University of Washington-Seattle Campus Top Questions

Knowing what I know now about college life I would tell myself to go straight to a four year university. I transferred to University of Washington from Green River Community College. Although I do not regret my decision (it sure saved me money!) I think I would have had a more fulfilling life experience if I would have gone straight to the University of Washington. I think the college experience was invaluable and I would not trade the two wonderful years at UW for anything. However, I feel like if I had had two additional years my life would have been that much more enriched. I would also tell myself to get more involved in the University Community. The best memories I have are from when I was participating in a school sponsored activity. I think joining a sorority would have been a wonderful experience that I may have missed out on. I think If I would have started as a freshman and really used my time to make the most out of, not only my education but out of my life, I would have looked back at my time in college with even more fond memories and life experiences.

If I could go back in time and talk to my high school senior personna, the one piece of advice I would give myself would be to ignore the school counselor, stay in school, and explore colleges on my own. I was essentially on my own at the age of 18 due to family dysfunction and had to drop out of high school to support myself. I now know there were other options for me as despite the dysfunction in my life. Academically my grades were reasonable and I scored quite well on the STAT. Mine is one of those sad stories of the smart kid falling through the cracks. This is why, at 46, I am back in school, working fulltime (and not making more the $40K/year), and maintaining a 3.80+ GPA.

Keep what you are doing right now and you will like it. Good job!

Develop stronger self discipline, as you will be mostly alone to be responsible for your life soon. Make sure you obtain substantial knowledge about how to prevent yourself from overspending at the college.

I would tell myself not to worry about figuring out what I want to major in or what I want to be. It's a slow process, and that is ok! Make a lot of friends because they make the transition so far from home a million times easier. I would also suggest getting a job on campus, so that money isn't such a hassle and stessor. Take classes that you are interested in, not ones that sound incredibly boring. And lastly, I would tell myself to have confidence in myself and to remember to be; don't be afraid to express who I really am.

I waited to go to college until I was a bit older, and more sure of what I wanted to accomplish from school, so there are quite a few things I would tell my senior self. First, I would tell myself to be brave. I believe that transition from late teens into early twenties is complex and frightening. But I would tell myself that those years are some of the most formative years and to meet them head on and without fear. I would tell myself to reach out to people, and not to let lack of self confidence stop me from making some of the most amazing life long friends I have ever had the privilege of knowing. Lastly, I would tell myself that no dream, no matter how far fetch it may seem, is stupid, and to aspire to reach every goal no matter how hard. I would remind myself that life is only what you make of it, and you don't want to get to the end with a bunch of regrets.

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I would tell myself to stick to my guns and push through my difficult classes. College is a different life, and it has been kind of hard for me to get used to the 500 student lecture halls and succeeding in that environment, which has also been hard for me since I graduated with a 3.9 gpa. Mainly, I just need to focus and study really hard, and don't give up!!

I'm an international student from India and I've had to sail through some very trying times here in the US. Indian children are too spoilt by their mothers, who slave through the day managing household chores along with demanding careers, but don't burden their children with house work . Also the domestic help back home are little more than serfs, slogging through the day. After living in the US I've decided never to indenture lives, to do my chores myself and not burden anyone to work for me. Now I understand how tiring it is to work and study and cook and clean all by myself. I salute the poor back home who work for a pittance all day. I have learnt true humanity here and I regret taking everyone back home for granted. I've understood now what true equality is and what entails emancipation and I'm sorry to say India is yet a long way behind that even though it is called the biggest democracy in the world.

If I were to give myself advice, I would tell myself to live life without regrets. Everyone knows that in highschool there is the stupid drama. I would tell myself to forget all that and enjoy freedom. I don't mean freedom from my parents I mean financial freedom. Once you move on to college and out of your parents house, you have a lot more things to worry about financially. As far as advice for the transition I would recommend not partying so much my freshmen year. Freshmen and sophmore year really are the years that count, because these grades are the ones that matter most when applying for your major. My major was business, which is extremely competitive. I would have told myself to study more freshmen year so I wouldn't have to work so hard to bring my GPA up my sophmore year. I would motivate myself to do this by explaining that once I get into my major I can let loose a little more because the business major was a lot harder to get into than it was once you got in. I would hope this would motivate me to work smarter not harder.

I would give myself an advice of geting rid of senioritis as quickly as possible. Knowing that you need to be prepared for the fast-pace education along with other smart students, you would have to be prepared. So by getting rid of senioritis will be a big help because you won't be lazy to do homework.

As a high school senior I did not understand the term, "nothing comes easy." My job, school work, relationships, and family life seemed to flow naturally day by day. I thought I took things seriously and worked hard. I wish someone would have told me otherwise. I wish someone would have told me I honestly had not had a tough day ever and I needed to prepare for either disappointment or serious changes. My college career has already greatly strengthened me in the two short years I have been here. My family has had a tough time financially, and due to that and the diverse people I have befriended, I have learned not to take everything for granted. I am proud to say I have a loving family who I can always come home to and who will find a way to get me the best education. In high school I did not realize the dedication it took to be successful and be as lucky as me and my sisters have been. If I had the chance to go back in time I would tell myself, "life is tough, love and family can only get you so far."

Make sure you are ready to begin the work that college is going to be. Don't procrastinate and use your time wisely.

High school is dwindling down and you are entering a period in your life that will be the most fun and exciting time of your life. You are going to meet new friends, have new experiences, and experience another state's lifestyle. It is going to be a big change and you are going to have to take that all in at the same time as doing well in school. You will be tempted to go party and explore the city but don't let that get in the way of school. You will have to go to the library and spend hours on homework and studying. It won't be fun but this university is filled with lots of kids who know exactly what they want to do it and how they want to do it. You have to compete with them while staying social and having a good time. Join a fraternity becasue you will meet great friends and since you are from out of state you will not know many people here. Don't only hang with your fraternity brothers, branch out, meet new exciting people. Lastly, play zombie tag. Don't ask, you'll see.

I would tell myself that you need to really devoted alot of your time to studying sciences and actually pursue something that you love and enjoy. I am so glad now that I switched from pre-med to pre-law. I am actually enjoying classes and engaging in class rather then suffering like I was when I was pre-med. Do not worry about what your parents or friends think, because you are the one going to school and it is your future not theirs. I would tell myself to pursue what you want and go for it as soon as you know!

I would tell myself that college isn't what I'm expecting, that it's different than what I think it is. I would tell myself to have more fun, and to live and grow, and not just focus on school. I would tell myself that the grades and the prestige don't matter: it's the things that I do, the things that I feel, and the things that I learn that do.

If I could go back and talk to myself as a high school senior I would tell myself to really be prepared. College isnt easy and there is a big difference from high school. You have to take responsibility for yourself and work so hard in and out of the classroom to succeed. Also, I would tell myself to value family. Being away now really has made me realize how thankful I am to have such a wonderful family and how much I really do miss spending time with them. Another peice of advice would be to SAVE MONEY! College is expensive and if you get very little financial aid assistance like I do, it is pretty costly. Savings wouldve been very helpful and would relieve a lot of stress later on.

Number 1: Know that professors are going to say all kinds of crazy things sometimes. Don't be intimidated by them- just because they're a professor and really good at something doesn't mean they know everything about everything. Write down a qoute (verbatim) every time a professor says something looney; and after a year, you won't be intimidated, and you'll have some good laughs too. Number 2: Don't give any money (even change) to the guys in the Hub. Do you really think that they all got injured and couldn't work? No. And all that stuff about trying to find a job? Those are lies too, because they come back here every year. THIS is their job, and by giving them twenty bucks (or even pocket change) you keep them in business. DO help people, because there are a lot of homeless people in Seattle, but join a group that knows who's sincerely in need and who's a con. Last: Just because your religion and politics may be in the minority doesn't mean you can't talk about them, but show judgement when and where it's the right place.

I would suggest that I gradually enter college life, especially the rigors of college classes. I was in the top 15 of my graduating class and I was very confident in my academic abilities, but there was an adjustment period, and I wish I would have been less worried about challenging myself from the get-go, and had instead taken classes that I was interested in. There is pleanty of time to worry about completeing the major requirements, and freshman year is a lot about discovery.

Be prepared to be immersed in a world of diversity like you've never experienced before. There are so many people from so many different countries and cultures, many who do not speak English as a primary language. Therefore there are many different opinions about certain matters concerning American culture, American views of society, and global views in general. Keep your eyes and ears open, simply be open-minded. As a valedictorian of the class of '08, you would think that classes here wouldn't be as hard as everyone says. But it all ends up being the case of the-big-fish-in-a-small-pond syndrome. There are people out there that exceed your IQ by twice as much, struggled twice as hard to get to this University, and paid far more than twice the amount you did. It is a place where you literally "find yourself" amongst tens of thousands of students. Your culture is your history, your past, your share of life experiences. No one can change that itself, although they can only add to your history. Be prepared to make your mark on the world amidst the trials and tribulations of a college student.