University of St Thomas-Saint Paul Top Questions

I would give myself so much advice. First, I would apply for more scholarships and then apply to more schools and compare financial aid. I am kicking myself now for not doing that! I would try to look at more schools and see what their graduation requirements and core class requirements were; I might not have to take philosophy or other required classes like at UST. I wish I had visited more schools to get a better picture of what it's like on campus. I would have gone to more overnight visits on campuses to get a feel for what it's like to actually live there. I'm happy here, but I feel like I should have started earlier and should have done more when I was shopping for schools to make sure I was getting the best deal and would be in the best place for me.

I would tell myself to really review my choices. As a high school student I listened to the admissions recruiters word for word. This often lead me to apply to the schools with the best admissions presentations. Over the time I have spent in college, I realized that these recruiters are no different than any other sales representative. It's my responsiblity to really check out what life is like at each school. Although I am happy with my college, I believe that if I had understood better what life was like at each university I may have made a different choice.

I would tell myself to take more college level courses and get as many credits as possible. I would also tell myself to apply apply apply for scholarships. I would also tell myself to take my time in choosing a college, because it's very important that I know where I want to go for sure.

Increase study habits

Be sure to pick a college that fits you. It's not a problem if you choose the wrong place right away because you can always transfer. People transfer everyday and they often find themselves in a much better and happier place. A very important thing to do in college is not be afraid to reach out to people and make new friends. College is a great opportunity to develop new friendships with people from different backgrounds than you. Who knows, some of these friendships could become lifelong. Another important piece of advice would be to challenge yourself to be the best person you can be. It's ok if you make mistakes but learning from them will make you stronger in the future. A final thing to remember is to have fun and enjoy the ride because college goes by so fast. Always give yourself time just enjoy living, learning and being youself because this is one of the most amazing opportunies you will ever have and many people in the world never get the chance to earn a world-class education.

As a high school senior knowing what I know now I would have applied myself more. Through applying myself more I would have taken more A.P. classes ; as well as, working harder to obtain better grades. This woluld have given me a better option for class availability and given me less college debt in the long term. A considerable amount of high school seniors decide to take the easy road by taking the classes that are the least amount of work. If I would have taken and worked harder on more A.P. courses I would have set myself up for better success. Also knowing what I know now I would have worked harder on my ACT. With a higher ACT score I could have bypassed certain classes and been given a bigger grant at St.Thomas. All these previous actions are ones I would apply as a high school senior knowing what I know now.

College is an overwhelming and scary thing to think about. I know you don’t want to choose the “wrong” school. Pray about it. God has a perfect plan for your life. Trust that you’ll end up where you are supposed to be. I know one of the things you’re looking forward to most in this next chapter of your life is meeting tons of really dreamy college boys. Trust me. You’ll meet plenty. Always remember that no relationship is worth sacrificing your dignity and self-respect over. You’re going to be faced with some difficult decisions. Stay true to yourself. Go with your gut. It’s always right. Time goes by so fast. Live in the moment. Next thing you know, you’ll be looking for internships and thinking about leasing a house. Enjoy every minute of high school. Yes, even those extra killers you have to run at volleyball practice and that nasty "pizza" that you have almost every day for lunch. Believe it or not, you're going to miss all of this someday!

The first thing I would tell myself is to learn to take better notes. Just because I didn't need to take detailed notes in high school, doesn't mean I would not need to in college, and I will make it easier on myself if I learn the skill sooner rather than later. I would then prompt myself to, as soon as I find out my roommate assignment, contact her and form the basis of a friendship. I would then remind myself that just because we would live together, my roommate and I don't need to be best friends; you need to get along, and communication is important, as well as being comfortable with the other person's friends being in the room. Also, to lay ground rules which we can both agree to, and to stick to them. I would then say that it's ok to be homesick, and my parents miss me too, and that it's important to keeps lines of communication open with them also. And that pain in the butt sister? You'll miss her. Give her a call every once in a while, and check in.

Knowing what I now know about life in college and making the transition I would tell myself that it's not going to be easy. I imagined that life on my own would be great and I would be care free. Now that I've been in college for a whole semester I know that it's not easy and that a lot of the time college is hard. It's hard to be away from my family, and it's hard to be thrown into a new way of living. It takes time to adjust. Now, I know more of what to expect and I know that this next semester is going to be easier.

I would tell myself to do harder research for scholarships so I would not have to pay so much. Also I would go back and tell myself to take some AP classes so I could try to get credit for college in high school so I have a head start when I get to college. I would also challenge myself with harder classes in high school to prepare mysef for the college work load. Finally I would tell myself I love going to St. Thomas so just apply there and choose to go there so that I could relax and work on finding scholarships for my school.