In our first “Zizzer Spotlight” article, we are proudly featuring Zizzer alumni Gerard Dietrich, WPHS class of 2016. As a Zizzer, Gerard was a terrific athlete in multiple sports as well as an excellent student. His Zizzer attitude has served him well, as he is about to become “Doctor Gerard Dietrich, MD”! Congratulations Dr. Dietrich! Here is his message to current Zizzers:
The first semester of college is unlike any other time in your life. The first semester for myself entailed some of the highest highs and the lowest lows thus far of my college career. For myself, at the University of Missouri – Kansas City, within the first month I met peers that were much like myself. I quickly had the blessing of getting to know older students who were also involved in STEM fields. Recounting their previous experiences, they were able to coach me through the adjustments I would need to become successful in a college setting.
I found comfort and fortitude in seeing the successes of the young men who were further along in school than myself, as they advanced through UMKC’s 6 medical school I took note of their resolve and dedication to both their school work and the lives of those around them. Through watching the successes of those older than myself, I was able to orient myself with goals and objectives in order to move towards my goal of graduating from UMKC’s B.A./M.D. program.
Ultimately, my first piece of advice for any first time college freshman is to use your resources to seek out a role model that is willing to mentor you and keep you accountable. I truly believe that no matter where you are or what you plan on studying, people have an intrinsic desire to do good and assist those younger than themselves. Be kind and amiable, there will be people who will be thrilled to help you if you simply ask.
Undoubtedly, one of the most difficult parts of going away to college is missing out on being with your family and friends from high school. It is incredibly easy to feel as if you are cut out from a lot of the good times and memories that your high school friends are currently making. I know this is certainly hard at first, but it will be alright. Your friends who stayed home to go to college or work will quickly move on with their lives. Jobs begin to demand more and those high school relationships often quickly take a more serious turn. On the flipside, when you go home after being away at school for a couple of months, it makes a great excuse for you and all of your friends to get together. I can assure you that your Grandma and your good friends will still love you when you go home for Thanksgiving break even if they haven’t seen you for a couple of months.
This brings me to my next point. In my opinion, it is crucial to stay away at college on the weekends during your freshman year, particularly in your first semester. I think this is important for a number of reasons. Firstly, staying away at your college campus on the weekends allows you to develop your home away from home. Weekends are a perfect time to get out and meet people on the soccer field, in the gym, or even in the library. As you get to know more people at your campus, the weekends will become an important time to cultivate those new relationships.
It is hard to improve yourself and your relationships at your campus if you are consistently making a round trip of seven hours between West Plains and MSSU at Joplin every weekend. Not to mention, when you are driving all those miles you are losing critical study time. If this study time was employed effectively, it could help you kick off college with a solid first semester in terms of grades.
The last thing that I wanted to talk about was the actual schoolwork itself.
College will be more difficult for some first time students than for others. One of the initial aspects of college that was the most shocking for myself at first was getting adjusted to the increased level of planning and scheduling that was required of myself in order to stay on top of my course work. For one of the first times in my life, I found myself missing assignments and thus easy points. I quickly purchased a planner and took up a sense of accountability for my schoolwork. I found that if I put in the time and practiced a study method of spaced repetition the grades that I wanted followed.
Be prepared to put in two hours of study for each course hour that you are enrolled in. If you attend class 15 hours a week and then study for 30 hours for a total of 45 hours spent with whatever material you are are working with, I can guarantee you will be successful and still have plenty of time to do fun things and develop relationships with those around you.
Grades are important, but they aren’t all that matters in college. School will be more difficult at first than what you may be used to, that’s alright. You will probably fail a test or two your first semester of college, that’s alright too. You’re probably going to miss your friends and family back home more than ever before, even that’s alright. Whether you’re working towards taking the LSAT and applying to law school or learning to become an electrician, faculty and employers look to hire those who they think have the ability to persevere.
If you struggle at first in school, stay the course. Don’t allow an obstacle to turn into an excuse and drop the course if you don’t have to, instead turn that obstacle of a difficult class into an opportunity and do the best you can and plan on improving later. At the very least, this will give you a talking point of how you overcame some form of adversity. Your first semester away from home in my opinion is the most difficult, but it is also one of the most rewarding as you work towards building the self reliance and grit that will carry you through the rest of your life and propel you into your professional career.
Gerard Dietrich | UMKC School of Medicine ‘22 – MS III | WPHS class of ‘16
