California State University-San Bernardino Top Questions

I would tell myself that, education is not a waste of time. Knowledge and wisdom are the greatest things you can ever obtain and they will help you succeed in the future. I would beg myself not to be distracted about the present but to focus on the great things I can do as an educated college graduate. I would emphasize that a job right after high school, will not give me a job doing somthing I love. I would reinforce that I should follow my goals and dreams to do what I love. I would also tell myself that there will always be difficult times but no matter what happens that i must remain strong and that I should never quit. I would tell myself that everyone has the potential to reach their goals, they just have to want it bad enough.

I would tell myself, " It does not matter what others expectations are for yourself, it only matters what expectations you have for yourself. Believe in yourself, anything is possible. You are very smart and have great potential, stop comparing yourself to others and only compete against yourself. High school is harder than college, all you have to do is learn everything in class and stay focused. Learn how to stop procrastinating, teach yourself the skills needed to be better organized so that the transition to college will be much easier. College life is more fast paced, so you need to learn to be organized in order to transtion more smoothly. The most important of all is your state of mind, believe that you will be successful and you will find the way to be successful. I love you. Remember anything is possible."

"Apply for more scholarships and enroll with the intention of going to law school- the law market may be saturated, but it is your passion. Don't pursue a STEM major just because it pays well. Your GPA will thank you- especially since you will be getting a 4.0 every quarter as a dual public relations and media studies major trying for UCLA Law."

I would go back and tell myself to change my focus in school to extra-carricular activities. Many of the teachers would say that grades and academics is what I should focus on, but I focused on that and excluded other activities. Students can really benefit from other activities greater than people think.

If I could go back to my high school self, I would tell myself to live. In high school you should have been more outgoing and stay aquantinces with other students because once you get to college, you lose a lot of your friends. College is bigger and you meet new people everyday. So dont be stuck on missing your best friend from high school, because people come and go, its your future that is important, not the social aspect of college. Learn more studying habits and dont get used to not studying for tests, because in college if you dont know how to study, then you wont pass anything.

College is not what you think it is. Some classes will be easy and some will be very hard. The important thing is to dedicate time into each of your classes as often as possible. Dedicating time will only benefit you in the end. Another thing to remember is to be responsible. There are so many small assignments in college that are easy to put off, but every point counts. I can't tell you how many times I have received an A- or a B+ when just 1 or 2 points would have pushed you to a higher grade. Work hard and study hard but remember to get involved on campus when possible and also to have fun. All work and no play is not a formula for success. Find a way to adequately balance your academic needs and your personal life in a way that decreases stress and increases performance, knowledge, and happiness. The last sentence is really the key to college. Lastly, you won't remember everything you learn but it is much easier to relearn a topic you have already learned. Don't assume you wont need a topic or subject.

In all honesty I wish I could go back and tell myself to try a little harder or at least give it my all. California State University of San Bernardino was not my first choice. I dreamed of going up to SFSU for college. Everything happens for a reason , that reason being, is that everything will be okay, there will be many obstacles along the way but I know everything will be okay. So to contradict what I first said, knowing where I am now, I would go back and tell myself not to put myself down so much, and just keep doing what I am doing. But to never give up on my dreams. It may sound cliche but it is always a good reminder to always remind ourselves to do what makes us happy. Other then that I would also remind myslef college is not bad as I thought it would be, struggling with social anxiety, basically struggling communicating with others and making friends in general, the atmosphere in college is nothing compared to high school. I am on the right track, keep doing what I am doing(reminding my past self)

Beginning college fall of 2011, I did not know what to expect. As a freshman, my one fear was to not choose the correct major. Would the major that I had started with be the one I would graduate with? As I continued my journey there was a moment of regret. I soon changed my major and decided to try something different which soon led me to realize I had made another mistake. I learned that I did not change my major because it wasn’t right for me, but because I was scared easily. I knew that I had to switch my major back to my original choice. My advice to myself would be to truly seek out what you want to accomplish and never be scared to follow my dreams as hard as it may seem. As a senior at cal state san Bernardino , I am proud to be a mathematics major with an interest in teaching and I am excited to begin my career within the next couple of years.

FAFSA or financial aid is what will pay for your college. Scholarships can help also but come to understand and apply to FAFSA before graduating and you will be able to get through your first year of college right out of high school instead of just working full time alone. Speaking of work, you need to take an auto-shop class and work on your understanding of car maintainance and repair. If you pass this up you will have no one but AAA and your dad to bail you out of all the messes you'll be making by not knowing what's under the hood of the car(s) you will one day have to drive. You'll never find this opportunity again so don't pass it up--you only get to learn about cars once--in high school. Save whatever money you make now for your future endeavors and lean on your parents while you can so your own savings can actually grow.

Keep working hard and stay the course. Do not be afraid. Take advantage of this opportunity. Now. Right now. Immediately, these would be the words that are bellowed, with anxious fear, fear that they may be ignored. But mostly they would be expressed with regret, because they are only an echo of my own mother's words. I ignored these words of advice. These words of wisdom were repeated often but silenced, being lowered down the tasks of my misguided To-Do list. I thought I had time. But, time did what it does best. And here I am, years later reflecting back on those times, wishing I had listened to my mother, wishing I could give advice to myself only to explain: give yourself the choice. Give yourself the chance to experience something extraordinary while simultaneously transforming you into a better person. What do you have to lose? My young counterpart would pause, dissect and deliberate this advice internally. But before he could answer, I would repeat the words of wisdom ever so softly. Keep working hard and stay the course. Do not be afraid. Take advantage of this opportunity. Now. Right now. You will thank me later.

Focus more on learning, and less time hanging out with friends. Your true friends will always be there for you but they will not hand you your education. Get your college education completed early in life so you have more time for the things you love. Intern and volunteer your free time, you will make life long connections that may lead to a career position you are passionate about. If you are having a hard time go talk to your teachers, that is what they are there for. They will help to guide you and teach you what you are having trouble with. High school is easy, trust me im in the real world.

If I could go back to high school and talk to myself as a high school senior, I would tell myself not to worry so much about the transformation to college. I think that knowing I would be packing up the belongings that I had in the comfort of my parents home and moving to a dorm in a college town where I didn't know anyone was absolutely terrifying. After having a year and a half complete, I can safely say that college has lead me to meeting the friends that I am looking forward to keeping for the rest of my life. I think that as a senior, it is easy to forget that you're not the only one. Every other freshman is going through the same thing as you -- you are not alone. College is a big change but it has been the greatest experience of my life and has led me to grow both academically and mentally. I would definitely advise my senior self to take a deep breath and not worry so much about what college had in store. It all works out and its not nearly as terrifying as it seems.

If I were able to go back in time to speak to myself, I would definitely tell myself to study harder, take extra classes, and learn more at all times. To really take the advantage of education and not just to take the bare minimum but to go beyond. Join every clubs you can. Always be patient in learning anything new and do not be too hard on yourself because everyone has their own struggles and move at their own pace and as long as you keep trying and doing your best, that's good enough.

If I could go back and talk to myself as a high school senior I would tell myself to thank my parents for encouraging me to attend Cal State San Bernardino instead of CSU Dominguez Hills. This decision helped me more than I could ever understand at that time in my life. As a high school senior you want to move out on your own and experience the so called "college life" that everyone loves to talk about. When in reality if I were to have made that decision I would have been $40,000 in debt. Today, because of the help of my parents, I am able to further my education and attend Grad school because of the money I was able to save. Even though Grad school will require me to take out loans, at least I was able to save extra money by living at home and attending Cal State San Bernardino.

Some eighteen year olds know what they want and where they will go. I was not one of those kids, but I took a chance on me and continued my education. I didn't understand in those days how to study well or how to excel, but I can say that being on a college campus propelled me forward, even if my GPA didn't reflect the best grades. In the years since, I have learned who I am, succeeded and failed but kept moving forward. My undergraduate degree helped me to be where I am today - in a graduate master's program - and I expect to finish with excellence. So can you. You'll have some failure and some success, but don't give up on yourself. You can make it through. College is the first stepping stone - but you are the only one who can take that first step in the exciting journey of life.

If I could go back and talk to my high school self, I would advise my younger self to breathe. While it may seem like an odd piece of advice, my younger self was so caught up in what was required to get into college and the courses necessary to graduate that I forgot about the importance of breathing during each part of the journey. Towards the end of high school, the priority is planning out your entire future career, which was the case with myself. Through this tunnel vision of transitioning into college, I forgot to take time to reflect on the entire process. Looking back, the transition from high school to college was a blur, probably due to my reluctance to focus on anything other than my future. Unfortunately, I would characterize my college transition as an aggressive focus on my entire future while selectively ignoring the present. Furthermore, the intense desire to plan my future seeped into my college career. While college is a time of learning, the journey through college is one which should not be ignored. Therefore, allowing myself time to enjoy the journey and breathe would be my advice to my younger self.

If I could go back in time and talk to myself when I was a high school senior I would tell myself to focus on my priorities. When I graduated high school I was so focused on becoming independent and tasting freedom that I did not look at the big picture; which was receiving my bachelor's degree. I would tell myself that before making any choices, to make sure that my school business was taken care of first. There will always be time to be free and independent, but not to take advantage of it and forget the object that gave me that freedom. I would remind high school senior me that college is not free, and paying for school is no walk in the park. The best advice I could tell myself would be to focus on what's important and what is going to have a beneficial impact in my life, the fun and the freedom can wait because it will be waiting for me when I have a bachelor's degree.

I would tell myself to be more open about what I wanted. I always let people tell me that becoming a teacher was a horrible idea and that life would be unsatisfying, but now, with new supporters and professors that are on my side, I would honestly tell myself to become a teacher and to get to know as many people as possible. Follow your dreams, and make a change; dont allow people to tell you that your choices are bad. Be confident that you can make a change in others lives, because one of the reasons I decided to become a Mathematics teacher for high school students was so that i could change their minds about math being hard and to show them that there are other ways and easier ways to solve a problem. I would tell myself to keep tutoring and to never give up or give in!

You're going to get mad. You're going to open those test results and you're going to rage and sulk about why you ever put yourself in the International Baccalaureate. You're going to wish you took the easy way like everyone else. Angry with all that hard work you put forward and ending up in the same place as so many who you feel did much less. Don't wish for it to become easy when you're in college. It will still challenge you. Sometimes you'll do great, sometimes you won't. Know that you can't have the good without the bad. But remember that it's the good you need to look at. Look past those financial burdens that accompany your education to a greater future. Look past those personal problems you have in your vivid life. Look beyond the bad and toward the good. You have an opportunity to have an education that will strengthen you. Push forward. When things don't go your way don't become angry and don't become bitter, because in the end - it doesn't matter where you end up... what matters is who you become.

I would tell myself to try harder to be more outgoing. It may seem like relatively simple advice, but I was a hermit, while I was in high school. I mostly kept to myself and the small group of friends that I gained in the brief period I tried to be an extrovert. This shyness carried over to my undergraduate studies at California State University, San Bernardino. Once again, I was reluctant in making any friends. Unless I needed to work in a group or make a presentation, I stayed inside of my little bubble. However, I soon realized that my introvert personality was hindering my schoolwork and my ability to interact with those around me. In studying at California State University, San Bernardino, I learned that going outside of your comfort zone can be beneficial to your physical, mental, and social well-being.