Attn: Present & Future College Students, Think carefully before you mentor

[vhcook]

Originally Posted by a2alexa

I would love some advice on this - I am a senior in high school with graduation right around the corner, and I am still working out college plans. At the same time, I do not want to fall out of the FIRST community during college, as joining was the best thing ever to happen to me. I wouldn't know what I want my future to look like if I had never joined FIRST. It's incredibly important to me to stay actively involved, but I have come to the realisation that I need some help and advice on how best to do this while still working and getting through school with decent marks, without completely working myself to death.

Find a geographically convenient event that's during your spring break and volunteer. That gets you a couple of days of immersion, but doesn't eat up so much time it affects your grades.

In your free time, you can follow the season here, but I'd advise against mentoring a team as a college freshman outside of school breaks. If the end of your winter break is suitably timed, you might be able to do kickoff and perhaps week 1 with a team before going back to school.

Once you've got your feet under you, you could consider doing more, but take it easy the first year.