University of South Carolina-Columbia Top Questions

That I would be able to enjoy my first year, but to not let my academics suffer. I struggled a little bit handling both my academics and other activities and couldn't really find a balance between the two until my second semester. You will be able to have fun all your four years, but make sure academics don't suffer. That is why you're going to college.

How diverse it is, and how accomplished many of these students are. In my home community I thought I had done so much and done so many major things for a person my age. But many of these students have done things such as traveled the world doing community service, became pilots or captains, and so much more!

I can't really think of anything I wish I had known before I came to this school... I pretty much found out everything before I decided to attend.

I was well informed of the school before I attended and toured it several times to get used to it and the layout of the college. The only thing that I wish I would have known, was the all the degrees that were offered by the University so I could beter choose.

I wish I would've known just how easy it is to feel apart of this University. I'm alive with the Gamecock Spirit. I also wish someone would've conveyed how much extracurricular activities there were and opportunities to the "out of the classroom" education as well.

I wish I had known just how dedicated to making us learn everything we can and do our best on everything our professors would be, because then I would have come in working a lot harder and putting in more study hours. I also wish I had've studied the campus map a little longer so I wouldn't have been late to my first class the first day, haha.

I really like my school. I think it fits me well and I find it very enjoyable. But if I had to choose what I wish I would have known before coming was just how spread out the campus was. You can obviously tell from a map that it is vastly spread among the city, but sometimes you just do not know how difficult getting to class can be until you have to walk a long distance in under 15 minutes just to barely make it on time. It can be slightly difficult at times.

The weather is crazy, and that's not always a bad thing. It gets in the 70's in January but the next day will drop into the 40's, it rains but it doesn't really snow. Southern hospitality really does exist. I'm from Pennsylvania and there are definitely some culture differences ranging from sweet tea to saying "Yes, sir(mam)" "No, sir(mam)". Northerner's may feel rude the first couple of months. It's easiest just to accept the fact that people come here from all around the world, and there are bound to be differences.

I wish I would have known how different it would be than high school was. High school was an intirely different environment in that there were cliques and groups that everyone tried to fit in to be popular. But here at college, there are no popularity groups that people strive to be a part of. Because of that, it is qutie nice and I enjoy that there is no "trying to fit in."

The most important information that I could have obtained before attending the university is that developing proper and balanced study habits would be critical in determining my overall success. Upon initial enrollment I had some difficulty with adjusting to the size of the lecture halls, the methods of the professors, and the easy access of food and sleep, all of which affected my studying habits. Often times it is not "fun" to study, however, developing a method for retaining important notes and texts will allow for getting things done in a timely and thorough manner.