Tuesday, January 27, 2015

How to Succeed in a Joint Program: Five Easy Steps

One of the many options for a student looking for a quality post-secondary education is a joint journalism program between a college and university. In this case, a joint program has you taking classes at a university for a Bachelors Degree Program, then heading to college for a practical diploma focused around the same area of study. There's numerous advantages to this set up. For one thing, you get to leave with both theoretical and practical knowledge of a subject, and leave the program with both a degree and a diploma. More advantageous to your personal development is the fact that you'll get to attend two different campuses, and get a slice of two different sorts of student life. This will prove to be the key to your success, and here's how to take advantage of it:

1) Focus on skills development, not grades
Obviously, you still need to do well, but bear in mind both of these schools are supposed to be helping you, and you're not there to serve them. You're at college for job skills, and university for mental skills. Pay attention to what abilities you can pull from your program, and be prepared to nurture them, and show them off in your portfolio, your resume, and job interviews.

2) Take writing seriously
Out of all the skills you can learn, you should always pay attention to writing. Even in the digital age, you'll still need to send emails, resumes, cover letters, proposals, and other formal communications. And in both college and university, you'll be writing assignments, too. Take the time to learn how to communicate clearly and formally, and you'll always have an advantage over those that can't, regardless of the career. Speaking of careers…

3) Search for the exact career that suits you
Even if you're taking a narrow subject, there's still a a broad set of careers you can find yourself in. And if you're in a joint program, you'll get an increased perspective on what you can become when school's over. And it's important that you do, because your career will define part of your life, so it's important you find one that's rewarding, fits your strengths, and that you find enjoyable.

4) Take advantage of the smaller classes
By the time you reach the college part of the program, you'll be able to appreciate the pros of not inhabiting a 300 person lecture hall, namely the fact that your professor will know who you are, your questions have a good chance of being answered, and you will receive a more personalized education. Be sure to make use of this, and develop those skills as well as you can.

5) Pay attention to the people
They'll be the ones getting you the job, albeit indirectly by networking. And attending a joint program means you'll find yourself on two campuses, with double the network of people. So, get to know teachers and students alike, forge some bonds, and be prepared to see those bonds lead you to post-school career success.

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