Learning College Note-taking Skills

I am currently in my freshman year of college. Unfortunately, I never learned to take good lecture notes in high school. What can I do now to learn some note-taking skills? -- College Freshman
Answer: You can survive in high school with poor note-taking skills, but having these skills is absolutely essential in college. Run -- don't walk -- to the learning support or skills center on your campus. There, you should be able to enroll in a study skills class that includes note-taking or be able to pick up handouts on how to take notes. You can also find out more about note-taking in books and on Web sites.
A big part of taking good notes is knowing what to write down. Don't try to write down everything. As a general rule, you should include everything written on the board and repeated by the instructor. You will also want to write down definitions of terminology and series of points.
Knowing what notes to take is not enough; you must develop a way of taking notes. Many students use an outline method. Others may divide a paper into two columns and place the main facts on the left and then summarize them on the right after class. One of the most important things that you can do is to revise and review the notes as soon after class as possible.
Once you understand the basics of how to take notes, make note-taking easier by sitting in front in your classes, where there are less distractions, writing legibly and asking the instructor or a classmate to fill in holes in your notes. Another way to improve your skills is by comparing your notes to those of fellow classmates.