Cornell University Top Questions

The advice I would give my former self is to not be afraid to challenge myself. Do not be afraid to get to know new people, because they are all so amazing and come form places and have done things you have not even dreamt of yet. Remember not to be afraid to present your work, you deserve to be here, and your contributions will help your peers as well as the underclassmen who will look up to you. Don't let work control your life, but understand that working hard will earn you respect for yourself and what you do. Be open to being put out of your comfort-zone, it's where magic really happens and where you will always surprise yourself. Finally, stay warm! Ithaca can be cold, buy good books.

Dear Jenna, If I could give you one piece of advice it would be to think very carefully about what you want. It may feel easy to choose Chemical Engineering because you did well in Chemistry, or Disney Imagineering so you can work at Disney, but there is more to a career than that. Think about what you enjoy doing. What projects have you loved working on? What type of work do you use to procrastinate from doing less interesting work? Those are the clues that you should start paying attention to. Don’t be afraid if it’s not engineering. Passion is what drives success, not industry. When you do figure out what it is you want to do, use this to make informed decisions. While choosing your college, research the courses offered. Do you have the opportunity to learn what you want to learn? If you apply to the Disney College Program, look into what the roles actually entail, and think about what will be most valuable for your future. Finally, don’t obsess over being "the golden child", make friends and keep them, and have some fun. You’ll do great. Love, Jenna

Relax. Alex, 10 AP classes was enough, you've done enough and you've more than earned your place at a world renown collegiate institution. The poverty, and long weeks of hunger and struggle are over now. You don't have to carry the weight of feeling that you are not equal to those around you anymore. You can move on. Surely as you prepare for your undergraduate years and pursue your premedical future, these things will permanently be a part of who you are, but they do not have to dictate the person that you are meant to become. Remember to keep moving forward, and in times of doubt, think about all of those times you saw yourself through the darkness, the assault, the near death experiences, and 9-11 calls. Cornell is going to be tough. It's going to be tough. I know you are a fearless boy, but a huge part of your success will come in learning how to put your trust in others. You're not invincible, and you can't handle it alone. Everyone needs a support network, so don't be so quick to turn friends away. I'm rooting for you.

If I could go back in time and talk to myself as a high school senior, knowing what I know now about college life and making the transition, the advice I would give myself would be to focus, organize my life before it’s too late and my grades and mental stability suffer the consequences, and to not feel wrong for loving two guys but picking neither and choosing yourself. I would say I needed to focus more on what works for me and not what is said to have worked for others. As far as organization goes. It is very important for me to have an organized life and understand where I am going with that life and this year I didn’t so I would make a point of telling myself to get organized. Lastly, as far as the love life goes, “Abri, do not feel wrong for loving two people or for choosing yourself. In the end you make the right decision and get closer to God thanks to such loves. So relax girl.”

The word "irrelevant" is the sole word that comes to mind when I think back to high school. After spending four years in high school with the same people (possibly 12, if you include kindergarten), one starts to feel as if your classmates are the only people that matter. It was when I went to college that I noted that my classmates were irrelevant to my future success. Their opinions, thoughts and feelings about me had zero bearing how the decisions I was going to make in college. If I could go back to high school, I wouldn't care what people thought about me. I wouldn't let the petty drama impact me. However, I would've been free. I would've been more comfortable with my body, my seuxality, my race and my friends. I'm home for Christmas break after my first semester at college and all I can say is I want to see my friends, the ones that supported me. All the rest are irrelevant.

The only thing that keeps youfrom getting what you want is the story you tell myself, the story that keeps you in the grips of resistance that reminds you why your desires cannot happen. I know that a person’s thoughts can literally change his or her biochemistry. Sometimes not getting what you want helps someone else. Life is about what you become, not necessarily about getting what you want. Success depends on how you define it. Success depends on you. What you are looking for is meaning; success without meaning is worthless. The best solution to gaining purpose is to develop an intention that motivates you to act in your best interest. Pursue an idea that changes your life. Look back at your experiences and answer the question: what made you happiest? What gave you a sense of fun, a sense of freedom, a sense of purpose? How can you use your skills for a purpose greater than yourself? When you are able to answer these questions and fill the role you were made to do, you will not feel a need to fill yourself with external things and you will make your dreams reality.

If I could go back in time and give myself advice I would tell myself to stay strong. I would let myself know that the experience that I am going to face is going to be the toughest yet most rewarding experience of my life. Every now and then when things start to seem to get to impossible to complete, I would tell myself to take a step back and breathe. In that moment I would want myself to think about all the hard work and dedication that has brought me to my dream school persuing my dream job. Even though it may seem bad now, it will all pay off in the end and all I need to do is keep my head up high and stay on the correct path. I would let myself know that I have what it takes to make my dream come true.

Let me begin by saying that you are lucky to have made the mistakes that you did in high school rather than in college. You learned that having a new boyfriend is nice, but it's not as good of an investment in your future as cuddling in bed with your biology textbook. You learned how to handle failure, and how the stinging pain of academic regret can linger for months under your skin. You learned that your friends will wait for you, but your teachers and professors shouldn't have to. These mistakes cost you rejection into many of the competitive colleges you applied to, but I am encouraging you to gain the confidence to dominate your freshman year in college and apply again to your dream schools. I am telling you that failure is never fatal and that missing the mark in high school can either cause you to wither in sadness or propel you to exceed all expectations. Please take my advice. Never did I once think that I would be a pre-med at an Ivy League school after failing high school biology. But I'm here now. You can do it.

"I don't know anyone." That was the first thought running through my head as I first stepped onto campus last summer. At first, I was hesitant to approach others, and ate meals by myself for a month during first semester. I skyped friends every night, instead of making new friends. One night, my friend asked me why I was alwayas skyping instead of hanging out with my new friends. When I realized the reason was because I hadn't made any new friends yet, I became determined to make a niche in the enormous community that is Cornell. After the conversation, I tried to talk to everyone around me, the bassoon player in orchestra, or the girl who sat next to me in chemistry. I realized that I was the only one who didn't have friends yet, many people were just as shy as I was. Slowly, I made my own group of friends at Cornell, and my nightly skype calls lessened to once a week. If I could go back in time, I would tell myself not to be afraid, that no matter what it looks like, everyone is afraid to take the first step.

“Jonathan, stop stressing about what you want to major in and go outside,” I said to my younger, 12th grade self as he frantically researched different careers and their salaries.“Are you my long lost evil twin?” he inquired, briefly looking up from his clunky desktop computer.“No. I am you… from the future,” I replied in my most enigmatic tone, “You need to hear my message!”“The future? It looks like you haven’t aged at all. That’s great!” he said with a smile, and invited me downstairs to the kitchen for some chocolate milk- our favorite.My message to my younger self was about the importance of going into college with an open mind. It is not essential- and nearly impossible- to know definitively at age 17 what career he is best suited for. College is the perfect environment for self-discovery, cultivating one’s strengths, and developing new interests. Pointing to a college course catalogue, I highlighted the diversity of available offerings and encouraged him to take as many as possible. “Just go in as undecided,” I said, “Your calling will eventually find you.”Fortunately, he listened and we graduated with a degree in statistics.