The student news site of El Camino College

El Camino College The Union

The student news site of El Camino College

El Camino College The Union

The student news site of El Camino College

El Camino College The Union

Need some help?

Sometimes it feels like yesterday when one remembers wearing a cap and a gown, anxious to receive that long-awaited diploma and excited to enter the “real world.”

Welcome. Now what?

Jeremi Ugi, a 2004 graduate of Torrance High School, said that he feels unprepared for college.

Although he has completed his high school education, he is intimidated by college schoolwork and is worried about not having a detailed plan of what he is going to do while in college.

“I had no idea what college was like. The teachers are more strict; they expect you to do everything and I wasn’t expecting that,” Ugi said.

Another difficult college aspect for high schoolers is the jargon and the terms used, Cynthia Mosqueda, who is a counselor from the First Year Experience program, said.

“We use a lot of different terms that students do not understand and they are learning a new vocabulary for the very first time. This is a vocabulary related to the college environment,” Mosqueda said.

There are also students who knew exactly what they were in for when they began going to college, Rutina Taylor, a third-year counselor, said.

“If it has been instilled in them to go to college, then they will do well. High school doesn’t matter,” Taylor said.

Mosqueda said that adapting to college takes time and dedication as well as any other changes.

“Anytime you make a transition from high school to college, you have to learn the process all over again,” Mosqueda said.

She said that not knowing what to major in or what classes to take is OK, because EC provides workshops and counselors.

These services exist to help students work out plans that meet their individual needs and interests.

“Take advantage of an orientation. A lot of students who come to El Camino College bypass counseling and they bypass orientation orginizations, which are free,” Mosqueda said.

There are several classes a student may take to cope with the transition from high school to college, Mosqueda said.

One of these classes is Human Development 8, “Orientation to College Educational Planning Guidance,” which is an eight-week, one-unit class that is transferable to the Cal States.

Students may also take Human Development 10, “Strategies for Success in College.”

“We know that students who take those classes, as opposed to students who don’t, wind up doing bettar at El Camino, because right away in their first semester they learn how to navigate services,” Mosqueda said.

She also said that students who take those classes also get to know what professors expect from them.

Such services also include the Writing Center, which is located in the Communications Building.

Also, EOP&S, is located on the second floor of the Student Services Building.

“The most popular major on this campus is undecided,” Mosqueda said.

Although many students are unsure of what they want to pursue, there are also many students who do have detailed plans and know what they want, Mosqueda said.

But this doesn’t necessarily mean that they will do better. Mosqueda said that a student who was well informed in high school, still does not always have an advantage over his or her peers.

“College is just like anything else. It is a culture,” she said.

More to Discover