The One Thing I Tell Every College Student to Do During the Second Week of Classes

The first week of college can feel like a whirlwind. When I talk with them they are exhausted, overwhelmed, and on sensory overload!

They are figuring out where their classes are, learning their schedule, meeting new people, trying to understand the dining hall, attempting to stay organized, and hopefully remembering to do their laundry.

Then comes week two.

This is the week when I tell every college student I work with to do one thing:

Go to office hours. Every professor. Every class.

And no, you don’t have to have a question. Not having a question is actually the best time to go.

Why go to office hours if you don’t have a question?

Because college success is about much more than getting good grades.

It is also about learning how to use the resources around you, advocate for yourself, build relationships, and know where to turn when something isn’t going well.

Walking into a professor’s office during the second week of classes gives your student the opportunity to introduce themselves when everything is still going well.

I tell my students to keep it simple.

Walk in and say something like:

“Hi, I’m Sarah. I’m in your Tuesday/Thursday 10:00 class. I just wanted to introduce myself.”

They can tell the professor why they chose the class.

Or, if it’s a required class they aren’t particularly excited about, be honest.

One of my clients did exactly that. She went to see her French professor and said, essentially, “I’m really nervous about French. I’ve never been good at languages.”

Instead of judging her, the professor offered to let her come in before each quiz so if she had questions she could ask.

That relationship made a difference.

She got through French much better than she expected.

Relationships with professors matter more than students realize.

I’ve seen the other side of this too.

I once worked with a student who was applying to graduate school and needed letters of recommendation.

The problem?

She didn’t really have a relationship with any of her professors.

She had gone to class. She had done the work. She had gotten great grades in college.

But she hadn’t taken the time to get to know the people who were teaching her.

That made something that should have been relatively straightforward much harder.

I’ve also seen the opposite happen.

Students who take the initiative to introduce themselves, ask questions, go to office hours, and build relationships with professors sometimes find that those professors remember them.

And sometimes those relationships lead to opportunities.

I’ve seen professors reach out to students about research opportunities, internships, and other experiences because they knew the student, knew their interests, and knew they were someone who was willing to take initiative.

That’s the part of college that doesn’t always show up on a syllabus.

College success is about knowing how to use your resources. For a list of resources designed for college success head over to my College Readiness Store.

The problem is that many students don’t use these resources until they are already struggling.

By then, asking for help can feel much harder.

That’s why I want students to practice using their resources before they need them.

Going to office hours during the second week is a small step that can make asking for help later feel much less intimidating.

And for parents, this is one of those college skills worth talking about before your child leaves home.

Don’t just ask, “How are your classes going?”

Ask:

“Have you been to any of your professors’ office hours yet?”

If the answer is no, encourage them to go.

They don’t need a big question.

They just need to walk through the door.

Does your college student have the tools they need to succeed?

College readiness isn’t just about getting into college.

That’s exactly why I created my College Readiness Shop — simple, practical resources that give teens the tools they need to navigate college and become more independent.

College Readiness Shop – Explore the Products For College Success!

I created these resources based on the skills I see college students struggling with in my work as a therapist. They’re designed to be simple, easy to follow, and actually useful in real college life.

Because sometimes the difference between struggling and succeeding isn’t that a student needs to work harder.

Sometimes they just need to know what to do next.

And sometimes, that next step is as simple as walking into office hours.

You’ve got this. And so do they.

Keri Cooper, LCSW
College Ready by Keri