March 27, 2013

With So Many College Sporting Options, Explore While Being As Competitive As You Wish



Since college is the next (and for many, the last) step in your academic career, your studies are going to have to be the most important factor when deciding upon a college. Unfortunately for many, the level of sport that they would like to compete at does not match up with the level of academic studies at a college. 


Picking a school with highly competitive academics can often mean highly competitive division one athletics, as well. Be realistic with yourself when deciding: If you can’t play at the division one level in your sport, it may be time to focus strictly on advancing in your academic studies. Fortunately, at most colleges there are other sporting options to keep you involved and competing in a sport that you may not be ready to give up just yet!


Many colleges have Junior Varsity (JV) or club teams, and the level of play varies at each college. These teams are slightly less competitive than the Varsity ones, and they require less commitment. Instead of practicing or playing a game six days a week, you will probably only do so for three. JV or club teams allow you to still play a game that you love while maintaining a competitive nature. The team atmosphere remains prevalent and the practices will keep your skills at a high level in the event that you want to try out for the Varsity team in the coming years.


Intramural leagues are also an option, which require significantly less time and commitment than Varsity, JV or club teams. Depending on the college, various sports are played in an intramural league. These games are usually played only once a week, and unless your team is super serious about the intramural league, there are no practices. This option allows you to still play semi-competitively and stay physically fit. You may even score a free t-shirt if your team wins the intramural league!


If these options don’t sound appealing, but you still want to be involved in something to stay physically fit, check in with your campus fitness center to see what it offers. Many schools now offer free Zumba or yoga classes on certain nights of the week. Grab some friends and attend one, even if it’s just for fun! If your school doesn’t have these options don’t be afraid to speak up. Bring the interest to the attention of a student government board member and see what can be done to get some more fitness options on your campus!


Stay tuned to read more about college sports and activities! You can also follow my posts on the Next Step U blog at http://nextstepu.wordpress.com/ for more college planning information and tips to playing a college sport!


- Krista Pilla

  Next Step U

March 18, 2013

Can You Become Too Involved In College?

Whether you plan to start college soon or are already several semesters in, you’ve heard it from everyone, no doubt: get involved! Parents, professors, and peers will all be encouraging you to join some sort of club or activity. Since there are more than you can probably even keep track of, it shouldn’t be too difficult to find some that pique your interest. Whether they’re academic-related or just plain fun or goofy, there’s a club or organization for every interest.

Yet, especially when you’re just acclimating to college, is there such a thing as getting too involved? There is. If you join five or six different clubs right in your first several weeks of college, you may wind up like an overloaded computer that just shuts down. Trying to juggle classes on top of all those clubs and organizations will be more than any one person can handle. What will happen is, in attempt to do everything and be everywhere at once, you may still get things done, but not done well.

College life itself is the ultimate instructor of time management. No matter how good you are at it, it’s important to keep in mind that we’re all working with the same number of hours of daylight. Time is a finite resource, and so is your ability to manage it. Instead of running from club meeting to club meeting and class to class, focus on just a few clubs in which you’re particularly interested. Since you probably can’t or shouldn’t cut how many classes you take (especially so early in your college career), you’ll have no choice but to learn to love a couple clubs just a little less!

If you insist on attending five different organizations, at least don’t take on leadership positions in all of them. It’s great to be ambitious and to want to have new responsibilities, but you also won’t be doing the organization a favor if you can’t dedicate adequate time to it. In fact, you may be setting yourself up for conflict! No one wants to be the one accused of not doing his or her share of the work. Then again, if you have a full schedule of classes and a variety of other clubs to oversee, you might have to shirk some responsibilities no matter your work ethic.

Don’t forget the main reason you’re in college: to take classes and to learn. Believe it or not, it’s actually quite easy to place classes in the backseat while placing club duties at the forefront. Oftentimes your club duties will be, well, more interesting and fun than studying and reading textbooks. But here’s where responsibility comes back into play. You have to be responsible for your grades as well, and even if you’re the superstar in your favorite club, letting grades slip just shows that you’re not as great at managing time as thought. College work will keep you plenty busy, but there is still enough time to get involved … to a point. What that point is will be different for everyone, so use those grades as your barometer. You can and should still get involved, but, although you’ll hear it a million times from parents, professors, and more, don’t forget about those grades!

March 13, 2013

What Role Should Sports Play In Dictating Your College Decision?

Have you been dedicated to a specific sport for many years now? Are you a member of your high school team, as well as the local travel or elite team? Have you thought about playing a sport in college? These are all questions that I had answered yes to a little over three years ago. Since then I have learned many things about playing a sport in college, and I’m here to share them with you!

I ended up where I am today mostly because of my love for a game. I had come to the conclusion that I wanted to play soccer in college, but I also wanted to attend a small private school and study Communications and Sport Management. Luckily for me all of these pieces fit together at one college, but unfortunately the same can’t be said for everyone, so be prepared to let one trump the other if necessary in your final decision. I know that every single book or article you read will tell you to never let sports dictate your college decision, but I’m here to tell you that it’s okay to make it your starting point. After all, it may be all that you’ve ever known!

As an experienced high school athlete you will most likely start to see emails from college coaches at the beginning of your junior year. Don’t put any aside! Take the time to research each school and give them a chance. You never know, a school you’ve never heard of could be the perfect fit for you. Email the coaches back and plan a time to go on an overnight visit with your chosen sports team. This will allow you a full 24-hour experience to see the college, learn about all that it has to offer and see if you fit in with the team. You’ll know the right college immediately when everything clicks during those 24 hours, I promise. If the first overnight doesn’t work out, don’t let it get to you, just keep planning them until you find the right fit for you.

Once you have decided what college you will attend and play a sport at, it is time to start religiously checking your email. You will start to receive numerous emails from your coach and the college’s athletic office about forms that need completing before you attend a preseason and play there. Don’t let these emails and forms pile up! Coaches will notice your responsibility and be grateful that you took the time to do what you needed to play for them in the near future. Most coaches will also send you a workout packet if your sport starts in the fall. The number-one piece of advice I can give is to follow that packet! When I received mine I almost shed a tear over the 40 pages set in front of me, but I broke it down day by day and really impressed the coaches with my physical fitness on the first day of preseason.

That packet will be the first thing you dedicate yourself to as a soon-to-be college athlete. Get used to this now, as your commitment level will only increase when you attend college and your sports season starts up. Prepare yourself to master time management skills with classes, homework, practices, and games. But don’t let this scare you! You’ve probably got a great time management base as a high school athlete, so keep those tools and habits that you have acquired and tweak them as you see necessary at your college.

Most of all, be sure that you are 100-percent dedicated to playing a sport in college. It demands a lot of time and commitment, but if you love playing the sport it will all be worth it in the end! Being a collegiate athlete isn’t for everyone, and there are always other options, such as recreational and JV teams! Stay tuned to read about some of those options in my upcoming posts! You can also follow my posts on the Next Step U blog at http://nextstepu.wordpress.com/ for more college planning information and tips to playing a college sport!



- Krista Pilla
   Next Step U
 


March 5, 2013

What To Expect And Plan For On Move-In Day At College

 Check out this vid for some actual move-in day footage! You'll see what to expect.

You probably have a lot of expectations about college life and dorm living, some good and some bad. But how much thought have you put into move-in day at college? Probably not a lot, as planning for move-in day becomes eclipsed by planning for dorm life in general. After all, you likely are more concerned about what you’ll eat in college and what friends you’ll make—you’re probably not as concerned about how you’ll carry in and unpack a bunch of boxes. Such a task sounds simple … or so it seems.

Move-in day is worth thinking about and planning for. While your school will have staff and other students there to direct you and the sea of other new freshman and parents, some of the logistics will still be up to you. When it comes to packing up the old minivan, or whatever vehicle is transporting your dorm supplies, follow the general packing rule of putting heavier objects on the bottom. Your dorm stuff will be less likely to shift around and spill out when you open the trunk. Trust us, you don’t need the added stress of your dorm items strewn about on the parking lot!

If you haven’t already, purchase  a dorm trunk to transport your college supplies. It’ll keep them more protected than a suitcase or cardboard box, and it’s actually easier to move one large college trunk with wheels than to carry a bunch of smaller but heavy boxes. Check out all of DormCo’s great trunks for college here!:  
http://www.dormco.com/College_Dorm_Trunks_s/23.htm

Move-in day can seem overwhelming with all the packing, unpacking, and people buzzing around. So when it comes to unpacking, remember you’ll be in that dorm room for months and months! Don’t feel that you need to unpack everything immediately after dropping it off in your new room, as that job alone can be time-consuming and stressful. Try and keep everyday, much-needed dorm supplies packed separately from less crucial stuff for college. This way you can unpack essential stuff while leaving some time to decide where to store the rest of your supplies. Dorm rooms are small, and dorm room organization can be a challenge. You might need some time to think it through, as it’s worth optimizing the layout and placement of your dorm stuff since that dorm room is your new home!

Finally, saying goodbye to mom and dad can be a bit of a tearjerker for everyone involved. It might seem odd to plan for that moment when you’ll have to say goodbye, but if you don’t, things can get pretty emotional and even a little awkward. Our advice: don’t drag it out! It’ll only get more emotional as the minutes go by, so leave it to the basic quick hug and kiss. Don’t worry. In a few hours your phone will ring … and guess who it’ll be? Yep, mom and dad just checking in. Get used to it now!