South Dakota School of Mines and Technology Top Questions

Oh how I would love to go back in time. The things I would tell the past-me? but about college life? Well, after graduating high school I was originally intending on moving to Washington and going to school in Seattle. However, it didn?t happen. Partly due to the fact that I could just barely afford to attend school out of state, and part of it because of my hesitation of losing all my old friends. What I foolish child I was. If I could go back in time to my old self, I would grab onto my shoulders and shake myself back and forth until everything made sense. Dramatic? Yeah, probably. Nessicary? Probably not, but I would like to think so. The truth I realized much to late is, unless you live close to your high school friends chances are pretty good they are not going to be near as warm and cuddly. I would have smacked sense into the old me and told him to follow through and attend college in Washington like originally planned. Who knows though? It may happen in the future if all goes as planned.

I would tell myself to go for it. Don't be afraid to go club meetings and school events. Don't worry about being so far away from home. GET A JOB! You will not have time have one during school, and you will need more money than you think you will need. Bring your bike you will not have a car and will have to depend on other people to get to places. If you think what you are about to do is a bad idea, it is a bad idea, don?t do it. . Finally would tell myself the cold isn't that bad, you?re not going to freeze to death and don?t do anything completely stupid.

If I could go back and talk to myself when I was a senior in high school there is not much I would say to myself to change how i transtioned into college life. The main this I would tell myself is to relax, things will work out just make sure you bring everything you need. Make sure to get out and meet new people and do not just confine yourself to people you already knew from high school because the more people you know the more fun you will have. I would also remind myself to make sure to balance school with other activities but make sure school comes first.

If I were given the opportunity to go back and talk to myself as a high school senior with the knowledge about college that I now I have, I would tell myself two important things. The first thing that I would tell myself is to never be afraid to do something new. I realize now that not going for something just because its new and strange to you should not stand in the way of doing it if it will be beneficial or interesting. The second thing that I would tell myself is to join a club or organization as soon as you can. This is extrememly beneficial to meeting new people and having new friends and new people in your life at college can be rewarding, emotionally, beneficially, and personally.

If I were able to go back in time and talk to myself as a high school senior, I would say, "Aarika this is your senior year and college is right around the corner. College is nothing like high school. You have to study, do homework, go to class everyday (even though it's not mandatory), participate, and learn how to be on your own. Starting to get into the habit of doing those things right now can help you when you go off to college. College life is tough, especially when your thousands of miles away from home. There are two things to remember about college. One, you need to be responsible and not dependable. Two, be prepared at all times. Life isn't fair, but if you want to be successful and you fight for it, you will be successful. Keep your head up kiddo!"

The advice that I would give myself is to keep cost in mind, and to look into what each school has to offer. I would also say not to go with my gut feeling and make a last minute decision. I would tell myself to spend time with my counselors and not to blow off appointments like I did. In the end nothing is more important than your future and by not spending time with my counselors I hindered myself both acidemically and financially. I would say not to be as concerned with athletic programs and hype, because in an instant those things may not matter as much as they used to. And the most important thing I would tell myself would be to take the time to plan things out, and to look for dead ends in your path, try to avoid some obstacles that come with transfering schools and switching majors, all in all just to be a little more conservative with my decisions and not to jump into things so quickly.

Life is full of many "what if's". What if I could change this, or what if I could change that? Have I made mistakes in my past that I wish I could change? Of course I have, but would I change anything? I look at my life and see what I have become. I see who I am and the changes that have occurred to make me who I am today. I may not be perfect or exhilerating, but who I am is who I was meant to be. Given the chance to go back and give myself advice I would probably tell me to work harder on getting those scholorships. However, I would probably refuse the opportunity because any interference with the past could drastically change the present. While I'm not rich and overflowing with money, I can think of many worse possible fate. I am content with who I am and where I am.

First off, great job applying early and doing the interactive checklist provided by the School of Mines website, but there were a few important things that could have been done that were never said to me. One of the biggies is the AP Calc exam has a deadline for application and it is February! There is a good chance you were clearly prepared, but it will still take some major studying to start off in Calc II. Next, look into CLEP exams, they can make gratuating on track a lot less strenuous. Take the Spanish, English composition, and the US history CLEP exams. The Spanish and the US history will take a lot of preparation, but they are worth the work outside of class. Next, keep in mind the schedule the school prepares for you is not 100{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} the best it can be! Get on the SDSM&T website and check out the department website for Chemical Engineers and their course outline and prepare one that still puts a workload on first semester to ease the burden the following semesters. Lastly, look online for books too especially the Wiley card for Chem 112 is $40 less online.

If I could go back in time and talk to myself as a high school student I would tell myself to have a healthy balance between school work and fun. You need to apply yourself in school no matter what. In college the professors do not care to hear your pathetic stories of my dog died so I couldn?t do the homework, they are there to push you, push you past what you ever thought you could do or imagine. They may give you tough love, but you have to know that they want you to succeed as much as you yourself want to succeed. There?s always a way to overcome an obstacle. They say college is the best years of your life and I believe in that one hundred and ten percent. You have freedom, but you also gain many responsibilities. You can decide if you go to bed, play guitar hero till 6:30 a.m., or you study for that chemistry test that?s at eight the next morning; it?s your choice your parents and professors aren?t there to tell you what to do.

During my freshman year in college, I made the mistake of not buckling down and doing as well as I could have. After coming close to not being able to return the following year, I have learned to work hard to stay in school. Study, study, study. There will be more time for other things when school is over, but during school, focus on school.