Cleveland State University Top Questions

If I were talking to myself as a high school senior I would tell myself to save as much money as possible so I can avoid loans in the future. I am currently working full time making barely enough to get by and yet still more than enough not to get money from FAFSA. It amazes me how this government works some time. If students want to get an education, it shouldnt cost an arm and a leg for a degree. Cleveland State has not made significant upgrades in the past 20 years. Yet they still raise tuition annually and give the President of the University a huge bonus at the end of the year. So my advice to myself as a senior in high school is save your money or don't go to college.

I would tell myself that community college is only really good if it's part of a plan. I didn't know exactly what I wanted to do, and I ended up taking a lot of classes I didn't need which is making the years at college more complicated and difficult to schedule. I should have chosen CSU right away and I would have gotten more scholarship money.

Growing up, I always had this sense that I could do anything; I could just feel it in my bones. Yet, somehow I lost that sense in high school. The entirety of my senior year centered on academic perfection, college visits, athletic recruitment, and, primarily, stress about my future. I remember thinking about my future college life and all I imagined was homesickness, impossible classes, unfamiliar faces, and an urban environment where I would never fit in. In actuality some of those challenges did exist, but I was able to work through them the same way I always do: by putting forth my best effort, believing in myself, and trusting that there is a promising future waiting for me if I want it badly enough. Overcoming those challenges proved that I am capable of thriving outside my comfort zone and adapting to unforeseen circumstances, two feats I never dared hope to accomplish as a senior. Therefore, my high school self needs to know that if you give life everything you have, the only thing left to do is take a deep breath and have a little faith. Everything works out the way it was meant to.

During my unconventional senior year of high school, I enrolled full-time as a Post-Secondary student at Cleveland State University. I lacked thorough preparation for the subsequent, drastic environmental transition from the conformist, immature high school atmosphere to the diverse and intellectual college campus. If time travel were possible, I would encourage the confused, unmotivated Teenage Elisabeth to avoid stagnation and procrastination at all costs. If persistent dedication is absent, goals cannot be achieved. Perhaps the greatest importance of higher education is its application to progressively influencing peers, the community and society. Daily human interactions are inevitable while attending university, which inspire opportunities to share, relate and motivate. The most pertinent advice to my younger self would be to recognize these instances for their worth by staying connected to mentors, acquaintances and classmates. Furthermore, I would argue the benefits of communal participation: self-actualization, maturity and human communication. Imperative was familiarize myself with constructive outlets for stress and frustration, including writing, yoga and optimism. These channels could have aided Teenage Elisabeth in evading harmful influences. My adolescent identity needed to address ignorance and cognitive dissonance to further explore her intellectual capacity, willingness to strive and eagerness to learn.

If I ever have the chance to speak to the high school me, I would tell him to choose a major that relates to the subject you are best in high school, do not waste time and money trying to explore majors that only seem to be interesting but don't know anything of the basic of that course's materials. Work harder during your senior year, do not become lazy and slack off, college work is at a whole other level. If you were lazy during high school, you will carry that laziness through graduation and into college. Used your time wisely in high school, practice a lot of writing papers because there is no college class that doesn't involve a lot of writing. Familiarize yourself with writing a lot before college, so by the time you reach English 101, you won't feel that the course is a big load of work. Be brave and look for colleges around the nation, not only around the city you live in. I was afraid to move out by myself, but knowing some of my friends still manage to study out-of-state, I wish I took the chance too.

If I could go back to my high school senior self, I would tell her to start studying more. College is no joke and no matter how prepared for it you may think you are, you really are not. I would inform her of the classes she will be taking in hopes of it helping here prepare mentally. Lastly, I would tell her it's okay to be behind on some classes if it means taking your time and graduating with higher grades.

If I could tell my high school self anything about college life, I would say that 'this too shall pass'. In high school, I did not truly realize that my perspective and thoughts would evolve and grow. I heard a lot of cliches about how everything changes in college, but having never gone through it before, I had no idea what that actually looked like. When you've gone through college, you realize that those girls that made you angry didn't mean much in the grand scheme of life. Or that the teacher that 'had it out for you' didn't really have an impact on your future academic career. You learn to move on with your life and learn from those experiences. You mature a lot in college, while also learning how to live life at the fullest.

Honestly. before this moment I had never really thought about what I would say to my high-school senior self. The person I had always wanted to talk to had been my freshman-year self back in 2009. Of all the things I would say to myself at that time, only a few still stand for what I would say 2 years ago. Of these few things, I think the most importaint is that I tell myself to always try to be happy. It's too easy to be overwhelmed, feel underappreciated, and to be taken advantage of. Types of constant abuse like these take a toll on any sane person's well-being, leading to hard feelings like depression and lack of self-worth. Sometimes you have to make yourself step back and smile about things that do make you happy instead of frowning over the things that don't. If I had told my past self to list three things a day that I was happy about, I feel like I would be in a better place in my life.

I would have advised my younger self to study harder as an undergrad and to get more involved with groups and meeting others of a like mindset. I would have also said to my younger self "Don't stress so much about everything, and don't worry so much. Believe in yourself, be confident and others will naturally follow you. Oh and don't give so much of yourself to others that you have nothing left. You need to take care of yourself first before you can give to others. When it comes time to go to graduate school in the future, choose Ashland University and not Cleveland State University. Ashland has a much better reputation and will give you a much better quality education with better contacts too.

Pretty much nothing in life is permanent. Everything has a “do-over.” Bad marriage? Get a divorce? Don’t like your house? Get a new one. Don’t like your car? Get a new one. Nothing is permanent except education. Education and degrees can’t be replaced. There aren’t do-overs. You are only a true college freshman once. Make the most of it. Don’t worry about trying to get in where your friends went. Study in high school and apply to great schools. Don’t rule out the Ivy League schools. Aim higher than you think you’ll achieve because you never know what you might get. Just because someone else doesn’t think you can or should doesn’t mean that you can’t or shouldn’t. Go for it and give it your all. You only get one shot at this. You can’t go back and get your bachelors in business from a better school later. Don’t underestimate and undervalue what the power of going to a good school can do. Don’t settle and don’t stay because someone else wants you to. Do everything in your life for YOU.