University of Missouri-Columbia Top Questions

College is a very important time in a person's life. If I could go back and give myself advise, I would tell myself to take more opportunites to explore myself and the resources that the school has to offer. The University of Missouri-Columbia has a lot to offer in regards to extracurricular activities, research, and volunteering. I am currently working in a research lab and do not have has much time as I would like to engage in other extracurricular activities, so I would advise my younger self to not focus as much on one thing early in my college career in order to explore other options. I would also advise myself to branch out and maybe even join someting that I do not necessarily already enjoy, just to see what else is out there.

Start working hard from day one. Don't slack off in the beginning and try to make it up in your later years of college.

If I could go back in time and talk to myself as a high school senior, I would tell myself that college is much harder than high school and that I'm going to have to study quite a bit. (I didn't study at all in high school and still recieved A's. I miss that...) I would also tell myself not to worry, because college isn't really all that bad, especially if you take the time to study. Honestly, though, I pretty much knew what to expect from college when I was a high school senior, as I had an older sister already in college. Sure, I was nervous, and I had put a lot of pressure on myself to do well (still do), but college is pretty much what I expected it would be. Now even if I could go back in time to talk to myself, I don't think I would want to. It's not really necessary. Plus, I feel like that has to be breaking some time travel rules, and it might even create a paradox. I don't think we want that.

Assuming I could go back and give myself advice about college, I would tell my self to not be afraid. Not be afraid of what new experiences are about to come my way, not be afraid to forget your old self and totaly redefine what kind of person i wanted to become, to not be afraid of what people might think about you for what you do, to not be afraid of meeting random strangers who would become the greatest friends I could every wish for. Most of all, to not be afraid of being my self. I didn't get this advice when I came into college. I wasn't a loner but if i would have realized the potential of just being my self and letting that take control of what i did while in college, it would have been a much better experience. Realizing that its a whole new world in college and that you can be who ever you want with almost no judgement, would have helped me to the absolute greatest extent. Not being afraid is the best advice i could give to myself as a high school senior.

"Comparing yourself to others only distorts your perspective of who you truly are." This was the hardest lesson for me to grasp throughout my time in college. Time and time again, I would beat myself up over not having as much money as my peers, as 'good' a GPA as my peers, or even the 'best' post-graduate plans and goals. Allowing these wordly things to affect my self-love and ability to perform at my full potential ultimately hurt one person--myself. I began to love myself by asking, "What do you like to do? What causes are you passionate about?" Once I was able to understand myself as a person, everything else fell into place. Greek life wasn't something that I was passionate about, so I didn't participate in it. Drinking alcohol every weekend wasn't something that I desired, so I didn't. Saying no to things that won't help me prosper in the way which I desire has kept me focused on the things I believe in and aspire to accomplish. Peer pressure is a major cause of risk-taking among adolescents. It will only control you if you allow it to.

Dear Jaanna, Congratulations for making it to your senior year, this is going to be a big year for your and I encourage you to make the most of it. However, in order to do that allow me to tell you how. First, you now have to know what you want for the future, I know you aren't fully prepared for what the world has to offer but that's why you have to do your own research. Figure out what you what you want to be when you grow up and if college is necessary for you. After you firgure that out, then it's time to rearrange your priorities; you may need to cut down on all those volunteering events you do and your social life needs to be at a minimum. Take more time to reflect and pursue your goals and manage your life, because college is all about learning how to properly achieving your goals and grow as a person. Enjoy the time you have with your friends now and expect to gain/lose some in college. Yet through your journey to college, love yourself and stay focused. I'm proud of you always. -Jaanna

I would tell my high-school-self that a high school diploma isn't a ticket to knowing the future. When you are handed your diploma you don't get a magical sixth sense that gives you insight on what you are going to do with your future. It is perfectly okay to go to college without knowing what you want to do with your life. I wish I had known a year ago that I didn't have to have the rest of my life planned out by the time I graduated. It would have allowed me a little more time to relax and to spend less time stressing out over the future. I think this is something that all high school students should know. You don't have to have 100{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} of your life figured out by the time you graduate. It's not a race or a competition. It's a milestone. A milestone that should be cherished, not fretted over.

I would tell myself to take care of my health and put as much effort as possible into maintaining a high GPA. I would tell myself not to allow fear to dictate how I perform in hard classes, and that math can be fun if I'm patient with myself and give myself enough time to figure everything out. I would also tell myself to go to the teachers' office hours and let them know if I'm struggling in any area of my life, not just academics. They're people too and they understand what it's like to struggle in college.

Stay true to yourself, don't go out because your friends are. That isn't you. Also money matters, and taking out loans is a lot more stressful than you think it is right now. Suddenly you are a junior and paying back $133 a month of interest on loans, when thousands of dollars could have been saved by going to community college for two years, or gaining in state residency for sophomore year. But as mom always told you, I hope you dance! Sometimes you have to dance away from home to grow into who you should be.

The only thing I would change about my high school life would be to become more involved in my community in my free time. I was rather too reserved, and that kept me from expanding my horizons and being able to fully understand why I wanted to go to college in the first place. It was just something I had to do; it was the next step, and I couldn't see beyond that step. If I had sought out more extracurricular activities, I would have discovered more interests and probably would have had a better idea of exactly what I wanted to major in, or even what career I would want to follow afterwards.