Virginia Commonwealth University Top Questions

The best advice i can give to both students and parents is find a college that is a personality match. A diverse school with rich culture and very liberal may not be the way to go for all students and parents yet a very conservative school does not accept as much diversity. Students need to be able to tour the campus and talk with students on campus before choosing a college, this is an important decision because students will form their lives there. While four years may not be a long period of time compared to ones whole life it is an important four years. These are the years where most students figure out what they will do with their lives, meet the people they will be friends with forever and shape themselves.

The advice I would give to student lookin g to make the most of their college experiance would be to get out there and try everything atleast once. You never know if you'll find you're favorite new hobby, best friend or even life path. I would also encouage students to be safe and healthy. All to often I see cases of people who let drugs, alcohol and unsafe sex ruin their lives. College can be great fun if you know how to keep everything in perspective. You are here to grow up and learn to be an adult not a toddler all over again. To parents, let your kid go. Let your kid explore. Be there emotionally (and financially if you must) but let them decided weather to drink that beer or study for that test. Your job is over you can now. Students, when looking for the right school, talk to the students when your parents are NOT around, you'll get a better idea of what you're really in for.

The most important advice that I would give to parents and students is to pick the school you see yourself walking around and meeting people in. Another piece of advice would be to travel around and visit lots of different colleges. You might think you know what type of college you want to attend but your mind might change after visiting a couple and getting a feel for the campus. Finally, just remember to have fun!

Chosing the right school for you takes time. Take the time to get the feel for several different schools, then see which one fits you the best. Look at the school's background. What courses do they offer? What sports are played here? What kind of atmosphere does the school appear to have. These are just a few aspects that a prospective student should be conserned with when applying to a University.

The best thing to do is to do your own research. And make decisions about what is most important to you. Instead of looking at where your friends are going, look into what you want to study and learn. See what school are offering the major(s) you want to get into. The big names in colleges aren't always the best. But it is important to see what you're prospective school is known for, a good reputuation can get you job with the right person. But that's not everything either. You have to be able to stand being on campus for possibly up to four years. Visit, ask around, ask students, ask your teachers, ask your neighbors. Good luck.

Start off strong and do well in school. Don't let your guard down for a minute. Get into good habits and stay on top of everything.

Don't just go to the orientation scheduled by the school, make sure you see the school before it is so called "preped up" for the students and parents. Many schools are fake and the school only looks good during the day of orientation, and when the student goes to school that following semester, he/she might not feel safe or may not like the way the school looks. Make sure you are getting what you paid for, talk to the teachers and students on campus that walk by, go to the food court and make sure the food is quality food, and try to go into the buildings and see if the students are attentive. Think: "if these students look bored, how will my son/daugther look in this class, and will they learn anything?" Don't just talk to the administrative office because they can tell you alot about what they "think" is going on, talk to then students that KNOW whats going on.

To the students, it is vital that you select a college that will cater to your needs. Don't base your decision off the prestige of a University's name alone. Decide if it's important for you to have a particular class size, if it's important to be on an urban or more rural campus, etc. These decisions are key to making your college experience a successful one. I speak from experience. I transferred to VCU from JMU because I realized that I didn't take those details in to account. Also, to do well, as clich? as it sounds, hard work is a must. Just because graduation marked the end of the K-12 era, that doesn?t mean the work load stops. It becomes more important to study and keep up with the coursework. College is preparing you for a career so the education must be taken seriously. To the parents, all I can say is try to be supportive. It means so much when students feel like a parent genuinely cares about the success of their child. It also takes lots of patience so hang in there while we try to find our way.

when looking for the right college make sure it is a place that you or child can be comfortable being themselves. also, make sure you can afford the school. get as much financial aid as possible. as an out-of-state student i can say tha college is not cheap. don't be afraid to try new things. thats what college is for.dare to be different. college helps peopl find themselves.doing what everyone elase does won't help later in life.if you go to college with a major don't feel like you have to stick with that particular major.explore.trynew things to figure out what you really like. stay focused but practice time management so that you can balance your school and social life.have fun and don't be afraid to ask questions.contrary to what some believe there are teachers and faculty members out there who actually want to help and see you succeed.get as involved as you can and use all of the resources. that should make college life less stressful.

make sure it feels right!