Cover: Understanding Your College Experience, 4th Edition by John N. Gardner; Betsy O. Barefoot; Kimberly A. Koledoye

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Understanding Your College Experience

Fourth  Edition©2027  John N. Gardner; Betsy O. Barefoot; Kimberly A. Koledoye

About

Understanding Your College Experience, Fourth Edition, by Gardner, Barefoot, and Koledoye helps you develop essential academic and life skills to succeed in college and beyond. Updated content on mental health, learning science, and study strategies supports your personal and academic growth, while guidance on using AI tools effectively prepares you for today’s tech-driven world.

Table of Contents

Part One: Welcome to Your College Experience

Chapter 1: The Essentials for College Success

    Profile

    Exploring Purpose and Setting Goals

    Self Exploration and Career Planning

    Academic Planning

    Making the Transition by Connecting with Others

Chapter 2: Cultivating Motivation, Resilience, and Emotional Intelligence

    Profile

    The Importance of Motivation, Attitude, and Mindset

    Resilience and Grit

    Understanding Emotional Intelligence

Chapter 3: Managing Time, Energy, and Money

    Profile

    Managing Your Time

    Managing Your Energy

    Managing Your Money

Chapter 4: Discovering How You Learn

    Profile

    How People Learn

    The VARK Inventory

    The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator

    Multiple Intelligences

    When Learning Preferences and Teaching Methods Conflict

    Understanding and Improving Your Learning

    Learning with a Learning Disability or Challenge

Part Two: Succeeding in College

Chapter 5. Getting the Most Out of Class

    Profile

    Become Engaged in Learning

    Prepare for Class

    Participate in Class

    Take Effective Notes

Chapter 6: Reading to Learn from College Textbooks

    Profile

    A Plan for Active Reading

    Strategies for Reading Different Kinds of Textbooks

    Improving Your Reading

    Midterm Check In

    Introduction

    My Midterm Check-In Audit

Chapter 7: Studying, Understanding, and Remembering

    Profile

    Studying in College: Making Choices and Concentrating

    Improving Your Memory

    Study Strategies and Tools for Success

    Studying to Understand and Remember

Chapter 8: Taking Tests Successfully

    Profile

    Getting Ready…

    Taking the Test

    Types of Questions

    Test Anxiety

    Academic Honesty, Misconduct, and Artificial Intelligence

Chapter 9: Developing Information Literacy and Communication Skills

    Profile

    Information LIteracy

    Choosing, Narrowing, and Researching a Topic

    Using a Campus Library

    Evaluating Sources

    Using Your Research in Writing

    The Writing Process

Part Three: Your Path to Success in College and Beyond

Chapter 10: Thinking in College

    Profile

    College-Level Thinking

    Developing Strong Thinking Skills

    Applying Your Critical-Thinking Skills

    Bloom’s Taxonomy and the First Year of College

Chapter 11: Maintaining Wellness and Relationships in Today’s World

    Profile

    Understanding Wellness

    College and Mental Health

    Managing Your Relationships

    Thriving in Varied Environments

Chapter 12: Making the Right Career Choice

    Profile

    Careers and the New Economy

    Planning for Your Career

    Getting Experience

    Job Search Strategies

    Skills Employers Seek

    Staying on the Path to Success

John N. Gardner

John N. Gardner brings unparalleled experience to students as an author. The recipient of his institutions highest award for teaching excellence, John has over forty years of experience directing and teaching in the most widely emulated first-year seminar in the country, the University 101 course at the University of South Carolina (USC), Columbia. John is universally recognized as one of the countrys leading educators for his role in initiating and orchestrating an international reform movement to improve the beginning college experience, a concept he coined as "the first-year experience." He is the founding executive director of the National Resource Center for The First-Year Experience and Students in Transition at USC, as well as the Policy Center on the First Year of College and the John N. Gardner Institute for Excellence in Undergraduate Education (www.jngi.org), both based in Brevard, N.C.

Betsy O. Barefoot

Betsy O. Barefoot is a writer, researcher, and teacher whose special area of scholarship is the first-year seminar. During her tenure at USC from 1988 to 1999, she served as co-director for research and publications at the National Resource Center for The First-Year Experience and Students in Transition. She also taught University 101 and graduate courses on the first-year experience and the principles of college teaching. She conducts first-year seminar faculty training workshops around the world and is frequently called on to evaluate first-year seminar outcomes. Betsy is co-director and senior scholar in the Policy Center on the First Year of College and Vice President of the John N. Gardner Institute for Excellence in Undergraduate Education both in Brevard, N.C. In her Policy Center role she led a major national research project to identify institutions of excellence in the first college year. She currently works with both two- and four-year campuses in evaluating all components of the first year.

Kimberly A. Koledoye

Kimberly A. Koledoye is a professor of academic student success and serves as the academic student success program coordinator for the Houston Community College system. Additionally, she teaches developmental and credit-level English. Her work has made a tremendous impact not only on the institution but also statewide, as a leader of development teams for first-year-experience courses and developmental English redesigns. She holds a bachelor of arts in English, a master’s degree in education administration, a graduate certificate in rhetoric and composition, and a doctorate in higher education leadership.