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Make the Most of It: A Guide to Loving Your College Years
College is a time when new and exciting horizons stretch out before us. We meet new friends and form relationships that last a lifetime. We discern what’s most important and what our ultimate direction in life will be. For those of us whose college days are in the rearview mirror, we long for recent graduates to love college and to make the most it. Often, we’re at a loss as to what advice to give our friends and family who are heading off to college―even though those years may well be the most consequential years of their lives.
From Biola president Barry Corey comes the perfect guide to making the college years count. It touches on everything from college romances to making friends, from getting sleep to embracing boredom, from your inner life to your social life.
Barry Corey gives you wisdom that rings true but is rarely passed on. He serves up tips for survival, virtues to embrace, ideas to think about, and habits to cultivate for an enjoyable and flourishing journey through college.
After all, you will remember your college experience for the rest of your life. Make the most of it.
From Biola president Barry Corey comes the perfect guide to making the college years count. It touches on everything from college romances to making friends, from getting sleep to embracing boredom, from your inner life to your social life.
Barry Corey gives you wisdom that rings true but is rarely passed on. He serves up tips for survival, virtues to embrace, ideas to think about, and habits to cultivate for an enjoyable and flourishing journey through college.
After all, you will remember your college experience for the rest of your life. Make the most of it.
- GenresNonfiction
Audio CD
Published February 15, 2021
4 people are currently reading
11 people want to read
About the author
Barry H. Corey
3 books8 followersA native of Boston, Dr. Barry H. Corey has been president of Biola University since 2007. He previously served as vice president for education at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary. Corey received a BA in English and biblical studies from Evangel University and an MA in American studies and a PhD in education from Boston College. As a Fulbright scholar, he lived in Bangladesh, where he researched educational programs for children of the landless poor. He and his wife, Paula, live in Southern California and have three children: Anders, Ella, and Samuel.
Connect with Barry on Twitter and Facebook.
Connect with Barry on Twitter and Facebook.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
June 12, 2020
When people find out I work in higher education, they typically love to share their lengthy opinions. I have heard every theory about why higher education is a scam, charging an arm and leg while preaching a progressive agenda with climbing walls and lazy rivers included, yada, yada.
What I usually don’t get are questions. It is very rare for someone to ask me thoughtful, engaging questions about the state of higher education. But once in a blue moon, I get asked my favorite question: what advice would you give to a new college student?
On the surface, college is a transactional exchange: I pay you (a lot of) money, sit your classes, and in four years you give me a degree. If this is how you look at college, you will be disappointed. College is a great investment of your time and money. Studies have shown over and over again that getting a college degree will set you up for more success in your career.
But is a selfish investment really the foundation of our colleges? I don’t think so.
The biggest investment in my life right now is my kids. They cost a lot of time and money. They have cost me hours of sleepless nights, school and daycare is far from cheap, and they eat all my delicious food. From an investment standpoint, kids do not show much return.
Is that not a crazy way to look at your children? Children are not a selfish investment, they are the center of my life. They bring me joy, hope, and meaning. Things we simply cannot quantify.
And this is how we should look at our education. “College is more than grasping what you are learning. It’s about being grasped by it.”
Make the Most of It is a great book for students starting their college journey. Barry Corey, current president of Biola University in La Mirada, California, has great experiences working in higher education and working alongside of students. I think any young student would benefit from this book. Now will a college student actually read this book and heed its great advice? That’s a good question, but I think there is enough solid wisdom in this book that something will stick and help student on the long, life-giving journey of higher education.
Here are a few more nuggets of wisdom from this book:
“…Develop the internal character for the long game rather than the external image for the short game.”
“Choose inspiration over efficiency, discovery over velocity.”
“Doubting is not a weakness but a strength, as it compels you to seek truth.”
“The mind’s arrogance can suffocate the heart’s humility.”
What I usually don’t get are questions. It is very rare for someone to ask me thoughtful, engaging questions about the state of higher education. But once in a blue moon, I get asked my favorite question: what advice would you give to a new college student?
On the surface, college is a transactional exchange: I pay you (a lot of) money, sit your classes, and in four years you give me a degree. If this is how you look at college, you will be disappointed. College is a great investment of your time and money. Studies have shown over and over again that getting a college degree will set you up for more success in your career.
But is a selfish investment really the foundation of our colleges? I don’t think so.
The biggest investment in my life right now is my kids. They cost a lot of time and money. They have cost me hours of sleepless nights, school and daycare is far from cheap, and they eat all my delicious food. From an investment standpoint, kids do not show much return.
Is that not a crazy way to look at your children? Children are not a selfish investment, they are the center of my life. They bring me joy, hope, and meaning. Things we simply cannot quantify.
And this is how we should look at our education. “College is more than grasping what you are learning. It’s about being grasped by it.”
Make the Most of It is a great book for students starting their college journey. Barry Corey, current president of Biola University in La Mirada, California, has great experiences working in higher education and working alongside of students. I think any young student would benefit from this book. Now will a college student actually read this book and heed its great advice? That’s a good question, but I think there is enough solid wisdom in this book that something will stick and help student on the long, life-giving journey of higher education.
Here are a few more nuggets of wisdom from this book:
“…Develop the internal character for the long game rather than the external image for the short game.”
“Choose inspiration over efficiency, discovery over velocity.”
“Doubting is not a weakness but a strength, as it compels you to seek truth.”
“The mind’s arrogance can suffocate the heart’s humility.”
August 3, 2020
Solid, Biblical advice for any Christian college student. Although this book is written by the President of Biola University, it is widely applicable to any student - whether he/she is attending a private or public university.
I would gift this book to graduating high school seniors (including my own children when they reach that milestone).
I would gift this book to graduating high school seniors (including my own children when they reach that milestone).
July 28, 2020
A definite read if you're a Christian going off to college or something to send someone you know who applies to that category. Some very good wisdom for college or just life in general.
January 1, 2023
I did not enjoy reading this book tbh but there was some solid advice in here
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews