Washington State University Top Questions

When thinking back to high school, there were many people who explained to me how life in college would be. Now knowing exactly what it is like and experiencing it for myself, I would have to go back in time and tell myself that I should ask questions more and be prepared to speak to the professors and teachers more because the more you speak to them, they will remeber your face and help your with your grade by raising. Another piece of advice is that college is expensive and keep applying for as many scholarships and grants as you can and fill out the Fedural Student Aid every year. As far as the tranistion with high school life to college life, I would say make sure you have the organizational skills that are needed and make right choices because that is whats going to seperate the successful college students from unsuccessful ones. Finally college is not as easy as you think, the harder you work and more that you put into your studies, the more you will learn and take from what the professors or student teachers teach you.

College is a big step into the real world. College is all about finding out what you are and what you want to do with your life. The hardest part about college is having to do everything on your own. In college there is no such thing as being done with homework. One must study hard to get good grades . For most people, college is difficult to get used to because there are different expectations. Knowing what I know now about college, I would say that success is an effect of perserverance, motivation, and failure. without these three things there is no success.

Success in college is found by going to class and doing the work. It is not like high school where more time is spent doing tedious assignments to track a students learning. A college student is free to succeed or fail and must take initiative to do well. I would advise myself to stay organized and tackle one assignment or test at one time. Also, look ahead at future assignments and schedule times or days to work on them to reduce the stress of having to complete several assignments due around the same time. Finally take advantage of outside activities, such as study groups and clubs, early and throughout college. These will not only help academically, but you will also make friendships that will help ease the stresses of classes and provide you with a much more fulfilling experience than just going to class.

If I could go back and talk to myself as a high school senior with my knowledge about college now I would say, first and foremost, to set challenging, yet attainable goals. In the transition from high school to college a person can change who they are. Someone who didn't do well in highschool can turn that around in college to be successful. There is no limit on the success that one can find with the opportunities that college provides. The atmosphere at college is much different than high school. At college, the students who are there want to be there and want to be successful and learn. I would also say that college is about taking personal repsonsibility and initiative in the your education, because you get out of it what you put in. In high school we might be able to pull off doing homework the night before its due, or skipping the textbook reading, but in college, there isn't any shortcut. The experience that people get from college is one that lasts a lifetime. The friends we make, the experiences we have , and the things we learn will change us forever.

Start and finish college as soon as possible.

I would tell my younger self to relax and enjoy my college years. I would also tell myself that even though the work looks hard, and it may be in the beginning, that I will get used to it and begin to enjoy it. College life is a unique and wonderful experience, while making responsible decisions, I would advise myself that having fun is still allowed. There are many things that I could advise myslef on but I think the most important thing to remember is that you are paying for an experience not just a class, so try to experience as much as you can.

Go to college right after leaving high school & decide early on what program to pursue!

I would tell myself to make sure that you have a strong freshman year. Academicially, try your best. You are starting off with easy classes so take advantage of that and get good grades. Having a high GPA freshman year will help a lot when you get into the upper level classes that are more difficult. Socially, make good friends. Your friends will be in charge of your happiness and keeping you sane during some tough times. Find people who will support you and encourage you to not only have fun, but also do well in school. Be open minded, you will be exposed to many new things this year and you shouldn't be too quick to judge. Try new things, you are starting fresh and have so many opportunities, take advantage of them. Join a club, you can meet people with similar interests as you and it is good to have friends in your major. Talk to your professors, they are real people and enjoy knowing their studets. It's okay to go out and party, but be smart about it. Stay with people you trust and know your limits. Live life with no regrets.

As a high school senior, I underestimated the time I would have to put into being successful in college. I opted to coast with the minimum requirements and to essentially take the year off. To go back in time and tell myself to do exactly the opposite would have to saved me a lot of time in snapping myself out of the sit-back-and-relax mindset. This mindset eventually accounted for a lot of late nights in which all of my work caught up to me. I would tell my high school senior self that it is okay to go outside my comfort zone full of my friends and family and to throw myself into an environment where I know no one or anything, because in reality, everyone else in that environment is in the exact same position and looking to make a friend as well. College is nothing to fear, and I wish my high school senior self could understand just how exciting it is to be on your own instead of fearing being on my own.

The advice that I would give myself would be to become more involved with extra curricular activities. Studying is important but getting to know new people in clubs can help you to become a better person, or it could even help you to make new study partners that will help you get better grades.