Covenant College Top Questions

Don't feel pressured to take a full coarse load. I felt as if I had to take 18 hours every semester and as a new college student, this made the transition even more difficult. This hurt my gpa in the long run and I wasn't able to learn as much as I could have my first year. My second year has been much more successful now that I know how to balance everything and not take on more than I can handle.

This is the advice I'd give about transitioning into college: First of all, not to be impatient-- it takes time to make friendships and get to know people. I would tell myself not to be afraid of what others think about me and not focus on that at all, but to be open, honest, and friendly to anyone that I saw. I would tell myself to be careful not to judge anyone that I met, but to be open to meeting and understanding new kinds of people. I would also tell myself to not be afraid to initiate getting together with people that I was meeting, and looking for other places to have experiences with them outside of the classroom and hall. I would tell myself to try as hard as I could to get enough sleep because it is really hard to adjust emotionally when you're physically exhausted. I would tell myself to make a greater effort to get to know my professors, to visit their offices and learn from their wisdom. I'd tell myself to make a greater effort to stay in touch with my siblings, because those relationships are so very important.

As a senior looking for a college can be a stressful decision because there are many factors that must be considered including location, if they have your degree, and financial aid. As a senior I remember weighing these aspects attempting to determine which was more important to me. However, after being at Covenant for almost two years I have found that these things are not necessarily the most important. The motto at Covenant is "In all things Christ preeminent". Through this statement I have come to understand that it is not the location or the popularity of the school that matters but rather understanding what you are being called to do and how the school is preparing you for that. Covenant is not an easy school and it has challenged me to work hard in all of my classes. However, being at Covenant and working so hard has only taught me that it is not surface things that matter when choosing a college but rather where you will be challenged and where you will grow the most. Though I would not change my decision, as a senior I could have benefitted from this knowledge when choosing a school.

It will be different than you think but will be great once you get settled and get used to things

I would tell myself that school is very important.You have to do your best because it can effect you later on; especially if you're going to college.It's good to start taking college classes while you are in high school doing dual enrollment.It helps alot so that you don't have to waiste more time in college taking college prep classes.An make sure you get A's & B's so that you get more classes,scholarships,grants & other things awarded to you.Also you will be alot closer to doing your career choice.

Do not make pro and con lists. I had orange and green and yellow and pink paper hanging on my walls each for a different school with different colored writing for each point--size, location, academic vigor, cost, student life, quality of food, every single little minute detail. And these lists, meant to organize and point in neon lights which school was best, confused me more than ever. There was no clear cut winner. The college decision making process, the all-important, all-consuming, all-powerful choice that will dictate the rest of your life, really is personal, not practical. Road trip it out and visit. Actually pick up the phone when admissions representatives call. Talk to professors and students there. Stay overnight in a dorm. Sit in on a class. Do not make pro and con lists. After being at college for less than a year, all that matters is the personal lessons that I have learned from personally engaging the school. Statistics really do not tell anything about the school. It is living everyday life day in and day out that truly is the process of a maturing transition to college.

"Don't settle." I was very career-driven as a high school senior, which negated the value of some of my classes because I only used them as springboards to looking more attractive to colleges. I looked only at numbers in my college decision, but when I visited Covenant, I knew that numbers couldn't quite express what a great college experience would mean to me. I've enjoyed my life as an undergrad because I didn't settle on the surface, looking at numbers. Instead, I experienced the school which has allowed me to grow without giving up academic excellence.

STUDY!!! That is what i would tell myself as a high school senior. I had learned some basic study skills through my high school, but I was not prepared for the amount of reading and studying I had to do at college. However, I do look back fondly over the times in high school where I dropped my homework to join my friends at a soccer game. In order to prepare me for a tough college, though, I wish I had spent more time developing methods of memorization and habits of looking over my notes each night. I would say that maintaining a good balance between my academics and my social life was discovered the hard way in college. Keep a balanced schedule because although social relationships are the things that keep us going in life, academics are what keeps food on the table in the future. So be social AND smart!

I would tell myself not to freak out. My senior year I had no clue where I was going to go to school. I also would have told myself to visit more schools, because I only visited two and I wish that I would have seen more options. I wish that I would have applied for more scholarships. I started looking ate in the game and I wish I would have gotten more outside scholarships to lower the cost of tuition, because Covenant is expensive. I also would have told myself to study more. I studied a lot, but I wish that I did better on my AP tests so that I could have gotten those classes out of the way. I spent so much time working and doing school and I wish I could go back and tell myself to have more fun, because I think that it is important to balance work and fun. I wish I knew that my roommates would be ok, becasue that stressed me out. Overall I made a smooth transition, but there are always things that I could improve on.

If I could write a letter to my high school self I'd tell me something like this: Dear Emily, Learn better habits, (sleep, eating, exercise, and ways to deal with stress) and start practicing them now. Gossip less. The drama is so overrated and the patterns of how you treat people continue on through life. Plus it causes unnecessary hurt to people who do not deserve it. Don't date that boy, or anyone. The relationship won't last, and lets face it, you're far from ready for a real relationship. The mistakes you make will just give you more to deal with and forgive yourself for. Study more. High school may seem annoying and unnecessary, but learning Calculus and Chemistry well. Doing well in those hard classes will help you be prepared for the rest of your education. Enjoy what you are learning. Let the world fascinate you, and find a way to take pleasure in the assignments you have and the knowledge you are gaining. Get a job this summer, but enjoy the time you have with your family before you leave for college. You dont think you'll miss them, but you really will.