University of California-Irvine Top Questions

If I could go back in time and give advice to my high school self, I would encourage myself to continue with my extracurricular activities and clubs. They are abundantly available in my college campus and would make the transition of knowing every face and name in my high school to being the only freshman from my previous school much easier. I would insist on joining the co-ed community service fraternity, Alpha Phi Omega, not in my second year like I had done, but rather in my first. Being one of the largest organizations on campus, I would have no trouble finding a friend that I had anxiously fretted about as a freshman. Not only would I meet at least a hundred new students in a single quarter, I would also contribute to the community as I provide service along with my new brothers.

I see myself today and I wonder what would I have change to myself back then in high school. To better understand my response is better if I explain where I come from. First born to a immigrant family, self taught in an education system where a hispanic is shown to ultimately fail, and having little resources for the essentials like supplies for school. While summers are meant to be used for spending time with your friends, I was for working and saving to buy next year schools essential supplies. Embarrassed to ask my family for help knowing they where already struggling with house bills. With all types of obstacles over me and still found away to be resourceful and finding help among school and outside institutions. I learned to be self reliant and to search for and answer to my many struggles in school, life and work. I would advice myself that to take things one at a time and resolve one problem at a time. Work is always going to be there and you will still need to tackle it in the end.

I would not go back in time to give myself advice - what has happened has happened, and there is no need to change that. I am satisfied with my decision in choosing to attend UCI. Overall, it's a fine school - beautiful, research-based, great people. But there is one major downside: the rising costs of tuition for UCI can be a major turn off for most students.

Dear Younger Self, College is going to be one of the greatest times in your life, but it will also be one of the most stressful. This is a time for you to explore your interests so make sure you pick a major that you will love and not one that your family wants for you. Break out of your shell and join clubs on campus and make the effort to talk to new people. Make sure you manage your time wisely and never skip class! Make it a priority to get to know your professors and ask them questions even if you are embarrassed. Do not give in to peer pressure, the decisions you make now will affect you for the rest of your life! Living in the freshman dorms and sharing a bathroom with twelve other girls will be a nightmare, but you will make it out alive, I promise. One last thing, the freshman fifteen is all too real so do not eat so much ice cream from the cafeteria!Love, Your Future Self

If I could go back in time and tell myself what I know now I would definatly tell myself to ask more questions about everything because back then I was not so sure about what I was doing. Also not to take my first quarter as lightly as I did because it is very depressing being put in a position where your whole life could change. Basically just to be careful and make better decisions as well as to question everything in a healthy way because that will help me to make a clean transition into college life without worries of bad decisions.

The first thing I would tell myself is to make sure to start applying for scholarships because most of them are only elgible for high school students. That college is very expensive and working in the real world without a degree is not what I thought it was going to be. I would tell myself to get those applications in and continue straight to college Do not take that break to just work and see if you want to go to college. I would tell myself to pick the degree that I want to do, not the one that everyone is telling me to or one that is so popular in our culture. I would tell me to start saving money and figuring out what I am going to do about paying for school because my parents cannot afford it like I had assumed. I would tell me not to make that move to Colorado to figure out life because it was a major setback.

Sometimes I wish I could tell my younger self not to be so afraid. Based on what I heard form others, I was expecting college to be filled with classes that were impossible to do well in and people that were impossible to connect with. However at my university, things are compltetely different. It might have been helpful to know that classes are definitely managable and that people are actually very kind. If I would have know that I would meet some of the greatest people I've ever known, I might have been less apprehensive and might have been able to enjoy my last year in high school more. While I often wish I could go back in time to my hometown and tell myself these things, when I really consider it, I actually wouldn't change a thing. Being nervous is definitely part of the process and, if I hadn't had the perspective that I had before college, I might not have ended up where I am. Overall, I am very content with who I am now and, if given the choice, I would want to make sure I would turn into exactly who I am now.

The first thing I would tell myself as a high school senior would be to calm down. I was so nervous about starting college, meeting my roommate, and diving into a new place not knowing anybody. I would advise myself to put myself out there and be open to trying new things. I would have liked to get more involved with student associations, but luckily I can still do that since it is not too late. I wish I had known that sometimes college life can be lonely, even though there are so many people surrounding me. I would have liked to have known that as a high school senior. However, I am glad I went through that experience because it was an important lesson to learn -- being alone sometimes is necessary and it can be nice to get a break from the excitement and intensity of college life. College is such an amazing experience and I'm so glad that I have three and a half more years to explore and learn more about myself.

If I could go back to talk to myself as a high school senior about college life and making the transition, I would tell myself not to stress about being rejected from schools, you are accepted to places that you fit into. you will find the school that is the perfect match for you and you will love the school you attend. Also the transition is not as scary as on would believe it to be, high school has prepared you for college, you have learned time managment and how to study, you must now just take those skills that you aquired in high school and apply them in college. I would also tell myself to not stress the little things in the college application process. The transition form high school to college was not that frightening and college so far has been the greatest experience of my life. Making new friends, new memories, new achivments, and of course new mistakes but in the end it will all pay off whe graduation comes around and you know you acomplished something that you have been working towards since you first walked into you kindergarten classroom so many years ago.

When you go to university, especially one that follows the quarter system, make sure not to procrastinate. Use a planner to stay on top of things, and complete assignments in parts. Prioritize activities: school always come first. Join clubs or organizations that interest you and can maybe help you grow as a person. For classes, attend professors' and TAs' office hours. Not many students go, so you can have a one-on-one talk with the professor. If you do this often enough, the professor will get to know you better, and might present some research or internship opportunities. They can also make you great letter of recommendations. Take many general education classes early, especially if you don't know what you want to do yet, because these classes can give you more information on different fields and careers. One last piece of advice: make sure that you major in something you're passionate about. In doing so, classes will be a lot more fun and seem less like something you just have to do.

College moves at a pace that is inconcievable in high school. Studying might not be a necessity in high school, but it along with managing your time will be your greatest attributes in college. Find time to do your homework or even to look over a textbook to get clarification on a lecture. Management is key because it is your job to keep up, the teachers will not hold your hand. The teachers are your friends however because although they will not walk you through the class, they will answer questions and do their best to help you understand if you ask. Go to your teachers office hours to get help or clarification, email is an option, but the face-to-face interaction is the best. Lastly, the only way to fail, it to not try; there are so many resources at your desposal, you just have to look for them.

I would definitely telll myself to learn manage time well because in college, time management is important in keeping with the class pace and finishing homework and studying. Also, I would tell myself to be independent because in college, we need to do everything on our own, like real adults. I would also tell myself to be responsible and diligent. No one is going to tell you what you should do, it is all depend on ourselves. We need to be active in colloge in order to take right classes that will help us pursue our dreams and jobs that we are best interested in and best fit in.

Freedom is a huge responsibility. It is a heavy burden to bear, to be able to make the right choices in the hardest and most tempting of situations. Don't abuse it. So many kids come into college and they are unable to handle the "freedom" that is given to them. They take it and abuse it, doing whatever they want to do, whenever they like. Trust me, it's not worth it. It may seem like fun and games for the first couple years, but all of that fades. Your life loses all meaning when all you're doing is living it for yourself. Don't get carried away with the freedom that is given to you. It is a responsibility, so be responsible with it. Study. But, don't be so focused on the grades. Study with the goal of building good study habits. If you do that, the grades will come eventually. Manage your time well. The better you manage it, the more time you can spend enjoying the fullness of what college has to offer. Most importantly, have fun. Make the most of your college experience, because it only happens once in your life.

Ok, So you're going to college! Here's a little advice thats essential to help you excel!! First: Do not procrastinate! In high school you could wait until the night before to study or get things accomplished right? Well, that is NOT acceptable in college. Doing things at the last minute is a HUGE no no! Schedule a project time amountable to the projects/test/quizzes due date: this is a must! Second: Save Money. During your senior year I know your school offers catchy items like senior jerseys, pictures, and seemingly the world, however DO NOT buy into the pizzazz; save your money. When you get to college, its a whole different ball game of finances! Unlike highschool, things such as books and lunch are expenses out of pocket. You will not have the leisure to be frivolous . Save! Finally: Be independent. In high school teachers are babysitters! One teacher holds you in the classroom then the next repeats the codding. In college, this is not the story. YOU have to be dedicated and focused, professors will not baby you.It is up to you to be successful! Make it count. Like a tatoo, its for life!

I would tell myself to apply senior year instead of going to community college and becoming a transfer student. However, I also like how I changed when I went to community college so I would tell myself to just get more advising and not be afraid to ask for help on my future goals.

If I could go back I would tell myself that I need to focus and work 10 times more than what I did in high school. That even though I took AP classes and felt I was ready for the college life it will be much more harder. My hardwork at times will not be even close to compete with my peers. In high school I was excepetional and here I am average and at times below average. You cannot allow yourself to get distracted because it will show in your academic performnace. I would tell myself to not set such a high expectation of what college was going to be because it will not. College is much more harder it can sometimes feel like you are in a hole that no matter how hard you try you cannot get out of because there will always be someone out there that is better than you. Overall you need to focus on yourself because socializing is all okay until it is time to perform and you end up realizing that you should not have hung out because at the end you pay the consequences not your friends.

I would advise myself to take college courses seriously and get involed with clubs and extracurricular activities on and off campus. Instead of focusing on the social aspect in college, aiming to do my best in school to achieve the maximum grades that are needed to get to where I want to be is the most important part as an undergraduate student. Another important advice to give to myself is manage my time as much as possible. Instead of wasting time while I am in school, the amount of time should be centralized to maximize my abilily to improve and grow as an educated student.

Going back in time, knowing what I know about college now; I would tell myself not to wait to start college. I waited a year after high school to start college. That wasn't too long of a wait, but I would've been done faster had I not waited. My boyfriend is in college now and i having a very hard time because he waited five years to go to college. It is definently easier to focus in college if you are familiar with school life. It is hard because you hardly have any time left to do anything other than go to school and work. In the end though, it is worth it.

If I could go back in time, I wanted to give myself an advice that I needed to work harder. I want to give myself that advice because college is a much more competitive place and if I do not try hard as much as I can, then I can not ahieve my goal.

During welcome week, go around and see what kind of different clubs there are and see where you'd fit in quickly. Also, be specific when getting matched up with a roomate because it could otherwise end up as a disaster. If it is a disaster, don't be so nice and hold it in but respectfully address the problems so you don't always want to rip out your hair. Also, take a language earlier and try not to take summer school if you can- it's way more expensive than taking it during the school year (especially because the summer is mostly just loans!) And please utilize the amazing services provided to you more often and faster- like the career center, health center, and scholarship center. Go to a lot of events and just have fun.