University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire Top Questions

If I could go back in time and talk to myself as a high school senior, I would tell myself to apply for more scholarships, focus on studying ten times more than I usually do, and learn about the GRE. Money is important in paying for college, studying is similar to AP and honors classes, but ten times harder, and GRE is similar to the ACT, but for those who want to go into graduate school. I would encourage myself to learn deeper about what college is, not just what is on the surface of it. College is very complex and difficult, so I think it's best to learn about deeper things related to college.

Assuming I could go back in time, I would sit myself down and have a serious talk. First and foremost I would say to stay with your career choice of enlisting in the Military. Second, would be to use your benefits as soon as possible enroll into college courses ahead of time. Get your eduacation out of the way, you'll have all the time in the world to get a job and start a family. College will actually be easier than you think all the skills you learned from the military set you up for success. Be smart as well with your money, save and get a degree. After school is done you will get the high paying job and all the traveling you want out of the way. Take the time to sacrifice a little time now to get an eduacation so you can have the world at your finger tips. Make yourself and family proud and get an eduacation it will take you far and you will prosper. Because I know you are hard headed no one thinks you can do it, so prove them all wrong and give it all you got.

The advice I would have given myself would be to remain calm. There are many new friends you will make that will be able to help you and parents are only a phone call away. There is no need to stress out so much. Keep calm and focus on your studying but try to have a little fun as well.

If I could go back in time and talk to myself when I was a senior in high school, I would tell myself to bring less clothes. In all honesty, I think I have done well in college. The one thing that I could have change would be not to become a hermit, as most of my friends say. I need to get in the Nursing program, so I focused all my attention on my schoolwork, which led me, at times, to become too overwhelmed. I would turn down great opportunities, like ice skating or watching a movie with friends, so I could study a little bit more on how the brain processes vision or hearing. So to my younger self, I would say to live a little and do not stress yourself out over the little things. Too much studying can, in fact, make it harder to study and obtain the grades you want. Bring less clothes and take those opportunities is all I am saying to myself.

If I could go back in time to visit myself as a senior to tell myself some advice, I would say many things. I would talk about classes, and important events at the school. The advice about classes would be, “make a more serious deal about assignments”. I say this is because I had a little hard time in senior year about thinking that some assignments aren’t as important as big projects. After a while little assignments that I forget to do because I didn’t take it seriously built up and made my grades lower and had to do them in limited time at the end of the year. Now I know that it could happen and I'll never do it again. My advice to myself about events is to go to the important ones, for example, college and scholarship events to help my future. I learned that if I went to the events I would already have scholarship money, and a better future. The advice I would give to my senior self would of been very useful and I wouldn’t have problems I have now. If I knew the advice I would be more prepared.

Don't worry too much. I mean, by all means prepare, apply, work and all of that stuff but just try not to worry so much. Life is difficult, and it is not going to work out according to any plan. You won't get the scholarship that you think you deserve, and you won't get the exact experience you were looking for, but you will get something much better. You will get something that is real and new and unexpected. You will start something that is honestly a little scary. Don't waste time worrying if you did the right thing or made the right choice. Regret is for the past, leave it behind you. Hope is for the future, but bring that closer to you. Your future won't be what you expect, but it is there. Have fun, study hard, work, and all of that other stuff. However, please, if you can do this one thing for me, just don't worry.

I would tell myself: "Self, get your act together and pay attention the first time around! Picking up good study habits and working harder in higher level high school courses will help you SOOO very much in the future!" I believe having good study habits and KNOWING how to use them is the biggest hurdle any college student faces. Yes, having the smarts pays off, but knowing different study habits for different subjects is the key to being a truly successful student in college. For example: you may not be able to use the same study habits for your Spanish class as you might use for Chemistry; they are totally different subjects! I have tutored many students in the sciences, and I would use that experience and knowledge that I gained about study skills and tell my high-school-senior self to learn those study habits and use them. Once you know how to study the right way (and be flexible in your study skills), you can learn anything in college and be a huge success in everything you do.

If I could give the high-school-senior version of myself advice the first thing I would tell her is to take the college selection process seriously! While I'm very happy with where I ended up, I didn't consider all of my options and my first semester was rough. Think about your future goals and where you would like to be four years from now, because your choice in schools will greatly impact your journey. Figure out your priorities, find a school that shares these and more likely than not it will be a good fit. The last thing I would be sure to tell my former self is not to worry so much! Your more than capable of everything thats going to be thrown at you whether it's academics, your social life or moving away from home. The things that you do struggle with, there are people there to help, don't be afraid to ask your RA, your friends, your advisor or anyone around campus. Put yourself out there, have fun, keep your priorities in line and you will get all you can from this experience!

The butterflies in my stomach are a good thing, and to not be so nervous. Once I'm in college there is less stress about the money aspect, and the grades, and fitting in...it all just falls into place. There are thousands of other people who are in the same boat I am, who fear that they cannot pay for college, who think classes will be too hard, and think that they won't make any friends. All of these things are not even close to being a worry. There is financial aid, and I have always worked very hard in high school, and college classes will not be that much different, and I just can't believe I was worried about making friends! I have determination in high school and that only becomes stronger in college. I am now, as a college student, more driven, outgoing, and more successful than I could have even dreamed that I would be.

The biggest thing to remember as you make the switch from high school to college is just to be yourself. Coming from such a small town, it felt like you had to be what everyone else wanted you to be. That doesn't matter in college. You will find friends that will welcome you because you're you. College is such an experience and it allows you to see that there is more to the world than the tiny home you had in Minnesota. There are people and places that will blow your mind, but you have to be open to those new experiences and the changes they'll bring. Put yourself out there--you, not the person you were trying to be--and you'll find yourself right where you belong.