LIFE Peer Groups And Mentors Help Students Adjust To College Life @ (NAPSA)—In addition to staying up until 4 a.m.finishing a term paper and cramming all weekend long for a final exam, college students face pressures beyond the academic when adjusting to and enduring the daily grind of campus life. They also are trying to make friends, identify their interests and choose a potential career path. All of which can be overwhelming for students who are just starting their college career or simply trying to stay on track and graduate. “To help students acclimate to college life, on-campus organizations offer programs and support networks that promote leadership building and academic achievement,” said Angela Jones, director of community and scholar relations with the Hispanic Scholarship Fund (HSF), the nation’s leading organization supporting Hispanic higher education. “In addition, getting involved with oncampus organizations can help students make friends, find a mentor, create a network of study partners and determine a professional career path to take—which will increase the likelihood for students to persist in their pursuit of a college education.” Asstudents prepare to begin or go back to college, consider thefollowing benefits of joining on-campus organizations: Guidance—On-campusorganizations whose members share a common interest, either sociologieal or academic, offer students the opportunity to find a mentor— someone to help them adjust to the demandsof college life and who will understand their personal and academic experiences. For example, HSF works with HSF alumni now in professional roles to serve as mentors for student membersof HSF Scholar Chapters, a program initiated at 20 college campuses with seed funding from The Goldman Sachs Foundation. Focus—Student organizations provide members with the additional direction needed to achieve the goal at hand—obtaining an education. College offers many distractions to studying, and on-campus organizations can keep students on track and accountable to their commitments to an education by providing workshops and study groups focused on educational success and advancement. Professional Development— To prepare for life after college, on-campus organizations often bring the work world to students. Like HSF Scholar Chapters, other organizations, such as the Collegiate Chapters of the American Marketing Association, invite professionals from large companies to discuss career development. Leadership—aAsstudents continue to pursue an education, maintaining participation in an on-campus organization offers the opportunity to exercise leadership skills, such as joining the steering committee for a particular function or being the captain of an intramurals sports team. Socialize—While every student is attending college ultimately to obtain a degree, college is not all work and no play. Oncampus organizations offer a sense of community and belonging that allows students to find lifelong friends who share common interests. For more information about preparing students for college, please visit www.hsf.net.
