As everyone who remembers “getting out” knows, there’s no reset button for a low GPA.But Tech’s Reboot Academic Recovery Program offers some help for students looking to improve their academic standing.
Reboot automatically invites all students on academic probation (those with a 2.2 or lower GPA) to apply and encourages applications from any first- or second-year student with a GPA of 2.29 or lower. The program involves weekly 50-minute meetings and provides students with a variety of resources to help them achieve their academic goals.
“Reboot doesn’t tell you exactly what you need to do but will guide you into the proper thinking and mentality to make changes that are best for you,” said Steven Goss, a third-year mechanical engineering major who participated in Reboot last spring. “I needed to change what I was doing to set myself up to succeed and wasn’t sure how to do that, but Reboot taught me how to do exactly that.”
Reboot encourages students to make simple changes, such as participating in tutoring sessions.
Goss said Reboot helped him develop more effective study habits, including how to take better notes, get more out of lectures and better manage his time.
“It made a drastic difference. I was a lot happier and I found more free time to do other things,” Goss said.
He did so well in a class that he became a teaching assistant the following semester. Nearly every student who has participated in Reboot raised his or her GPA.
“One student told me that she feels empowered when she leaves Reboot,” said Beth Bullock Spencer, interim associate director in the Center for Academic Success and manager of the program. “This is important because a student needs to believe that he or she can make changes and achieve goals.”
In the past, Reboot has served about 30 students per semester, taking on all who wish to participate. Spencer encourages participants to continue using the resources of the Center for Academic Success (open to all students) after their time in Reboot ends, especially since many will take more than a single semester to reach their goals.
“Turning one’s academic life around is a process,” she said. “There are no quick fixes, and persisting in new habits is not easy.”
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