In this week’s Rose cafe, professor Schwarz gave us an inspiring talk on how to succeed in college and prepare for the future. He gives us many useful tips, such as get to know professors well, take some humanities courses and plan early and carefully for graduation. Interestingly, his talk reminds me of a book I read before: ‘How to Win at College’, by Cal Newport. It surprises me that although both professor Schwarz and Newport share a lot of similar opinions, the book and the talk are pretty different and give quite different advice.

The talk feels more like giving a big picture, while the book gives more specific suggestions. Both mentioned the importance of doing research, having fun, having enough sleep, etc. But what I like more of professor Schwarz’s talk is that he gives us an idea of what students should be focusing on each college year. As a sophomore, I feel completely different as I started the new school year. I often get confused and become unsure on how to balance study, work, activities and all kinds of other opportunities. Professor Schwarz’s talk really gives me guidance on how to plan my four years(or the three years left) wisely and prepare myself for the future. The book doesn’t mention much about the goals of each year, but gives a lot of practical tips, which some I find very useful. Such tips include like how to write papers, how to prepare for tests, how to learn the most from lectures and so on.

Another amusing difference is that professor Schwarz believes everyone should have some knowledge of economics and computer science, while Newport thinks art history and astronomy are the classes everyone has to take. How interesting!

Overall, college is an amazing experience and I believe both the talk and the book give me good advice on how to live my college years to the most. As professor Schwarz said, ‘College is not about where you go, but what you make of it.’ Work hard, and have fun!