In our last post, we gave the real story behind five of the most common college myths.

 

And now we’re going at it again. Here are five more popular college untruths, along with the reality check that goes with them.

 

 

Myth #1: Credit card companies wouldn’t approve me if I wasn’t responsible.

 

Reality: Credit card companies market aggressively to college students because college students tend to be (1) broke and (2) irresponsible.

 

At least when it comes to credit cards.

 

Since most 18-year-olds don’t have an established credit history, the fact that your mailbox is overflowing with preapproved credit card offers likely has very little to do with how responsible the credit card companies think you are. In fact, you’re probably getting those offers because statistics show that college students tend to be impulse shoppers, spending money they don’t have and racking up charges and interest they can’t pay back right away.

 

The credit card companies don’t want to give you a credit card because they think you’re a great person, they want to give you a credit card because they see you as their cash cow.

 

Allow yourself one credit card to start establishing your credit, use it only for emergencies (and a MacBook Air does NOT qualify as an emergency), and tear up all the other offers you get.

 

 

Myth #2: College is a lot like the real world.

 

Reality: OK, yes, college is closer to “real life” than your regimented, pre-packaged days in high school were. But you’re still a few layers removed from The Real World.

 

College is a time when you can focus on learning and exploring instead of on holding down a steady job so you can pay your bills. In college, you can travel as part of a study-abroad program, try out different jobs and internships during your summers, and throw yourself into different classes to find the perfect career for you. Once you’re out in the “real world,” you may not have these kinds of opportunities again.

 

College is about self-discovery, and few college students, if any, are set on the path that the rest of their lives will follow. So enjoy college for what it is, but don’t assume (for better or for worse) that your college life represents how your real-world life will be.

 

 

Myth #3: Since no one’s taking attendance, you can pretty much skip class, read the book, and just show up for tests and finals.

 

Reality: College isn’t high school. A lot of the questions on your exams may come from lectures and class discussions — material that may not be anywhere in your textbook. A lot of profs don’t take attendance because they assume that not bombing the tests is incentive enough for you to show up.

 

Sure, you could borrow notes from someone, but trust us, it’s a lot harder to grasp tricky concepts from other people’s notes when you haven’t been there to hear them explained first-hand.

 

 

Myth #4: It’s more important to get great grades in easier courses than to take difficult courses and risk getting lower grades.

 

Reality: It wasn’t true when you were in high school, applying to colleges, and it’s not true now. You’ll be better off, both personally and professionally, choosing your courses based on which class will help you learn more and not which class is going to help pad your GPA.

 

If you’re still concerned with that whole “marketability” thing (see Myth # 1 in our last post), think of it this way: Most employers and graduate schools are going to admire the hard workers and trailblazers, the applicants who took risks in college, stepped outside their comfort zone, and consistently challenged themselves instead of taking the easy or well-known road.

 

And honestly, five years from now, no one’s going to care what your college GPA was.

 

Really.

 

 

Myth #5: I need to decide on a major as soon as possible.

 

Reality: There’s a grain of truth to this myth, in the sense that if you decide to suddenly switch gears in the middle of your junior year, you may have to spend a couple extra semesters at school getting all your requirements in for your new major.

 

But changing majors is extremely common, and if you find that a major you thought was a good fit just doesn’t interest you anymore, don’t be afraid to look for a different one. If you set your course in stone from the start and just stick to it, bulldozing ahead no matter what, you’ll miss the detours that make the whole trip worthwhile.

 

So experiment. Try new classes. Don’t be afraid to fail.

 

And choose your major because it’s something you enjoy, not because you think it’ll look good on your résumé. Remember: You won’t get these years back, so live them for yourself, not for what’ll be printed on a piece of paper.