Western Michigan University Top Questions

My advice to myself as a high school senior would be to get involved earlier. I started late with my campus activies and getting involved, and let me just say, my college experience is exponentially greater. I've made some of the best friends I could imagine just by getting myself out there. Also, getting involved is great networking experience. I would also tell myself to make sure she waited until her sophomore year to enter into Greek Life, by waiting until then I was able to make so many friends outside of the Greek-system, and some of these girls and guys have become my best friends. I am almost 100{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} sure that that would not have been the case had I gone right into it. I would also tell my former-self to invest in getting a warm-steam humidifier because the dorms here can get kind of dry, and also to take advantage of the on-campus clinic and other services here.

If I could go back ad talk to myself as a high school senior, I would give myself some advice about how not to act or respond to different situations. First I would tell myself to not be so shy and to be open with people that I am meeting for the first time. Secondly I would tell myself to respond to situations like loneliness and feelings of homesickness in a different way. I wish I could go back to my first year at college and change the way I met people, because I was very shy and didn't meet people very easily. Finally I would tell myself to only switch majors twice and to listen to myself, not to my mother or anyone else around me. I learned the hard way about listening to other people and not myself when it came to choosing a major.

Your college career won't be as difficult as you think it is going to be as long as you establish a few goals for yourself. Don't make the goals impossible either, but make them little ones that you can accomplish week to week. I found it helpful to get my homework done before the weekend so I can enjoy my time away from school (unless there was a test to study for). Also, take some time to get to know what resources your campus has to offer, like the library, tutoring services, bookstore offers, writing centers, gym, and other student activities. All of these things are great ways to establish contacts and make friends at any university or college. Socially, I suggest you keep a few close friends so you can use each other for support throughout the school week and then enjoy other activities on the weekends. You can bring these friends with you when you get involved with campus activities as well as study groups at the library. In the end, take advantage of the utilities and opportunities that your college has to offer and you'll be sure to have a satistfied college experience.

Dear 18 year old Jenny, This is coming from an older, wiser verison of you. You think now that you can't be great and that medical school is too hard and too expensive for you. You have given up on that goal because you can barely afford undergrad; you've let money steal your dream. Well snap out of it! You have been through child abuse and survived, you have battled anorexia and won, you are ranked 8th in your graduating class, you are so strong with so much potential that you haven't even unlocked yet, but you will I promise. Don't major in Exercise Science, don't settle, just go straight into pre-med. If you wait and then switch, you'll have to work hard to catch up to take the MCAT, (like I'm doing now). Believe in yourself. You will make the Dean's list consistantly, and perform cutting-edge research as a sophomore, and see 8+ surgeries, making connections with surgeons! You will have to work hard, but you have been through worse; you have overcome worse odds. Take a leap of faith! Love, Your future self

The first couple months of college were a whirlwind. Between classes, practices, studying, socializing, and work there was a lot on my plate. In high school I was always involved in a lot of organizations. However, now in college I have a lot of responsibilities but am also thrown with the stress of living on my own. The thought of living on my own actually made me quite anxious for many months leading up to the transition to college. I would stay up late at night worrying how I would be able to survive by myself, if I would be able to find my classes and many other stresses that nervous high school seniors face. Looking back, I would tell myself to relax. Although, college is much different, everyone goes through the transition and it is best to take it one step at a time. I would remind myself that college is the experience of your lifetime. It's where you'll meet your lifelong friends, it's where you will learn about the job you will work at the rest of your life, and it's where you'll learn who you are as a person.

As a high school senior you wonder what will be involved in transitioning to a college student, not only the physical aspect but the mental. I believe the hardest adjustment is being out of your comfort zone. Gone will be the days of everyone knowing you at school and having your Mom take care of so many daily tasks. The last half of your senior year you need to cut the apron strings from Mom and Dad! You need to begin talking to people outside of your ?circle of friends? because when you get to college you won?t know very many kids. You need to learn to wash your clothes, balance a checkbook, and learn to do some basic cooking. College life needs your full commitment if you want to succeed. An excellent grade point requires studying and this can consist of long hours and you must discipline yourself and be prepared! Ultimately you are entering a new stage of your life where you will become more self-reliant and independent. If you get through the first semester you can get through the next one. Meet new friends, join a club, or be on a sports team.

Dear high school senior Megan, I advise that you get working on those scholarships you keep putting off, they will be very helpful next year. I'm not going to give you too many details about college, except to stay financially savvy. The surprise and adventure is indescribable, you will meet people different than anyone you ever imagined meeting, you will be forced into situations you will think that you can never handle but believe me you can. I don't want to tell you anything more about college or the transition, because no one should know what to expect. That is the reality of growing up, not knowing what to expect and handling any situation with class and dignity. Always remember that. Keep an open mind and an open heart, for you can do anything you want to do. Love, Megan

Knowing what I know now, I would change many things. A huge advice I would give myself is to try harder in my AP classes in high school. To start studying harder and try harder than what I did. I wish I would have tried in my AP classes so I could of done well enough on the AP exams so I would not have had to taken some credits in college and saved money. My main advice would be to get into a studying habit because in college, things are not handed to you like they are in high school.

If i could go back in time to when I was in highschool and know what I know now, I would have gone to a community college for my first two years of college and then transferred to western Michigan university. And Believe that this would have saved me money and I would have had more to time to deciding what I wanted to do as a career.

If I had the ability to go back and talk to myself as a high school senior my best advice to myself would to be to pay attention to life in closer detail than I did before. I would not take a single high school class for granted, because free education sounds incredible to me now. I would have paid attention to the little things that I love in life a little closer, to figure out who I was a little sooner. All in all I would have to tell myself not to be scared and just be who I know I am, and that everything finds a way to work itself out. I would tell myself not to sweat the hard times but to focus on my learning because there are plenty of good times ahead. I would incourage myself to dig at what really drives me, to figure out what I wanted to do sooner. Last of all I would tell myself I know I have to do this for myself, shake away that fear, and take my first steps towards a new life.