Temple University Top Questions

If I were able to go back in time and talk to myself in high school, I would tell myself to try harder in high school. Instead of taking a full load of electives that did not count in college, I would have rather myself taken more challenging courses that would have better prepaired me for college. I would have also told myself to take the opportunity of dual enrollment, to take college courses at a local college while still in high school. All in all, I'm glad that I had a fun high school career but now that I look back, I would have done things completely different that would have hopefully gotten me farther in life.

I would tell myself not to rush into college, spend some time at community college getting college credit for much less expensive. I would tell myself only to attend university once I have found something that sparks my interest. I am 23 now and have only started on the right path academically one year ago, and I have a full year to go after this semester. Also before I had found my focus and motivation I had messed up my GPA by losing focus mid semester in Spring 2009 and recieving 2 f's and a c-. If I could go back in time and tell myself not to be in school without a reason that would not be there. I would only have the good semesters and my gpa would be around 3.75 and I could potentially acheive my postgraduate goal of getting into MIT for financial engineering. Now I have to work extra hard in hopes of just getting noticed. In summary, I would tell myself to be honest to me. If I am not ready for school I should not be there so I don't ruin anything for when I do want my education.

I know it's hard, but try hard not to think about how hard moving away is going to be. The transition takes a little time, but you'll end up fine. Besides, with skype you can see your family and friends any given day. It's a lifesaver, let me tell you. Don't psych yourself out because you think you're not ready. You'll do fine, because your mom and dad and the rest of your family did a great job of teaching you what you need to know. Plus, all it takes is a phone call and they can answer almost any question you might have. You won't be as alone as you might think, or fear. You'll make friends, easier than you might think. Try to think of this as an adventure, where every step you take, every trial you overcome, brings you closer to becoming the great man your family, friends, and even you want to become. Have faith in God, because He's the one who'll get you through this, not you. Smile often, listen well, and be yourself. You'll do fine.

"Ab, this isn't going to be a quick and easy decision. It's not like that shirt you just bought and can return if you decide you don't like it. This is college. This is your next four years. This is alot of money. Chose your school for the right reasons. You would never pay ten thousand dollars to get into a party, so don't choose Penn State because of the fun factor. Research how the school is going to help you in the long run. You know you love your family and are going to get extremely homesick extremely fast. Temple is only a train stop away. Make the choice thats going to make you the happiest. Having your own bathroom really does matter, so dorm with the Honors College so you can have the better dorms. Learn how to drink coffee, because staying up all night without it isn't easy. Get ahead early in the semester, falling behind in the beginning will kick your butt in the end. Never think twice about the 'what-ifs'. You made your choices, now make them worth it."

I would probably tell myself not to stress myself out so much with the college process. People bring so much unneeded stress in their lives during their senior year while trying to prepare for college. Of course, it is important to maintain grades and finish applications on time, but there comes a point when it is out of your hands and in the hands of the admissions office. I spent too many nights stressing out over college decisions that I had no control over. Because of that, I lost a lot of time where I could of been enjoying my senior year. I would remind myself to keep a better balance of what I could control and what I couldn't control.

Prior to starting college, I almost didn't graduate. During this period of time, I convinced myself that I was a failure. In the end I graduated, but I thought it was because of luck. I then enrolled at Valencia Community College and started classes in September 2009, at the time I didn't realize that this would change my life forever. College has honestly been the best experience of my life. My college experience has taught me how to believe in myself, to never give up, to ask for help, one can go as far as they would like in life as long as they try, and most important of all college gave me hope for my future. I like to think of my college experience as a rollercoaster going through a museum, it has its ups and downs, but you're learning along the way. It is vital I attend college so I can continue to grow as a person, student, and future doctor. I owe all my strength, courage, intelligence, and faith to college. I believe attending college is like the last item on a Master Card commercial, priceless. Next to my family, college is my everything.

My college experience was filled with establishing new and lasting relationships, relevant learning, natural disasters, and an overall maturation process. From my arrival upon Union's campus I knew that the next four years would be a sesaon that I would not soon forget. I learned more about myself from adversity in the past four years than I ever thought would be possible. In the Spring semester of my Sophmore year, a F4 tornado struck down on top of my campus and completely demolished all of the dorms and two academic buildings, as well as ruining cars, roads, etc. However, somehow in the midst of all that damage, not one single person died. Outside of a few minor injuries everyone was okay. Most of the students, including myself, lost most of their personal belongings, but that seemed so small compared to everything else. The community of people at Union came together in those trying times and created a unique college experience for those of us who endured the tornado. Union was valuable to attend because it taught me more than how to excel in the workplace, but how to excel in life. Those lessons will stick with me forever.

My college experience at Temple University has been very challenging to me, because of a major psychological breakdown through which I went during my undergraduate years. In 2008, I had to take a temporary leave and travel to Egypt for an extensive orthopaedic surgery which lasted six months. In a way that appears paradoxical, I became extremely involved in extracurricular student activities from my second year to my last year at Temple University. By "throwing" myself out there, reaching out to other students and being involved at most levels of leadership and community service, I found a way to evade my psychological troubles. My assessment of Temple University may well be stained by the pessimistic subjective outlook that I've developped since my early college years, but I cannot honestly deny the fact that this establishment allowed me to deeply explore a part of me that is very productive and promising. For this alone, I will always cherish and value my experience as a Temple University undergraduate.

Temple University is an amazing school overall. We are located close to the center of Philadelphia, known as "Center City" where you can have the feeling of New York City without the hustle and bustle. I've noticed from living in a city area, I was forced to mature faster because I had to be more independent getting around. The school also has an excellent program for my major, Recreational Therapy, so I am very thankful to have the staff working with me. Also, most of our staff has worked in the profession they teach, so they have first hand experience with their subjects.

The biggest lesson that I got out of my college experience is living by myself. The transition from having parents nurture and baby you with homecooked food and loving and care and then all of a sudden living in a cramped dorm room with a complete stranger is something that helped me be more independent. College has been valuable to me beacuse it also taught me how to teach myself certain subjects that is presented to me in classes. Teachers in high school and professors in college are definately not the same. Teachers in high school actually present the material to the students and guide them along the way if they have any questions or if they are struggling with the topic. Professors in college present the material, go over the basics, and pretty much expect the students to learn the material on their own. College overall has been a very valuable experience so far for me, because it taught me how to be an independent young man and how to teach myself in and out of the classroom.