University of Massachusetts-Amherst Top Questions

College life is challenging in many ways. For most, it is our first experience outside of our parents home, making all of our own decisions. If I could go back and talk to myself as a senior in high school, there is a lot of valuable insight I would offer. One of the biggest challenges is trying to decide exactly what area of study is right for you. I would take the pressure off of myself and tell my senior self that there is no rush to decide. Explore several areas of study that interest you and try to enjoy the process. I would suggest meeting with a counselor who can help you focus your interests. The transition from high school to college is hard enough without the added pressure of feeling like the rest of your life has to be decided immediately. College should be an amazing experience so take a deep breath, and try to enjoy it.

One of the biggest differences you will experience in college is having a roommate. Sharing with your roommate is a part of getting along. Just think that he has to give up the same thing. You can both benefit or not from these experiences that you share together. If you don?t like him/her at first, give them a shot. Give them insight into what your thinking rather than saying you do not like them at the start and failing to give them a chance. After the first year, if you truly cannot stand the person, then switch roommates and request a friend that you enjoy spending time with that you think you will like as a roommate. You can always change roommates after the first semester. It?s a little harder to do, but can be done. So give it a shot and have a great first year!

If I could go back in time and give advice to my high school senior-self, I would tell myself to really research the school I wanted to attend. If I was unsure of the direction I wanted to take, I would tell myself that it's okay to take a semester or a year off to figure out what I'm passionate about- which is what I ended up doing anyway, after my freshman year at UMass. I would tell myself to take advantage of the services and advice offered by my high school guidance counselor, and I would tell myself to heed the financial aid application deadlines! I would encourage myself to apply for scholarships as well, instead of relying solely on financial aid. I would also encourage myself to get involved in the many information sessions offered by the university I decided upon, so as to be more informed about campus culture and extracurricular opportunities. I would tell myself to not be hesitant or nervous about joining new groups and meeting new people; there are so many opportunities to broaden your horizons in college, if you're not afraid to take innitiative and seize those opportunities.

As a high school senior, I stressed daily about the expectations in college classes. Now, as a college freshman going into my second semester, I know that with a good work ethic, anything is possible. I work diligently in my studies, and this is reflected in my grades. I would tell myself that even when times are tough and I'm feeling stressed out, do not give up. Keep on persevering and working hard. I experienced many difficult weeks this fall semester in which the work was piled on, and I could barely see the light at the end of the tunnel. I remind myself of a joke that keeps me going strong. "How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time." This phrase is true, and as a student, you can only worry about what is right in front of you at the present time. Live in the present, and don't dwell on the future is the best advice that I can give to myself.

Your going to have fun, so relax. Nothing wrong with that, just know how much money all this excitement is going to cost you at the end of your journey (tuition). This is were the saying ?take it for what it?s worth? comes into play. This could be the last time taking classes, studying, and taking exams. All this will be missed. All we are accustomed to is school, school and more school. When this process stops the human brain urges for this lack of educational nourishment. Embrace every moment you can. Embrace the sleepless nights that you will spend with friends attempting to understand Econometric Philosophies in the 1800?s and why you took thE class. There will be your worse days and there will be your best days. Your best days will turn into your worse days and vice versa. After you?re all done with the madness, you will want to do it all over again. Unfortunenately you can't. Some people say find something that you love to do and major in that field. My advice is to find something that you?re interested in and would love to learn more about.

College will be an adventure for the next phase of my life. Don't be afraid of the new and unknown. Be yourself and open up to others within your dorm or classes. It's fun and very rewarding as you get used to being away from home, on your own, and learning to enjoy yourself as you. Try to remember you are only one out of thousands who are doing the same thing in college. Be prepared for the negative aspects as well as the positive and reinforcing things that will happen daily in your new college life. Open your eyes and mind to enjoy your new life and friends. Be prepared for hard work but with positive results. Don't forget to have fun.

A younger version of me would need to hear two things. A) I need to decide 100{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} what to major in with real goals for a working future. If that meant, take time-off after high school to discover what "my calling" was then I should. My parents told me to attend college and "be somebody" and I left home unprepared. I could have moved into my own apartment and worked first. (B) "Freedom is not being away from family. Freedom is knowing what I want to do and doing it. Freedom is an inside job." If I heard those two things, I probably would have honored myself and not failed out of my first college. Now this time around, I know what my goals are and earned a 3.227 G.P.A. last semester.

If I could talk to myself as a high school senior, knowing what I know now I would tell myself not to stress out so much. As long as you do all the work on time and study nothing will go wrong. Have fun, but remember that it is college and th primary reason for being there is to learn. There are such great oppurtunitys so go out there and have fun while learning. If you are too stressed out you won't realize what an amazing experience college life is.

If I could go back in time to talk to myself as a high school senior I would tell myself to keep doing what I was doing. My senior year wasn't a "drop-off" year like the other seniors in my high school. I kept taking more difficult classes so I could learn more and keep my senior year from being a waste of my time. I would tell myself to work at filling out more scholarships. The more scholarships that you apply to the higher your chances of earning some money. I would make sure to tell myself that I shouldn't worry about missing my friends because I will be able to see them during university breaks. There are many important things to do senior year, but the most important thing I would tell myself is making sure that graduate by filling in all the necessary requirements because the best is yet to come.

When I attended high school, I was a very gifted student who was taking college-level courses. There was intense pressure to attend a "good" college. Teachers always assumed that everyone in these classes would attend college immediately. However, I had my own thoughts on the subject, and decided to take some time off. In that time, I met my husband, had two children and finally returned to finish my schooling. Shortly thereafter, we were sent to England to live for five years. Now that both of my sons are grown, I have decided to complete my college education. Luckily, I still have strong academic skills, as I have been reading, researching, and learning constantly throughout my life. My advice to students in high school would be to be flexible in life, as there is opportunity for learning in many areas of life. It is never too late to achieve your potential, so stay focused on your goals.