Valparaiso University Top Questions

Don't sweat the small stuff. Take more time to read from independent sources, ie for fun not just academic. Early reading habits help with long term study and reading habits.

Making the transition to college is a milestone in one's life. You are leaving everything you have ever known to begin a new chapter in your life. While I am quite satisfied with my choice of attending Valparaiso University, there are some things that I wish someone would have told me in high school before I moved away to college. First of all, studying for college exams is completely different than high school courses. If you want to succeed you have to budget your time wisely and study for days if you want that A. The material is presented more quickly than it was in high school, so be prepared to learn on your own outside of class. Another piece of advice I would have liked to here in high school was making new friends takes time. In movies, college students are perceived as meeting new best friends within the first week. While I have met some great people here, it did not happen over night. You have to be patient, and before you know it, youll have great people to hang out with. Lastly, enjoy these four years because it is a completely unique experience unlike anything else.

I would Tell my self not to stress out as much as I did. I was really worried about balancing track and school. I would also tell myself to have more fun. You only have 4 years of college and even though I was busy, I could have had more movie nights or more times where I hung out with my friends. I would also tell myslef to get involved with a few more things on campus. Valparaiso University is a small campus so it is really easy to get to know everyone and I feel like if I got involeved with more things I would have meet a lot more new people.

I would give myself the advice to always plan ahead, to start homework early, and to get on a regular sleeping schedule. I would advise myself to read all the books too. I would tell myself that your beliefs will be challenged, but you need to stand strong in your beliefs (as not to change), but to have an open mind for those who have different beliefs than you. I feel that I made this transition into being more open-minded my freshman year of college. I would give myself the advice to not pick a roommate when I went to summer orientation, or if I did, to make sure to fill out the roommate agreement when getting on campus.

There is nothing that would have made me change my mind about my chosen university. There is some advice that I would give myself about making the transition though. I think that if I could go back in time I would make sure to try and develop myself as person who can get by with solely relying on myself; at college you won't necessarily have your high school friends with you, in my case I didn't, and you don't have your parents either. In college you have to learn how to get by without a lot of direct support from others at certain times. I personally was not a person who did overnight camps, and I think that the experience of overnight camps would give someone a taste of the college life in the sense of independence. I would also tell myself that I had truly never experienced studying hard for a test in high school; the amount of time that a student needs to put into their school work compared to high school is unbelievably more. The biggest adjustment for me was the amount of time and independence that I had.

I've always worked full time during high school, and throughout the summer; it was the mark to show I was great at multitasking. I kept great grades, maintained the honor roll, and did well on SAT, ACT, and all other major tests during that year. Yet, I would always make myself aware the workload is different, as well as expectations and approach. I've always been an independent worker, but it is different when you don't have that constant reminder or buffer in the case YOU JUST FORGOT or you JUST DIDN'T HAVE TIME. I hardly got sick, but when I did it was a luxury. Now...it's more of a hassel. I would tell ANYONE to make sure they are prioritizing and know where their time is going.

Don't stress out over the little things. Not everything is going to be perfect or go your way, so you have to accept that. Just remember that with a good attitude and hard work, you can do anything that you put your mind to. Stay focused and never give up on your goals!

Start everything early! Look for scholarships and other financial aid early on so that you know that you can pay for school and so that payments on tuition do not prevent you from registering for classes later on. Make freinds right away. If you are social the first few weeks it will be easier to be social later, and by then you will already have friends. Under no circumstances should you procrastinate on end-of-term projects and papers. When they are initially assigned, start them. Work on them a little bit each day so that they do not overwhelm you right before finals, because that is the worst. The longer you wait to do anything, the harder it becomes to do, and the worse the consequences will be. A jump start is the surest way to a life with minimal amounts of stress. Allowed to run rampant, stress will quickly become debilitating. The more you can minimize your stress the happier and more productive you will be.

I would tell myself to look past the fact that it is the last year of high school and to stay focused. Senior year is the big beginning focus point for colleges and senior classes can't just be pushed aside as an afterthought. I would also tell myself to start looking at colleges earlier. I lucked out with how great my college is, but I would tell myself to look at the best colleges I could. I would search for colleges that have a field that sounded interesting to me, because without classes that interest you, there isn't motivation. I would also push myself to apply for as many scholarships that applied to me. I ended up applying at the last minute, and I needed as much financial aid as I could receive. I would make myself realize that just because you put it off, that doesn't mean that every thing will end up working intself out without help. Mostly I would tell myself to stay focused but not to worry so much, otherwise you can get lost in all the little factors.

College is a great opportunity to meet people, try different things, and grow as a person socially and intellectually, but it's easy to get lost and mixed up amidst the pressures of new ideas, environments, and social groups. In college, people from all over the country are thrown together, and every single person brings a unique perspective to the table. Well-informed, accomplished, and philosophical professors also bring fresh, controversial ideas to light. In the thick of all these new influences it's essential to step back and evaluate each one. Pat Tillman once said, "You should question it all, take what makes sense, and throw away the rest." Such an attitude is a necessity in college. Rather than simply accepting new concepts and beliefs, one should challenge and examine them in accordance with prior values and convictions that have led to success. In conclusion, to sum it all up, I say to my high school self, "Be open and to the ideas, thoughts, and influence of others, but never lose sight of the person that got you to where you are today."