University of Missouri-Columbia Top Questions

I would have to tell myself that college is completely different from high school. College makes you work. Classes are twice as fast and the material overall is harder than even the Advanced Placement courses in high school. Laziness is not an option in college. In high school I was able to do a minimum amount of work and I was still on the honor role and in the National Honor Society. High school did not prepare me for college. I never had to learn how to work or study. If I could go back in time I would tell myself to get my butt in gear and do my homework and study so that I would know how to study now that the work is so much more difficult.

If I could go back in time and talk to myself as a high school senior, the first thing that I would tell myself would be to be open to change. This is really important because when you go off to college and leave your home, family, and friends, everything changes. At first the transition can be really hard and you probably will get homesick, but stick through it and don't give up because once you are away for a while, being away from home will get easier and easier. Another part of accepting change is to realize that college is a lot harder than high school and that you might have to change your study habits or ways of doing homework to succeed. At first, the classwork and studying will seem overwhelming but you will eventually get used to the load and you will find ways to do well in your classes. If you are not open to change when you come to college, you will have a hard time adapting to what's going on around you and your chances of succeeding will decrease. So accept the changes that are coming your way and have fun!

If I could go back in time and talk to myself as a high school senior, I would tell mysellf one thing: do not get lazy. There is a plague among high school seniors that we call senioritis. We think that since we are accepted to a univeristy or college that we can slack. High school becomes a notion of the past. However, this diease often carries over into college. Once an individual falls into sloth-like behavior, it is often hard to return to being a diligent, effective student. It's important for students to be consistent all the way through their educational careers. If an individual learns discipline early on, then it will not be hard for he or she to adjust to the freedom of university life.

You may not be aware of it , but your entire life is going to change very soon. For the first time, you will be completely independent and have to be completely accountable for your actions. Moving out and starting college is a very exciting time in life so make the most of it. Try and meet others because it will make the transition easier. Because, yes, sooner or later you will miss home and all the familiarity it brings. Making friends and connections will make college seem more like home?not just ?school?. On a final note, I know this is shocking, but you will actually have to study for college exams (especially finals!) and it will be time consuming, and at times, boring. When you struggle studying, which is inevitable, remember to breathe, count to ten, and focus on the task at hand. Don?t let your mind wander to the past or future, live in the present! If you don?t do so well on an exam, try harder next time: meet with your professor, TA or form a study group, but do something! Become the person you?ve always wanted to be, because now is the time!

Knowing what I know now and having the ability to go back in time and give my self advice about college life i would tell myself to just enjoy the expirence, but never give up on your studies, they are what brought you here and are what is most important in college but also try to have fun because balencing work and play leds to more sucess in life.

If I could go back in time as a high school senior, I would tell myself that college is a place where you have to be even more focused at because it's a new envirnoment to adapt to and it's a place to find who you are in this world. I would tell myself not to stress out about the workload and just take in the college life as best as I can. Always remain calm about the situations you may face in college such as the finianical issues and focus on the reason why you are in college and that is to earn a degree that you worked long and hard for. I would also tell myself to manage your time wisely and do your homework or any of your assignments before the due date, because waiting at the last second to do work will not give you a successful grade. Also, do not take courses that you feel are too stressful for you, but if you need the course try and get a tutor that will help you to become more successful in the course. Never panic during exams and just take you time.

If I were to start over and go back in time as a high school senior, I would tell myself to pick a unversity that is closer to home and not farther than 4 hours away in case you get sick or have an emergency. As a reflection, I would apply to more universities to see what each individually has to offer, but once you choose one, it's important to try to stay there for four years, because there are very few transfer scholarships available. Your best financial offers are given to freshman even if you're a top GPA transfer student. When you transfer from one university to another, you lose course credits since each university has their own course ratings, course decriptions and course requirements. It is rare to get a good roommate on your first try, so in retrospect, I should have stayed with my first roommate since we got along like sisters. Little did I know the next 2 roommates would be heavy drinkers, partiers and trash talkers, making it impossible for me to study or think clearly in my room. Research many universities, make thorough visits and then stick to your solid decision!

I believe I would go back in time and tell myself this, " Steven although you have plenty of time until college do not take for granted the fact that college is very expensive and not just a breeze to go through. I want to warn you that scholarships are more important to succeed in college and to keep your future in the right directions because of my future mistake of not looking at other scholarships and opportunities to get money you are now threatened to be kicked out because you cannot pay your bill and there are no other loans you can take out. So i beg you to look for other ways to get money for school and continue your future in the major of psychology". I wish i could actually tell me past self that so i would not be stuck in this scary situation of not being able to pay for school and just procrastinated until now to look for alternatives sources of money and scholarship opportunities.

If I could go back in time and give myself advice, I would tell myself how important it is to develop an academic plan before you start college. So many students do not know what they want to do in the future and end up switching majors several times during their college experience, which causes stress and could cause financial problems. I would tell myself that it is important to try to figure out what I want to major in and do research in that field or volunteer to make sure I really like it. Then I would tell myself to research my major because when I started nursing school I applied to the honors college and got into the nursing scholars program which gave me direct admitance to the nursing school. This ended up being very beneficial because I didnt have to worry about the stress of interviews and applying. This would be the advice I would give myself and any other nursing student because it put me on the right path to success!

In high school, I was very well-liked; never having a shortage of friends. Going into college I was not even remotely nervous when it comes to making new friends. Unfortunately, the people that initially made friends with ended up not talking to me completely. I was totally alienated by every person that I ended up meeting. It was very difficult for me to come to terms with the fact that I truly did not have a real friend at Mizzou. I lost the confidence that I had once had. I tried doing whatever I could to try and get my "friends" back. If I could go back and talk to myself at a high school senior, I would probably tell myself to not to lose myself just because things haven't worked out. No one is EVER worth losing yourself for. I would also tell myself not to hold off joining organizations and volunteering.