Gonzaga University Top Questions

I would go back and tell myself to trust myself. I had a lot of doubts in making my decsion, but I was happy once I made it. I would tell myself to apply for more scholarships before I left and actively research them because money plays a crucial role in education and that you can't take on this financial role alone. People out there want to help you get to your goal, but you have to seek them out. Be persistent and driven but don't be overpowering. Keep promises to your self and to others and remember to work with your parents and listen to their advice about college because they have a lot of background knowledge on college. I would tell myself to relax because college is very different than high school and to not have expectations and stereotypes of how college should be.

If I could go back in time and talk to myself as a high school senior, I would tell myelf that the opinions of others do not matter. Throughout high school, senior year included, I spent too much time and energy worrying about what other people thought of me. Arriving at college completely changed my perspective on this. I realized that I do not need the approval of others in order to be happy. Further, college peers do not judge as much as high schoolers. This realization has allowed me to be much more relaxed and truly happy with myself. Receiving this advice as a high school senior would have allowed me to focus on myself, my friends, and my studies rather than focusing on the thoughts of others who truly do not matter in my life.

Put a larger focus on scholarships. I am now very focused on scholarships, but when I graduated, I didn't take it serious enough, and now I feel like I am behind. If I could look back, I would have applied for more, and I would have taken my senior year in high school so much more seriously in general. I would have listened when experts came in and coached us. I would have listened when we were coached about the transition of high school to college, instead of learning the difference for myself. And finally, I would have listened to my teachers about how beneficial using the high school resources provided can help with financial need in college.

April 28th, 2014, the deadline I picked for myself to finally decide what college I will be attending. I'm sitting at the kitchen table staring at my college acceptance letters that I narrowed down to three. However, I can't convince myself to make the decision. I have a pretty good idea of where I want to go, and finally I work up enough courage to commit to my choice. I pick up the acceptance letter from Gonzaga University excited for what lies ahead of me but also slightly nervous to start this new journey on my own. What I didn't know that day was that I had no reason to be scared or nervous; only filled with the excitement to try everything and anything once I got there. I hadn't yet realized that every person there would be going through the same thing I was, and nobody was going to judge me. I wish I had known these things, and that I tried everything I could and went to everything available to me because college is about creating new experiences and learning who you are. So simply be you and it will all be fine.

There is one simple piece of advice that I would give myself, focus. I would tell myself to focus on what is important in life and to not be concerned with money, education, and what others thing. Instead, I would tell myself to focus on the things that make you happy and then decide on school and career options from those choices. I would also tell myself to slow down, not everything has to be done in gluttony and can be enjoyed as it develops. Finally, I would tell myself that no matter how bad you think it is, no matter how bad you think it will get, nothing is worth causing you pain and suffering if you do not have complete control over the situation. Be yourself, don't give in, and succeed in the only things that matter to you!

If I could go back to myself as a high school senior, I would tell myself to prepare for the biggest change in my life. I would tell myself to stop relying on my parents to take care of everything for me, to start managing my own money and buying the things I need instead of asking my mom to go get it. I would warn myself about how hard it was going to be to walk on a campus knowing absolutely no one and have to make a whole new set of friends. I would advise myself that I cannot be as trusting of people as I was able to be in rural Montana. I would explain to myself that I need to learn how to study because college is a whole different ballgame. But most of all, I would tell myself that everything was going to be okay. For the whole last semester of high school, I cried almost every night worrying about my future. I would reassure myself that I could do things on my own, that I could make new friends, and that I could be the successful student that I feel I am today.

As a senior in high school, I thought the world revolved around me. I was enbarking on a new adventure where I was finally in the driver's seat. I could do what I wanted, eat what I wanted, buy what I wanted. I was on top of the world. Me! Me. Me... But if I was to tell my high school self anything, it would be this: you can't control time. You can't speed it up, slow it down. It will move on without you, and it only gets faster as you get older. I wouldn't advise myself about the choices I would have to face, to focus on my studies more instead of going out with my friends, or not to eat that extra cupcake, none of that. Every choice I have made has brought me to where I am today and I know that I am a better person because of them. I would simply tell myself that your greatest limitation in life is time. Don't take it for granted because once it's gone, you can never get any moment back. Be present.

Dear Alex of 2013, I have one request for you- hold your breath. I ask you to hold your breath because one thing that I should have done was to absolutely submerge myself into the wonders of academia. You see, just because you are in the running start program at Bellevue College (BC) doesn't mean you can take classes at a glance. When you transfer, you will not only be transfering credits, but also your experiences to Gonzaga. Remember the Earth Space Science club you always wanted to join? JOIN IT. School Government? RUN FOR IT. There are so many opportunities around you, and to pass them up because "I'm going to be out of here in december anyway" shouldn't be an excuse. Stop living so much in the future, and live in the present. Tom Lehrer once said "Life is like a sewer, what you put into it is what you get out of it". At the end of your life, heck, at the end of the next decade, you won't remember sitting arround in the commons playing on your computer, you will remember the hard work you did to make you happy.

If I was able to talk to my high school self I would tell me to apply for more scholarships. I didn't take the scholarship searches as seriously as I should've back when it was scholarship season. So now I am going into college not being able to afford it and I am very stressed about the idea of drowning in debt for the better half of my life. So, I would tell myself to try everything, to really put all of myself into everything that I did, to try new things even though it was my last year, and to be proactive about my future because it definitely feels like it's a million miles away until it's knocking on your front door.

Keep going and never give up. Even if you are tired of studying and just want to work keep going. Don't settle for anything less then your best. Apply for all the scholarships you can, because your student loans will add up. Those first years of community college may not be very expensive, but it will feel like forever to pay for them if you don'thave any scholarships to help. When looking at scholarships use the shot gun method. Apply for as many as you can. When you are sure there aren't any more search again. The more you apply for the better your chances of getting a few.