Tuskegee University Top Questions

Do not take your family’s money & household items for granted. Never let yourself to be less than what you really are. Pay attention and listen to the older and wise man.

If I could go back in time and talk to myself as a high school senior, I would tell myself that college is not easy. It's not like high school and you can't get away with not studying or not putting in maximum effort. The amount of effort you put in reflects your overall grade. I would tell myself to study hard and read the textbook before going to class to be able to undertand what the professor is saying during the lecture. I would tell myself to communicate with my professors so they are able to help me when I need it. I would tell myself to find study groups and make friends with students who are in my same major program and study with them for tests. I would tell myself that college is what you make it and never take for granted the opportunities you have at the moment because you may not get a second chance.

If I were to go back in time and talk to myself as a high school senior about what I know now about college life and making that big transition in life, I would advise myself to always stay true to who you are and stay focused. You will meet a lot of people during freshman orientation week that will not make it to the next semester or through the following semester. It is hard to watch your new found friends fail or not have enough money to continue their education because you want the best for them as you want for yourself. During your first semester of college, you will meet people that will be there for you 100{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} of the way but that next semester, everything will change. You will experience things you would have never even thought that you would experience because of the people that you are around or the things that you hear around campus. Always stay true to who you are as a person and be the best you can be. Do not let your so-called "friends" steer you away from your education due to campus gossip. Enjoy college and stay focused.

College can either make or brake you. Upon finishing my freshman year of college I learned many new aspects that can help me throughout life. If I could go back in time and talk to my highschool senior self, I would say plan well. Knowing what I know now I was not well prepared as a highschool senior. In highschool instead of taking only one AP course I should have taken multiple. I began to focus on colleges and universities toward the middle of my highschool year. I would have told myself aim higher, go above and beyond. Although I graduated at the top 20 percent of my class, I should have been in the top five percentile. Knowing the financial assitance given to incoming freshman I would have aimed for a specific educational goal. I would advise myself to stay focused and do not give up when times get rough. Although I can not go back in time I am glad I got through my freshman year of college. Even though I did not plan as well as I should, I did exceptional for me.

If I could go back in time and talk to myself as a high school senior, I would tell myself not to worry about the opinions of other people, not to join Naval ROTC, to love myself, and to work as hard as possible. I would also tell myself that you can not please everyone. I always lived my life trying to make sure everybody else was happy when I really needed to be taking care of myself and making myself happy. That would have made so much of a difference now. Because of this, I am now stuck between a rock and a hard place; I no longer want to be a part of the program, yet I have no other way to pay for school. This summer I must decide whether I should stay in the program and sign off eight years of my life after college to the U.S. Navy, or whether I should take out loans to pay for college. There is not an option for a happy Raven" here and I now have a few weeks to decide. My final advice to my high school self: Make yourself happy before you do for others.

If I had the opportunity to talk to myself as a high school senior I would tell myself to take the college application, but more particularly, the scholarship search more seriously. I would go back and put in the necessary time and effort it takes to be successful at this task. I say this because I am now a junior in college and have realized that finding funds for college is a very grueling and time consuming task. Also, it is not something that can be avoided because it is necessary to have the funds in order to get the education one is seeking and ultimately become the pharmacist I am aspiring to one day become. While I am extremely proud of my achievements and accomplishments thus far, I feel that I would be a few steps closer to my dreams and aspirations had I taken heed in high school and listened to that piece of advice that everyone tried so desperately to instill into me.

I would say that you did a pretty good job but there are some things I want you to change. First study a lot more than you do now. Stay on top of Academic Decathlon. I know it may be overwhelming at first because of the other clubs you are apart of, but it is okay it does get better. Do not give up on Tri-M Honor society, it seems like it is falling off but you will be surprised how known it is. Junior Achievement was a great choice to stay with. Socialize is the key to success. Always keep that in mind. Follow your heart and have no doubts about anything. You are a strong minded young lady and people will be impressed with you. Just believe in yourself much more than you do and you will do great.

I would tell my high school self that he should fill out every scholarship possible when applying for college. It will be in his best interest, especially having the 3.2 GPA coming out of high school. Also, I would tell him to please manage his money very, very wisely his freshman year so that he will not have to juggle a part-time job and school including the fact that he will likely take up the engineering program. I would tell him that time management is key in his college success. Although I want him to enjoy college and network as much as possible, do not lose focus on what he is going to college for due to social events. I would remind him that college is going to be the best four or more years of his life but more importantly the pivotal time to transition into a productive adult. Lastly, I would tell him to "take care of home first and then do you" meaning that family is always first before anything then enjoy the freedom that will be upon you.

I would tell myself that no matter the challenges you face don't get discouarged because you can truly overcome anything. I would also say this is not easy and will constantly test you. So try your hardest don't get to caught up in the fun and stay focus on your dream. Even though you may just want to give up, you are the first in your family so do this for them. Be the role model you want to be for your brother and sisters. Show they no matter how many people put you down because of the neighborhood you grew up in that doesn't defined you as a person. Be the vocie your family hasn't had and prove to yourself you are worth the dreams you have. Turn your dreams into reality. Study more often if you need help ask for it even if your scared the worst thing you can do is not ask and fail. The last thing i would tell me is that no matter how much you struggle your mother will always be proud of you because you have done what she couldn't and her nagging will guide you forever.

The biggest piece of advice I would giv myself is to be more studious. If in high school I was more studious, more oppritunities would have been availiable for me. As we all know, going to college is not a cheap expense, so if I were in a better place acadmeically coming out of school, I would have been able to maybe go further away from school or be less of a financial burden for my family