It's only my 2nd day in college, and already I feel so overwhelmed? Someone help?

Question

I'm taking english, history, philosophy, and psychology. I have to read so much stuff in each of those classes for tomorrow. All four of my classes are jammed together on mondays, wednesdays, and fridays. I've been reading since 1 oclock and now it's 6. How on earth am I suppoed to take in all this information handed to me at once? How do I manage it? Any tips or pointers? I'm so stressed. I want to pass

Answer 1

It's normal to feel some anxiety when starting college.  You just started, and it's a huge change.

Most of the time, you will not have this much homework.  Each professor is trying to get the class started, and that means reading some parts of the textbooks.  Remember, the general rule for homework and study time is that you can expect to devote about three hours outside of class for every hour spent in class.  This includes the homework, study time, term papers, projects, or whatever.  

Try to break up your schedule.  When you get home from school, spend an hour or so just completing the easy homework and skimming over the textbooks.  On Tuesdays and Thursdays, spend a couple of hours per class--sometimes more, sometimes less, depending upon your comfort level--reading, studying, completing homework, and working on any other assignments such as term papers.  Devote a little time on the weekends to studying, maybe about 3-4 hours each on Saturdays and/or Sundays, depending upon your religious permittance to study on weekends.  

If you do find yourself struggling, don't be afraid to ask for help.  Most schools offer free tutoring in many freshman-level courses, especially English.  Your professor may be able to provide you with suggestions as well, on how to improve your performance in class.

Most importantly, though, don't stress yourself out all semester.  Spend time enjoying yourself.  It's college; it's supposed to be fun.  

Answer 2

It can be really overwhelming at first. Just make sure to stay organized...use a planner and right down everything from the syllabus (assignment and exam dates). You don't have to read everything for every class. But you'll have to figure out what's important to read and whats not. You might just have to wait and see what the first exams are like. I've had plenty of classes where there was a ton of assigned reading and then none of the test questions came from the textbook. Like I said, you just have to do your best and see how the first exams go. Then you'll know how much more effort you need to put in. Good luck and study hard:)

Answer 3

You will get use to it so don't worry too  much. It may seem overwhelming right now but it will pass. When I went to college I made sure to take a good mix of classes (some that required a lot of reading and some that didn't) So for next semester consider taking a science, math or another class that doesn't require you to read so much. Also get to know what professor assign more reading. Ask around, some professor tend to assign a lot of reading and others don't. Good luck choosing classes next semester.