University of Wisconsin-La Crosse Top Questions

Knowing what I know now about college life and the transition, I would adivce myself to get more involved and experience more careers on my own before entering ollege. By doing so, I would have a better idea as to what career I want to persue and I would not feel like I wasted my time trying to figure that out in college. Also, would advice myself to study more and develope better study habits to help make the transition easier for me.

Looking back on my senior year of high school, I remember how anxious, yet enthusiastic I was to make the transition into being a college freshman. Although, I would not go back and change anything that happened my first year of college, I confess it would have been nice to have more insight into what I dove into it wholeheartedly. In retrospect, there are two main pieces of advice that I would give to myself as a senior. First and foremost, always be prepared. This can mean anything from reading ahead in your classes, to keeping floss handy in case you need to sew on a button before a presentation or an interview, to being prepared to meet new interesting people, and possibly lose people from your old life. My last words of wisdom are to make sure you try new things because the more things you do, the more memories you’ll make, and the more experiences you’ll have. Sleep when you’re dead! If a chance to do something completely out-of-character comes to you, seize it. Make the most of college, because responsibility and the real world are looming, and soon, they’ll become everything.

If I could tell myself anything, I would say that you need to take each assignment seriously. I realize now that I let my personal feelings, emotions, and lack of self-discipline keep me from attaining excellent grades. I blew off almost every assignment and homework I was given in high school because I lacked the discipline, time management skills, and emotional maturity to make myself get the task done. I never saw the relevance to the rote work of mathematics or English papers that took too long to do. I was more concerned about the social life going on around me. I was obsessed with my appearance! I would rather be thinking about the way someone else was dressed that day than what the teacher was saying. Now, as an adult, I see that it requires a purposeful, determined decision to make time to understand and finish the assignments given by my instructors. I see now that each task is building a future for me. Each one is producing a new skill and more knowledge that I can apply to a career.

The single piece of advice that I would give myself, prior to high school graduation, is not to waste my life. To elaborate more, I would emphasize the purposefulness of utilizing each and every opportunity that comes my way for something good, something worth while. I would encourage myself to sieze each day and make the most of the moments that it holds. I would support healthy living so that each day could be used well. Most of all, I would urge myself to consider the meaning and purpose of life as soon as possible. This question needs to be answered to live a life that is driven, meaningful, and joyful. With these things emphasized, I think my high school self would be prepared and ready to transition into college.

If I were able to give myself advice as a high school senior with the knowledge I currently possess, I would start by saying that an investment in my education is truly an investment in myself. I would suggest taking a foreign language to broaden my horizons and lay a foundation for my desire to volunteer on global relief mission trips. I would urge myself to reach out for help when I need it and ask questions when I do not understand. Do not worry about what people think of your intelligence, your education is for you and no one else. I would warn myself that college will test my ability to multi-task, meet deadlines, work successfully in diverse groups, use real world problem solving strategies and most of all college will make you believe in yourself. At first, balancing all of this will seem impossible, do not give up. I would tell myself to walk the bridge over the Mississippi River at dusk or climb the Grand Dad Bluffs dawn to clear my head when I feel completely overwhelmed. Most importantly, I would remind myself to stay driven, be myself and to believe in the impossible.

The one, single word of advice that I would give my high school senior self would be: relax. College isn't as scary as people make it out to be. You'll meet some amazing people and have fantastic opportunities, so don't freak out. The professors are amazing and you'll really like your job. Plus, all of the cash that you earn will help you travel abroad during Spring Break. College will be one of the most memorable parts of your life; don't spend the whole four years worring about every little insignificant detail!

It sounds cliché, but these will be some of the best years of your life. The friends you make, the memories you share and the laughs you have are just around the corner. Hang in there, stop stressing about not getting into college and enjoy being young without all the responsibilities of paying rent, and tuition bills. It is not the end of the world if you do not know what you want to be when you grow up! Everyone is in the same boat as you, with doubts about their future and no real set plan before them. Take every opportunity you get to make new friends and branch out, joining clubs and sports teams. Attend every campus comedian, band, or performance you can find. Work ahead in your classes. When you find this out, your stress load will be cut in half. And as hard as your high school teachers say college is, if you attend class you can pull off a 4.0 GPA if you believe you can.

Always remember the reason you are going to college. The reason people go to college is to get a higher level education and to get a degree with that education so he/she can advance him/herself in today's society. Some people believe the only reason to go to college is to party, they think these are the only four years of their life that they get to party. I believe you can party at college, but once it starts to affect your grades, you have to be smart and know that you have to stop attending parties or at least until your grades pick up. Also get out of your dorm room and meet new people, this way you get a different perspective on life and the world. Always remember school comes first and then your personal life.

If I could miraculously go back in time to my senior year in high school, I would tell myself not to worry so much. Looking back to my senior year, I realize that I was so worried about not seeing my family for weeks. The days fly by so fast in college, so before I know it, it's the weekend and I'm going home to see my family. Also, I would advise my high school self to enjoy the pleasure of not having much homework to do. Sure, it might have seemed like a lot at the time, but I would have prepared myself better for the workload to come. I probably would have developed better note-taking and study habits while in high school rather than trying to figure that out in college. I would also have told myself that college is just a big social game where communication is key to truly experiencing it. If I would have known that in high school, I would have made a better effort to be outgoing and sociable. Then, I would have felt more confident in meeting new people and maybe things would have turned out differently.

If I had the chance to tell my high school senior self about college life, I would stress that I should not worry about taking online classes and to take some specialized degree classes with the general education. I would think this advice would be helpful to my younger self because I know I avoided online classes because I thought I would not remember them. Since then, I have found that I am actually quite capable of handling an online class and even will get well ahead of schedule if given a chance. With taking online courses, I would tell myself to take classes such as English, Political Science and related courses online so I could get done with them faster and easier. In the way of taking specialized classes, I realize now I should have been looking at them from the start since some only met at particular times of the year. This is a lesson I have learned the hard way and could possibly cause trouble for me when I am near the end of my degree. I would warn my younger self about this so trouble can maybe be better avoided.