Princeton University Top Questions

I have but a single regret. If I could give any piece of advice to my high school self, I would need just three words: kiss the boy. At the time, I had every reason not to. There were serious questions. Was he gay? Was I? How would my parents react? It’s hard to risk the leap from friends to something more, and back then, I just couldn’t do it. All the same, I was given every opportunity. A guys’ night out, where the others “just couldn’t make it,” a sleepover far away from home, even the moment when he withdrew from his own closet. If I could have taken that advice and told him how I felt, I would have been a more open person. Regardless of what his response would have been, I needed to learn to talk about these delicate interpersonal relationships. It’s all too easy to bottle up emotions, and it’s all too painful when they come pouring out. Since then, I’ve met other people, and I am learning to be more forthright about my emotions. However, it’s a lesson I wish someone had helped me with long ago.

I would tell myself to continue working hard and to learn how to study.

If I could go back in time to my high school self and give myself in any advice I would tell myself to start looking up scholarships and grants. I found out the hard way that money doesn’t grow on trees it comes from hard work, in knowledge of your surroundings. I will also tell myself to look in to your education before enrolling because a lot of times people jump the gun before truly seeing what its worth. The first school I enrolled in a have my best intentions in mind at the time I enrolled. But two later find out I was enrolled in a program that I didn't sign up for. I would tell myself to wait and go to college for what you dream about. To keep in mind that it’s my life and I decide my career path in goals for the future not any one else. I’m in school now for what I wanted to do my whole life so even though there’s been many detours along the way I still will find my way that to living and accomplishing my goals for my dream career.

Chill out and go with the flow because there's not nearly as much pressure as you think there is.

If I could counsel myself as a high school senior, I would impart this advice: high school is more than just the training wheels. For many, high school was a means to an end. From our first days as freshmen to our last ones as seniors, we were inundated with the message that the destination was not where we were but where we would be after graduation. Just as training wheels are a necessity of learning to ride a bike, we were taught that high school was an essential, though temporary, stepping stone to college. This ideology fails us. It focuses on an intangible future goal and obscures the opportunity in front of us: the enjoyable and fulfilling process of learning and being challenged in the vibrant environment that is comprised of hallways, lockers, and cafeterias. As a result, many kids spend their entire high school careers focusing on the wrong things: good grades instead of actual learning, insincere “resume-builders” instead of genuine pursuits, and blind preparation instead of real enjoyment. Our focus on making sure the training wheels are clean and shiny tends to blind us to what we are really doing: we are already riding the bike.

Knowing what I know now that I'm collge I would give myself a few pieces of advise. First off i would tell myself to make sure before I ledt high school, or at least to get into the habit, learn and master the art of discipline. In college you are hit with a new wave of freedom and it easy to get off track with being disciplined in your school work. If that was something that I learned to get down in high school my college life would be a lot less stressful. Although the stress level in high school is different than in college, I would tell myself to make sure I learn to be disciplined and make school work a priorty. Another piece of advise I would give myself would be that when applying to school during senior year to seek much help and advise from people who have been through the process and apply for scholarships as early as possible. I'm finding myself now changing my college plans but mainly due to the fact that i didn't see much help from the start and having to find ways to fund that education.

Assuming that I could go back and talk to myself as a high school senior, I would tell myself to get into the habit of studying all material intenseley. One thing that I learned while attending college is that good notes are important when it comes to passing quizzes and midterms. What I realized is that in high school my note taking was not as good as it is currently in college. I think that I would have been even more successful in high school if I took notes like I do in college. Note taking is not just important to get the information down that the instructor presents, but its important to actually look at the information after and be able to grasp the material. That is something that I did not do as much in high school, where I would not turn back to my notes as often because I couldnt rely on them as I do in college. I would constantly tell my self to take good notes if I could go back in time and talk to myself as a high school senior. Note taking is one thing that is important in college to succeed.

I would enjoy high school a lot more. I would have developed better study habits and work ethics during high school. I would have done more activities and made more lasting friendships. I would have tried harder on my college applications. I would have researched more into my college list and saved myself some time from applying to schools that I didn't even want to go to. I would not have added everybody from Princeton on Facebook before I met them in person later on. I would also prepare for college. I would do something exciting the summer before college, because that will be the last summer you have to really relax and have fun before you get a job. I would have really thought deep and hard if I really wanted to become a doctor, or at least would have explored other possible careers. I would have exercised a lot more and hung out with my friends a lot more during the school year and the summer. I would have tried harder and studied more for my AP tests, instead of blowing them off. I would have prepared myself a lot better for college than I had done.

If given the chance to give advice to my high-school self, I would tell him (me?) to prepare to take advantage of as many new opportunities available to the college student as possible. Some opportunities in college will be familiar from high school. For example, people with athletic or artistic interests will find club teams or performing groups fulfill a similar role in college as they did in high school. However, there are many new opportunities for the college student to pursue if they have the initiative. There are chances to study abroad all over the world. If you have an interest in a particular region or culture, chances are that there is a program that will let you experience it firsthand for a semester or more. In the college setting, you will also have the opportunity to meet and work alongside your professors. If you have an interest in research, engage your professors, and you may find yourself working on scientific research as an undergraduate. Travel abroad and undergraduate research are just two of the new opportunities that accompany the independence of college. You could benefit greatly from them if you have the necessary initiative to pursue them.

The courses, extracurriculars, and dorms are all a great part of college life, but it is the people I have met that define the most important part of my college experience. Amazing professors breathe life into material that might otherwise seem flat and dull, actually triggering a hidden interest that I never knew I had. Knowledgeable advisers and alumni provide outlooks on how life during and after college can be like, opening my eyes beyond textbooks and the lecture hall. However, my friends, my colleagues, are the real gems of the college treasure trove. Differing, clashing views encourage me to go beyond my own narrow opinions. Sharing experiences and cultures with people from all over the world enriches my thoughts in ways words cannot describe. Being surrounded by advanced intellectuals has also shown me what it feels like to be intimidated. Yet at the same time, I was able to experience the exhilarating rush of having fear turn into excitement, because I could see the challenges that awaited me. Such moments have helped me change into a better, fuller, more open-minded individual and I hope I will continue to do so while helping others change as well.