Resources
Welcome to the home of all of Dr. Matt’s hand crafted resources including books, courses, and other tools to power-up your college days.
To access the free resources, enter your contact info and you’ll get an email with your download. Simple! Now and then we’ll let you know about special events, but don’t worry, it’ll never be as often as those reminders from the financial-aid office.
Gutsy Guide to Reading in College
Fair warning. This book is not about speed-reading or power-cramming. This book is about learning how to figure out what to focus on in the reading. This book will teach you how to improve your recall for exams. It will explore new ways to take notes and organize your life and reading.
Who Needs this Book?
Any student heading off to college. Any Faculty looking to challenge their views and wanting to think about their students in a new way. The book is a great gift for students heading off to college or a tool to help faculty and staff think about students’ college-years in new ways.
Free Downloadable Supplementary Materials
Be sure to check out The Successful College Reading Workbook that a free workbook that accompanies the Gutsy Guide to Reading in College.
Gutsy Guide to Writing in College
Writing in college can be a mystery. This all-in-one guide reveals the myths around college writing and how to leverage your brain and body for maximum writing efficiency. It shows you how to find what your professor is looking for, how to set up your writing routines, and the simple secrets to improving your writing and getting great grades.
Who Needs this Book?
Written for recent high school grads, adults returning to college, and first-generation university students, this guide covers it all. Writing in college may start out as a mystery, but Dr. Matt’s Gutsy Guide to Writing in College will walk you through it all.
How these books came about
Dr. Matt’s Gutsy Guide to Reading in College and Dr. Matt’s Gutsy Guide to Writing in College grew from his three decades of teaching, researching, speaking, and advising college students about their next steps in life. He compiled lessons learned both throughout his academic career and from helping others in this excellent guide designed to not only improve your grades but also help you integrate reading and writing into your life in new ways.
Praise for Dr. Matt’s Gutsy Guide to Reading in College and Dr. Matt’s Gutsy Guide to Writing in College
Matt's Gutsy Guide to Reading in College and the 21st century! This is the best book currently available for those seeking advice, skills, and strategies for college reading. It’s also reasonably priced, so I’m recommending it to my students, parents of students, and anyone else who wants to up their reading game for college while reducing their stress. And maybe even smiling a bit in the process.
One of the most unparalleled sources of trust is your high school English teacher and your college professor. “You’ll learn this in college,” my high school English teacher said.
“Why do you still not know how to write in college? You should have learned it in high school!” said my professor. That’s why you need this book.
As a young professional with a non-fiction writing hobby, I find this book inspiring and helpful for actionable items. Reading this well-structured book feels easy and breezy. I spent a pleasant weekend afternoon reading the book, taking notes, and doing the exercises according to each chapter’s prompt. I wish I had this book in college—it would have made my life so much easier. For example, Dr. Gusty mentioned doing your reading with the intention of
incorporating it into writing later, and the draw & scribble method for high-level planning.
Fun things I learned (more for you to find): Reading and writing are not automatic for humans; Perks of writing: it makes you the go-to person who understands connections and deeper meaning.
I recommend this book to anyone who writes, or has a project in mind, but struggles to start: ages 9-99. This book will get your writing engine started and will be with you throughout, like a toolbox.
Oh, and of course, college students too. The Kindle version is priced about the equivalent of two cups of coffee, and you can save yourself many stay-up-all-night, due-date paper sprints with this book.
Free Downloads
College is expensive. That much is obvious. So, to help everyone out, I’ve created a couple of free resources to designed to help you maximize your time, raise your grades, and make the most of college.
Be sure to check out the blog for more free tips and tricks to maximizing your time at college.