Colorado State University-Fort Collins Top Questions

I have learned a great deal of new things during my first year in college, but being able to go back and give myself advice would be a huge advantage. I have enjoyed all parts of my college except for a few exceptions. I love the location and chance to play sports, but I do not like the large numbers that attend my school (20000). I would tell myself to follow my heart and travel out of state to a smaller school, which hopefully offers a chance to continue playing sports.

Although senior year of high school was one of the best years of my life, I would tell myself to take more AP classes. Work on getting ahead so that in college I wouldn't have to take classes that "weed-out" students who aren't up to snuff. I would try and get as much college done in high school so that I wouldn't have to worry about all the prerequisites. If I mess up one semester, that could mean an extra year of college which I can't afford. Still have fun, but remember that all the hard work now will pay off big in college. The teachers in high school are more caring than professors in college.

I would tell myself to stay in school and to study hard. I would tell myself that it is extremely important to get good grades and to strive to get A's in all my courses. I would tell myself to be involved on campus and to start thinking about my future career goals early. I would tell myself to explore all my interests and take advantage of any opportunities to study abroad or to volunteer internationally. I would tell myself to be disciplined when it comes to due dates and deadlines and not to procrastinate or wait till the last minute to complete assignments. I would tell myself to get my writings published and to make sure to get acquainted with staff and faculty as they will come in handy when applying for scholarships. I would also tell myself to apply for any and all scholarships that are available because you never know which ones you will win and the more scholarships you earn the better off you will be financially in college.

What would I do, given the chance to speak with the girl I was in high school? What would I say? I think I?d start with the practicalities: Unless you are a genius you won?t keep a 3.8 in college. Don?t obsess over it. Start studies and projects early. You can't breeze by in college. If you're having trouble in a class by the first test, get tutoring. There?s nothing shameful in it. If you?re doing badly by the third test, drop the class. ?Withdrawn? looks a lot better than ?F?, and you?ll have to retake either way. Don?t hate yourself if classmates are doing well while you struggle. Ask them how they do it. Panicking before exams doesn't help. Niether does cramming. Trust me. Caffine, despite what people say, is no substitute for sleep. Then I'd tell myself something truly important: The world is meant to be explored. Try everything. As my last piece of advice, I'd say "Stop bieng afraid. Most of the things you dread are going to happen. But they're not going to destroy you. They're going to make you learn."

College is not all about fun and learning about time management. College is about sacrifice. Once you?re at peace with this fact, integrating into college will be relatively easy. What you don?t know about college is that no one can have it all. By the end of four years you will be either a socialite, serious scholar, or a regular student. The socialite is the college student who will go out almost every night (or at least every weekend) and party throughout first and second semester. The serious scholar is the student who will diligently go to the library to study. And the regular student is the student still trying to figure out which of the afore mentioned students he or she wants to be. Spend your first semester as a regular student. Find out through your own ways which student you want to be. Your decisions do have consequences! So don?t do anything reckless and keep in mind that having fun at parties are even better when that 5 page essay doesn?t loom over your head throughout the night.

The richest and most successful king of ancient Israel once gave an example of wisdom: an ant. An ant doesn't have someone telling it what to do, nor does it have a five year plan, but it works it's butt off and stores food and therefore lives through the winter. I would reiterate these lessons to my high school self, if I were able to, along with their inherant real life applications: work hard at whatever you do, always pursuing wisdom, because what you do now shapes the man you will become. So don't waste your life by chasing after other things besides wisdom. College has opportunities galore. Opportunities to get involved in activities that will shape you into the person you will be as an adult, for good or bad, and you need to know that making poor decisions, or passing up the right opportunities, could be disasterous to the person you want to be. So be proactive, and live in a way that seeks truth, and you can't go wrong. Also don't fool yourself into thinking someone is going to lay out your life for you. It's your life now. Live it.

Attending college requires a lot more work and dedication than high school coursework ever did. You can't simply "skate" through it with little effort. You have to be prepared to study for extended hours. It is a challenge you will really appreciate as you learn how to open your mind to new ideas and diferent ways of thinking. The instructors are brilliant academics who help you embrace interesting educational concepts. You have the opportunity to meet a lot of new people, from many different places, cultures and walks of life, not just the instructors, and you will make some amazing new friends.

I would grab my past self by the collar of her shirt and tell her, "Don't be an idiot in college. Just because you're surrounded by a bunch of distractions, focus on getting through school. Don't declare a stupid major that has no future. Don't horse around with a bunch of future ex boyfriends because you'll regret it for the rest of your life. College is about getting an educationnot drinking yourself silly. Sure it will all work out in the end but don't you want something better for yourself? For your children?" I wish I could have focused more that first year. I may have a 3.6 GPA but I could have been a straight A student and I would have been closer to getting out of school if I would have focused on a "real" career. I had no goals just like everyone else, I wish I could have been unique and focused like I am now. I should have thrown my cell phone out the window and just dealt with school because now I don't have the money to complete what I started.

If I could go back in time to speak to myself as a high school senior the first this I would discuss, would be the down time I took in between high school, and college. I have taken nearly four years in "transition" , because I was afraid to start the next chapter. Not knowing what that chapter might entail, I eventually came around and did the very thing I should have done nearly four years ago, and began my training for the future years. Do not dodge success, when some day you'll do what you are avoiding, and the only thing that hurts about it, is that it took so long to jump.

During my senior year teachers pressure you trying to make sure that you are prepared for college. Teachers twice the load of homework and college prep tests to make sure you can handle the work load and pressure. Through all this hard work I would tell myself to make sure to spend equal time on each class, but to also make sure that you don't focus all your time on your work but that you give your brain a break even before a test. I focus a lot of time on all my school work but in college I learned that you need to give your brain a break and take time to soak things in. Sometimes I would focus for hours on end on one thing, but even five minutes away from it will help you absorb things a little bit at a time. This is especially important before tests and finals so your brain doesn't get fried with too much information at one time. "Don't fry your brain with too much information at once but relax and take a break to take in all you are studying a little at a time."

You have your whole life ahead of you; you need to make the right decision now. Don?t join the Air Force and go straight into school. Don?t get married since it?ll hinder your chances of starting college a lot sooner than you would like to. When you finally move to Montana, get your residency papers filed before you file your taxes so you can start as a full time student and have to wait even longer to start school. If you listen to me now, you won?t feel like such a failure two years after your graduation. When you do finally start school, don?t worry about the classes that you think will be hard, all classes are hard, but there are tutors that you can use and the teachers in Montana are really helpful. Take everything one day at a time, you don?t have to freak out about everything. Don?t worry about anything while your in school, because worrying doesn?t do anything, it doesn?t help the situation, just makes your emotional state worse. So take everything at a steady pace and you should do fine.

Everyone shies away from the unknown. You MUST NOT do this. If you ever hope to learn anything, you must be willing to move towards that which you do not understand. You must embrace the feeling of not having everything figured out, it will be with you for the rest of your life. Look at the percentage of students that are in-state. These people will most likely go home every weekend for the first few weeks, if not months. If this percentage is high, then the campus will be very empty on the weekends. Choose your school accordingly. Throw yourself into everything you do. That is the only way to fully experience life. Be willing to try everything once. You never know what will inspire you or where your passions lie. Take everything you have an give it back. Give your time, money, energy, self. Communities are built by people giving themselves. Keep your wonder. Continue to be amazed by the world. There is always something new to discover. Meet as many people as you possibly can. You will be amazed at the way they can open your mind. Do not take this advice. Make your own mistakes.

This is huge. In the next four years you will embark on the ride of your life. You will experience incredible achievements and inevitable failures. You will form relationships that will last a lifetime. You will be faced with challenges and choices more difficult than any you have previously encountered. You will work hard. You will play hard. Most importantly, you will mature into the person you will be for the rest of your life. You will watch yourself grow up as you're faced with your first glimpse of life as an independant adult. It's both exciting and intimidating, but you have to take hold of this experience! Set goals and form habits that will set you up for success. Be diligent and responsible. Complete your work in a timely manner, so you can have time to get out there and have some fun! Be sure to try new things, and take advantage of the once in a lifetime opportunities. Now is the time to do it. Get excited! Stop to enjoy every day of these next four years. You will remember them as the days you grew into your own.

If I could go back in time and talk to myself, I would tell myself not to be nervous or frightened. You should never be afraid to keep moving forward. After all, college is simply the next step in life. There is no need to worry about what will be. What will come will come and the only thing to do is deal with it when it arrives. A past life may fade, but a new one will arise, like a phoenix from the ashes. All that you can do is do the best that you can with every moment to make the most of your life and give yourself a better future.

Given the option, many people would grasp the opportunity to go back in time to tell their past self some bit of information that could change their future. If I had that opportunity to tell myself senior in high school self anything, I would express my desire be more courageous in the relationships I had and warn against seeking the approval of others. In high school, I was scared to speak my mind due to the fear of confrontation. I wish I could tell myself to be bolder and more willing to say what needed to be said. Having courage with those that play a great part in any person?s life is an attribute that I consider a great necessity, but is likewise a trait that is not often expressed. I feel that it was my very apparent need for the approval of others that fed my insecurities. By telling myself that approval is not the only thing that matters I believe that could open doors that would allow for more personal growth. I believe that if I could have advised myself to be bolder and seek less approval, I could have really changed my past through my future.

If there was a way for be to go back as a senior I would tell myself a couple different words of advice. First I would tell myself to become more outgoing and have more confidence in myself so I would have had more friends my freshman year and felt comfortable without being with someone I always knew. I would not have lived in the dorms with my best friend because no matter how long you have been friends there is still things you don't know about them and you lose her. The last thing is to tell myself that I need to work really hard at school my freshman year because as the years go on it is really hard to raise your GPA. GPA is taken very seriously to get into the programs you want at CSU so always work really hard.

Denae, Get a new phone. Once you get to college and actually have to use your cell phone, you will discover that it only has 15 minutes of battery. Get a new one sooner rather than later. Do not be afraid or too proud to write things down. Though you sometimes demonstrate good memory, you will need a planner to write down homework assignments and phone numbers and appointments. Also, make a list of items to bring when you go home for a weekend. Check that list. Please do not forget your coat or gloves; this is Colorado. Skipping breakfast is not worth the sleep. You need adequate nutrition to start the day correctly. Get involved. There is no better way to meet new people and become familiar with campus than to join clubs and activities. Do not stay in your dorm room or apartment all the time. Got to the library, or study room, or dining hall, or a friend's room. You will be happier if you get out more, and it will keep you from bothering your roommate. Pay attention Listen to your teachers and RA and parents. Put into practice their words of wisdom.

I know when I was in high school I thought I was never going to go to college because I did not want to deal with the loans and stress , but now that I am living the experiance it is not bad at all because at the end it is all worth it. So if I could go back to my senior year I would tell myself to work harder so that I can get bettter grades and start looking at better college then where I am now, instead of waiting 2 years after graduation. The sooner I would have started the sooner I would have been in my carreer.

In high school, I was at a point in my life where I had little guidance from my parents. I also switched schools in my senior year so I became one small fish in a very big pond and was never even assigned a guidance counselor. With a 4.0 GPA and everything going for me, I made the decision to get married instead of going to a 4-year university or college. I spent the next 3 years in night school to obtain my associate's degree. Life gets in the way and at the age of 44, I am finally returning to college on February 1st, 2010 to pursue my bachelor's degree. If I could go back in time, I would tell myself to make the effort to find an adult to help me apply for college. I would tell myself that I was good enough, smart enough, and talented enough to make it happen. I would encourage myself to enroll in a 4-year school and get the "normal" college experience and the bachelor's degree. Life would have been a whole lot easier these last 24 years!

You?re getting close to starting your freshman year at Colorado State University, congrats! Here?s a few words of advice before you go. First, remember that sometimes the best thing you can do is ask for help. I know it will be intimidating to talk to your professors, but they are teaching the class for a reason, and they are the ones writing the tests and giving the grades. The fact that they see you trying all you can to get the grade speaks volumes in their books. Second, stay away from relationships that toy with your emotions. As much as you think they won?t affect your school work, they ultimately will. You don?t want to spend your junior and senior years trying to make up for one really bad semester. Finally, as selfish as it sounds, focus on yourself. The competition in this field is cutthroat, and very few will reciprocate the help you offer. Surround yourself with people who are happy for your achievements. Find escape in an activity or different field of study as a minor. Do only what works for you, what makes you happy, because in the end, it?s your future.