Tria
If I were still a senior in high school, the advice I would offer myself would be, to talk to my guidence counselors and get as much information I could on colleges and I would apply to as many colleges as I could. I would instead of taking classes that really didn't matter, I would have spoken to teachers and counselors about the appropriate classes that would be required college. I would have gone to visit colleges in the area, to see what they were like, I would have spoken to counselors at local colleges and asked what classes I should be taking while still in high school. I would request as much information from local colleges and decide from there what the best school would be for me to go. If I did have to go back, I would have started looking at colleges while still in middle school, or in my freshman year. The advice I would give myself would be to apply to as many colleges and get as much information from teachers and guidence counselors as I could, and to ask as many questions as I could, and to be ready for the next step.
Brandy
When I was sixteen years old, I dropped out of school and earned my GED. Eleven years later, at the age of twenty-seven, a single mother with a low-paying, dead-end job, I knew that I had to do something different. I wanted to be able to give my children a good life, a good future. I wanted those things for myself as well.
I had no idea at sixteen years old how difficult life would be without an education. So many oppertunities were out of my reach because I did not have the education or the skills that the "good" jobs required. I did not know that I would be limited to low-paying, no benefits jobs. I did not know the value of earning a quality education.
If I could go back to that sixteen year old girl, I would tell her that going to college and earning a degree is priceless. Not only are you growing professionally which will open you up to numerous possibilities, but your self-esteem improves, your feelings of worth improves, and your quality of life is just better. I would tell her she can do it, and she deserves it.
Erika
If I were able to go back in time and talk to myself as a high school senior I would have stressed that senioritis is simply mind over matter. It is not a real illness and can be cured by just focusing. Doing the best you can on all of your schoolwork is important not only for the grades but also for giving you the ability to know what the college professors are talking about. College success is all about the drive and motivation you have inside yourself. You have to want to succeed to succeed. I would also tell myself that community college is great but sometimes the opportunities that universities are able to offer are greater. College life is important to experience because it does get you ready for adulthood and the career that you choose to pursue.