
- Financial Planning: For any youngster about to start college life, there’s no escaping the need to have a financial plan, given the rising cost of university education in the country. It is estimated that tuition fees in public colleges have witnessed a 100 percent rise since 2001, after factoring in inflation.
Therefore, the choice of university course has to be based on a realistic assessment of the total cost of completing the course, the extent of financing required, your career prospects and your repayment capacity after graduation. It may sound like a troublesome exercise, but that could make the difference between a good life and a post-graduation debt trap.
- Alienation: Loneliness is a severely under-reported aspect of campus life. Students usually come completely unprepared for the challenge since they are led to believe that the time spent at university would be- in the words of one expert– the time of their lives. The problem gets exacerbated by the fact that many institutions do not have in-campus counsellors to help them cope with the loneliness. The situation becomes even more dire among international students, who have the additional challenge of having to cope with a culturally alien environment.
Consequently, it is extremely important to enter campus with a realistic idea of the challenges that lie in store and the possible coping mechanisms, which could be in the form of co-curricular activities like sports, theatrics, music classes, etc. Most importantly, remember that talking to peers can help you immensely. If you are feeling lonely in campus, it is quite likely that they are sailing in the same boat.
- Academic Papers: Another challenge for which you need to be prepared is the research paper that is an important component of many university courses. Writing a paper from scratch demands writing skills not everyone naturally possesses. The challenge assumes an altogether different dimension if you are foreign student, for whom English is not even the first language.
So, while deciding which course you want to get into, get a clear picture of the challenges that it will pose and how you are going to overcome them. This will ensure that there are no road bumps along the way.