MiraCosta College Top Questions

I would have told myself to take my time and look more in depth at my future options. To look at what different colleges had to offer and not just take the easy path that was right ahead of me. I would have said not to be afraid to take the time I need to be sure and to be ready. If you need a year to work, take it. If you need a year to travel, do it. If you need some time to know who you are, go discover. Don't let the world tell you who you are or what you need to define yourself by. Go find your happiness and take your time defining who you are. You will find your way and you can enjoy life as you do it.

The advice I would have given to myself as a high school senior would have been to slow down and make a plan for myself. At seventeen I was engaged to be married, flunking out of high school with a cumulative GPA below a whole number and working as much as possible so that I could spend money on things I didn't need. If I had known how much I was setting myself back I'm sure I would have tried to change my ways to prevent years being wasted between high school and college. At the end of my high school experience I was ready for a break, for a breath and for trying something different. It could have been college. If I could talk to my former self now I would say that high school is nothing like college. In college you have the power to choose your classes, guide your future and control your destiny. Had I started my college transition earlier I might have had my degree by now. Since I can't go back and talk to my former self, I would rather tell high schoolers now to start as soon as they can.

Look towards the light. This isn't where you're going to be in a few months. All your depression will be lessened and you will be happy. You may not believe me but it will be trust me. You're going to take your first class at a community college and you're going to be fine. Your anxiety will be a little higher than usual but you'll soon settle in and make friends. What you're dealing with now is just high school drama and it will pass. It may seem like its dragging on and on but it will be worth it in the end. Once you are settled in, the time will fly by quickly. You hate change we both know this, you act like you don't when in reality you can't stand it. Your past experiences have you biased but this time the change will be good. So please don't try to take your life because it will only make things more compllicated and harder for you to bounce back from. You're going to love college and the small amounts of freedom that come with it. Let it flow.

I would tell myself to still go to MiraCosta college and even begin taking classes in the summer before. At first I wasn't sure what I wanted to do career-wise, but it would've helped if I could tell myself to start taking the business and accounting classes as soon as possible. I would take more summer classes so that I could transfer sooner, and I would participate in our campus' student activities from the beginning. I would tell myself to apply for scholarships as I had been working a lot during my time in college, and I could have used the time to complete more classes and focus on receiving better grades. I would also tell myself to take advantage of the free services that my school offers, such as tutoring and the transfer services. Participating in my accounting/business club from the beginning would have been nice as well, as I had learned a lot about the potential career paths I could take upon graduation. Whenever I was struggling in a class, I never took advantage of my professor's office hours. I could have had better grades if I had done this from the beginning.

If I could go back in time and talk to myself as a high school senior, I would have to let myself know that I would make an easy transition. The hard working kid that I was back in high school would transition into a hard working adult trying to fulfill his dream as an Electrical Engineer. The only area of study that I would have to let myself know to try more on would have to be C++ programming and spend more time in office hours.

First, learn how to apply to FAFSA and apply before the deadline! If you're going straight to a university and apply late, there's a possibility all the grants have already been distributed. Second, don't procrastinate on your personal essays. Your future depends on the content of your essays so don't eliminate a life changing opportunity for yourself. Third, always remember why you are going to school. You are going for a purpose and not to waste your time, energies, and money. Learn how to prioratize things because otherwise you will fail in school and have to retake the classes. Most importantly, take a class that is transferrable to a university and make sure you like the class-if it's not a mandatory class. If you are not interested in the material, you will most likely become uninterested or have a hard time focusing in class and completing the course work.

Sometimes, some decisions can change our lives even if they are small ones. Many can think that going to college is a small step, but I think is the contrary. For me, going to college changed the perspective of how I see my life. Attending college was an interesting experience because I can fell that my dreams can become true. In addition, we can feel that it is not much, but it is more than it appears. It is an important step that will become valuable someday. I say is valuable because it helps me to be more mature. At first, going to college is hard, but the effort is worthy. Also, I realized that education is an essential part in my life that can help me to achieve everything.

I have gotten many things from my college experience. I have received a quality education and the confidence to attend a 4-year institute with no worries. It has been valuable to attend because I was able to complete my first two years of college, at low cost, with the knowledge and confidence to move forward in my education. In addition, I feel more prepared for my future and my future career.

What i will say to you on this very day is congratulations on your accomplishments thus far. You have come a long way baby! Your educational journey, your self discovery and discovering more about the world each day has led you to this place of transition, renewal and amazing growth. I am proud of you..... There is much i can say about life and learning and could talk to you for hours. What i have learned thus far comes not so much from a formal education but from living life and experiencing myself, people around me, nature, events along with moments in time. I can say that i would not change anything because everything has brought me to where i am today which is on solid ground about to take more steps, about to write my own song, about to create a new recipe, and very much eagerly anticipating each new day with a sense of contentment and renewal that i have never experienced in this way. My words are limited so they must have significant meaning so here goes, Love, Dream, Inspire, Develop, Create, Grow, Value, Embrace. See your magnificence in your smile, your heart, your spirit & your soul.

I believe the most important thing I would teach myself as a high school senior would be the ability to prioritize. To understand what was most important at a given time and to take action. Through out my college career I've been a professional procrastinator, but as of recent I've discovered how I can make myself do things in a mannerly time and with a more professional style. Additionally these skills have also helped me learn efficient budgeting skills, which would have been a significant advantage to have learned as a senior in high school. The ability to prioritize, organize, and act according to the situation at hand is critical when wanting to become a professional student in college, for me these were hard learned skills that took practice to perfect. If I were able to go back in time and teach myself a lesson about college life and the transition to college, I would advise myself to think critically about what has to be down, what can be done, and what doesn't need to be done; that way a more informed decision can made in reguards to what should be done, when, and in what manner.