University of Illinois at Chicago Top Questions

In college you will see people stressing, and competing to do well in pretty difficult classes. However, success is not dependent on competing or getting stressed. Instead the key to doing well in college is personal discipline. In college there is a lot of free time and a lot of opportunities to have fun and enjoy. However, it isn?t like high school where teachers will spoon-feed you. It is in your best interest to make your education your number one priority. You must stay on top of all deadlines, and exams on your own. Your success is completely dependent on your personal choices, it is completely upto you if you want to even attend class. It is crucial that your make the right choices because it is these choices which will ensure or falter your success. After a couple of stressful months, you may get the feeling you want to give up. Think far and ahead, there is surely a light at the end of the tunnel, and there will be a reward for your hard work; a career and the opportunity for you to enter the world with an excellent education and make a difference in society.

I would tell myself to ace the ACT test, because college is extremely expensive, and having a better act score would help in generating a better chance at more financial aid and scholarships! Apply to as much scholarships as possible to help pay for school. T o dont get discouraged about the costs so much, allthough it might frighten you of the debt you will be, remember that if you play your cards right, you will be alright and have plenty of opportunities ahead of you, so keep a strong head about things and plow through to success. Also make sure you finish strong in high school, alot will happen between now and then, so good job!

I know you're having fun in high school. You're enjoying all the clubs and sports at school, but you need to focus more on academics. Take an AP class, study an extra hour every other day, and really buckle down better. During senior year especially, you need to keep yourself busy. No "senior-tis" excuses because once you get to college, things will be really different. University classes teach a whole year's material in a single semester. Unlike high school, it's not just fun anymore. Every day, every lesson is crucial. During elementary school, your goal was to get into a good high school. In high school, you want to get into a good college. In college, you're working towards your future. The rest of your life in ahead of you and college is your path to the future. Every path will have its bumps, but get more serious now so that your path is smoother for college and beyond.

If I could return to my senior year of high school, I would advice myself to make a bigger bang. I would've pushed myself further with the sports that I competed in and I would have strenthened all the friendships that I made throughout my years in high school. As far as college goes, I would advice myself not to pick the university that I would be attending based on financial aid. I would try to become a much more calm person, and not stress over pointless things, and focus on managing my time better. I had a great senior; I took AP classes, ran varsity cross country and track and field, was the editor for my schools' newspaper and spent plenty of time with my friends. I wish I would have taken more photos to help remeber all the wonderful moments I experienced. I would want to tell my teachers more often how important they were to me and how they impacted my life. I would probably want to apply for more part-time jobs because school is expensive and every little bit that I could have made would have helped a lot.

When I first came into college, I was sure that I would become a Pharmacist and take pharmacy courses. I even tried joining a pre-pharmacy club. I went to a couple of meetings and I didn't feel like this was my kind of job. If i could go back and give advice to myself in high school, i would tell myself to reconsider becoming a pharmacist. Why do I really want to become a pharmacist? I could never really answer it and I would have to think of a good reason. I want to tell myself that I can be whatever I want to be, but don't let that reason be because of the money. Let your reason be because you want to be it and it will be a career you will enjoy and be proud of. Don't always try to please your parents, do it for yourself, its your life. Through my experience in college i now want to be a physical therapist because i enjoy anatomy and working with the body. I want to understand more about how it works and what makes it so interesting.

HIgh school is about preparing you so that you will be able to make it through college. It is also helping you to discover some of your interests so that when you enter college you have some idea where to start your future plans. No, you don't have to know wht you want to do for the rest of your life yet, but you will have your high school experience to help you guide yourself in college. You have to make the most of it, take yourself seriously while remembering to have fun too. Fun is also important, it will leave you with some amazing memories to look back on one day and with friends that might stay by you for the rest of your life. Everyone will have a different college experience, but its up to you on how well your experience will be depending on the mindset you enter college with.

I would tell my high school self to take school seriously. Every class that you take will pave for something in the future. GPA makes a difference in what you do and what you will do with your life. People who say that "C's get degrees" are being naive. They do get degrees but they do not get jobs or internships. Also I would say to participate in extra ciricular activities as they will help with meeting new people and networking.

I would tell myself to be strong, and to be hopeful. I would make it clear to myself that negativity never works out, and that studying pays off. I would say to live life and let loose, meet people and disregard differences because ultimately its being different that makes us all alike. Knowing what I know now, I would insure myself that failing a test doesn't mean my world is going to come crashing in on me. After experiencing my first year away at college, if I could go back in time, I would tell myself to be prepared for the biggest change ever, and to be ready for things I never knew could be thrown in my direction, and honestly, I might even tell myself not to live on campus because it wasn't worth it. The circumstances I had to tolerate, and the sometimes agonizing conditions just didn?t pay off, and my roommate amplified the situation making it even more terrible. At least I can say it built character, so all in all, I would tell myself to suck it up, and to make the best of it.

I did everything I could in high school to prepare for college because my mother is a teacher and she put goals, motivations, and opportunities in place for me to be successful. I would probably have wanted to get a job earlier and save more money for the technological advances I wanted to get before anyone else. However, in general, I worked very hard in high school, and had great role models (I have three grown sisters who are already through college), so I knew what was at stake.

DO NOT TAKE OUT LOANS!!!!! The student loans are the worst thing I did. I owe over $130,000 now and I'm so afraid that I won't find a job that will help me pay them all off. I am also currently the Mother of 4 and would advise myself in the past to not have any children until I finished school PERIOD! This way I would have been better prepared financially for them and give them a better life overall. Also, I would have recommended taking AP classes to shorten my time in college.