Stephen F Austin State University Top Questions

I did not know much about the college experience when I was a high school senior. I would always wonder how big were the classes and how difficult they would be. I wasn't number one of my senior class but that didn't mean I wasn't intellegent and yes of course I had friends that attended college when I was a senior but I was to afraid to ask what was college like. Now I look back and see all the mistakes I did and just wish I would spoken up more. So the number one advice I would give myself if I could go back in time would be to not be afraid to ask questions and to pay more attention in class. I would also advice to start maturing as a person and know how to take control of your life such as learning how to use your time wisely and improving your learning skills.

Going back , I would tell myself to stay focused. There will be many road blocks that will try to set you back. I would tell myself to start saving. College is expensive and I am not wealthy. I would tell myself to be careful who you make friends with. Also, you dont need friends. They are most definetly a great support system , but you dont need them. It may sound cliche' , but stay true to yourself and what you believe in. If you don't stand for something you will fall for anything.

If I had known what I now know, I would have told my former self that studying habits are very difficult to establish in college with these certain surroundings. I did not take high school seriously, and am paying for it now. I went from almost never needing to study my entire grade school career to one of the most notoriously exacting (which I was oblivious to) courses on campus: Western Civilization 152. To make things worse, I had immense pressure on my social life on top of virtually no rules or parental guidance to keep me on path. It took me a strenuous three semesters to help me realize what is important and why I am at a university. Although I feel I am finally headed toward the right direction, it would have been favorable if I had experienced this maturity before it hurt my academic career.

If I could go back in time and talk to myself as a highschool senior, I would tell myself to apply for more grants and scholarships. To make the transition from highschool to college easier, I would tell myself to have more conversations with my parents. Going back, I would have a long discussion with my parents about communication. I would tell myself to keep my head up when no one else is backing me up. I would also advise myself to start working as soon as possible. If I could go into the past, I would tell myself to try hard to make friends because you never know when you need someone. I would like to have to myself to be more open to new things and to work harder to make better grades in my first semester at college.

My senior year of high school was probably the most stressful time of my life. There were so many things to do, so many dead lines to remember, endless amounts of forms to fill out, and not to mention grades and extra curriculars to keep up with. I have never been under so much pressure. Now that I have gotten past that stage, lived through a semester of college, and have started on my second, I have so much advice I would have liked to tell myself. But the number one piece of advice I would have given would be to not procrastinate. Putting something off until tomorrow, and then the next day, and then the next, doesn't make it any easier or any more acceptable or approachable. It only hurts you in the long run. Just sucking it up and getting the important things done as soon as possible is the wisest thing you can do as a senior. Learning the habit then will only help the tranfer to college life be that much simpler. With more responsibilities and living on your own, it is the only way to survive.

If I could go back to my senior year knowing what I know now about college life I would tell myself about the three "S". The three "S's" states that in college you can study, socialize, or sleep. But the catch is that you can only do two at a time. Another thing I would tell myself is to perpare better for long nights studying and money problems. Some time I didn't have the well power to stay up to make sure that I had grasp a concept, then in the morning I had forgot it.

I would tell myself to not rule out options just because I think they aren't possible. I only applied to one college just because it met my criteria but there were so many others that would have been better that I just ruled out because they were further away. I would also tell myself to apply for more scholarships.

The advice I would give myself if I could go back and talk to myself as a senior would be not to wait to go to college to go as soon as possible. It would have made my lifestyle today so much better than it is now. It would have been easier now I have a child and we are trying to make it but with out a college degree life is tough now a days. I would also tell myself to wait on a lot of desions that I made after high school.

Some people may have trouble adjusting to the time management, work load, or independence of the college life in the transition from senior year. I would tell myself to keep in mind having fun with friends and family that are home and around me and just enjoy being a senior while it lasts. To create as many more fond memories as I can. You only get one senior prom night and one time to walk across that graduation stage. I would tell myself this to start preparing me to keep from having regrets once I entered college because college is a time to start over with friends and life. It's not a time to look back at high school and say what if or could've would've, should've. You pay for education in college as oppose to high school so I would talk to myself about taking the classes seriously with the deadlines, homework, projects and learning as much as I can in them because these are the classes that will get me a degree to make a living.

I would tell myself that it will take extreme determination and motivation to keep up with college work. Therefore my senior self needs to get her mind into the game of school work and to continue with her high expectations of her self. I would also tell her that no matter how difficult things may seem they can always get worse but with the right attitude, things can get better. All she needs is to have faith and patience then college life can be much easier to deal with.