University of Arkansas Top Questions

The advice I would give to my past self would be don't slack off. Go to classes, study for test, and do the best you could possibly do.

Dear Dakota: It is good to see you Dakota. I'm sure you have a ton of questions, but I don't have much time. My first advice to you is to enjoy your last year of high school and live every moment of it. This last year will be a great conclusion to your high school legacy. I know that you have been stressing about college. Just continue to do what you are doing and know that you will end up where you are supposed to. Now on to what I am sure you are just dying to know about. College is going to a very different experience for you. Going from a town of 4,000 to a college campus of 20,000+ will take some adjusting, but don't worry you will get the hang of it. When you first get on campus try to be as outgoing as possible. I know that that will be tough, but you will meet some great people. Also you know the head football equipment manager you have been e-mailing? Keep e-mailing him, I'm sure something will come of it. Good luck and remember to just be yourself!

As a high school senior I was unaware of the academic, lifestyle, and environmental changes that came with moving away from home and attending college. The most important advice that I would give myself as a high school senior would be to create effective studying habbits now and avoid waiting till the last minute to accomplish tasks. In college you are faced with many more distractions than you were in high school and it makes it difficult to want to make the time to do homework or study. By creating these habits now, you will be better prepared to avoid distractions and it will make the transition from high school to college a lot easier. The second advice I would give myself would be to practice on managing my time more efficiently. While in high school you are told what time you have to attend class, eat lunch, and socialize with friends, in college you have to juggle your time to do certain tasks around the time of your classes. If you practice on setting times for yourself to do certain things outside of school, you will be better equipped for managing your life in college.

If I had the capabilities to rewind time, I would go back and whisper these words once uttered by my idol, Julia Child, into my high-school self’s young and naïve ears, “find something you’re passionate about and keep tremendously interested in it.” I was diagnosed with a learning disability; therefore, one of the many labels now stamped onto my forehead is “math deficiency” due to dyslexia. My dream was to become a Registered Dietitian but the degree requires extensive advanced science courses. I thoroughly convinced myself that I was incapable to achieve this goal, that I would fail. Consequently, I devoted two years to studying Hospitality Administration, a seemingly ideal second choice. Although I graduated, with honors even, this was never something I was “tremendously interested” in, just something that I could do. I held myself back from my dream because of my fear of failure. I have since then transferred and now studying Dietetics. The struggle is real but it will make me appreciate my achievement so much more. I am passionate about nutrition and I would have told my former self to not allow doubt to overtake you - you can accomplish anything you desire.

The way the media depicts college life is not how it really is. There is more to college than just wild parties, you actually have to work very hard. Being able to master the balancing act between getting enough sleep, doing well academically, and having a satisfying social life is something you'll have to work on for a while. It will be pretty stressful at first, trying to find your perfect balance of these 3 things, but keep trying and you'll eventually figure out the formula that is best for you. Getting involved on campus DOESN'T make you a nerd. The more you get involved on campus, the more opportunities you open up for yourself, both during college, and for your future. Make friends with people who have different cultural, religious, and other views than you. The more you put yourself out there, the more you will actually enjoy college (it's not all work). You don't have someone making you go to class, but GO. It teaches you responsibility and you'll miss out on a lot if you don't go. Most importantly, make the most of this experience, you only experience it once!

Dear Adam, Do not to conform to the crowd! When you enter college, you will see many who will be consumed in their personal image, striving to make themselves look great to others. If you are not careful you will fall to this trend. It is likely if you don't stay true to your character, you will begin to make radical decisions during this time. Strive to find friends who realize the importance of living a life with integrity. Do not be conformed to the environment around you that tells you its okay to slack off and just get by! Sadly, my first semester I fell into bad decision. But I did find a strong group of friends who took me off a path that could have lead to a bad start. Adam, in retrospect, I can tell you if you remember this exhortation, you will do great things your freshmen year!Always remember that Mom and Dad are proud of you and will always love you. Stay strong to your faith. I'm excited to see what you will do if you will make the wise decisions. You can do this! Your future self Adam Burroughs

Freshmen year is meant to be fun, but attending class is also important. Meet everyone you can and start making connections now. They will help out later if you need help in class or a study group. Go Greek! You meet amazing people and it can help you with your future job.

If I could go back in time and talk to myself as a high school senior, i would give myself a liitle advice. This semester has taught me some valuable lessons. The first piece of advice is to develop good study habits. Although I never had to study in high school, college is much different. If I had developed those habits it's would not have been so difficult to figure out how to study. One other piece of advice is to learn how to take notes. Notetaking is valuable because you must decipher what's important and that is a great study tool. I believe if I had used these two things, the transition would have been much easier.

Spend more time studying math and other subjects that were not interesting to me in order to prepare for the challenges of college coursework.

If I could go back in time, I would tell myself to slow down and only focus on applying to a few schools. I got so caught up in applying and being accepted that I didn't even realize I was applying to schools that I would never be able to afford (schools with out of state tuition, or private schools). I would tell myself not to focus on where my friends were going to school, but to focus on a school that is best suited for my major and a place I could easily call home. Honestly, I would have probably advised myself to stay home and attend a community college so I could save money, and have more time to decide where I wanted to attend school. Ultimately, my advice to myself would be to stay patient and to realize that I always have to do what is best for me; even if it means taking a step back and slowing down to figure things out. When we are forced to make important decisions, but cannot decide which is best; sometimes the best thing to do is not make a decision at all.