Iowa State University Top Questions

I wish I had known what I wanted to do when I was in high school. It would have saved me taking a lot of classes I didn't need for my major.

If I could share one piece of wisdom I've gained in college, it would be that your sense of identity should be your greatest treasure - don't compromise it for anyone. Your freshman year will be a hugely eye-opening experience. You'll learn how to live with strangers. You'll be making decisions on your own. You'll be challenged academically and probably emotionally. You'll encounter some of the issues you've prepared for and some that you haven't. And you'll meet some of the best friends of your life. No matter who you ask, college is a journey of self discovery. As you navigate through your years, you'll inevitably figure out what it is that you believe in and care about. It is easy to let other people decide this for you, but what's easy ususally isn't best. My advice to you is to take control of your own identity and do what feels right to you. If you know who you are, you have nothing more to worry about. Everything else will fall into place.

Knowing what I know now, I would go back in time and tell myself not to attend college right away. I was 16 years old when I graduated high school and moved into my dorm at Iowa State University. In the 4 years I have been here, I have accumulated an overwhelming amount of debt. Even with grants, loans, and scholarships, tuition, textbooks and the overall cost of living has left me with bad credit and a bleak outlook on life after college. I became even more discouraged after witnessing a sudden death near campus and being diagnosed with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. I now have severe anxiety and trouble interacting with people. Although I have received counseling and am employed full-time, the financial responsibility is too much for me to handle on my own. I am nearing graduation, and will have to start paying back my loans. If I could go back in time, I would become more financially independent before making such a big decision. For most high school graduates, it is expected that they will attend college. Unfortunately, not everyone can afford it in our current system.

If I could go back in time I would like to tell myself that college academia is nothing like high school, but I wouldn't. So many people told me this, and they were all correct. I had strong grades in high school and was not worried about the difficulty of an engineering major in college, but I should have been. Telling myself though, that it would be harder would be unnecessary because everyone told me that. I knew that. I, personally, have learned from my mistakes so far and continue to learn more from them every semester. The best advice I could give myself would be to meet more people in my classes. The reason this would be key for me is because as college has progressed, I've found that making friends in class has made the coursework much more understandable and manageable.

If I could go back in time and talk to myself as a high school senior I would give myself no advice. The reason I choose to give no advice is because I like the way college has gone for me. So far I have made good friends, I have found what I prospectively want to do, and I have had many experiences that I would trade nothing for. Honestly I want to put that I would tell myself to study more or make some different choices, but that would mean getting rid of a whole year of awesome. I don't know about other people, but I have only started my adventure and I am loving where I am at right now. That is why I would give myself no advice if I could go back in time and talk to myself as a high school senior.

There is much advice that I would give to myself as a senior in high school; I will give three major points of advice. First of all, get involved with the community around you, whether its making friends with others in your dorm or joining a club that relates to your major. Having that fellowship with others will encourage you to continue doing your best, even through the toughest challenges that the college education can bring. Second, discover good study habits that will help you succeed with classes. Always put aside time in the day to do some school work, whether its homework or needed studying. Experiment with different study tactics as well to find out the best way for you to retain the information and be successful in your classes; some common study tactics can be finding a quiet spot to work by yourself, or by forming a study group with others in your class. Lastly, learn how to manage your time. Finding a balanced between study time, and relaxation time is very important; you wouldn't want to work all the time, so find time to take short breaks as well as making a schedule/agenda for yourself.

If I were to revisit my high school self, I would tell her to take advantage of the tutoring and academic success centers at college. I always have a problem asking for help and it really made my GPA suffer my first semester at college. Looking back I should have set aside extraccurricular activities and focused more on my studies so I would not be trying to raise my GPA the rest of college. I would also tell myself to keep being involved. Looking at my college life know, I am extremely involved and I have made so many network connections through various people that will help me career wise.

Juliana when you take notes acutally read and study them oh and read the books because you are going to basically teach yourself that way in college. Enjoy the sleep your getting now!

Community colloege is a great way to save money and your going to meet some great freinds where ever you go. Take your grades serious where ever you end up, and push yourself to do the best your capable of and push your limits. Come out of your comfort zone every once in awhile too. There is nothing wrong with trying something new or challenging. Have fun and manage your time wisely with school always coming first. Plan your life how YOU want it, your now in complete control of everything you do so make the most of it and be happy while your doing it. College is something you will only experience for a short while just like high school, make sure you make the most of it and give it your all. Constantly push yourself to new limits and you will be amazed at what you can accomplish. It might not be that easy but you will feel more accomplished than ever once you succeed.

If I could go back in time, I would have taken the time to visit more campuses in the mid-west and figure out a way to have a more stable scholarship pool or cheaper costs in general. I love my school, but it costs way more than I expected to go to school at Iowa State which makes it more difficult for me and my family financially. I wish I really sat down with a counselor to discuss my options before preceeding any farther in my decision. I know that there were more offers as a freshmen than there is now as a junior. I reallly wish I made a list of all the pros and cons of going to an out-of-state school before I choose to. Working a job, getting actively involved in clubs, going to school, and having any social life is harder than I expected.