I don’t have high schoolers yet.  But I was a high schooler once, and there are things I wish I had known back then.  Hona Amer covers most of them in Smart Work U.

Smart Work U is a book about pursuing a college degree with a minimum of time and money.  I highly recommend reading it before (or at least during) high school, so you have an idea of where you’re headed before you get started.

Now, I felt the early portions of the book implied that everyone should go to college, and I vehemently disagree.  However…

a) it is a book about college, so it should be assumed that most students reading it are college-bound, and

b) there are things I wish I’d known about college, in high school, that I probably would have put into practice even though I still would not have immediately gone onto college, to save time and money if I changed my mind later.

So let us go on to the remainder of the book, which addresses how to “do” college the smart way.

Getting Started

One of the first things Hona recommends is finding someone experienced to be your mentor.  The best thing about this book is that it’s written as though Hona is that sort of mentor for the reader!  It isn’t stuffy at all; rather, it’s written from the perspective of someone who has been there — and not so long ago that she’s forgotten all about it.

She discusses college basics like having the right mindset, surrounding yourself with friends who will help, rather than hurt, your academic life, and figuring out what classes to take.

After laying this framework, there are seven chapters of nitty-gritty: taking CLEP tests, finding scholarships, using good study skills, choosing a major, etc.

Conclusion

The last couple of chapters are about graduation and deciding whether to move on to graduate school.

The whole thing is very well-written, approachable, and free of “fluff.” I would highly recommend this.

Disclosure: The book above was provided to me by the author to facilitate this review.  As always, all opinions expressed here are entirely my own.