched up can influence how you play, and that visualizing success in your mind can lead to actual success on the field. It’s easy to say “Be confident” and “Don’t stress about the present or future,” but if you can really turn these words into feelings, you can build unstoppable momentum. Each year in school has prepared you for the next, so you should feel more and more confident as you progress. By junior year your overall confidence should be strong. If it isn’t, make it stronger by working harder and finding others who will say good things about your efforts.
self-knowledge (self-NAH-ludge), noun
An understanding of oneself, particularly one’s abilities, character, and motives.
It has been said that the most important knowledge that you hope to gain is self-knowledge.
By your junior year, you begin to learn who you are and what you want others to know about you. Do you like being known as a good student, an athlete, a good listener, a funny person, a good friend, or all of these? Do others know your true feelings, or are you afraid to share them? Know what you can and, when necessary, cannot do. Don’t put yourself in positions to fail unless they can make you stronger. But do try to take risks if you can learn from them. Know who you are now and who you want to be in the future, and don’t be afraid to let others know.
essay (EH-say), noun
A brief descriptive, interpretive, or analytical piece dealing with a particular topic; a short piece of writing assigned to a student.
The more essays you write, the better essays you write.
Essays will play a huge role in the next few years. They influence your grades in high school and also your applications to college. They also influence the grades you earn in college. Writing a good essay is very important, and by the time you are a senior, you should know how to do it. But you can always improve your writing skills. Believe me: If I can help write a book, then anyone can write great essays.
assistance (a-SIS-tunts), noun
Something done for or given to provide aid to or assist someone else.
Don’t ever be afraid to ask for assistance.
People are ready to help you. Parents, teachers, tutors, and friends can help with academics, sports, and personal issues. Asking for help is a sign of strength and maturity, not a weakness. High school students should be mature enough to ask for help without being embarrassed. They know what’s at stake if they don’t and how much can be gained if they do. Also, seniors can help juniors and others in lower grades. Sometimes the best way to earn good grades is by helping others with classes you find easy.
options (OP-shuns), noun
Choices, possibilities; the range of available decisions that one faces.
Be open to explore colleges, universities, community colleges, and other options after graduation.
Don’t be afraid to explore everything, even if it may seem an unusual or embarrassing subject to discuss with friends. Examine things like post-grad years at private schools and internship programs. At first be open to many things, and then share those that are most interesting. Last, take steps to reach your goals and ask for the help of parents, counselors, brothers and sisters, teammates, and coaches. You can’t do it alone.
commencement (kuh-MENTS-munt), noun
The act of beginning or starting. Also, a ceremony for conferring degrees or granting diplomas at the end of an academic year.
Your commencement ceremony marks both an end and a beginning.
While some call it “graduation,” others call it “commencement.” It means the beginning of the rest of your life, not just the end of high school.
Learn from the past, and look forward to the future. It is a little bit scary, but it is your future and it will be great.
Joseph Lanning is an Assistant Director of Undergraduate Admissions at the University of Rochester. He offers the following ten words and phrases that every high school student who is applying to college should understand and think about.
If a college offers this option, take it. It is hard to make yourself look bad, and it shows your interest in the school, as well as your ability to communicate. It is the opportunity for you to develop a meaningful one-on-one relationship with an admissions counselor or alum who will share his or her evaluation with the admissions office. This kind of personal exchange usually only enhances your candidacy, so it is not something to be feared or avoided.
A research universityis one where the faculty both creates and teaches knowledge; at other schools, often smaller ones, the faculty is more focused on teaching the knowledge that others have created. While no one type of institution is always better, one may be better for you. The resources, tone, and style of each type of school are all different. Find out what options one will give you over the other. If you can, talk to faculty and ask what courses they teach, particularly if they teach freshmen and sophomores and why they like teaching these courses. Ask if they do research and whether they involve undergraduates as research assistants, not just subjects. See if the school you are exploring encourages undergrads to conduct original research, if you can support the research of faculty and doctoral students, or whether these opportunities exist at all. Most high school students are not familiar with the amazing impact that research can have on one’s academic experience, so you have to ask questions and learn about this facet of higher education prior to deciding where to apply and where to attend.
Educated consumers of any product need to look deeper. You cannot tell a book by its cover, but you can tell a college or university by its curriculum. Every college and university has dorms, classrooms, teachers, dining halls, security, and libraries. But not every school has academic requirements. What now makes institutions distinct is largely how much you define class selection or how much a set of predetermined courses defines this process. You need to know how much freedom of choice you want or need and how much a school offers. What would be the requirements of a particular school? What is their curriculum and the purposes of this approach? How soon can you start taking courses you are truly curious about? What happens before you declare a major, and after? Ask these questions and think about the answers as you determine your hit-list of schools and, ultimately, the admissions offer you accept.
This person is a college’s first line of defense and offense. This two-way player actively recruits large numbers of applicants, yet screens and admits only the few that meet specific profile characteristics. He or she is the person who makes the final decision to keep your application in the admit pile and sometimes has a role in how much aid and scholarship you get. Whenever and wherever you get to meet them, they assess and track your interest and serve as a resource to answer questions and address specific issues. As a recruiter, this person appropriately promotes a school. As a counselor, he or she should be ready and willing to help you navigate the sometimes-confusing process of college admissions. An admissions counselor can explain who reads an application, if it is read more than once, and how scholarships are allocated.
The admissions process varies from school to school, so knowing a counselor at each institution you apply to is invaluable. Don’t let the fact that a person might also serve to evaluate or rate you scare you away from getting to know this valuable resource professional. The second word in this title — “counselor” — should be the most important one.
Diversity in the student body involves religion, political preference, gender, sexuality, geographic and socioeconomic background — the list is truly endless. Visit schools to see the amazing variation of people and backgrounds you will be living and studying with for four years. Talk to students about their views and how diversity positively influences their lives. Also, examine an institution’s diversity in programs and majors. Are there many options to choose from? How much choice do you truly have when choosing courses, overseas studies programs, internship options, majors, and more?
Diversity truly has many definitions and many meanings on a college campus. What does this word mean to you, and why?
Here is one important distinction to know. Merit-basedaid is based on specific academic or achievement-focused criteria, while need-basedaid is offered based upon the financial status of the student and his or her family. For each school you are interested in, ask the following questions. What are the criteria for scholarships, grants, and loans? Do scholarships affect how much additional aid you get based on your financial needs? What do you have to pay back, and what is a grant? What additional paperwork (FAFSA/CSS Profile) is needed to be eligible for aid? These questions and the answers you receive are critical as you progress through the admissions and, ultimately, the decision-making process. Ask these and many, many other questions. Don’t be shy, and do talk to your parents about these issues. Together, the more you learn, the more you know, the better your decisions will be.
A wait listis a pool of students who barely missed the criteria used for admissions. These are highly successful and motivated students who for one reason or another just missed the first so-called “cut.” If you find yourself on a wait list, be sure to express your interest in a school by providing additional information and supplemental documents. You can do this through another visit, a formal letter, a brief essay, or a phone call and follow-up e-mail. It is a time to prove that you really want to be at thisschool and that you won’t settle for anything less. It’s not a time to be passive and wait for the next letter from the admissions office.
Those rankings of schools that you see in various publications may be important to some applicants and not for others. They can be confusing if not examined carefully. Above all, they should not be the sole criterion used when determining where to apply and where to enroll. Please make an effort to examine and understand how rankings are created, the criteria used, and which of these factors may (or may not) be important to you. Certain things — like “selectivity” (numbers of applicants versus number of offers), “peer reputation” (how other schools perceive an institution), or “alumni giving rate” (the percentage of alums who donate) — may not be of interest to you personally, though they may be of interest to another applicant. Do be careful when using rankings.
The level to which alums become involved and contribute to the continued growth of their alma mater is a subjective indicator of what a school offers undergraduates. This is a difficult thing to quantify, so you must depend upon quality interactions with alums to make good decisions. Make an effort to meet alums from your short list of schools. While at first they might be interviewing you, after you have received an offer of admissions youshould be interviewing them.Seeing the products of a place, uncovering their recollections, and learning about how they stay involved in making the place better can be strong indicators for how happy you would be at a school yourself. Interact with young alumni and not-so-young alumni. Each group will have an interesting perspective and, ultimately, the information they share will help you make your choice regarding the school that in four short years you may call “my alma mater.”
How comfortable you feel at a college is the most important part of the decision-making process and possibly the most difficult to define. By visiting the campuses of the schools you are interested in, perhaps staying overnight, you can best determine fit. The fit of a school is like the fit of a shoe. If you buy it because it looks nice, but you don’t try it on first, you could be very uncomfortable later. And, size, style, and purpose do matter. Get to know the community the school is in (rural, urban, or suburban), the nature of the area, and, more important, what students do on campus and off. Talk to ordinary students, not just the tour guides. Ask whether they feel the school fits them or why they fit the institution. You have to be comfortable to learn to your maximum potential.
Jordan Nadler, our college student coauthor, reflects upon ten words or phrases that high school students should know about being a college student.
change (CHAYNJ), noun
Alteration, variation, or modification (important rhyming words) or the results of these. A variance from a routine or pattern, most often a welcomed one.
Change is scary but necessary as one grows.
College brings big change, and not just to your address. Your whole world changes, from academics to friends, food, sleep patterns, study habits, and social life. Realize from the beginning just how much change you will have to face. Welcome change as natural to diminish anxiety, and it will make the transition easier. Change is good!
advisor (ad-VIE-zur), noun
Someone who gives advice. Someone who advises students on academic issues, including course selection.
College advisors are always crucial, yet the best ones are not always those officially assigned the job.
When you walk into a class, don’t just consider whether a professor or subject matter will be interesting. Think about whether this person would make a good formal or informal advisor. In college, your advisor is your strongest advocate, your source of advice, and your friend — or can be, if you choose well. At some schools, you have a general advisor or a group of general advisors available until you declare your major. After that, you are either assigned or you select someone from within your chosen academic department to serve as your “major advisor.” But please, don’t limit those who serve as advisors to persons who hold specific titles. Everyone can and should be thought of as an advisor and advocate. The sooner you identify a faculty member, administrator, or older peer who can be an active listener and inspirational counselor, the sooner you can start building a relationship that can truly help your college career.
independence (in-duh-PEN-dunts), noun
Freedom from dependence on or control by another.
Independence at college is a blessing, a curse, and ultimately a gift to be used wisely.
In his list of words, Justin mentioned that high school students need to work to become more independent. College offers growth potential and independence like you have never had before. Embrace it and use it for good. Just because your parents aren’t around doesn’t mean you should go crazy. Well, it’s almost as simple as that. Establish good habits on your own. Learning how to be independent, how to schedule time well, will only help you have more fun, less stress, and fonder memories as college progresses.
For me, independence means identifying daily and weekly to-do lists or goals and then scheduling time to complete them. Knowing what I have to do, and when, helps me stay on track and, frankly, independent. If assignments and readings take control of you because you have ignored them, then you are clearly not very independent. If you maintain control over them, then you are the master of your academic, social, athletic, and personal schedule. And you can get some sleep in as well.
choice (CHOYSE), noun
The power or chance to choose among different things; the decision to select one thing, person, or course of action over another.
The choices between one class and another, one teacher or another, or one major and another are just some of those that you can expect at college.
Classes, professors, living arrangements, going to the game, dinner, sleep? Should I cram for that exam, or have I studied enough? What major and why? College offers so many, many choices. While at times you feel that you have to make these choices alone, in truth you always have someone to turn to if you need advice. So don’t rush into important academic or life-altering decisions, but don’t fret over them either. Seek feedback from friends, family, faculty, and professional advisors when needed. Don’t sweat the small stuff, and always think about consequences, especially when you are deciding whether you’ve studied enough and if it is time for a little fun. Do take advantage of the great opportunities college has to offer. It is a once-in-a-lifetime scenario. Learn how and when to make serious choices and when to be spontaneous and intuitive.
add/drop (ad-drop), adjective
Referring to the practice of allowing one to change one’s original selection of academic courses by adding or removing courses after the beginning of the semester.
During the add/drop period you have the time to decide which courses are really right for you.
Thank goodness that many decisions, including those about course selection, are not permanent. That’s one of the beauties of college. Don’t be afraid to sign up for a class or two that may be out of the norm. In fact, when you want to carry a load of five classes, do sign up for six, or if you want to finally narrow down to four, you can start with five or six. Even as a first-semester freshman (although many don’t realize it), you can shop for and try on classes to see if they fit. Attend classes for a week or two to see if they fit your schedule, your academic areas of interest, or your long-term goals. If you hate the class, or there are scheduling conflicts, or if you are not in the mood to write the five required papers, you can always drop it, as long as you do so before your school’s add/drop deadline. In fact, these two words, or one “slashed word,” may be among the most important and practical for you to know.
flexibility (flek-suh-BIH-luh-tee), noun
The ability to change or be changed according to circumstances; the capacity to be influenced, or persuaded to change.
Success often follows flexibility, specifically in situations involving a variety of tasks.
The oxymoronic “planned chaos” of a college day can bring unexpected challenges, and frustrations, so be ready to compromise. Whether altering your study habits, rethinking the appropriateness of a Halloween costume, or freezing when it starts to snow in September (if you decide to go to school in upstate New York), be ready for all that college throws at you, and take it in stride. While you are on your own, you are rarely alone, and you must learn to flex with circumstances and with people in order to minimize stress and conflict.
time management (time MA-nidge-ment), noun
The process of deciding how to divide the amount of time available among various tasks and activities.
Once you are living on your own, good time management is an essential skill.
For most students there are no required or supervised study halls in college, and no teachers, coaches, or parents will hound you to do your homework or show up for practice or class. College in most circumstances offers the structure of scheduled classes, but few other chronological requirements are part of any given day. You need to make your own daily and weekly schedule and stick to it. Find ways to put your schedule on paper, in a spreadsheet, or a PDA. Keep your schedule handy, regularly update it, and reward yourself when you stay on target. Personal rewards, whether a latté, some TV, DVD, or CD time, or an IM to friends, reinforce positive time-management behaviors. The stuff that adults and other books tell you is true. Time management is the key to college success.
experience (EK-spear-ee-uhns), noun
Involvement in an activity, or exposure to events or people, leading to an increase in knowledge and skills. Knowledge of and skills gained by being involved in or exposed to something over time.
Do maximize the quantity and quality of experiences you have in college.
Where else can you give blood at lunchtime, and then play inner-tube water polo; learn about the ocean floor before breakfast, then go back to bed; or, after a very busy day, go to a hockey game and party until tomorrow? College is a unique blend of eclectic experiences. Don’t be afraid to try new things! And, as that old saying goes, “Learn from experience, for it is the best teacher.”
home (HOME), noun
Where a person or family lives together. The place where a person finds refuge, security, and safety, where they can receive rest, nourishment, and shelter.
Home for some is thought to be where one’s heart is, but for all it is where both one’s head and heart are.
College isn’t just a place where you study. It is that proverbial home away from home. For approximately four years, it is where you sleep, socialize, dine on the finest cuisine (just kidding!), and learn by reading, listening, and questioning. The sooner you make college your home, the better. Once you feel secure in this setting, success follows in all areas of this new life. But never forget that you can have two or more homes; two places where the people you love share space, and where you can feel safe and nurtured. Yes, home is where your heart and head are. It’s an attitude and not just a place. Look for it, and you will find it wherever you go.
fun (PHUHN), noun
A feeling or an activity that provides a time of enjoyment or amusement.
It’s strange, but some think it’s fun to be in the library when it closes.
Don’t forget to have fun! With the stress of the known, of midterms, papers, and finals, and the unknown, of the future, you can lose sight of the fact that college is fun! Well, it is! So go out and have some! These are the words that I hope will help you realize what college is about. I’ve only been out of high school for a few years, but I encourage you to make the most of your time there. Build a strong foundation for the four years after high school (college), and beyond (life in the real world). The words that make up your written and verbal vocabulary are really the brick and mortar upon which the exciting edifices (a great word, that one) of your life will be constructed and constantly renovated. Words do create worlds — literary, social, academic, and career worlds. Use them to create the best places for you and those you love.