Bowie State University Top Questions

Dear HS Self, It's okay to wait. Pause. I know you're rushing to grow up and prove to the world that you're knowledgeable, but do you really know what you want? In lieu of the path taken by most of your classmates, take a year off to travel and defer school until you discover what you really want to study. I'm sure telling relatives and friends that you're going to major in pre-med is a convincing response to "what are you going to do after graduation?" Stop carrying guilt on your shoulders for declining the offer to attend Middlebury College and explore the idea of breathing new air on a different continent and use those French lessons Ms. Shipley taught you in 10th and 11th grade. Yes, your traditional African parents will be upset, but they will love you regardless of what you study, whether in or out the classroom. Take this year to challenge yourself by volunteering back home in Sierra Leone or interning at a nonprofit. There's no one way to live a meaningful life, so embrace the moments of uncertainty and grow from them. My older self believes in you!

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to go back in time and change certain decisions in the past in order to make the future better? Sometimes I wish I know what the future holds so that I can be able to better prepare for it. However, life doesn’t work like that but knowing what I know now about college, if I could go back in time and talk to myself as a high school senior, I would give myself two pieces of advice. First advice is to purchase books on time! On the first day of school, I was extremely stressed because I was battling to buy my textbooks. The cashier lines in the bookstore were long and motionless that my feet fell asleep as I waited. Not to mention, 3 of my books were sold out. The second advice is to do a thorough research on my colleges of interest to better determine each school's diversity, competiveness, course rigorousness and ranking. With such information, I would’ve had the opportunity to determine the institution that would best fit my goals today. College life is a great experience that requires sufficient and diverse preparation.

"Younger Ramsey, I've come to warn you about your inexcusable habits. I've seen the future: college is extremely time-oriented. First, I advise you to cease and desist perpetuating several bad habits. In order to make this transition as smooth as possible you must save your GPA from decreasing the first semester in college. In order to do this you must stop procrastinating before every major assignment. In college there are more assignments, many of which are continous, due simultaneously, and worth large percentages. So turn off the t.v., or else you will come up short of passing a difficult class, unintentionally miss an opportunity, and cause your GPA to drop! Secondly, don't be afraid to venture out of your academic comfort zone. Enroll in more rigorous classes. Yes , I actually said that: every bit of knowledge that you store in your brain now, will be applied later. The 'difficult' classes that you are currently taking, have aided me in my successful completion of several classes in college. Thirdly, glean from your teachers and honors students and ignore the sophomoric folly that shrouds your environment. Please do these with persistence and you will transition smoothly. Godspeed!"

Knowing what I know now about the transition to the college life, I would tell my high school senior self to stay focused and apply for scholarships as early as possible, broaden my choices of schools and to also stay prepared. My transition was quick and rushed because I waited too late to apply and get ready for the college life and I ended up going to a community college first. I would also say to know what you want to major in before applying for a college and gain some experience while still in high shcool. I would say to have a back up plan just in case my first choice didn't work out. I could hvae gotten a scholarship based on my grades to my college choice now but I wasn't aware. Mainly, I would suggest to better prepare and not procrastinate beacuse this can determine your college journey.

If I could go back in time, I would tell me High School self to work on my study skills and learn to advocate for myself with more urgency. I am learning that the work load is much larger and if I had prepared more in High School, I would differently be better prepared for college. I also didn't learn to advocate for myself. My mom was always the one going to my school speaking on my behalf. Now when I have problems I don't have the necessary tools to speak to my professors, fiancial counselor or even my educational advisor. I feel inadquate and some times feel a lost for words with no direction. I want to call my mother for assistance but I also want to be an adult and handle my own affairs. I wish I could go back to tell myself to listen to my mom and teachers when they told me to study harder and speak up for myself. Learning new studying habits in college is more challenging , less supportive and a wee bit lonely.

Think about it like this, you’ve already completed thirteen years of schooling. What advice would you give someone else when they are considering stopping school after their senior year; knowing the difference is between a minimum wage job making $6,720 a year and a $19,640 a year job in the medical field? It’s only a two and a half year difference in education. This is the choice I present to you. You don’t have to be an A student going in but you will have to make yourself your own competition. Don’t worry about being better than someone else. Do better today than you did yesterday. If you made a 79 yesterday, today make an 80. Before you know it you’ll be challenging yourself with a competitive streak you never knew you had. Buy a study guide for the entrance exam into the nursing program now. Study it, know it, you’ll need it – you got this. Ask the librarian for Writer’s Digest. They list periodicals. Research nursing trade magazines and subscribe to one, I suggest pediatrics (you love kids and they love you). Why nursing? Your gift is caring for people.

I would tell myself to get more invloved within the school and community. I would tell myself to join more clubs, play sports and volunteer your time. There are going to be many chances for work and make money. I would tell myself to focus on grades and take harder classes. I would use my time wisely and to make connections with the student at the school and the teachers.

If I could travel back in time to May 1988, I would have made education my priority instead of becoming a teenage parent. I would have decided to seek out curiorities for my education goals and attainment and told myself to leave those boys alone. I would have used the educational building blocks that Mrs. Hattie Price and Ms. Helen Johnson infused into my life to grab my piece of the American dream at an early age. The advice I would give myself would be that I could be a better parent, financial provider, and role model for my children to follow if they could see how education empowered my life. Instead my life was filled with financial difficulties, foregoing life enjoyments, and delaying my education because parenting was my primary responsibility.

I WOULD TELL MYSELF TO SAVE SAVE AND SAVE BECAUSE I WILL NEED IT.

If I could go back to myself as a senior in high school I would encourage myself to work harder, learn more and do not take for granted the resources provided to me.