University of Central Florida Top Questions

I would tell myself not to be so worried about being on my own living away from the comforts of my home in Miami. There's plenty of opportunities to meet people here that you will consider as part of your family because they're always there for you when you feel like everything is above your head and you need an escape from the stress of transitioning from an 18 year old adult who's dependent on their parents for every decision to an adult who thinks for themselves and makes decision that could affect the rest of their lives. Even if you feel stressed about where you're going to find money for school expenses or much needed personal expenses because you don't want to increase your father's financial burden; you will have plenty of opportunities here in UCF and financial aid sources to go to, so you can take care of yourself. I know you're being rushed to finish school, so you can help the rest of your family in Haiti but you need to take care of yourself first before you can be in the position to help them.

Though I am very happy with my life today, I would advise myself on what path to choose from the start to save time because I am a practical person by nature. On the other hand, I also believe you go through certain experiences in life (even by taking the long road) that are part of your journey to make you into the best person you can be as an adult. Having said this, I would rather focus on giving advice that stressed how to make the most of challenges that are presented to you academically and personally. Don't hold inside, rationalize, or let things just "roll off your shoulder." Confront them and fix what you can, because if you don't, all you'll be left with are questions like, "What if?" College has been the most exciting time of my life. I've made life-long friends, gained pride in my academic successes, had satisfying professional achievements, and have all these memories that I will treasure the rest of my life. So I would leave myself with this, "The best part is not knowing what's ahead, but learning it along the way."

If I could go back to talk to myself as a high school senior, I would tell myself not to worry about what others think of me and to make decisions for myself. As a high school senior, I was very influenced about what others thought of me. Based on that mentality, my desicions were what others wanted and not what I wanted. Coming to college has really let me learn from that mistake. As of right now, I am in a major that I love and I make desions that are my choices for what is best for me. I don't know if my high school self would listen to my college self going back because this advice is something that I had to experience and to go through in order to realize it. This is the one piece of knowledge that I gained from college that is just as valuable as the degree that I hope to be holding pretty soon.

Assuming it were possible to return as a high school senior, a serious word of advice would be not to procrastinate when it comes to financial aid. Fill out your FAFSA on time and take all financial aid available to you. Also,do not hesitate to use loans as they are an investment in your future. Scholarships and grants are also extremely important and they are available if you are willing to find them. It would be best to try to find as many grants and scholarships as possible, before trying to take out a loan. Furthermore, it is urgent that you do not procrastinate when it comes to making time for classwork. It may be tempting to party with friends and join clubs in school, but the main objective is your education and that diploma, so stay focused on your aspirations to graduate. Additionally, if you need to change your work schedule for school then do it. Your education is more important than anything. Lastly, but most influentially the SAT's and ACT's are vital to get into your college of choice, so study hard for those and give them your very best effort.

If I could go back in time and give myself advice before coming to college, I would say I made the right choice about attending the University of Central Florida and I would tell myself to have fun in college. I would tell myself to be more laid-back and more involved. I would tell myself to make more friends and go out with people. I would tell myself that college is the time of your life and that although school work is important, you have to focus on yourself and embrace life to the fullest!

College is a very exciting time in one?s life. It is also a challenging time, while independence is right around the corner, there needs to be a balance between study, and fun! Learning to balance is essential for success. A part time job can help to establish some time management skills important in the transition. I would also speak to an older sibling, friend, or relative who may be similar to me in terms of study, and play habits! It?s important to also seek the advice of others who are making the college transition successful, especially in the area of academics. If possible make the trip to the college of my choice in order to become familiar with the setting and ambiance. It?s important to become familiar with the campus; it leads to less stress, and more a sense of comfort at the start of the semester. The unknown is scary! Be prepared!

?Suddenly, it is 1999 again. I see myself about to graduate high school. After commencement, I will live with two friends and throw away any semblance of my being an honor graduate during my first semester at college. I will fail two classes and barely pass two others. I will have earned seventeen credits in two years, and ultimately quit school. Currently 29 years old, with a wife and two children to support, I have been laid off three times in eighteen months ? and I have nothing to fallback on. I am not unintelligent, quite the contrary. Even as an honor graduate, I underachieved. Putting forth the effort was not necessary to accomplish the bare minimum in high school. Priorities change in college, but not so much concerning study habits (which are imperative, regardless), but more so with one?s mindset. There must be a will to succeed and a desire to learn, because when you have children, you realize what is truly valuable in life. An education is an asset that lasts a lifetime. These things I tell myself - though I have heard them often - because the only advice I have ever taken was that of my own.

I would tell my self not to be afaid and just enjoy the time in college.

If afforded the chance to talk to myself as a college students I would tell myself to not stress out so much but rather enjoy life. I'll tell my younger counterpart to consider college as a buffet line where one can pick and choose what they want to try. You can decide to stick with things that you are familiar with or step outside the comfort zone and try something new that appeals to your curiosity. I would explain that the true college experience is trying everything college life has to offer. Colleges are melting pots of diversity where people of all different races, beliefs, ages and backgrounds intermingle with one another forming a single, unique culture. Nowhere else in life will you be around so many different people with such diverse and similar interests at the same time. I would tell myself to never doubt myself. If I have a passion for something like medicine or music then just go for it. I would tell myself to not get scared of taking hard classed like organic chemistry or physics nor let others pysch you out from taking them.

I would suggest to remember all the instructions that were given in class on how to balance study time with fun time. I would also spend time with my parents asking questions on the best way to manage my monthly expenses and how to keep track between the money I receive of financial aid (after all my credits and books are paid) and how I use it during the semester. I would spend more time with my counselor asking questions on how to apply for scholarships and interships. I would check with all my friends and find out who would be going to the same school I was, so the transition would not be as difficult as going on my own. Best of all I would study harder and make sure my GPA was 3.0 by graduation time, to give me a better chance at obtaining admission to a University and also have larger choice of scholarships I could apply for.

Senior year, students try to take the easiest classes, so they could have time to have fun with their friends. When I was in my last year in high school, I knew that I wanted to continue higher education. It was a dream for me to have the opportunity to continue my education in America with great resources, and I saw my dream come true the day I moved here. If I had known that college was harder than high school I would have taken some challenging classes during my senior year. I advice myself to get as many honor classes as I can, so I could be more prepared for college. Honor classes are not as hard as I thought in high school. They are just more challenging, but it prepares the students when they go to college. Also, apply earlier to college that way you have the opportunity to apply for the scholarships that the college offers for high school graduates. My last advice to myself is to not leave things for the last minute. If you do things earlier, you have more opportunities. The main goal of colleges is to help students, so look for those opportunities.

Looking back to my senior year I now realize I could have done a lot more to prepare myself for this experience. Stepping into a University has been a huge change and I wish I would have been able to warn myself about how much harder I would need to apply myself because it wouldn?t be about memorizing anymore, I?d have to be able to apply the concepts! I could have told myself that having 400 students in a lecture class would make it harder to get specific questions answered and that I should utilize a professors office hours! Not only would asking specific questions help me in class, but knowing the professor would give me an advantage of being able to get recommendations, and even get involved with the professors research! On a lighter note I would have also told myself to bring an extra sweater, moving from South Florida to Central Florida is really a leap in temperature! I believe that I prepared myself very well for a University experience, but the things I wish I knew from the beginning would have made it easier to get involved!

If I could go back in time and tell my senior self about college and its transition, I'd tell myself to get involved in extracurricular activities during freshman year. When struggling with classes, there are plenty of resources available on campus to help you succeed in your studies, SO USE THEM! I?d also tell myself to not slack in school, as it will come back to haunt you later. Keep track of your GPA, and work really hard to keep it up to graduate with honors. But most of all, enjoy your time in college and have fun!

Some advice I would give myself is to take as many advanced placement and dual enrollment classes because those types of classes would help prepare me for the course load of college classes. Starting a good study routine would be helpful becuase instead of just learning in college how to balance fun and shcool it would be eaiser to transition.

Leadership: a term tossed around so often in highschool that the average student dreads even the mention of getting involved in school. In highschool, I was no exception to this. Sure i did my fair share of extracurricular activities, but as with most other students at the time, my only goal from joining these programs was to improve my chances of getting into a better college. Looking back on this now, the immaturity of this train of thought is almost laughable. Since attending the University of Central Florida I have become deeply involved with their Student Government. But this time around there is a major difference. I'm not doing it to improve my resume or get ahead. From this, my mind allows me to actually enjoy it and inturn, allows me to grow as a human being. So if I had to give my former high school self some advice, it would be to not worry so much about the future and just do things for the sake of doing them. In other words don't take life so seriously and just enjoy what your doing in the present moment.

To the optimistic soul with whom I share an identity but not a temporal parity, I send the following abbreviated advice in good faith. Your self-image is a delusion. Despite your presumptions, you know only enough to be dangerous, too little to be potent. One is only as wise as his perspective is broad. Only by accepting your own ignorance early and opening our mind to the wisdom of those greater than us can we begin your journey toward learning who I am and gaining realistic global perspective. Neither you nor I are as marketable in the workforce as we feel we should be. Your attempts to employ your drive, motivation, and potential as substitutes for experience and education will be met with impedance. The clich? ?stop and smell the roses? becomes relevant in your case. You will avoid a lot of stress and heartache if you remain where you are professionally and allow me to develop before seeking a career change. I have what we need to achieve our dreams, you don?t. Your belief in me is the belief in yourself that has led to my impending success and I hope this advice will strengthen that belief.

I would tell myself to be open-minded, and not to rush myself. I have such a zest for life and I'm so excited to achieve my dreams that I pushed myself quickly through the first half of my college years, taking as many as 18 credits per semester. In retrospect, I wish I had taken my time not only to improve my grades but to enjoy myself more and be more involved. As far as being open-minded, I can't stress enough the diverse people you meet at college. I was nervous and didn't have enough confidence in myself to pursue friendships with all the different types of people I met. I missed out on a lot, and I really want to improve my experience in the coming two years.

If I could go back and visit myself as a high school student there are a few things that I would tell myself. First, I would tell myself to take the SAT and ACT as many times as possible because college is expensive and the more times you take them, the better chance you have at getting more scholarship money. I would also tell myself to apply to as many scholarships as I could find. Secondly, I would tell myself to make sure I stay focused. It's very easy to get off track or to slack off when you don't have anyone making you go to class. Thirdly, I'd tell myself to mingle. Its very important to build good relationships with professors, other faculty, and students.

I believe the best advice I could possibly give myself as a high school senior would be to literally expect the unexpected. The reality of being on my own proved to be the hardest part in transitioning over. The newfound freedom is bittersweet, it enables you to do what you please but also allows you to make decisions that you may later regret. My advice would be to remember why you are in college. You spent 12 years of school to reach the position you are now in. I personally found out how easy it was to fall off course, and I saw many of my friends leave only after a few months. Concentrate on being the best you can in school. The effort you put in will be returned tenfold.

If I could tell my high schools self anything the main points i would hit would be: 1.) get a job now. 2.) practice studying now, in high school, find your best study habits. 3.) possibly most important, dont stress yourself more than you need to. College life is different than high school, but not that different. Classes are harder, and you make your own schedule. It can, at times, be overwhelming living on your own for the first few months, but, like anything else in life, the thought of it is worse than doing it.