The University of Tampa Top Questions

If I could go back in time to myself as a high school senior the first thing I would explain to myself was the fact that to receive a bachelor?s degree in biology (pre-dental) at the University of Tampa it would take approximately four and a half years. I would first try to convince myself to take summer courses to basically ?get ahead of the game?. Then I would go back to my high school and ask why the importance of Advanced Placement and Duel Enrollment weren?t explained to the high school students. I was only notified about AP classes when I was a junior in high school and eligible to take the AP course. This class I took lightly and I did not try to get into any more of these important classes. If I knew what I know now about those classes I could have been like many of my college friends having my bachelor?s degree before the four years. These classes are so important because they are free in high school and are accepted in colleges. This could have helped a person like me who does enough money for their schooling.

To my high school self, The most important advice I could give you would be DO NOT foolishly spend the money you earned in high school. College is more expensive than anyone expects and classes are time consuming, making it hard to have even a part-time job. Save as much as you can because you will appreciate it when you get to school. Also make sure you speak with the academic advisors at the 2 year college and the 4 year university about which courses are guaranteed to transfer and should be completed within the first two years. This will save you time and money, as well as some headaches, while trying to earn your degree. Most of all remember who you are as a person and your goals you wish to achieve. This will keep you focused when classes and college life seem overwhelming. Just as we have always said, focus on the moment in order to create your future. From your older and wiser self.

Although I recieved so much advice from teachers, counselors, friends and parents, I still wish someone would have advised me to look further into college costs. As a highschool senior, my ego got the best of me. I wanted to go to school somewhere warm, out of state, and by the beach! My dream was to get away and experience life on my own, and I would never regret doing so, but if someone would have explained to me all the little things that colleges can charge you for, I think I might have reconsidered going to school where it was a flight away. After dropping $550 on textbooks, $20,000 on tuition (and thats WITH an academic scholarship!) and $300 to visit my family for the holidays, I have definitly learned to monitor my spending. Lets just say that after undergraduate studies, I want to continue on to Medical School, and when applying tuition costs will be one of my main concerns!

College is more or less an adventure. The knowledge you learn is not just found in the class room but also from the new relationships and opportunities that are thrust upon you. The fear of the new classroom environment is not nearly as frightening at the actual new surroundings of the college itself. You must relearn to find where the good and bad spots are, where the good coffee and pizza places are on campus. My freshman year of college was full of excellent and not so excellent memories, but we live to learn. you will find a sense of independence and maturity that you did not know you possessed. You will realize that your life is now fully operated by you and you alone. You will find that the full under lined purpose of college may be understanding the information given to you, which may or may not be in the form of paper or on a computer, but really taking that information and making it your own. A college can become a second home if put in the right mind set. You will learn to love and love to learn at the University of Tampa!

The only advice I could possibly see giving myself would be to take more APP (advaced placement courses) in order to further prepare myself with college as well as opening my schedule now in work in order to provide myself with a stronger financial basis.

Looking back on my senior year of high school, I began to anticipate my future college life without really knowing what to expect. Unlike the majority of my classmates who would commute to a school just a city away, I was planning on transitioning to a completely new life by attending a school that would seperate me from my home by seventeen hours. After a successful first semester at the University of Tampa, it would be a great opportunity to be able to go back with advice for my nervous highschool self. I would advice the younger me to begin living independently. Living at home for seventeen years with the guarantee of my laundry being done, my food being cooked, and my alarm being reinforced, It was a shocking realization when these amenities were no longer available to me. I have realized that college is a gateway into complete independence and adulthood. Your choices, whether it be what to eat for breakfast or when to get some sleep, are completely left up to you. Although, I eventually adjusted to this new way of living, it would have been helpful to start even earlier as a highschool senior.

If I were able to retrace my steps to the past and make the choices I made differently, I think I would still make the same choice about school/college as I did then. I served in the US Marine Corps during and in Viet Nam. I did have the chance to take some classes during this time and did. The thing I would like to change about that time is, making the choice to persue the degree then and not waiting until this time. The outcomes may have been more benificial to Nursing then but now with the experience and determination I have to achieve my goals, health care will still come out a winner.

The advice that I would give myself is: I still think going to college right out of high school is a very good idea. You are still in the learning phase, and you haven't forgotten what you learned in high school. But still, their is nothing wrong with waiting for a while to go back to school. A college education gets your foot in the door of that favorite job you have been waiting for. College education will put you into a higher pay bracket than just a high school diploma. You are never to old to learn and now a days you can even go to college online.Online courses are good if you are a stay at home mom, work from your home, or just don't have the transportation to get to a campus. You can take your courses online and still have time for your family. So whatever your lot is in life, go get that college degree. If anything it will make you feel like you have accomplished something in your life that is worth while.

If I could go back in time and give myself advice for entering college I would give myself the following advice: Don't allow the wishes or desires of other people to influence your decisions in life. You must make your own future and way in this world, and no matter how much you care for someone, you must see to your success before you can attempt to see to theirs. When deciding which college to go to, make an informed decision. Know or have an idea of what you want to do with your life, and find the collge or university that best helps you to achieve that goal. Ask the advice of other people in addition to your family, for they will give you advice that is not based on emotion. Also, talk to people who are already in the profession you are studying to be in. They can give you advice and speak from personal experience, which will prove to be invaluable information when finalizing your career choice. In everything you do strive for excellance, for anything less will result in failure. Your future and your success is in your hands. What will you do with it?

Take some time off, let yourself grow and experience life. Try new things, experience things, don't be afraid to get hurt, if you fall get back up again. Life is far too short to stay in one place, travel, explore, and see the world. Don't be afraid to fail at something, because you can always try again. Volunteer, help others, look at the good things in life, and remember on bad days, someone?s day is sure to be worse than yours. Don't be afraid to ask for help, it's always there. Always take time for yourself, don?t let stress get the best of you, and don?t be your own worst enemy- remember to smile every day, hold your head high; you can do whatever you put your mind to, you have control over your own success and destiny.