Spring Arbor University Top Questions

Each year can be the best year of your life. As you finish high school, appreciate the past, but don?t cling to it. Move on to a fresh place where you will be stretched, and embrace opportunity once you get there. Don?t allow yourself to become stressed?you will inevitably make some mistakes. Deal with what is on your plate now, living in the present; too much thinking ahead causes you to miss out on life now. Look at people when you walk past them, and smile; it?s amazing what a smile does for both you and others. Relationships are at the top of your mind; just be authentic. Don?t push a personality that isn?t yours and don?t second-guess whether or not people like you. Respect others and be willing to both share and listen. Be the one to include the outsider in social events, and you might unearth a gem of a person. Even if you don?t feel like it, get involved in good activities because once you start you?ll find your passion simply waiting for you to make a move. Let your true heart show up wherever you are.

College is going to be different than high school has been. It is time to buckle down. One's room is a sanctuary. It is a place to rest and have fun. Roommates can be distracting to studies and homework assignments. Therefore do not do homework, reading, or studying in the room. Go to the library for all responsibilities regarding schoolwork. This will keep one's room an enjoyable place to go to rest and to have fun in. Start homework and papers as soon as class is over. Before heading to the room, go to the library first to get a heads start on the responsibilities due for the next class. With block scheduling it is easy to not do the homework or reading until the day before it is due, do it the day that the assignment has been known! This way one has two days to work on the assignment if need be. Set a bedtime for each weeknight. An efficient amount of sleep is crucial for performing well in the classes that will be being taken. It is vital to be active in class participation and listending to others during class.

Steve, you are a member of this community. When you were a child, your father's trade opportunities decreased considerably which left you paying your own dental bills with paper route money. This may have left you feeling opportunities are for others. Trade work may or may not be your calling. Explore multiple opportunities and start them with a college education! The challange is to find your talent and interests without limitations and apply them. God gave you wonderful gifts. You have consistenly performed well throughout school, you know you are capable of achieving an education. You must not blame your family's financial limitations as an obstacle that is impassable. Go home and tell your parents about grants and loans. Tell them you are interested, ask them to support you. Working your way up through promotions earned through hard work is an option. It is a tough option and it is limited. Education is the key, no matter how much you do not understand this now you must trust me in telling you that a degree will open doors for you. With a degree you will have a world of opportunity to serve yourself and others. Go for it!

First off, I would tell my high school self to get a job. College is way more expensive then I thought it was going to be. Second, hit the books. You can no longer skate by without studying, you need to actually apply yourself to get A's. Third, relax. College is fun, you will make good friends, stay up late, laugh, cry, but it is all worth it. It is scary, but you have a wonderful roommate who helps you through the struggles. She is your rock, and sometimes you tormentor, but in a good way. She keeps you grounded when you would rather be a butterfly and float from one thing to another. College will be fun. You are still connected to your family and friends from home. But you have another family down here, just as vital to your sucess as your real one. Relax, enjoy yourself, and work hard and you will do just fine.

Knowing more about college life, I would tell my high school senior self about how true it is when "they" say that you get out what you put in. There's so many more choices to make when one is now living in a dorm, being away from the parental figures in one's life, choosing their own majors, minors and prospective classes. One has to remember to take it one day at a time, but to not be short-sighted; college is one of the last major steps of the education ladder before one is thrust into the working world, so one has to remember to make it count for all it's worth. That's not to say that one should be tenative of having fun and living a little, going out with friends and relaxing between studies, but one should try to remember what the most important reason for college is. That reason is the whole reason they left for college in the first place; to earn a good education in preperation for the rest of their life.

If I was able to go back as a high school senior I would give myself advice on taking academics seriously. In high school I was the type of person who never studied for tests and got A's. High school was so easy for me. Coming to college, I have found that it is not that easy. You have to study or you will not do well. Because I got in the habit of not studying, I have struggled on tests. I have now realized that in order to do well, I must study, and this had been hard. I am getting better, it is just something I have had to get in the habit of doing. I did pretty well in high school and I want to do well in college, so I have to start studying more. Also, I would try to get myself to be more outgoing. Coming to college, not knowing, anyone was hard. I was a really shy person. I eventually opened up and have made a lot of friends, but in the beginning it was hard. So I would try to make myself get out of my comfort zone as a senior.

If I could go back in time to give myself advice knowing what I know now I would tell myself to not give up. I would tell myself that college life isn't easy and it's hard to get the money you need for school but if you give up you won't get anywhere in life. I would also tell myself to enjoy the time you have as a senior because when you make the transition from high school to college it's a whole different world. I would say to myself, " Work hard and don't give up on your college dreams and take the time to stop and enjoy what time you have left in high school. " That is what i would say to myself if I had the chance to go back in time and talk to myself as a senior.

Confidence, thankfulness and endurance, the three words I would emphasize while talking to myself in high school. College is completely different world. Good grades come from hard work and desire to succeed. In high school I always looked at myself as an average student, someone who would never really get the as I always wanted. In college I realized with time management and confidence, I can tackle any syllabus handed to me. To attend college is something only a small percentage of people on earth get the opportunity to do. I would tell myself in high school to be thankful for all of the hard work my parents, teachers and friends have put into me. There are some people that could only dream of going to college and here I am living the dream, it is truly a blessing. Endurance, with school work, attendance and scholarships. I know I could have gotten more money for school if I had tried harder my senior year. Luckily I have adapted to the college life and endurance is something I have been able to achieve. The gift of education is priceless, and I am blessed enough to have been given exactly that.

As a high school senior, I had two friends and a boyfriend because I refused to talk to anyone who was involved in partying and drinking on the weekends. I also didnt participate in many of the activities because many of these students would. When I thought about college, I made myself believe that my only option was the local community college or SAU which is a local Christian Private school. I didn't seek other possibilities to where I could go for a higher education and college life experience. I also didn't look to others for financial aid or how to find out the expenses of college. Now I am into my first year of college and I am close to over my head with loans. If I could go back in time, I would tell myself to look for colleges that best fit me and find someone who can help me with the financial aspect. However, because we can not physically go back in time, I'm doing it right this time around, searching colleges that fit my personality and my needs and getting a better grasp on the financial end of college.

Transitioning into college can be difficult for freshmen students and if I could go back to myself as a high school student I would have a few things to say that would probably have helped my transition. One of the pieces of advice would be that you do not need to bring everything you own! The items that you use at home will be the ones that you use at school. You only need to bring what you need and important possessions. A second piece of advice would be to save your money. Sometimes it can be hard to get a job during college and saving money can allow you to still have fun with your new friends you will make. Don't spend your money on useless purchases because it is easy to go broke. The last piece of advice I would give is to not worry. Situations always turn out how they're supposed to and it's not good to worry about something that you can't control. Have fun in college, but also make sure you are focusing on education as well. Social life is very important, but you're paying for your education.