How to Get Better Grades in College (for Undergraduate Students)

Are you an undergraduate college student who wants to get better grades? Working hard is not the key to college success. You have to work smart.

Some students work very hard in school, but still struggle. I saw this especially with older, re-entry students. I, on the other hand, tended to put in less effort and coast my way to my undergraduate university degree. I have to imagine that the re-entry students saw me as a young, lazy drifter. They probably wondered why I often do better than them even though they're putting in more effort. They probably complained that it's not fair. I disagree with them, but I understand their plight.

Well I'm here to share my secrets. You aren't going to be the hard working, struggling college student. You're going to coast to success in your classes, like me.

Instructions

1. 

   Don't do the Textbook Readings

   Syllabi are very intimidating. Generally they span pages and pages, listing numerous readings and assignments. I don't believe that it is humanely possible to do all the readings for some of these classes. Some people try in the beginning, but then burn themselves out towards the end of the class (if they make it that far).

   One of my favorite professors was a visiting professor, meaning he worked at another (smaller, less prestigious) university. This professor told me, "The University of Michigan professors advised me to make a long syllabus that assigned lots of readings. They said this would intimidate the students and make them work harder." He also told me that we wouldn't cover many of the things on the syllabus, and that he'd delete readings from the syllabus throughout the year.

   My point here is that professors will put a lot of long, difficult textbook readings into your syllabus either to scare you or to make their class look difficult, which makes them look like a good university professor. You don't have to fall for it.

   If you can't answer "Why should I read this?", then you probably shouldn't read it. I've seen so many cases where people spend 5-10 hours a week reading for one class. Over a 16 week semester, that's 80-160 hours. These students are missing one extremely important point.

   Take a look at all of the syllabi you have, as well as think about every syllabus you've seen. Now imagine the section that tells you how the professor calculates your grade. How many of them give you a grade for doing the readings? NONE! I have never seen a syllabus that grades you on doing the readings, and I don't think there ever will be one. These students are spending 80-160 hours on something that isn't even graded! How's that for a waste of time?

2. Focus on the Graded Assignments & Tests

   Now you have the treasure map. Next time you look at a syllabus, you can go straight to the treasure: the way the professor determines the grade. Usually it's just a few tests, papers, and/or assignments, each determining a certain percentage of your grade. Your focus should be on these items, and nothing else. Doesn't that make a class sound easy? Well, quite frankly, it is that easy.

3. Never Skip Class

   You probably aren't going to like my suggestion, but to get good grades you're going to want to go to every class. You should never skip.

   I've found that classes with exams, the professor will usually teach everything on the exam. It's like studying out of the book. Except when I study, I usually spend most of my time just finding the important information. The professor does this for you, and saves you the searching time. For most of us, these lectures are much more efficient than your studying. I estimate that 1 hour of lecture is the equivalent of 2 hours of studying. I think of these lectures as a gift to me, and try to utilize them as much as possible. So next time you're thinking about skipping a 1 hour lecture, I want you to ask yourself an honest question. Would you rather go to the 1 hour lecture or would you rather study for 2 hours? If you'd rather do the studying, by all means skip the lecture. However, you should be prepared to study for 2 hours to make up for the 1 hour skipped. I always choose the lecture, because I don't like studying.

4. Don't Take Notes

   Next time you watch your favorite television show, I want you to write down each point a character makes. Take notes as if you were this frantic student, or take notes like you would during class. If you write down everything said in the show, you will have no idea what happened. Since this is your favorite show, you probably won't want to take notes, since it will distract you from the show. I want you to take notes the same way. Watch the lecture as if it were your favorite show. Focus on listening and understanding what the professor says. Don't get distracted by your notes. By not distracting yourself with notes, you'll learn the information in class. Best yet, since you'll learn it in class, you won't have to spend much time studying it later.

5. 

   Utilize Office Hours

   You may not have known it, but office hours are a goldmine for grades, and are amazingly underutilized. Most professors hold at least 3 hours of office hours each week, and most of the time they just sit there, lonely and bored. This is your greatest opportunity yet! If 1 hour of class is equal to 2 hours of studying, I'd say that 30 minutes of office hours are equal to 1 hour of class. So if you don't want to go to office hours, you'll have to do 2 hours of studying to make up for it. Which would you rather do?

   Office hours are so valuable because the professor will tell you exactly what you need to know. If you're writing a paper, the professor will tell you exactly what to write the paper on. You know those red comments listed under the bad grade on a paper? If you go to office hours, they tell you those comments beforehand, so there's no reason to give you a bad grade.

   And who do you think is most qualified to give you advice on your paper? If you said "the person who grades the paper," then you're starting to develop the mindset to get good grades without working hard. It doesn't matter how smart someone else might be, or how good his or her ideas are. If you want to know what the professor wants, whom should you ask? Clearly, the professor is the person you should ask.

Tips & Warnings

• To get better grades, you'll want to work smarter, not harder.

• Don't waste your tuition dollars!