The University of Montana Top Questions

Go to college right after highschool, to get the full college experience rather than be a non-traditional student.

As a high school senior I would have wanted to know about how the credit system works and of ways and places to find college text books cheaper. At first I thought the school's credit system seemed confusing and difficult but later I learned how the credits added up, which brought my anxiety of being able to graduate in 4 years at ease. Prices of textbook stressed me out, especially knowing that I am on a tight budget. If I would have known of the option of renting and buying in bundles would give me discounts, I would have saved at least 200 dollars. Thankfully I learned from that experience and saved a whole lot more when I purchased books for my 2nd semester. These advices would have saved me the stress and money in my transition to college life.

Go to a regular public high school and take as many AP courses that you can. Study hard for every test! Get rid of your current boyfriend, he isn't what you need in your life right now. You need to concentrate on yourself and make yourself the best that you can be! Remember that you can do anything you can set your mind on. Your beautiful, inside and out so don't let anyone tell you any different.

Definitely try to get to know your roommate before you get to campus. My first roommate and I were not alike in our lifestyles, but by the time we realized that, it was too late to switch roommates. If you do end up with a roommate that you don't mesh well with, be patient and try to compromise; otherwise, the semester may not be as wonderful as you expected.

If I could go back in time and talk to myself as a high school senior, knowing I knowing what I know now about college life, I would tell myself not to lose focus. It is too easy to become distracted by non "school related" activities and to leave homework and studying behind, so it is important to stay focused and remain studious as much as possible.

Assuming I could go back in time and talk to myself, I'd be pretty freaked out. I mean, who wouldn't? Keeping that in mind, if I had to give myself some advice about the future, I would hit myself upside the head and say "Quit worrying and just get things done." Something I've discovered in the last year is that no matter how weird or awful things get, time is just going to keep on moving, whether you're eady or not. So, by telling myself to just relax, it would save me a whole lot of frustration. Not everything can be perfect, obviously. In a perfect world, I wouldn't have to write this essay in an attempt to scrounge up enough money to keep myself enrolled in college. In a perfect world, I wouldn't want to go back in time, I wouldn't HAVE to give myself advice! So, just keep on trying, I'll say. Things will get better, then they'll get worse and eventually back to better again. Enjoy things while all you have to worry about is a scholarship essay.

Look around you. Realize what the world has to offer. Realize what you have to offer the world. It is an amazing place and you are an amazing person. Learn to explore, travel, question your perspectives and challenge yourself. Don’t be limited by what you know, understand or feel comfortable with. Don’t shy away from a path or direction that may take some work, or to take responsibility to enhance a life whether is it yours or someone else’s. Take advantage of opportunities, help or advice, but not of people. Tread lightly on this planet, be grateful for what you have, but follow your convictions with strength. I know this is very general advice, but these ideas will help you to navigate not only your college experience, but your life and world experience. Adopt fully and live with courage by the wise words of Mark Twain: “Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”

I started college summer courses at University of Great Falls the day after I graduated from highschool, so the transition was rather abrubt. If I could go back and give myself some advice it'd be, take advantage of the resources offered. Also i'd remind myself that what I was doing then was the right choice and will put me ahead in the long run. Most importantly, I would pressure myself to be more socialable, and that strong communication skills will also be of great importance once I got to campus. If I had the chance I would also relay the message to my highschool self that having fun in college is part of life, and to not load up on credits in hopes of finishing early, enjoy the ride.

I would advise myself to get more envolved with my schools extra curricular ativities. They would help me make many friends who ended up coming to the university with me. It would help me feel like I have a better social life and not such a school based life. I would also adive myself that talking to the school advisor was a firend and not something to be scared of. I wish I had the courage to talk to him about college and scholorships. I would just tell my self that I needed to stop being scared of the future. I needed to grab it by the horns to say. I would advise myself to look for different schools and programs to see what is best for me. I do not regret coming to this university but it would have been nice to have options to choose from. I would also give the best advice which is to study for all my classes and finish school feeling accomplished with the best grades I could.

Rosemary, as your future self, I am begging you to loosen up and let go a little! You can't always plan for every obstacle that will/can possibly come your way. Instead, invest your time in the 'now'. You are a very smart and capable girl, regardless of how unsure of yourself you are now, things won't always be this way. You will one day be comfortable in your own skin, and let yourself be exactly that..YOURSELF. Take charge of your future! Don't stand in the back of the crowd! Push your way to the front, because that is where you deserve to be! Fight for what you want, and don't let others take your dreams from you. Your dreams are attainable no matter how big they are, some just take more work than others. Most importantly, what others think of you is none of your business. Don't worry about fitting in, if you are true to yourself everything will fall into place. College isn't like high school in any way, shape or form. Be excited, bright-eyed and ready to learn! Your degree awaits your open hands! Snatch it!

If i was able to go back in time and and give myself advice i would make sure i told myself not to waste any time. It has taken me four years to complete what should have only taken me two years. Working as a youth leader in a High School,i often find myself telling my community college bound students that it is important that they complete theyre GE classes as soon as possible and to really focus and give it their best.One day all their time and effort will pay off!

Get on getting your NCAA stuff done, take as many Advanced Placement classes as possible because gen ed's are not very fun, and enjoy how easy highschool is because as soon as you're out real life starts and at some points it will be overwhelming but really you're capable and you have it in you to strive to do what you want. Oh, and always, ALWAYS double, triple check the information you're given by anyone see things with your own eyes and then come to educated people with questions that pertain to what you have researched. And do more scholarships, debt sucks!

I would tell myself to work harder in class to prepare for college. I would definitely tell myself to look way harder into where I want to go to school and what I want from life. I would say to apply for more scholarships and find a way to pay for where I really want to be. I would also tell myself that no matter what I decide, it always works out, so take a deep breath and relax once in a while.

I would tell myself to not slack off in my senior year, to work very hard in my classes and to join every club/organization that I possibly could. Also to join outside clubs and organizations that your hometown didColleges like that you are active in your school and that you participated in every organization that your school/town offered. I would also tell myself to apply for every scholarship that you can find because college is very expensive. You can't just rely on finding a job on/off campus because its alot more difficult than you think.

Being a college student means many things. It means freedom, hard work, discovery, decisions, and change. For many people, college is a time where they find themselves and become who they really are. Since attending the University of Montana, I have considered several different majors, including environmental studies, wildlife biology, elementary education, psychology and pre-physical therapy. Now I can say that I am happily sticking with the last two on the list. Becoming a physical therapist was always something I had been interested in and in the back of my mind I knew I would choose that career, but I felt that before I made that commitment I needed to explore all the other sides of myself and my other interests. Discovering which direction I wanted to go in my life has been a bumpy ride, but also very valuable. If I could give myself advice as a high school senior, I would tell myself to not be afraid of growing. I would say that allowing yourself to explore, change and make mistakes are all part of the process, and that everything will fall into place. I would also remind myself, however, that the journey is far from over.

If I could talk to myself as a high school senior, knowing all that I do now, I would say, "LeeAnna, there is no need to stress so much! Yes, college is a big decision, but you have to allow yourself to get excited about this or college is going to turn into a shadow of the experience it could have been. You need to Explore! Explore different colleges in different parts of the country! Do not be afraid to grow up and leave your friends and family! Your family will always be there for you and your friends are growing up too. Explore different classes and subjects. Taking every science class you can is great for your future college major, but you are young and you might change your mind about what career you want to pursue. Explore languages, drawing techniques, culinary arts, business classes, or anything else you might want to try. High school is about exploring! And if you do not change your mind, then you can apply to schools more oriented towards sciences. Do not ever give up! You have a long journey ahead, but your hard work, determination and self-motivation will help you succeed!"

I would tell myself that I need to be a lot more active in the school and extra cirricular activities, that it helps tremedously in getting scholarships and grants. I would explain that education is the most important thing, working two jobs senior year might help to pay the bills, because I had to live on my own, but if it is making your GPA drop THEN QUIT ONE JOB AND GET YOUR CLASS WORK DONE! I took a few years off to work after high school, most likely the dumbest thing that anyone could ever do. I am now a very determined and focused and I wish that high school me could see just how much it takes to go back to school after you take a break, and how not doing all of the extra cirricular activities is making my life now so much harder.

When I was starting high school college was never on my mind. It seemed like it would never come, I would be in high school forever. As senior year came around all sorts of questions began to plague my mind, where to go, how to pay for it, but most of all what would happen. Everything began with ‘what if’. What if I made no friends? What if my roommate was crazy? What if everything went wrong? These questions haunted me up to the very moment I stepped foot on my campus. I was afraid I would never leave my room. Now if I could go back I would tell myself not to worry about it. Where to go and money are always the big questions that need answers but everything else was fear of the unknown. So I would tell myself to stop stressing over everything, that although there are downs there are also ups. I would tell myself not to be afraid to branch out, to try new things: say hello to people, take any class you want, just don’t be afraid. I would say stop worrying about the ‘what ifs’ and live life to the fullest.

If i could go back in time and talk to myself as a high school senior i would tell my self to truly look inside myself and figure out what my true passions are and to follow them in college. When you are trying to decide on your major for college it is easy to go for the one that you think can get you the most money, or will get you a degree the easiest, or to go in completely undecided and hopefully find out later. Honestly though, non of those ideas make the transition to college easy on a young person. If you follow your true passions through a college degree program you will end up taking classes that you truly enjoy and believe in, and that is over half the transition process to college. When you enjoy what you are doing you will have a hunger to study and succeed in your classes and everything else in college will become easy and fall into place. Passion is the key to success, and success in college is key to a good future in a field that you truly enjoy.

I would tell myself to study alot harder than I did when I was a senior in high school. I would also tell myself to ask for help when I didn't understand whatever the teacher was going over, it's ok to ask for help when you need help cause once you understand how to do it, it will be a huge help for college. I would tell myself to not listen to classmates that get mad or laugh at you for making good grades instead of actually getting bad grades so they don't get mad or laugh at you is really stupid cause you know you can do ANYTHING YOU SET YOUR MIND TO DOING. Promise me that you will always do your best and that when you don't understand it that you will ask for help.