High School vs. College

In High School:

• You must go to high school
• Others structure your time
• Teachers remind you of responsibilities 

In College:

• College is voluntary
• You structure your time
• You must balance your responsibilities

In High School:

• Homework may take as little as two hours a week
• Assignments are discussed and often re-taught in class
• Your teachers tell you what you need to learn from assignments 

In College:

• Expect to study two to three hours a week for each class hour
• Assignments may not be directly addressed in class
• You must read and understand the assigned material for yourself

In High School:

• Frequent tests covering smaller amounts of material
• Makeup tests are often possible
• Test dates are often rearranged to avoid conflict with events or other courses
• Learning goals typically focus on the ability to reproduce what you were taught or to solve the kinds of problems you were shown how to solve 

In College:

• Infrequent tests that may cover a great deal of material
• Makeup tests are rarely possible
• Tests are scheduled without regard to the demands of other courses or activities
• Learning goals typically focus on applying what you have learned to new situations or solving new kinds of problems

In High School:

• Given for most assigned work
• Good homework grades may help raise overall grade when test grades are low
• Extra credit is often available to boost your grade
• Test grades at the start of the semester may not affect final grade 

In College:

• May not be given for all work
• Grades on tests and major papers usually provide most of the course grade
• Extra credit is not typically offered
• Initial tests are often used as “wake-up calls” for expectations 

In High School:

• You spend 30 hours in class every week
• The school year is 36 weeks long; some classes extend over both semesters and some do not
• Teachers carefully monitor attendance
• You are provided with textbooks at little or no cost 

In College:

• You spend 12 to 16 hours in classes each week
• The academic year is traditionally divided into two separate 16-week semesters
• Professors may or may not take attendance
• You will have to pay for textbooks 

In High School:

• Review your homework
• Remind you about incomplete work
• Approach you if they think you need help
• Are often available before or after class
• Have been trained as teachers
• Help you catch up after an absence 

In College:

• May not always review completed homework
• May not remind you of incomplete work
• Expect you to ask for help if you need it
• Expect you to attend scheduled office hours if you need help or feedback
• Have been trained as experts in their academic discipline
• Expect you to ask your classmates to help you catch up after an absence