Researchers have identified certain things students can do to ensure success in college. Ironically, students are often unaware of what these "persistence factors", or keys to success, are and how much they really matter. Here are 20 basic things you can do to thrive in college. If you regularly practice the following suggestions, you can, and most likely will, succeed.

1. Find and get to know one individual on campus who knows you are there and who cares about your survival. One person, that's all it takes. It might be the instructor or course assistant of your Humanities class, another professor, an academic advisor, or someone at the career or counseling center.

2. Learn what resources our campus offers and where they are located. Follow the suggestions in the Pendle Hill for how to get in touch with the people who are here to serve you. There is the Career Services Office, the Counseling center, the Office of Advising & Testing, the Office of Student Retention and Disability Support Services, as well as many other resources.

3. Understand why you are in college. Your college experience will be much more productive if you can identify specific goals you wish to accomplish.

4. Set up a daily schedule and stick to it. Now that no one is around to tell you when to study or when to sleep; you need to do this for yourself. If you can't do it alone, find someone on campus who will - preferably someone who is doing it well him/herself!

5. If you're attending classes full-time (12-15 hours per semester), don't work more than 15 hours a week. Most people begin a downhill slide in the quality of learning beyond 15 work hours. Don't be one of them. If you need more money, borrow it from a low-interest student loan program with the Financial Aid Office. Try to work on campus. Students who work on campus tend to do better in classes and are more likely to stay enrolled than those working off campus.

6. Assess and improve your study habits. An integral part of your success in college involves assessing your own learning style, taking better notes in class, reading more efficiently, and doing better on tests. Be sure to visit the Write Place often for all writing assignments. Use the Math labs for help in that area, and ask your professors if you feel you need additional tutoring in any class.

7. Know how to use our campus library. The library isn't as formidable as it might seem, and it offers a wealth of information and resources.

8. Improve your writing. Your writing skills will serve you well throughout life if you take some pains now to secure and improve them. Write something everyday. The more you write, the better you write. Remember, writing is for life, not just for English 130.

9. Develop critical thinking skills. Challenge. Ask why. Look for unusual solutions to ordinary problems and ordinary solutions to unusual problems. There are few absolutely right and wrong answers in life, but some answers come closer to being "truthful" than others.

10. Find a great academic advisor and fight to keep him or her. The right advisor can be an invaluable source of support, guidance and insight throughout your college years.

11. Visit the Career Services Office. Even if you think you have chosen your academic major, this office can offer valuable information about career planning and about yourself.

12. Make one or two close friends among your peers. College represents a chance to form new and lasting ties. It also offers great diversity in terms of the people you can interact with. Choose your friends for their own self-worth, not for what they can do for you. Remember that in college, as in life, you become like those with whom you associate.

13. If you're not assertive enough, take assertiveness training. It's never too late to learn how to stand up for your rights in a way that respects the rights of others. There is a way to "speak the truth in love.

14. Get involved in campus activities. Work for the campus newspaper or radio station. Join a club. Play intramural sports. Yes, most campus organizations do welcome freshmen - you're their lifeblood.

15. Take your health seriously. How much sleep you get, what you eat, whether you exercise and the kinds of decisions you make about drugs, alcohol and sex all contribute to how well or unwell you feel. Get into the habit of being good to yourself and you'll be both a happier person and a more successful student.

16. If you can't avoid stress, learn how to live with it. While stress is an inevitable part of modem life, there are ways of dealing with it. The Counseling Center can introduce you to techniques that will help you worry less and study more.

17. Show up at class. Professors tend to test on what they discuss in class, as well as grade in part on the basis of class attendance (and participation). Don't abuse your new freedom. Being there is your responsibility. Simply being in class every day (unless you are sick) will go a long way toward helping you graduate. Remember the adage: 95% of success is simply showing up!

18. Remember that you are not alone. Thousands of other first-year students are facing the same uncertainties you now face. Make new friends and find out how much you have in common with the other new students at Malone. There's strength in numbers.

19. Learn to appreciate yourself more. Hey, you got this far!

20. Try to have realistic expectations. At first, you may not make the grades you made in high school. Or, even if you were a star athlete in high school, you might be an average athlete on a college team.

Do most of these suggestions sound simple? We guarantee that if you follow them, they will make a difference in your life, as they already have for thousands of graduates.

"20 Ways to Succeed in College." Malone University. 7 Jan. 2006