University of Florida Top Questions

Make friends, get some sleep, try out all kinds of classes.

The advice I would give my high school senior self would be to always go to class. My first year of college was hard beause I was just beginning to get used to the living situation, which made me a lot less likely to go to class. I was not motivated to attend large lecture hall classes where attendance was not mandatory because I felt I could learn as much by simply reading the text book. By doing this I created a habit for myself to not attend class and therefore my schedule was not consistent.

I would have told myself to take some time off before deciding on what to do. That way, I would not have graduated to face the imminent and dreary realization that I did not make the right choice.

If I could go back in time and talk to myself about what I know of college life and making the transition, I would tell myself to listen when my parents told me to do more in high school. Not that I didn't do a lot, because I did. I was very involved, however, they meant get involved with things that would make a difference on your college or scholarship applications. I now know that community service and school involvment are so important when moving on in your school career. I would yell, Megan, wake up mom and dad keep telling you to get out in the community and volunteer. Find something that is important to you and give it your best effort. I wish I would have listened to my parents. Maybe if I had, we wouldn't be struggling financially.

If I were able to go back in time and speak to my high school self, here is who I would find: A girl, terribly frightened of making the wrong decision, and horrified to start college with no idea what she wants to ultimately do with her life. As a visitor from the future I'd tell her to calm down and breathe, that everything will turn out fine. I'd tell her that she’ll soon find that many people are in her situation and are just learning what they want to do with their lives. That she’ll change her mind what seems like a thousand times but that’s okay too. That it’s okay to not be going off to a 4-year University right away, and that she will gain years of priceless life experience working for a wonderful employer in the optometric field, where she'll gain the inspiration for her ultimate future. I’d tell her that she’ll never lose the drive that she has as a high school student, like I know she worries about, and that she will continue to work toward her degree. “You’re going to make it.”

I would tell myself to get tested for ADHD. I currently got diagnosed with ADHD my second semester of college after having trouble focusing all through out high school and college so far. After I got diagnosed with it school is so much easier now because i can actually focuse on my studies. I would tell myself to go to the doctor immediately because it will make school alot less painful and that you will do great in school once you get the help that you needed a long time ago.

If I were to go back and talk to myself as a senior, I would tell myself to really enjoy my last year in high school and to start getting prepared for college. I would advise to get involved with every possible club that I can on campus. I would tell myself to step out of my introverted self and get out and meet new people and make friends. I would also emphasize on the point to put my all into my classes for the first couple of years. Knowing now, if I developed an outstanding motivation and study habit at the start of college and was able to sustain that, my GPA would be higher now. I would strongly express that I need to consistantly work my hardest at my classes and that no matter how exhausting it may seem, that it will definitely pay off in the end.

I would tell myself to practice efficient time management skills! That's the key to helping the transition from high school to college life be easier.

With the knowledge that I now obtain, I would definitely inform myself to stick to a major that would make me happy. When I started college, I decided to major in business because I was not sure what I wanted to do so I chose something that I where I thought I would be financially successful. However, I hated it. It was not a field where I thrived and had I followed my gut, I would have stuck in the field of social science. I did eventually find my way, but I had to live through a torturous semester. I would tell my 'high school self' to not fear failure, to be courageous, and to do what makes me happiest. If we live life by that philosophy, society would be a better place.

I would tell myself to take life more seriously and that working hard early on would pay dividends down the road. I am learning that lesson now and I feel like its just too late sometimes.