This past Wednesday, Professor Daniel Schwarz spoke about his new book, How to Succeed in College and Beyond: The Art of Learning, which outlines his advice to getting the most of the college experience. His book goes over everything from the College Olympics (the process of finding the right college) to the impact of the Greek system on self-development.

After his talk, I searched for his posts on the Huffington Post. I came across one of his blogs entitled Nineteen Suggestions for College Sophomores. As a sophomore, it seemed appropriate to click. Some of my favorite tips I got from the post were:

• Declare your major and start thinking about future options.
• Choose future satisfaction over future earnings.
• Choose an advisor who is interested in you, and meet with them more than the minimum required.
• Take classes from amazing professors, not for the easiest grade.
• Develop leadership skills through extracurricular involvement.

As I’m finishing up my sophomore year, I can attest that these points are really valid. I also found a blog of the Professor’s entitled Suggestions for College Juniors: Balancing the Joy and Practicality of Learning. This is some of his advice:

• Study abroad or in Washington D.C. (like Cornell in Washington) for a term
• Think about a concentration within your major.
• Think about independent research or an Honors thesis.

According to the Professor’s blog, I’m relatively on track in thinking and planning for the future, so that’s comforting! I really enjoyed his insight and advice.

I encourage everyone to skim through his blogs on the Huffington Post: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/daniel-r-schwarz/