The Big Book of College: A Professor Tells You Everything You Need to Know to Succeed in and Out of the Classroom

Comprehensive insider knowledge and guidance on how to successfully navigate the ever-changing college landscape from a professor with decades of experience as an educator and student mentor

Every year, millions of new students enroll in college. Between the skyrocketing costs and the alienation and mental health challenges caused by smartphones, social media, and schooling during Covid-19, the experience awaiting new students is not only radically different from that of their parents, guidance counselors, and teachers, it’s different from what it was just a few years ago. Until now, there was no guide that addressed these seismic changes.

Deborah J. Cohan, a professor of sociology and a deeply engaged mentor to her students, created this book specifically for this reason. Her articles about college life for Psychology Today and Inside Higher Ed have routinely gone viral, garnering more than 2 million reads and establishing her as the expert on college life now. In this book, she builds on the insights and advice from her articles to provide a complete road map for navigating the social and academic issues that have emerged in the new, postpandemic campus landscape.

Readers will find:

- strategies to help students become effective advocates and communicators for themselves
- advice on choosing a major that aligns with a student’s true passions and strengths
- tips for juggling a variety of issues including personal relationships, mental health, social media, and academic challenges
- guidance on preparing students for the transition to college and to life after graduation
- help for parents on stepping back from becoming overly involved

With her wise and knowledgeable voice, Cohan has created a resource that’s accessible, authoritative, and packed with practical information. This insider’s guide will give students and parents the confidence to navigate the new dynamics of today’s college experience.

Deborah J. Cohan is a professor of sociology at the University of South Carolina Beaufort who has also served on the faculty at Harvard University, Connecticut College, UConn, Regis College, and several other institutions. Frequently invited to speak and write about matters related to higher education, she writes for Psychology Today and Inside Higher Ed and has also contributed to Teen Vogue, the New York Times ＂Modern Love＂ column, Newsweek, Ms. magazine, and The Good Men Project. She has been featured by such national media as CNN, MSN, Buzzfeed, TIME, Parents, Real Simple, Good Housekeeping, USA Today, US News & World Report, Salon, Cosmopolitan, Elite Daily, Utne Reader, the Washington Post, the Chicago Tribune, TODAY, Vox, Slate, Vice News, HuffPost, and the Chronicle of Higher Education. Cohan is the author of Welcome to Wherever We Are: A Memoir of Family, Caregiving, and Redemption (Rutgers, 2020).

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