University of Arkansas-Fort Smith Top Questions

Don't be afraid to move to new states and new cities no matter how large or small that city is.

Dylan, please realize that if you continue on the path you're currently on, you will only make it one year in college. After that you will spend the next five years of your life struggling to stay clean and sober. However you will regret nothing, especially since it's made you who you are today, the person God made you to be. The struggle is real, congratulations on your recovery five years from now. You're going to feel hopeless, and like giving up is the only option. I promise you, when you make it through, everything works out and you find a new confidence in yourself, one previously thought impossible to obtain. Anyways, keep your head up, you'll be making straights A's in college, or close to it anyways. P.S. Keep your eyes peeled for the woman named Casey in your future, she's an amazing person and wife = )

I would tell myself to work harder as a freshman and set a great foundation for my last three years.

If I had the chance to go back in time to my high school senior self, I would tell myself that no matter how many times I want to give up/slack off during the last year of high school, that I have to do my best and try my hardest to do better. College has taught me that you have to pay more than enough attention in class and that you have got to take your education more than serious now, because when it comes to deadlines and final exams, the professors don't spoon feed you like they do in high shool. To take as many ACTs as possible to be eligible for more scholarships, and to make sure my GPA was between a 3.0-4.0 so that I wouldn't have to struggle with not having enough money to pay off college tuition like I am now. If I had the chance, my high school senior self would do all that I could to try even harder, because in a blink of an eye, everything is over and the real world is now infront of you, in your hands, looking back at you.

Hey, I know this is hard to believe but I am you. I have sent this letter to you for some advice that will help you greatly. First, you need to figure out what you want before you go to college and apply for more scholarships. Scratch that. EVERY SCHOLARSHIP. College costs more than you know and you need to know that before you apply. Also, don't worry about what everyone else thinks. After you graduate you really don't see any of those people anymore. You will be ok. Chin up and strive to achieve every single one of your hopes and dreams. Sincerely, Yourself

If i could go back and talk to my high school self, the only thing i would say to myself would be to be yourself. There's no pont in trying to fit in with people that don't already accept you for who you are. Friends you make throughout our college experience will come and go, but some will stay for a lifetime. Before everything else, study. If you don't study a good amount each night, then you'll have to work harder and work more to get to the place you want to be in life. Work smart not hard. College is very enjoyable if you let if be. The experiences you have here will shape the image of who you want to be and further your drive to get to the place that you want to go.

College is the greatest experience I've had in my education so far. It's a shame to think how much greater it would be if I hadn't been the procrastinatory deadbeat I was in high school. Because of my actions (or lack thereof), I am now without a scholarship of any form or fashion, blindly making ends meet. If I could go back and be the one positive influence I was missing in my college preparation, I would have never let myself hesitate to take the most important steps. For example, taking the ACT. I would make myself take it multiple times instead of for the *first time* on the last eligible day. (What was I thinking?) I would make myself visit potential campuses, something I never did. I would encourage the college experience since I had basically given up on it by senior year--I had no idea how great it would be. I would tell myself how quickly two semesters pass, nowhere NEAR the time a school year seemed to last. I would tell myself not to worry so much about going or not going--a full ride ANYWHERE is a FULL RIDE. If I could...

If I could go back to when I was a senior, I would try to prepare myself for college as much as possible. When everyone said college is difficult, they weren't lying. Good study habits, multi-tasking, and staying focused are essential to being successful. I would tell myself not to take ANY sleep or spare time for granted, don't sweat the small things, and just have fun. There are so many other things I could warn myself about but I think that learning those things by trial and error has assisted me in becoming a better college student. I'd make sure to tell myself that college teaches you skills that last a lifetime and prepare you for your future. So all those tests you will stay up all night to study for will be worth it when you are well equppied for your chosen career.

My family chose to move two states away partway through my senior year, so I had many transitioning difficulties. Ironically however, what affected my life the most during that time was that I did not take initiative. I took AP classes and always received As and Bs, but never paid attention to the large changes and deadlines flying at us in school. Now I am paying for it-I could have graduated this month with a BA and begun my Master’s. Instead, I am in the second full year of my degree, balancing an unrelated entry-level job with full-time schoolwork. If I could go back, I would tell my younger self to catch every deadline as early as possible-scholarships, applications, and pivotal graduation requirements. What we do above and beyond the minimum ultimately matters the most. These transitions are what define us, because the whole world is easy compared to attaining the next height. I enjoy college, and handling the schoolwork is not a problem; the lost time is my only regret. I still need this reminder sometimes, but now I have seen why we must never stop reaching, and I wish I had known then.

If I could go back in time and give myself advive on college, I would say to myself, why should I believe what my teachers told me? They said that we would be doing citations in MLA style , and we use APA. They also said that the teachers would care if we passed, they don't, we have to go at our own pace, and learn things ourselves. Why don't I apply for scholarships before hand? I applied at the last minute. Why don't I rent books instead of buying them? I bought them instaed of renting them. Why don't I get a job on campus? I don't have a job and its killing me to have one. Why don't I take summer classes? It would help me get my degree faster. And why don't I just go at my own pace? Instead of racing to finish first. This would have been really helpful before hand. I wish my teachers would have told me the truth, and I wouldnt have to find out on my own.