Kent State University at Kent Top Questions

Study, study, study. College hit me hard, I was all for having fun and making new friends, I just never had to study in high school and carried that mentality with me to college. If I could, I would have studied a lot more my first year to have better prepared myself for this year.

So its almost time, graduation is soon and you haven't decided what you want to get a degree in. The best thing that I can say is to get all of the core classes finished; this includes math and English. Math may be a difficult subject for you but do not be afraid to ask help! There will always be someone there to help you! After those classes are out of the way and if you are still unsure about your subject, take a break. An internship would be wonderful because you can get experience and find out what it really means to work after college. Also, with an internship as your break you really don't have to worry about getting credit. Get away from home, get away from school and go work but don't stay away too long. You can't go anywhere in life without a degree so get home and finish school, taking that break is the biggest boost you will get!

Moving out and going to college will be one of the most exciting experiences you'll ever have. It is a time to discover who you are as a person and make friends outside of your normal social circle. My advice to you is to work harder in hichschool - take more classes, discover other interests - keep in touch with friends from high school but don't worry about not seeing them ever again - you'll see them a lot during breaks, and finally, don't stress out over leaving home. Going to college is such an amazing experience. You'll learn to live on your own and being completely responsible for yourself. Going to college is the begining of becoming an adult so why not start out the transistion with success? Keeping up with your grades in high school will be so helpful when it comes to getting your work done for your classes in college. Even though your best friend is going to a different school in a different state, you will still keep in touch and will cherish seeing eachother over long breaks. Leaving home will be difficult at first but you'll get used to it.

If I could go back and talk to myself as a high school student, I would tell myself to stay focused and not worry about what people think. Please dont be afraid to take tutors and keep your grades up and definetly dont wait until you get your mid term grades. Go to your professors office hours to help understand what they are doing and what you want to see. Dont go out and party every weekend its not that important.

You dream each day with your eyes wide open Of all the good you could do in this world. But these same eyes that hope and imagine and dream Are fixed sadly upon the ground. Black clouds of doubt encircle your head They billow as rain starts to fall. The wind whispers, “You can’t. You’re nothing. Give up.” Towards defeat you begin your slow crawl. Dear girl, if you knew this world’s plan for you You’d rise past these small, fleeting clouds A mere drop of faith is all that you need To silence this tempest so loud. I beg you, stand tall, above all your doubts. Your future is so wonderfully bright. This world seems stained in shades of black and grey But I promise, it’s a place full of light. You dream each day with your eyes wide open Of all the good you could do in this world. Dust all fear from your shoulders, and lace up your shoes. A new life will soon be unfurled.

Dear Self, I know you are probably worried-- wait, let's be honest, I know you better than that, completely and utterly scared for college, but here is some advice; take a breath. You have no idea what you want to be or where you want to go in life, but that's because you don't know who you are right now. Stop chasing that boy who will let you down, and chase your dreams instead. Two years from now everything will click; you'll know what it truly means to be you, and that can't be done if you're living your life for someone else. Did you take that breath yet? If not, you had better practice now, because you're going to be taking a lot of these in college. Between stress from exams and pressure felt from peers, the best thing to do is to stop and take a breath. Don't give in to the pressures of college. Continue to be the person you've spent eighteen years becoming, but continue to grow every day. Aspire to be better than you were yesterday and greater than you will be tomorrow. Sincerely, Me

Learn to be able to manage your time. Teachers in college are different from teachers in high school. they do not spoon feed you the work. it is your responsibility to know when something is due.

If I could go back and talk to myself as a high school student, I would pay better attention to the preparation I need as a college student, study harder, and actually learn to study before I enter college. I would make sure about my financial aid awards and sign up for the awards earlier. I would check into employment oppotunities for undergraduate students on the campus, and I would try to learn how to budget my money better. I would advise myself to be friendlier, to surround myself with people who help to get studying done and to help me with my studies, studying as a group and helping each other. I would advise myself that I can't work all the time, and so I need stress release that I can find in various ways, and that I should be physically active to relieve stress and burn off energy. I would advise myself not to be shy about accepting help like tutoring or help from my professors, and I would remind myself that they want to help me and that I don''t have to be embarrassed when I need help. I would accept my adult self.

I would tell myself to take the ACT one more time! A lot of the class placements are determined by your ACT score, so I would tell myself to take it at least once more. I would also tell myself to set more time aside to study, or to get better study habbits. College is very much about time management. One last thing I would tell myself is to get very good social skills! Its not as easy as it seems to make friends in college especially if you going away to college. You have to put yourself out there!

If I could go back in time and talk to myself as a high school senior about the transition to college, the advice I would give myself is to stay on top of my work and do not procrastinate. Procrastination was the one thing that sometimes kept me from getting the grades I wanted. In high school, teachers let the late and missing assignments pass and give the students time to complete them. However, college is a different ball game. College professors do not provide the students time to complete the assignments, with the exceptions of good reasons. I would tell myself to become aware of paper and project deadline dates, and begin to start as early as possible. I would tell my high school self to begin to use time wisely and not focus on the high school drama around me. I would tell myself to be prepared to be treated like an adult and be responsible for making big decisions towards my college education. I would tell myself to relax and I will succeed in college.