University of Maine at Farmington Top Questions

Dear high school self, College is everything that you had imagined. Your professors adequately challenge you as you had hoped, and they appreciate your personality and talents as your high school teachers always had. Do not fear taking the next step forward into the unknown. Take a step out of your comfort zone right away, for it will be well worth it. Instead of taking a couple of months to step out of your dorm room and relying on those you met previously, immediately take the time to step out and make new friends. You will not regret it. Also, do not be afraid of overwhelming yourself with too much to do. You will have more time than you expected. Join more clubs and make more friends, for you still will have time to maintain your studies without stress. Lastly, enjoy your time at college. Do not be afraid to make mistakes. It is the time to live, laugh and learn.

College is a full time job. You will have very little down time throughout the semester but it will eventually slow down and the semester will end. You will feel 'homesick' because you wont see any of your family or friends but it will be okay. You're going to feel like quitting but don't, it will end. Make daily phone calls home to stay in contact with people outside of school. Do homework ahead of time not the night before. If you save it till last minute you will be stressed and overwhelmed, make your life easier and do it when it is assigned. College is not highschool, you are paying for your education so study and study hard because if you fail, it is a waste of your money. College is not easy and it will test you on so many levels, but keep pushing because in only 16 weeks the semester will be over and you'll have a few weeks to prepare and recuperate for the upcoming semester.

Dear past Wyatt, As you move out of high school, the one thing I want you to do is explore the world around you as much as you can. Exploration will help you grow as a person, no matter how you do it. When you explored a job at a state park without any prior work experience there, it convinced you that working outside in nature is what you want to make the rest of your life about. Deciding that you wanted to travel to Costa Rica to learn Spanish made you much more self-sufficient and independent, gave you an appreciation of other cultures, and was one of the most fun things you've ever done. Having adventures and trying new things has built you into a new person, who better understands what he wants out of life. However small the adventure, it has taught you something about yourself. Adventures have also frightened you, made you uncomfortable, and made you doubt yourself. This is precisely why they have helped you to grow, strengthened you, and inspired you. So keep exploring! If something you want to do scares you a little bit, then attack it with everything you have.

Join the Dance team. Join German club. Start a club. Get to know the people who live in your building, they're more interesting than they seem when all you do is nod as you pass them on the stairs. When you go to meals, sit with as many different groups as you can, and really listen to what the conversation is. You can learn a lot on campus, most of it for free. Go to campus events, plan for the sponsored trips that are free to students. Immerse yourself in the life and make (minor) mistakes. The memories are worth it, and so are the friendships. You'll still graduate on time. Your GPA won't suffer, you work hard anyway. And breathe. It's OK if you have a bad semester or two. You'll recover--why would anyone be sad about "only" graduating with a 3.5 GPA? That's an acheivement! You're strong and resourceful, and most of all, you're resillient. You'll be OK. You'll have bad days, and good days, and you'll miss your parents and friends, but you'll make it and you'll wonder where the time went.

Younger me, it's two years later. Don't overstress, don't overthink, let go. You're having fun now, and the moment you leave Calais, you're going to lear more about yourself and you're going to spread your wings. Younger me, stop fretting over chemistry and math, just get through them, one day those classes won't even matter. Two years later, financially things will be tough, but it's nothing you're not used to, but I'm saying this now as preparation, you got this. Younger me, you're going to lose friends, and it's going to hurt, but you're going to meet so many new people that it'll help you heal. Keep your head above water, you're a warrior, you've already defeated the hard stuff, now live and win.

1) You don't think that location and dorms are very important, but they are. Any program you go to is going to be a new experience. Any program is going to teach you. Not all places will suit you, and not all dorms are very good. The more comfortable you are in the location of your school, and the dorm where you're going to live, the happier you will be. 2) Take your time. When you visit (and you should visit) ask questions. Better yet, have questions ready before-hand. Look around the dorms, check out the cafeteria or food court (eat there if you can), and focus on how comfortable you are. How exciting it is to be in this place. If it's exciting, but still comfortable, then it's a good fit. 3) You don't need all that stuff! Go minimalist, then add to that if you need to. 4) Enjoy the attention. Be confident. Show schools that you have a brain and a spirit that they want.

Embrace the unknown. Too many people fear change. Know that God is real and that he has been working within you and around you already. Education is life. As a high school student, motivation has not been you friend. After high school, no one will remind you when something is due or that you should be working on your essay all semester long. You control your education and it is up to you to decide what it means to you. High school comes easily to you; most of school has been that way. In college, though, there are unknowns. You don’t know what will happen, but that shouldn’t scare you. Unknown may not mean anything bad, but it may mean change. Change is what you make of it. It can be great if you want it to. People do learn from mistakes because learning is a constant. Life is full of lessons and education does not just happen in the classroom. College makes that perfectly clear. Lastly, among everything you experience in college, the most vitally important and predominantly clear is the truth of God’s existence. You have passions and He will help you find them.

Don't buy everything the internet says you need for college! You don't need have of it, that closet bar extender you'll never end of using. Do not room with your two best friends from High School, it won't end well and it'll segregrate you from meeting cool new people. Get out there and meet people, talk to them, ask them to hang out, join clubs. The more you get involved straight away the better it will be, don't wait to see how everything works, just jump right in and make new friends! Remember this isn't High School and the professor aren't going to baby you and remind you about your assignments, this rarely happens, its truly is on you and isn't a myth your high school teachers used to make you be more responsible! But most importantly make the best out of it, focus on your studies, but don't hide yourself away.

The first thing I would tell myself is, learn how to sleep with earplugs. Then I would tell myself to go buy earplugs. Dorm halls are noisy and it's difficult to adjust to so many people making so much noise after living and sleeping in such a quiet place. I would also tell myself not to worry about my room mate- the one I have this semester is so chill and low key. We're not close but we don't feel like we have to be and that's important. Finally, I would tell myself the same thing a cashier once told me after she learned I was a freshman in college- don't get too comfortable swiping your debit card.

Dear Self, So, right now you are about to graduate from high school and I know how excited you are. The thing is though, I know that you are also doubting how next year will go. I want you to know that it is not that bad. You just need to put yourself out there. Say hello to people as they walk in to class, make small talk with them. This will only gain you friends. Also, get out of the dorm as often as you can. So you math homework. Trust me. It will help. Apply for scholarships! I know it takes a while but you will regret not doing it soon eough! And above all else, try to enjoy it. I know that University of Maine at Farmington, is not the school for you. You will figure that out soon. But try. You will be there for a year, and the last thing you are going to want that time to be is misrable.