College Culture

When I talk about "college culture," I am not talking about art shows in the student union or the freewheeling social lifestyle often depicted in movies set in college. Rather, I am talking about the norms and expectations held by the students, faculty, and staff on your campus. That is, how are you the college student expected to act and communicate?

You may protest: "Who cares what is considered normal or respectable?!? I am going to be myself and if you don't like how I act or communicate, that is not my problem!"

I see your point. But consider this: how you act and communicate will shape others' perception of you. Right or wrong, this perception may impact your academic opportunities, your social capital, your job prospects, and more.

Look, as a working professional in the world of higher education, I think the idea of professional attire is bunk. In my opinion, professional attire is counterproductive, superficial, aristocratic, and based on unexamined and irrational assumptions. But will I show up to a job interview in jeans and a t-shirt? Put slightly differently, do I want others' perceptions to rule me out before I say a single word? Cultural change takes time, and sometimes we need to pick and choose our battles.

So - my personal agitations aside - it is to your benefit to accomodate the norms and expectations of students, faculty, and staff at college. By in large, college culture also aligns with the expectations of the professional working world. Some of the major expectations of college culture include:

- Use decent and respectful language at all times
- During class, silence and disregard all mobile electronic devices not associated with learning
- Use proper grammar, punctuation, and spelling in any college communication - essay, discussion, e-mail, text message, et cetera
- Complete all required work on time
- Be on time for class, meetings, appointments
- Respect and listen to viewpoints different from your own
- Self advocate if you need help
- Ask questions if you have them
- Look to challenge yourself rather than seek the easiest path
- Take action to solve problems rather than blame or complain