Georgia Southern University Top Questions

If given the opportunity to go back and give myself advice for college, I would tell myself to save money, be organized, and perfect managing your time. Thus far college has been a great adventure and even though I'm only in my second semester, I think I've got the hang of things. Saving money is something I would tell myself, because at first you don't realize how little of it you really have and how quickly it disappears when you don't have a job. Jobs around college towns are hard to find, especially when you're a full-time student. " Save your money...please" I would demand myself and hopefully I would listen. Also important is organization. Being organized is the best way to prioritize your assignments and eliminate unwanted stress. Being organized also influences the next piece of advice I would give myself, which is TIME MANAGEMENT! I believe whole heartedly that college is a four year, time management project. Once you learn to manage your time more efficiently, life suddenly becomes easier. If I could go back, I would tell myself, "save money, stay organized, manage your time well, and you'll be fine".

I would say apply to many different colleges and try to find help on what to do in college. I would also ask for advise in how to be successful in college. I would make the right decisions and go with what my heart says instead of listening to my peers.

I would have quite a bit of advice. First, I would tell myself to convince my mother to get me a cell phone. There were quite a few classes my first semester that I needed to do group work outside of class and I had no way of contacting those groups. All of the people I asked about college talked about the excessive studying and the crazy professors. I would tell myself that those people are blowing off hot air. The biggest reason I didn't do that well my first semester was because I was stressed. Relaxing from time to time helped me study more effectively. I also made friends that way too. Some of these freinds actually helped me with other classes later. Lastly, because my mother was, and still is, strict and the rest of my family was too busy, I never learned how to drive. I would tell myself to get some much needed scruples and force them to teach me. I beleive I had always been afraid of my family, but now I know how to handle them. Family relationships are important, however, you still need to learn how to stand on your own feet.

I would tell myself that I need to break my attitude and I need to understand that the professor controls my grade. As much as I would hate to say it, I would have had a much easier time becoming accustomed with college life and my classes if I would have not forced my opinions and attitudes on my professors. I would suggest to myself to keep my mouth closed even when what I think a professor is saying is completely farfetched. I am not suggesting that argument is bad, I, in fact, believe that personal opinions should be shared and discussed. I am suggesting that when I write a paper, that I write it in a manner that pleases them and not myself. They have the only say in what score I get for the course. A painful truth.

I would say, " This is your one oppurtunity to be great. Don't waste your time acting as if partying, and slacking off is cool, because in the end all that time wasted doesn't do you any good. You have only a few months left of high school so why not finish strong, and have better preperation for your future. What's a few months compared to the rest of your life?"

The most useful advice I would give myself is to plan. During my first semesters of college I learned that I would need to quickly make a plan and schedule in order to be successful in my first year of college. I am a full time student and I was completely unaware of how different college is from high school. In high school I rarely planned anything or kept a schedule, I just always relied on my teachers and classmates to remind me of when tests were due and when certain assignments are due. Although I maintained good grades during high school, once I entered Georgia Southern I realized quickly that if I did not plan and make schedules then I would fail miserably. I learned quickly to keep a calendar with test dates, assignments due and meetings scheduled recorded. I also began keeping a class schedule of when and where my classes were located. By quickly learning to make a schedule and plan out my time I was able to keep up with the fast pace of Georgia Southern and I successfully completed my first two semesters.

If I could go back in time and talk to myself as a high school senior knowing what I know now I would tell myself that studying is more important in college then it ever was in college. Also that I am going to be responsible for my own work and homework so being organized and keeping a schedule of when things are do is vastly important for getting desired grades in classes. Buying books and doing the readings assigned in them can actually make a major differance in wheither I pass a class or fail it. The sooner I buy books the better of I am in the classes. I would also tell myself that partying becomes less important in college when I'm focusing on getting good grades then everyone always makes it sound like while they're in high school. I would also tell myself that partying during the week is not a smart idea when I have early classes the next day and that I should wait to party untill days that I only have late classes, none at all, or just on the weekends.

Some advice I would give myself, is that time management is something that would be a must in college. Being able to use my time wisely would better help me succeed in classes. The professors are there to help, and I would just have to ask them for the help and they would give it to me. Focusing in class and not letting my mind wander.

As a high school senior, I really did not even try to prepare for college. When I was in fifth grade, the teacher always said she was preparing us students for middle school. She said it would be much harder. When I got to middle school, it was the same thing basically. It was not hard at all. When I was in eighth grade, the teachers always said they were preparing us for high school and that it would be no where near as easy as middle school. When I got to high school, it was no different. Finally, as a highschool senior, the graduation coach would always tell me that I needed to prepare better for college. She said it would be so much more difficult than high school. Of course I did not listen to her because of all of my other experiences. However, when I got to college, it was slightly more difficult. So maybe I should have listened. Georgia Southern helped with that problem. All first year students are required to take a First Year Experience class and pass. This class helped me to prepare while starting college. It was definitely extremely helpful with transition.

You do not have to know what you are going to do with the rest of your life right now. Take your time and figure out what YOU want to do, not what everyone else says is best for you. Be prepared to embrace a lot of change in a short amount of time, but I promise it will be fun! Find ways to get involved and meet new people. Do not be afraid to get to know people in your classes, it will benefit you in some way, I promise. Make sure you know how to study. Go study in the library at least once. Do make friends and be involved but be sure to make plenty of time for schoolwork. Get excited, it's going to be wonderful!