The University of Tennessee-Knoxville Top Questions

First of all I would say pick a college that you will feel comfortable at. It does not matter where your parents/or other family members went, its about finding a place that you can grow and find yourself as a person. Pick a school carefully because the next four years of your life will depend on this college. Take your time and make the right choice. For parents trust your kids to make the right decision because it is about them, I know you are paying but your children's happiness should outweigh any costs. For students to make the most of the college experience I would say get involved. I can?t stress how important it is. You don't have to join every club, but find something that your interested in and make life-long friends but remember first and foremost the reason your at college is to get a quality education and no matter what, school work in the number 1 priority. Students who can balance schoolwork with the social will have a rewarding college experience.

Parents really need to let the college decision be made by the student. Parents will not be the ones living and attending the college that their student goes to. Parents are great resources for students as far as understanding financial responsibilities at the institution the student attends. But the it is really the responsibility of the student to make the most of whereever they attend. Get involved and meet new people. College is all about discovering yourself and that will never happen if you don't make yourself available!

When looking for a college, relax and look open-mindedly at several options. If you are worried about the distance, pick something within a three hour drive; overall, the adjustment is easier than you think. Once choosing and starting a college, GET INVOLVED. Try anything and everything that seems of interest to you until you find the best fit and still with it; be open to trying new things. At first, try not to go home too often, even if your school is "dead on the weekends;" this will really help with the adjustment proccess. Make sure that once classes start, go to class, read the books and be prepared. Doing this early on will really set the bar for your college experience and will help you feel more organized and less stressed. College is what you make it, you only get to do this once so make it a positive experience!

Visit as many places as you can. Sit in on classes if possible. Talk to people who are attending. Have a general idea of what you want to do before you go.

Do your research! Picking the right college for you should not be left up to a last minute decision. Consider what you might want to major in: Is it it a common major or is it a more specific one? Try and find out where you will attend graduate school as well. Making the most of your college experience is about finding a balance between academics and your social life. Don't take on to many clubs/activities and don't take more classes then you can handle either. Get enough hours so that you are a full-time student plus enough so that you can drop a class without worrying about losing your status as a full-time student. Pick clubs that hold a genuine interest for you. You can always experiment and add and drop clubs whenever you want, but overloading yourself can be disastrous.

tour the college and look into the degree program before deciding. Make sure it will fit your planned time in college and there are plenty of classes available to be able to finish your degree when you want.

Make sure you take every part of the college experience into account when considering where to go, and don't underestimate how much your personality will jive with the locale and people there. Classes are very important, but so are the university's and it's students views on things that are important to you, the availability of activities you are interested in, even the scenary surrounding where you will spend the next four years or so. Once your in, live it up! get as involved as you can ad as enthusiastic about learning as possible. The more positive your outlook on approaching new things, the more you will learn and therefore the better a person you will become.

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I would give the advice to LOOK, SEARCH and TALK IT OVER AND OVER AGAIN with their spouses as if this is the right choice for their children, in big campus children get lost sometimes and that is why there is a big number of drop outs.

Make sure you pick a college that is going to best suit you, the student, and not something that someone else wants you to attend. Enjoy every aspect of your college experience and try and get as much as you can out of it. Remember you are paying the fees for all the accomodations so take advantage of them and use them to your benefit. They are there to help you and can make you college experience so much easier.