University of Northern Colorado Top Questions

I wish I could jump in a time machine and go back in time to let my naive high school self be prepared for college. It would have been nice for someone to tell me how many scholarships were out there and how I could keep applying. My senior year in high school I was able to apply to various scholarships that my counselor gave me and recommended. After missing some deadlines and also not winning, I was disappointed. I had only won enough scholarships to pay for about a year and a half in college. If I had searched for some scholarships myself early enough I would have found so many more. As a college student now, there are a bit less scholarships to find and stressful to apply for with future debt in your mind!

I would tell myself to be true and focus on school and make time to have fun when necessary and really focus on studing for tests, exams and that the transition from high school to college is hard but with the right support services anyone can make it and achieve thier dreams in a career or degree in helping people. The students everyone is friendly and helping and is willing to help in whatever class make time for study groups and have fun as well.

I would tell myself to take college classes in my senior year so I could be ahead of the game. I would tell myself to save my money better and don't move around so much. Nursing is the career that you will love and start now instead of waiting until I'm 26 and have a beautiful son in your life. I would tell myself to get along better with your parents I know it's hard but as you get older you want them on your side. They will be there for you more then anyone in your life. My parents will be great grandparents and love your son more then anything, they will also make great babysitters. Being a single mom will be hard but you can do it. You will have the support of your friends and family. They love you and will do everything they can to help you in life. Life will be a hard ride and you will meet people that will bring you down. Just do your best and hang on to your friends they will be your rocks that you will lean on the most. Other then that have fun.

If I were to go back and time and talk to myself as a high school senior, I would give my self only four pieces of advice. The first would be to not stress so much about admittance to colleges and focus on my grades. By stressing so much about being admitted to the colleges of your choice, you run the danger of falling behind on your grades and not being admitted to any college at all. Secondly, enjoy this last year and do all the activities you enjoy the most. Once you begin your college career you may not have the time to do all the activities you enjoy, being that university, club and Greek activities can be highly time consuming. Third, do not worry about having friends in college, as you will make many of them. As you begin to attend classes and converse with your classmates you will begin to meet new people and potentially make great friends. Even more importantly remember that, “one great struggle results as an even greater accomplishment”.

The cheerleading captain, the soccer captain, homecoming royalty, and student body were the only things people in my high school saw about me. I was extremely involved in my high school, whether I was playing a sport or planning an upcoming event. I hid behind being so busy. Being so busy all the time stressed me out and I spent more time being stressed than having fun. I didn't want anyone to get to know the real me. I had my three best friends and we have known eachother scince we were seven so I didn't think I needed to be friends with anyone else. I was nice to everyone, but at the same time I was always worried about impressing people. If I could go back in time to my senior year, I would tell myself to quit tyring to be perfect and have more fun. I would tell myself to try to make other people happy and try to make everyone in the school feel comfortable. College life has showed me that what people think of you is not the most imprtant thing in the world and I wish I knew then what I know now.

The advice I would give myself would definitely be to manage my time. Considering I work at 3 different places and take 17 credits for this semester, I am very busy. Therefore, I have to manage my time well. I didn't realize that I procrastinate as much as I did but this is the real world and your teachers aren't going to babysit me anymore. So I would definitely tell myself to get the important things done first before I go "play".

Jill, I hope your living up your senior year and partaking in all the events that are offered to you. I know that coming up is the big transition of moving to college and how excited you are. Looking back in the past i wish i would have known a couple things before i started on this new journey. First, don't rush the time you have at home and with your family. There are many times where I wish I was having a family dinner or talking about my day with my parents. Next, don't expect college to be easy. I have never studied this hard in my life and i wish i would have known that. Some nights i will be studying for six hours while never moving from where i have sat down. Most of all, remember to keep in contact with the people that mean the most to you. It's hard to leave your friends and watch them gain new ones, but remember that they will always keep in people that matter the most. Yours truly, Your future self

Knowing what I know now about college life, I would tell my high school senior self to get involved, get out of my comfort zone, and to have a plan. I have learned how important it is to get involved with the campus, otherwise I wouldn't be enjoying college life and I wouldn't be making friends. I also have to remember that eventhough I have made a couple new friends, I still need to get out of my comfort zone and continue to make more. The road to being a clinical psychologist is a very competitive one and I didn't know that until I talked with a few of my professors at the University of Northern Colorado. I would go back and inform myself how competitive it is and make sure I give school all that I have and have a plan of the courses I plan on taking. Also, I would let myself know that I need to be a part of research as soon as possible and in order to do so, I need to get to know all of my professors and be involved in my class work.

I tell myself constantly, as a sophomore in college that I should have tried harder in high school and taken it more seriously. High school is not just a mandatory punishment, it's preparation for the rest of one's life. While I was a senior, the other students were applying for scholarships to major universities or researching fields of study they found interesting and working to make the grades. I on the other hand did not realize this is what I should have been doing. I come from a family of few college goers, let alone graduates. I am in no way saying that my family isn't well off, its just that in their day it wasn't neccesary to graduate from college. Although, for me this is the case. One must attend at least four years of school and receive a bachelors degree to become anything in life. What I'm getting at is that I did not have someone to show me the ropes and tell me how to get into universities or receive scholarships. Therefore if I could go back I would inform myself that these are the things to be doing.

I would say follow my heart, and don't let anyone convince you otherwise. To believe in myself and not question my abilities. To stay strong in my faith and to surround myself with strong faithful friends. I would also tell myself to get involved in activities offered at the school earlier than I did, because it is a great way to meet people. And to make friends with the library early because I need to spend a lot of time there studying to make sure I keep my grades up.

If I could go back in time and tell myself as a high school senior a few words of advice, I would tell myself to live in the moment and prepare myself for the challenge of your life. High school is a time in everyone's life where they first begin to learn who they are. They find their talents and they find their passions. But for many, the layout of public school is such that you can simply do the bare bone minimum amout of work and still pass your classes. To me, I found this made me develop lazy strategies, and although I set my goals high, to become a physician, and I still earned a 4.0 GPA, my study habits were far from par. If I could go back, I would tell my old self to still enjoy living with my parents and hanging out with the friends that I miss today, but to also focus on what means something to myself, and thats proving everyone wrong and becoming the man I want to be, regardless of how much work it takes to achieve that.

If I could go back and talk to my high school senior self, I would tell myself not to worry so much and that everything will be ok. I would tell myself to enjoy my last high school moments and spend more time with all of my classmates. I would also tell myself to be proud, since I have overcome my illnesses and will graduate at the top of my class. Even though I thought no one noticed, I would remind myself that people did notice my hard work and that giving my best is all I can do. Although I won’t get all the scholarships and academic awards I hoped for, I would tell myself (over and over) that I give it my all and that there is nothing wrong with staying at home for two more years to go to a community college instead of a university. And finally, that I am who I am and I have lots of time to work on my character and decide what I want to do for a career.

I would encourage myself to be dedicated from the very begining. I would also stress the importance of an education and the pride that comes with doing well. If I was to show my current GPA to my teenage self, I doubt that I would believe that I could do this well while enjoying the experience. College requires maturity and organization beyond what I was capable of in high school.

Stop worrying about how the transition for college will go! Stop worrying about being away from your family---there is always Skype! Making friends is really easy (even if you've always been reserved) if you put yourself out there. Step out of your comfort zone and don't be afraid to try new things! You learn from your experiences. Attend school-sanctioned events because it's a great way to meet new people and have fun. As I said before, don't stress about everything. Just let everything happen as it is meant to, and have fun! College is the greatest thing that will happen to you.

Going back, I would have put more effort into developing better study habits and time management skills. In highschool, you may think you know how to study for a quiz or exam, but when you get to college you will realize you have no clue what to do. I would make it a priority to have developed an effective way of studying and managing my time between classes, homework, studying, and a social life. Once you hit college all of the freedom is a little overwhelming at first and it can be difficult to know when are where to draw the line between all aspects of your new life. Those were the only two things that made my first semester difficult. I am still working on the study habits, and hopefully will have a system developed shortly into my second semester.

I would tell myself not to stress out so much. Not to overstress about getting a job or freaking out about maybe not making friends, or if my room mate and I could get along. The added stress was probally one of the resons my senior year wasn't the best it could be, and I was able to alleviate all my fears with in the first week of coming to school. Another advice for the transition, is too study. i know that studying is one of the things in highschool they try to encourage students to do, but in highschool it isn't completly neccessary. In college on the other hand, it is all studying and taking notes. had I worked on my studying skills I would be more confident for midterms.

Knowing what I know now, if I could go back to my senior year there is so much I would like to tell myself. The first thing I would tell my senior self is to wake up and think about my future. I would describe how important it is to worry about the cost a lot sooner than later. I would tell myself to start saving and to start applying for scholarships, so I wouldn't have to drain my savings all at once. I would then tell myself that I need to do some soul searching to try and find some direction in life. I would encourage the senior Amy to start looking at different colleges and degrees to find some that would enhance my life in more directions than one. I would then tell myself not to settle for less and to reach for my stars without wasting years attending the closest and cheapest college in order to keep my low paying job at the local Dollar Store. I would tell myself to be happy and to aim for a life full of challenges and adventures and not to wait any longer.

Life isn’t as simple as everyone makes it out to be. Some people simply know who they are and what they want to do with their life, but it’s okay to not know. Never let anyone tell you who you are. A lot of people I know where forced into a degree or a school that they were unsure about because of the fear of failure. Failure cannot be measured by societal means. In my opinion success is directly linked to how happy you are. Don’t compare yourself to other people. You are uniquely you and this is your life. Ask yourself what you would do and where you would go if there were no money issues and no obstacles, and then find a way to get there. Things will be hard and you will struggle, probably in every aspect of your life. The struggle is what makes your stronger, and helps you become who you truly are. Embrace your challenges and accept them as means of growth. Be yourself and never let anyone tell you that you can’t do something. This is your life, so live it your way. Finally, as always, enjoy!

Knowing what I know now about college life, I would tell myself as a high school senior, to not feel over confident about the classes. I took 17 credits the first semester, and it did not go well. I had a false sense of security that made it so I felt I could do it. However I could not, and I would tell myself to not do it, and to heed the advice of others. I would also tell myself to get out there more, and to get to know more people, and become more apart of the campus, and other groups. I did not do that, and I should have, luckily I still have time, and am planning on remidying that next year.

Going back to high school, I would tell myself to try harder in class and to get more involved. There are so many opportunites and scholarships available for students who do well in high school. I tried hard, but I didn't give it my all. Having a much higher GPA would've given me the opportunity to apply for more scholarships and recieve better funding. I also would've told myself to get more involved. Being involved in the community and volunteering benefits you in such a positive way. Students here at UNC are all about getting involved and getting the most out of their education. I wish I would've had more community service projects or involved in other organizations to help with my involvement on campus. Lastly, I would've told myself to save money! College is very expensive and having more money saved up would've helped buy books, materials, etc. High school students now should be taught that saving money is so important and will have high benefit to them in their futures.