{"id":718512,"date":"2026-09-04T16:26:23","date_gmt":"2026-09-04T20:26:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/?p=718512"},"modified":"2026-09-25T18:57:32","modified_gmt":"2026-09-25T22:57:32","slug":"how-to-be-a-good-student-academic-college-success-718512","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/how-to-be-a-good-student-academic-college-success-718512\/","title":{"rendered":"4 myths about what it means to be a \u201cgood student\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wp-embed\">\n<div class=\"wp-embed-wrap\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"What Does It Mean to Be a \u201cGood Student\u201d?\" width=\"1062\" height=\"597\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/yteFIskuDuc?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>URochester experts challenge common assumptions about academic success\u2014and offer practical ways to become a more successful college student.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1402,"featured_media":718522,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[456],"tags":[43352,18722,38232,41792,43362,16072,37032,41012,12692],"class_list":["post-718512","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-society-culture","tag-claire-boeck","tag-department-of-biology","tag-elaine-sia","tag-ever-wonder","tag-martin-lynch","tag-school-of-arts-and-sciences","tag-student-life","tag-videos","tag-warner-school-of-education"],"acf":{"external":"","hide_featured_image":true,"related":"show_related","style":[623772,717852,690682],"content_modules":[{"acf_fc_layout":"table_of_contents","anchor_id":"","css_classes":"pt-0","title":"<h2><strong>URochester experts challenge common assumptions about academic success\u2014and offer practical ways to become a more successful college student.<\/strong><\/h2>","content":"Everyone thinks they know what a good student looks like: someone who sits near the front, raises a hand, turns in assignments on time, and earns good grades. But some of the qualities we associate with being a good student may have less to do with learning than with <em>appearing <\/em>to be learning.\r\n\r\nThat distinction is at the heart of research by Claire Boeck, an assistant professor at the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/\">糖心传媒<\/a>\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.warner.rochester.edu\/\">Warner School of Education &amp; Human Development<\/a>. She studies how students and instructors define and sometimes disagree over what it means to be a \u201cgood student.\u201d\r\n\r\n<blockquote>\u201cBeing a good student is a work in progress.\u201d<\/blockquote>\r\n\r\n\u201cI think most people define a good student in terms of being responsible and hardworking, following instructions,\u201d Boeck says. And when Boeck surveys and interviews instructors and students separately, both groups name many of the same qualities. But important differences emerge around the concept of effort.\r\n\r\nStudents know the late nights, repeated problem sets, rearranged work shifts, and private persistence that go into their work. But those who evaluate them often cannot see all of that. \u201cInstructors tend to define effort in terms of what they can see,\u201d Boeck says: who visits office hours, who raises a hand, and who submits assignments on time.\r\n\r\nAs a high school student, Boeck worked the late shift at her local IHOP restaurant, completing homework between orders and sometimes sleeping through morning classes. \u201cMost people would have said I was not a good student, but I was still getting good grades,\u201d she says. \u201cMy effort was not visible in class.\u201d\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-size: 1.125rem;\">The problem, she says, is the ambiguity of the word <\/span><em style=\"font-size: 1.125rem;\">good<\/em><span style=\"font-size: 1.125rem;\">. \u201cIt could mean diligent; it could mean curious; it could mean they have excellent teamwork skills. But <\/span><em style=\"font-size: 1.125rem;\">good<\/em><span style=\"font-size: 1.125rem;\"> is so vague, it serves as a catch-all.\u201d She prefers more precise terms: this student is creative; this one is curious; this one is improving each semester.<\/span>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.sas.rochester.edu\/bio\/people\/faculty\/sia_elaine\/\">Elaine Sia<\/a>, a professor of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sas.rochester.edu\/bio\/index.html\">biology<\/a> and the University\u2019s inaugural senior vice provost for academic excellence, has taught nearly 4,000 undergraduates since 2000 and reached a similar conclusion. \u201cIf you think about student success in my classroom, there\u2019s no one model for that,\u201d she says. \u201cWhat matters is whether you can challenge them to think about success differently.\u201d\r\n\r\nSo, what can a student actually do to become more successful in college? Start by rethinking four common myths.","bg_color":"#ffffff","layout":"standard_width","image":"","call_to_action":"","aceppted_headings":["h3"],"ignored_headings":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"text","anchor":"","css_class":"pt-0","title":"","content":"[caption id=\"attachment_718642\" align=\"aligncenter\" width=\"2000\"]<img class=\"size-full wp-image-718642\" src=\"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/fea-how-to-be-a-good-student-academic-college-success-2025-10-27_Fall_campus_1040-2.jpg\" alt=\"糖心传媒 students walking on the Wilson Quad as seen from a low angle that shows the dandelion architectural detail under the Clock Tower.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1200\" \/> (URochester photo \/ J. Adam Fenster)[\/caption]\r\n<h3><strong>Myth: Good students do not need help.<\/strong><\/h3>\r\nThe student who handles every problem alone can seem self-sufficient. In practice, successful students learn when and how to use the people and services around them.\r\n\r\nRebecca Fletcher Roberts, an associate dean and the Suzanne Jagel O\u2019Brien Executive Director of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/college\/ccas\/\">Center for Advising Services<\/a>, emphasizes what a student does rather than what they arrive knowing. \u201cIt isn\u2019t all just about ability,\u201d she says. \u201cIt is about your willingness to engage and utilize resources and take those first steps: to work with faculty, to use office hours, to study with peers.\u201d\r\n\r\nDespite what some students might assume, office hours are not only for students who are failing. In fact, Sia explains, \u201cIt\u2019s frequently the high achievers who show up, and it\u2019s the students who are feeling behind and struggling who may not feel welcome in that environment.\u201d\r\n<blockquote>\u201cIt isn\u2019t all just about ability. It is about your willingness to engage and utilize resources.\u201d<\/blockquote>\r\nShe tries to make those conversations feel lower stakes. When a student says, \u201cI really don't understand this at all,\u201d Sia begins with a different question: \u201cLet\u2019s start with what you <em>do<\/em> know. Walk me through that.\u201d Often, she says, the student knows more than they realize, and a single misunderstanding is the blocker that can be cleared up quickly.\r\n\r\nThe same principle applies beyond faculty offices. Tutoring, academic coaching, study groups, librarians, and the University\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/writing.rochester.edu\/\">Writing and Speaking Center<\/a> are resources students can use to strengthen a draft, clarify a concept, develop a study strategy, or build a workable schedule. \u201cThere\u2019s no expectation that you\u2019re going to come knowing these things,\u201d Fletcher Roberts says. \u201cThere <em>is <\/em>an expectation that you\u2019re going to be willing to engage in the process of learning.\u201d\r\n\r\n<strong>Try this:<\/strong> Before a difficult week, identify one point of contact: a professor or teaching assistant, an academic coach, a librarian, a tutor, or a classmate. Reaching out before a problem becomes urgent makes asking for help a normal part of your academic routine, not a last resort.\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_718622\" align=\"aligncenter\" width=\"2000\"]<img class=\"size-full wp-image-718622\" src=\"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/fea-how-to-be-a-good-student-academic-college-success-2026-01-22_First_Week_of_Class_26spring-7.jpg\" alt=\"Anusri Mallampalli studies in the Periodical Reading Room.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1200\" \/> (URochester photo \/ Gary Kong)[\/caption]","background_color":"#ffffff","width":"width-medium"},{"acf_fc_layout":"text","anchor":"","css_class":"pt-0","title":"","content":"<h3><strong>Myth: Good students always speak up in class<\/strong><strong>.<\/strong><\/h3>\r\nRaising a hand is one form of engagement\u2014but it\u2019s not the only one. Students may be processing an idea, building confidence, communicating across cultural expectations, or learning the unwritten rules of a new academic environment. For students who are still learning a college classroom\u2019s unwritten rules,\u00a0 part of succeeding is figuring out how participation is recognized in a particular course\u2014and then finding authentic ways to engage.\r\n\r\nSia encourages students to approach learning with curiosity. \u201cThe business of science, like all learning, is <em>asking<\/em> questions,\u201d she says. \u201cIt\u2019s building models, it\u2019s testing hypotheses.\u201d Her shorthand for the mental shift? \u201cYou need to channel your inner kindergartner.\u201d\r\n\r\nThat doesn\u2019t necessarily mean students have to voice a question mid-lecture. They can ask after class, during office hours, in an email, in a study group, or through a digital channel. One of Sia\u2019s teaching assistants created a shared online document where students could enter questions for the TA to read aloud. Although the teaching staff knew who asked the question, the TAs did not identify the student.\r\n<blockquote>\u201cThe business of science, like all learning, is <em>asking<\/em> questions.\u201d<\/blockquote>\r\n\u201cIt turns out that everyone brings internet-enabled devices to class, so we continued to use the Google Doc even after we all returned in person,\u201d Sia says. \u201cAny kind of shared document would work, as would the ability to message the TA over any kind of group chat.\u201d\r\n\r\nThat option can help students who are reluctant to speak publicly, but it also serves a broader purpose: it lets instructors see what students are wondering, and allows the whole class to learn from questions others may hesitate to ask.\r\n\r\nInstructors matter here, too. \u201cGenerally, as a person, I am inclined to fill a silence,\u201d Sia says. She resists that instinct because \u201cthe longer you wait it out, the more likely it is that somebody who has been mulling it over, and building up the courage to respond, has a chance to do that.\u201d\r\n\r\n<strong>Try this:<\/strong> Choose a participation method that suits both you and the course. Write down one question during each class, attend office hours or email with a follow-up, contribute in a shared document, or compare notes with a peer. The goal is not to perform confidence. It\u2019s to make your thinking visible enough that you can test, refine, and extend it.\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_718692\" align=\"aligncenter\" width=\"2000\"]<img class=\"size-full wp-image-718692\" src=\"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/fea-how-to-be-a-good-student-academic-college-success-2025-05-05_Learning_center_0931.jpg\" alt=\"A URochester student models what it means to be a good student by writing on a whiteboard as part of a class assignment.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1200\" \/> (URochester photo \/ J. Adam Fenster)[\/caption]","background_color":"#ffffff","width":"width-medium"},{"acf_fc_layout":"text","anchor":"","css_class":"pt-0","title":"","content":"<h3><strong>Myth: The grade is the goal<\/strong><strong>.<\/strong><\/h3>\r\nGrades matter\u2014especially for students pursuing competitive programs, scholarships, graduate school, or professional credentials. But treating the highest possible grade as the sole measure of success can narrow a student\u2019s choices and make it harder to take productive academic risks.\r\n\r\nSia has seen that friction with premedical students. \u201cYou can\u2019t tell them that grades don\u2019t matter, because they do,\u201d she says. Yet grade pressure can also inhibit exploration and a willingness to challenge oneself. Sia invites <a href=\"https:\/\/admissions.rochester.edu\/academics\/rems\/\">Rochester Early Medical Scholars<\/a> who are now in medical school to talk with current students about \u201cwhy it\u2019s valuable to learn the thing and not just get the A.\u201d\r\n\r\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.warner.rochester.edu\/directory\/martin-lynch\">Martin Lynch<\/a>, an associate professor of counseling and human development at the Warner School, frames that challenge through self-determination theory. The theory emphasizes three basic psychological needs: autonomy, competence, and relatedness.\r\n\r\nFor students, autonomy can mean connecting daily choices to a personally meaningful purpose. A required course or assignment may not feel optional, Lynch notes, but a student can still ask: What is my goal for this education, and how does this task serve it? That reframing shifts the emphasis from simply complying with requirements to choosing actions in service of one\u2019s own values and aspirations.\r\n\r\nCompetence does not mean avoiding failure. It means taking on challenges that stretch current abilities while remaining attainable. Lynch describes this as seeking \u201coptimal challenge,\u201d or work that moves students beyond what is comfortable, gives them useful feedback, and lets them experience growth. A disappointing exam, a difficult draft, or a confusing lab result can then become information about what to try next, not a verdict on whether a student belongs.\r\n<blockquote>\u201cWhat do I want to understand or be able to do? Who can help me learn it?\u201d<\/blockquote>\r\nRelatedness is equally important. Students build it through mutually supportive connections with classmates, instructors, teaching assistants, friends, family, and, when needed, counselors. Academic pressure can make relationships feel expendable, especially during a packed semester, but Lynch cautions against treating connection as something that can be postponed indefinitely. Supportive relationships help students persist through challenge and make both autonomy and competence more sustainable.\r\n\r\nFletcher Roberts sees a practical version of that lesson in advising. Some students are so focused on the \u201chighest possible GPA,\u201d she says, that it can be difficult to encourage them to stretch. The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/about\/curriculum.html\">Rochester Curriculum<\/a> also gives students considerable autonomy, with room to explore interests beyond their major and cluster requirements. Options such as satisfactory\/fail courses may also give some students space to investigate an unfamiliar field without tying every choice to a GPA calculation.\r\n\r\n<strong>Try this:<\/strong> When you plan a semester or face a difficult assignment, pair the grade question\u2014\u201cWhat do I need to earn?\u201d\u2014with two others: \u201cWhat do I want to understand or be able to do?\u201d and \u201cWho can help me learn it?\u201d Choose at least one course, project, or activity that is challenging enough to develop a new skill, not just likely to produce the easiest result.\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_718672\" align=\"aligncenter\" width=\"2000\"]<img class=\"size-full wp-image-718672\" src=\"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/fea-how-to-be-a-good-student-academic-college-success-2018-08-20_RRL_iZone_109.jpg\" alt=\"Two URochester students model what it looks like to be a good student by studying together in a booth at the iZone.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1200\" \/> (URochester photo \/ J. Adam Fenster)[\/caption]","background_color":"#ffffff","width":"width-medium"},{"acf_fc_layout":"text","anchor":"","css_class":"pt-0","title":"","content":"<h3><strong>Myth: Struggling means you are not a good student<\/strong><strong>.<\/strong><\/h3>\r\nA setback can feel like proof that someone else is naturally better prepared. But productive struggle is part of learning, and a student\u2019s starting point is not always visible.\r\n\r\nBoeck\u2019s research has found that first-year students have rigid expectations of themselves, whereas students further into their college career recognize that struggle is part of learning, and that not everyone can meet every expectation at all times.\r\n\r\nSia sees the value of growth in the students she chooses as teaching assistants. She does not simply select the highest achievers. Instead, she looks for students who have improved notably over time, in part because students who found the material easy may not have needed to learn how to explain their own process of gaining mastery.\r\n<blockquote>\u201cEffort without results suggests to me that the student really needs to think about the way they\u2019re engaging.\u201d<\/blockquote>\r\nHer classroom practices make room for not knowing. She offers \u201cstump-the-professor\u201d points that encourage students to ask on-topic questions she might not be able to answer immediately. The point is not to catch an instructor unprepared. Rather, it\u2019s to model a response to uncertainty: \u201cI don\u2019t know, but here\u2019s what I <em>think<\/em>, and let\u2019s see if I\u2019m right.\u201d\r\n\r\nThat is also how students should approach their own difficulties. \u201cI value effort,\u201d Sia says. \u201cBut effort without results suggests to me that the student really needs to think about the way they\u2019re engaging.\u201d Persistence matters, but so does adjusting the approach: seeking feedback, changing a study method, visiting office hours, working with peers, or using tutoring and coaching.\r\n\r\nFletcher Roberts encourages students to stop using classmates\u2019 backgrounds as a yardstick for their own progress. \u201cEverybody\u2019s journey is different,\u201d she says. The useful question is not whether you\u2019re keeping up with an imagined ideal student. It\u2019s what concrete next step will help you move forward.\r\n\r\n<strong>Try this:<\/strong> After a setback, replace \u201cI\u2019m not good at this\u201d with a brief review: What specifically did not work? What feedback can I get? What resource or person can help? What is one adjustment I will make before the next attempt? This turns struggle into a plan.\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_718712\" align=\"aligncenter\" width=\"2000\"]<img class=\"size-full wp-image-718712\" src=\"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/fea-how-to-be-a-good-student-academic-college-success-2023-10-18_Simon_Shanahan_class_1481.jpg\" alt=\"Close up of students taking notes during class on an electronic notebook. \" width=\"2000\" height=\"1200\" \/> (URochester photo \/ J. Adam Fenster)[\/caption]","background_color":"#ffffff","width":"width-medium"},{"acf_fc_layout":"text","anchor":"","css_class":"pt-0","title":"","content":"<h3><strong>Toward a better definition<\/strong><\/h3>\r\nSuccess, these educators suggest, is less a set of traits than a way of approaching learning: with curiosity, a willingness to ask for help, and the confidence to keep adjusting when something doesn\u2019t work.\r\n\r\nThe upshot? \u201cBeing a good student is a work in progress,\u201d Boeck says. \u201cYou\u2019re the only one who knows where you\u2019ve been, and the only one who gets to decide where you\u2019re going.\u201d","background_color":"#ffffff","width":"width-medium"}]},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.4 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>4 myths about what it means to be a \u201cgood student\u201d<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"URochester experts challenge common assumptions 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