While most high school students want to go to college, and that’s perfectly fine, it is highly advisable. What many students don’t realize is that college is not a bed of roses. The Hollywood depiction of college as a party destination is far from the truth. The reality is you will have to do a ridiculous amount of studying if you wish to graduate well.
But don’t worry, to survive in college you just need to form some essential habits so that studying won’t be a task you wrestle with. The most important thing is that you start developing those practices early, and the perfect way to do this is by building healthy study habits while preparing for the American College Test (ACT).
The ACT is taken more often than the SATs, and there’s a high probability that either you or someone you know is about to take the test. One of the biggest debates surrounding the ACT is whether or not ACT prep is beneficial. A lot of people believe that money spent on ACT prep is money wasted, and this is not entirely true.
Doing prep work for the ACT does not just help you get soaring results when you take the exam, it also helps you form solid study habits that you will carry with you into college. You also get familiarized with the use of study resources, like Kaplan ACT prep materials.
These study habits are essential for your college life as they will help ease you into the hustle and bustle of college academics. While others are struggling to settle in, you will have formed a steady study schedule and practices that will help you assimilate even better. Here are some key skills that you will acquire during ACT prep that will help you in college.
Goal Setting
One of the first steps in the ACT prep process is goal setting. Students preparing for their ACT have a target score they hope to achieve, and all their efforts are aimed towards achieving this.
This process will train your mind to not only set goals for the future, but work towards achieving them too. In college, you will need to reach certain scores for tests, assignments and projects; sometimes, you can set personal self-development goals too.
College is highly competitive, and only those who are proactive will come out at the top of the class.
Time Management
ACT requires time management on a level that high school students and even some college freshmen aren’t used to. Because an ACT student has a target score they want to achieve, they have no choice but to put time aside each day to study. This makes them one step closer to their set goal and, more importantly, develops consistency and repetition.
Consistent studying is the only way to achieve academic success, even the most intelligent people study every day to stay afloat. Time management skills acquired from ACT prep will be a handy tool for college and will surely put you ahead of your peers.
Practice
Another critical skill gained from ACT prep is learning to practice for a test beforehand. ACT prep will usually involve taking a mock version of the exam to see how well can do in the actual test. This skill, when carried into college, will give you an edge that eventually, exams and tests will be stress-free exercises.
The secret is that when you practice for anything beforehand, you familiarize yourself with the details of that thing. The once foreign and daunting task becomes familiar ground. Another advantage is that you’ll get to know your strengths and weaknesses and work on getting better as time goes by.
Developing a Personal Style
Everyone has their style of studying, and the only way to discover your unique method is to study consistently. Some people prefer to study while listening to music, while others require complete silence. Consistent studying will help you determine the right environment for your study time. This is something you will slowly realize while preparing for your ACT.
Apart from the environment, you will also carve your own style of studying, from note-taking to reading – as some people prefer to read out loud, while others read in their minds. You might even prefer to record your notes and play them over and over to help you memorize and digest them.
You might be one of the people who likes having a study partner or being part of a study group. These are all things that you will discover during your ACT prep.
Final Thoughts
ACT prep will not only increase your chances of getting a top score in the actual test, but it will also help develop necessary study habits and skills that you can bring to college. There is nothing to lose and everything to be gained from ACT prep.