Rowan University Top Questions

When I look back on my high school experience when I was a senior, I become filled with many conflicting emotions. I was in a certain mindset that I thought would help me progress into a college student. If I could give my senior-self advice, I would definitely say to appreciate family more. Before entering college I was under the impression that going away to school would give me the opportunity to distance myself from my parents in the way that I wanted. The idea of being able to live on my own for months on end seemed really great to me. Therefore I ignored a lot of what was going on around me in my life at home and tried make time go by as fast as possible. I wanted out and as a result I did not take enough time to appreciate how much my family means to me. Once I got to school I felt isolated from the ones who truly care for me, which brought me to this: College is a time for new experiences and profound changes, but the life at home that you temporarily leave behind is the one that should be cherished.

The first piece of advice I would give to my past self is to make sure that I save more money than I did. Money is the most important aspect of independent living, and it is imperative that I tell my past self this advice. I am a decent saver when it comes to financing, but sometimes I find myself buying things I truly did not need in the long run. I could instead use that money now for food, books, and many other college supplies that I need. I would ensure that my past self knows to double check every expense I had in mind, and to ensure that what I was buying was to become a good use. If what I was buying was not, I would tell my past self to store that money away for a later and more important time, when I am running through change to afford that $300 Calculus textbook! Saving money will be the most important aspect of college life and the most apparent transition from living at home to an independent life, and I would ensure my past self knows that!

I would tell myself to be more outgoing and not shy. I woudl have said this because I would make mroe friends this way. Get involved as soon as possible. Doing this will keep you busy and keep you mind off about being away from home and being home sick. Not only will it keep you busy but it will let you meet new friends.

Don't be scared of what is to come. College is a time for learning not only about your future field, but also about yourself. Forget about your insecurities or regrets from high school, because those no longer matter when you enter college. That "enemy" you had in high school... long forgotten by you second semester in college. That embarassing thing that happened in the hallway... totally forgotten. College is a time to start over and be who you want to be. Your high school friends won't stick around, so don't worry about pleasing them; and don't worry, your college friends will be so much better. They will appreciate you not only for what you offer them socially, but also intellectually. So, during the nights you will inevitably stay up worrying about college, remember that you will be fine and you will succeed more than you could ever know.

No one is going to make yourself succeed but yourself. You're going to be have no one but yourself to fall back on. You'll have friends and family supporting you along the whole way, and professors will have your best interests in mind, but in the end they're not the ones doing what needs to be done. Get ready to get some work done. Because there's going to be a lot of it. Unless you choose to make things easier. But you're only going to hurt yourself in the long run.

If I had the great opportunity to go back in time and talk to myself as a senior in high school I would tell myself two things. The first thing would be to actually study purposefully for my SATs and Subject Tests. I made an extremely lackluster attempt to cover my bases before the exam and as a result I only received an 1840. This combined with the "upper-middle class" income that my household brings in, I quickly learned that I would not be given much help if any to pay for my collegiate education. The second thing I would tell myself is that "the small school you went to, with barely any competition, yeah that's going to end real soon." In school growing up I was always the guy looked up to as the 'genius'. As a result, I came into college with that same mentality towards college methodology and schoolwork. Unfortunately, that resulted in below par performance for my first year. I have now learned from my mistakes as "hindsight is 20/20" as my dad always says. However, my current worries could have been avoided if I'd only adhered to those pieces of advice.

My first advice would be to start college living on campus, or near campus. Get everything out of it that you can; You're going to love it!

As an adult returning to pursue a graduate education, I have a decade more experience than my high school senior self. I finished my undergraduate degrees with a fair amount of success and have worked, both in the Education field I pursued fresh out college and in a fair amount of other fields, searching for the career that suited me best. In retrospect, the transition from high school to college was not a difficult one. I had always loved school and been a motivated learner. I wish, rather, that I had been better prepared for the transition out of college. If I were to advise my younger self, I would prepare me for the hardships to come. I would warn myself not to be discouraged by the countless applications that would go unanswered or turned down as "inexperienced." I would tell myself to pursue more avenues since the things I truly loved about teaching could also be found in a variety of human services fields. I would tell myself to pursue each opportunity with the same tenacity with which I pursued my education. Mostly, I would assure myself that each obstacle can be overcome, and that it's all worthwhile.

Knowing what I know now about college life and making the transition, I would give advice my high school self about various elements about college. I would tell myself to prepare yourself for this life. It can be hard yet rewarding, but don’t be afraid. Prepare to teach yourself if the professor is mainly lecturing and what he/she is saying isn’t comprehended. Read the textbook, make an outline for yourself to study. There might be situations where you are nervous and unable to know what to do. Relax; take a breath, think positive then take action to solve that problem. Know that events in life do not work out like they should, but compromise with it. Do what you need to do in order to achieve your goals. Don’t ever quit,. Don't let outside influences hold you back from focusing. Don't let it distract you from what is important. You would have to write a lot.....don't worry you are prepared for this. You might have to stay up till 3 in the morning to accomplish some tasks, but don't let that clock bother you. After, you feel great by your achievements

The advice I would give myself as an incoming freshman is to make sure that I focus on my school work a lot more then I did in my first two semesters of 2011. I did not take it as seriously as I should have and I let my grades slip out from underneath me. That would be the most important thing I would have gone back and fixed. I would also tell myself that I should get more involved with clubs and other campus related activites along with being a varisty athlete. Telling myself to put in the effort everyday and work harder at not only womens soccer but also my academics as well. I would tell myself not to rush into things and let time and life take its course. Many good things come to those who wait but you cannot wiat forever sometimes you have to go after what you want.