The transition from high school to college may seem overwhelming.  I still remember
the first night I spent in my dorm room.  I was surrounded by people I didn’t know
in a completely foreign environment.  I was so homesick. At this point, I thought I would hate college!  As it turned out, my college experience became one of the most enjoyable experiences of my life. 

College is different from high school in many ways.  One of the biggest adjustments, especially for those with learning disabilities, is learning time-management skills in light of your newfound independence. This is important because your coursework will be more demanding and most likely more difficult.  This was something that concerned me as a first-year college student.  To relieve some of this stress, I decided to review some of the textbooks for my courses before the semester began. If you are not aware of it, most schools provide a list of the textbooks required for each class before each semester begins.  Getting a head start on the readings was extremely beneficial.  I would often find myself ahead of the work in the courses that came easier to me, which allowed me to concentrate on
the courses that were more difficult.  It also allowed me to follow and understand each lecture better.  

There may be downfalls, however, to this approach. Some professors focus only a portion of the textbook, so I often wound up reading more of the textbooks than I was actually required to read.  Nevertheless, it did help me become a stronger reader and understand the material more completely.  Reviewing the textbooks prior to each semester also gave me a rough idea of which classes would be more difficult for me and which would require more
studying time.