When Grande Lum first came to the University of California at Berkeley as a student in the 1980s, it was difficult.
The school felt big. He was sharing a room with two strangers for the first time. Everything felt new.
Now he’s the provost and vice president for academic affairs at Menlo College and watches new students come to his campus each year.
“We forget how challenging it is,” he said.
College freshmen often leave behind their familiar surroundings for new peers and places. They confront a whole new set of academic challenges, and they don’t always know what to expect. This is especially true for underrepresented students. But there are things students, parents and universities can do to make the transition more smooth.
Lum advises first-year students to try to spend time on campus or meet classmates in their area before school starts to get comfortable with their new surroundings. He also suggests students focus on developing a few deep friendships early on to build a support system.
For minority students, joining affinity groups can help, he said. When he was in law school at Harvard, he found community in the Asian American Law Students Association.
