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Take advantage of your performance from high school and don't wait to go to school!! You could have saved yourself a decade of hard work and challenges if you just focused on being responsible. There are plenty of opportunities to have fun and be social and there is no need to wait. You're stronger than you give yourself credit for. Don't be afraid of failure. Taking, what seemed to be, the easy path just ended up causing more headaches down the road. If you put your mind to it, you can balance and accomplish a tremendous amount at one time.

If I could go back and give myself advice, I think the first thing I would say is not to worry. College was an intimidating thing to think about in high school, but after experiencing college, it is not that bad. I would tell myself that teachers are your friends and a great resource to have in college. Use them towards your advantage, they can help you out with most situations, give advice and help make, especially your first year, a little easier. Another is enjoy all of the free time you get. College gets crazy with deadlines, projects and papers that you sometimes have to sacrifice that Friday or Saturday night, and that’s okay because you're setting yourself up for greater success. An important piece of advice I would give myself is to be aware of finances. Now knowing that I attend an out of home state school, I would have been more cautious on my spending due to out of state fees and tuition. Overall I would make myself aware that it is important to remember that a lot more goes into college than what my high school self, thought but it is all worth it.

If I could go back in time and talk to my senior self, I would give myself the advice to branch out and make new friends from the beginning. When you get to a new place with new people it can be a bit overwhelming. I was really homesick and felt very alone. I made a few great friends, but one of them decided not to come back and I was left without one the only new friends I made. I joined a sorority, and my best friend I made in there turned out to be not so great of a friend, leaving me with basically no one. If I made more new friends from the beginning I would not be in this rough situation. If I could go back in time I would definately try to make new friends in my dorm and go to different events where there are lots of new students trying to meet new people. I consider that a lesson learned.

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I would tell myself to not worry about college itself, but focus more on what exactly it is that I want to accomplish. For me I wanted to get a job as a software engineer. I felt that I couldn't really begin that goal until college began. As I look back I realize there was a lot of self teaching I could have been doing to better my skills as a software programmer. Having these skills would have given me a competitve edge over other studetns when seeking internships and also would make class much easier. Thankfully the amount of work I did on my own during college help me land a great internship, but looking back I realize I could have gone into the search feeling much more prepared.

The advice that I would have given myself would have been simple, people are the greatest resource that you have. This is something that I have learned more from co-op than anything but there are definitely elements of this that are seen in the college world. One thing that i have learned and was told to me by the vice president of engineering at the company that I co-op at is to become very good at a few things rather than be mediocre at alot of things. This lends itself to the advice that I would give to myself when i was a senior in high school. The reason I say that people are the greatest resource you have is because there is always someone that is an expert on a certain topic and learning how to utilize someone else's skilll set to mesh wirth your own will make you the most successsful person you can be.

My dear Allison, I know life has dealt you a difficult hand of cards, and sometimes it seems like you'll never be good enough to overcome these things. I'd like to let you know, that it really does get better, but only if you change your attitude. Also, stop working 25+ hours a week, it's killing your grades and getting in the way of scholarships you'll be able to apply for in the future. Oh, and give mom and dad a break, they're doing the bes tthey know how. They won't ever really understand you, but you won't ever really understand them either. The most important thing though, is to keep your grades up. The second most important thing, don't talk to that boy-he's gonna end up cheating on you with your twin sister. Love Always, Allison P.S. You is kind, you is smart, you is important.

As a senior in high school way back in Ghana, West Africa, I had hopes and dreams of making it to the best colleges in the United States knowing I was going to move over to America. What I did not realize in all my days as a senior was that hard work, dedication and commitment not only to your education but aslo extra-curriculum activities paid off in the future. Not that I was a bad student, but I did not pay attention to any other activity apart from class activities. While others combined music and art or sports to their education, I just burried my head in books. Now, I'm in college and I'm grateful but college would have been better if I had an extra-curriculum activity that would make me a better student, influencing or adding to my school in a field that I enjoy very much. Not only my school but the people around me because it's not all about the GPA but how you can influence society. If i could go back, I would try an extra-curriculum activity and be good at it.

Stay focused and believe in yourself. I didn't have the confidence to do what I really wanted to do when I first started college. I wish I could tell my past self that it's ok to be challenged. Sometimes you learn the most when you are challenged and making it through makes it feel all that much better when you're pushed. It's ok to be scared and not know what you want to do. Try out a few different things. That's what college is about. Learning new skills and discovering what it is we truely want to do. But it's also ok to change your mind but at least try. But most of all don't forget to enjoy it and have fun.