University of Massachusetts-Amherst Top Questions

What should every freshman at University of Massachusetts-Amherst know before they start?

Samantha

If I were able to go back and talk to myself as a high school senior I would tell myself to try and come out of my shell. There's no need to be shy, college is going to be a great experience full of all different kinds of people from all over the world. People will accept you no matter who you are or where you are from, and you are bound to find a group of people that are like you no matter how diverse or odd you may think you are. You just have to go out and be who you want to be and do what you want to do, the rest will work itself out.

saleh

So, when you get accepted to Umass Amherst you'll meet alot of new people. Your'e going to love the school and the college life in general. Keep working hard and you'll be fine.

Aqueelah

If, I can go back to my senior year of high school, I would have done things a litle bit differently. I would have worked harder academically, to have a better G.P.A. I would have studied more. I would have know what college I wanted to go too, what major I wanted to pursue and just where I wanted to be in my 5 to 10 year plan. I would have applied for more scholarships.You know sometimes students dont know that there are a lot resources to getting free money to go to college . Especially me at that time at the age of 17 going on 18, all was thinking about graduating from high school, working and maybe going to some college, but I did not know which one I wanted to go too or what I wanted to do with my life. Looking, back at my life right now, in the present, I save to every highschool senior or any child wanting to go to college to pursue their dream, do it! Being college -educated is the best you can do to succed in life. Getting that college degree even better!

Madolyn

See if you can visit the campus and see if it is right for you; you may have to live there for 4 years. Some people prefer large schools for the social life, some people prefer smaller schools for the more attention you can receive. Make sure YOU are comfortable with the school first. Not your parents, not your siblings, not your grandparents, not even your cat. The friends and the parties will come later. IF you choose to participate in them. Oh, and find an extra curricular to do. It keeps you out of trouble.

Magdalena

College is a serious, vital commitment. When choosing one, students must remember that they are deciding on the institution from which they?ll receive their expensive education. Therefore, the quality of academic factors should not be sacrificed for a surplus of weekend attractions, because those don?t cost over $20,000 per year. Students ought to choose a campus they will feel comfortable on, whether it?s multiracial, consists of one dominating ethnicity, and is in a town or city. To thrive academically and remain happy psychologically, students should have personal serenity, which is easier to obtain when in harmony with our surroundings. Visiting the campus to familiarize with it will tell students whether they?re compatible with it before enrolling. As college is a big change for a high school graduate, extracurricular activities should be taken advantage of. This allows students to compose relationships and be social, rather than isolated in a dorm. Realistically, no GPA can replace reliable friendships, so students should learn how to manage both responsibly. One needs friends to keep the sanity necessary for academic achievement. College prepares us for our lives as professionals and humans. Students mustn?t disregard either while completing their educations.

Andrew

Go and visit your top college choices. If you can talk to someone on the street and ask them questions about the schoool, it's probably a good school. Then remember to work hard, but play harder. Reach out and meet new people. Do new things. College is your chance in life to do just that.

Olga

In order to find the right college for your child, encourage your child to explore his or himself, what matters the most to him/her, and what he/she expects to get from the college experience. I believe that making the most of the college experience is not necessarily dependent on whether or not the student made the right decision, but rather what the student chose to do while studying at the institution. As long as you have an open mind and are ambitious, the best college experience will follow. The best college experience is a true result of the effort that the student puts into attaining the best experience possible. With hope and determination, even the least likely college will turn into the best experience. As long as you put in the effort, the results will exactly reflect your choices and decisions.

Edgar

When choosing a university, forget about academic reputation and expectations of a university. What a student and their parents must do is find a community that will support them, make them feel comfortable, and feel that they won't be let down or discarded when a student has problems. It is essential for any student to have problems, to have a point where they're overwhelmed, angry, or distressed, but have a community of students, faculty and resources that will be able to carry them up and through a situation that will become routine and natural in the real world. Go to dorms and students when you visit universities, and observe the students instead of reading all the stats given to you. Whatever money you spend on a university is only worth it if the students are getting acquainted with their profressors and their work instead of getting acquainted with a bong. Parents, please stop thinking of school prestige and talking about how great it would be to go to X instead of Y and Z... When you're visiting schools Y and Z. You're damaging your student's confidence over events that are beyond your control!

Nicole

The process of choosing a college that fits your needs and makes you happy is a lot less complicated than it is made out to be. High school counselors scare you into making a choice based on prestiege and not on practicality. You as an individual need to investigate the atmosphere of the school to find out if you could see yourself there. Finding a college that is a good fit includes a short list of essential guidelines: the major you are looking for (or a wide variety if you are undecided), students that have similar values to you, and a cost that won't leave you in debt for the rest of your life. It is not worth getting an undergraduate degree that will leave you sky-high in debt, if you can get the same education at a much less pricey school. To make the most of it, you need to take advantage of everything the school has to offer. You are paying for it, so use every resource to its potential. And don't be afraid to ask for help, because there is always someone willing to assist you in making your dreams come true.

Elise

Make sure to visit potential schools more than once and never rule out schools that are not your first choice because you may end up finding out that you fit in better at one of those lower choice schools