Virginia Commonwealth University Top Questions

The big things I would tell my self that would help me enjoy my first year so more would be. One listen to mom more I'm telling you all I needed was to study and be more organized that would have seriously helped. Second don't be scared to do something I promise you it won't hurt to be more adventures and less causious. The last thing is still continue to do nice things for people cause amazingly your good deeds do come back as good karma sooner or later. You get mad respect for being so nice to people its just that cool and easier to make friends around the place.

You are going te regret a lot of decisions you are going to make in the upcoming years, but you will regret none more than not going to college right after you graduated high school. In high school, you knew that you wanted you be an accountant and that you would be good at it, but you doubted yourself and held yourself back for one reason or another. You took what seemed to be the easy path, but turned out to be much more difficult in the long run. If you could have seen that, in the future, you wait tables for you aunt for ten years, would you have made a different choice? If you knew that, in the future, you would infact become a bookkeeper and, once again, aspire to become an accountant. Would you have put it off? You could be finished with school and concentrating on your career and saving for your own kids futures in less than ten years. Think long and hard about the long term, before the long term catches up with you. Either way, you'll be just fine. They're two roads to the same place, which road will you choose?

Knowing what I know now about college life and making the transition, as a senior in high school, I would have advised myself to socialize more. The ability to socialize is very important in both high school and college because socializing gives one the ability to adjust to certain norms, routines, rules and rituals. This is something that one must do in an effort to have a successful college career. Being shy, worried about your appearance, and lacking confidence is sometimes normal for high school seniors. This is because you will soon be attending college and it will be a new experience that will take serious adjusting, so anxiety is expected. However, it is important not to allow this anxiety to stop you. During your senior year, getting involved in clubs, teams or your community is imperative. This allows you to create long-lasting friendships; it keeps you sane, enhances problem solving skills, teaches you to think for yourself, and prepares you for life in general. Smile, be confident and focus, but get involved in those high school activities and make friends. You will not regret it.

Being perceived as “cool” or “popular” by others seems to disappear when one enters college. Instances of bullying and isolation goes away and feelings of excitement and eagerness are prominent during freshmen year of college. I would go back and tell myself that it all gets better. Not many people I have encountered in my college experience has cared that I was not popular in high school and have actually embraced my weird and unique personality. I have met some amazing people in college and can already tell that I have made some life-long friends. I would also tell myself to reach out of my comfort zone more and try new things during that first year of college. Falling back on what feels safe and comfortable is not what is always best or even right. I feel as though I missed out on quite a bit freshmen year of college because I was scared and so I feel as though I missed out on a lot of opportunities that my peers may have experienced. Every year of college has been better than the last, so I would tell myself to just keep on going and enjoy everything.

Although the future may seem ambiguous and unstable; you must persist. Keep in mind that you can never fail if you always put your best efforts forward. I had a fear of failing and not succeeding before I came to college. It didn't seem realistic that I could attend a university after high school The process of applying to colleges seemed so cumbersome and difficult; this made me feel discouraged and doubtful. Soon, I realized that my once doubtful thoughts were unnecessary stress and a waste of time. Once I received my acceptance letters from all three of the schools I applied to, including my number one choice; I knew my life was about to change in a big way. From that day, I vowed that I would never be discouraged by something I put my all into. I now know that hard work and persistence pays off. That way of thinking has allowed me to keep my mind on success and breeze through college with a positive attitude No matter what; don't give up and continue to put your best forward.

"I know you don't know what you're doing in life at the moment, and there is a lot of floating around. But if I were in your shoes again, I'd go ahead and bunker down and take school more seriously. Although you may not know it yet, you love learning. You thrive on it, and it energises you. Don't look at school as a chore. Although it may seem like there isn't much purpose, education will be the key to open doors in the future. Figure out what you want to do now, and start working towards it. And even if you don't know, go ahead and work towards an associates of some type at the community college. While throwing all caution to the wind and simply living a party lifestyle may seem like a great idea, that isn't going to get you anywhere. Stay off the drugs, it will keep you out of a lot of trouble. Bottom line is: just start working towards something. If it doesn't seem like the right path, it probably isn't. But it's always okay to change your mind."

I would tell myself to work much harder on earning scholarships. Once I adjusted to college life, I realized that I am becoming self-sufficient and that I need to be conscious of my future. Having scholarship money would relieve so much stress and allow me to focus on my schoolwork rather than wonder how I am going to pay for my education. I would have also been much more active in trying to find a job, at least part time. I hear my peers joking around constantly about how we are all broke college students and we have no monetary funds to to anything remotely fun. The sad thing is, I think that is absolutely correct. If I had known how hard reality would strike me when I moved away from home, my attitude would have been completely different.

Looking back now I see that I could have done a lot of things differently. When you ask what I would tell myself about the transition from high school to college life, I reply with the common phrase: I should have listened to my elders, significant figures, and peers a lot more. It’s hard to speak of what could have or should have been because we don’t have time machines, we can’t go back and rewrite history, but we can be more aware of what people tell us at in that present time. I would tell myself to be more decisive and think critically about what I want and where I want to be in 5 years. I would advise myself to pay a little more attention to the details in life, for it is only there for a moment, then that moment is gone and you hopefully leave behind a progressive decision. Knowing myself like I do, I would have most likely ignored the advice, because I was a typical young and arrogant teenager. Regardless of what could be, we all have our own yellow brick road paved for us; we just have to walk them.

If I could go back in time only to give advice to myself as a high school senior, there would be a few short words to say. I would definintely start with congrats! Very few people in my community make it to their senior year in high school and not only did you make it, you're also the first in your family to go off to college. Next, I would emphasize determination. Determination gets you far when you come to college and it's nothing like you expected. Determination is all you have once you feel like giving up because high school didn't really prepre you for this. Determination brings me into my last key point of advice, flexibility. Flexibility is necessary when your plan A falls through. Be flexible and stop assuming everything will go off without a hitch. Yes I know you had your mind set on one career path for almost all of your life, but college presents opportunities that you've never imagined. College will throw plenty of setbacks your way, but as long as you stay focused, determined, & flexible, you'll laugh in the face of adversity and overcome & acheive all your goals.

"Remeber to stay strong in who you are. Although some people will not recieve you well, do not ever feel guilty for being yourself, and take pride in knowing who that is. Each person you meet is a mirror for you to see what you like, and what you do not like in yourself. Learn the lessons that these people provide, the good and the bad. Remember too, have patience in discovering your path. It is unnecessary to feel so anxious about the future all the time, when what life is really about is experiencing the here and the now. That is what shapes what we want and who we are, so stay in the moment! Also, Mom does get sick again, and will continue to do so, but do not let that stop you from pursuing your goals. Travel as far and you need to and accept that she may not be there when you get back. There is too much to life to waste yours waiting for someone else to lose theirs. And tell her you love her every day. There is nothing more important than honesty, in all things. Good luck!"