Iowa Wesleyan University Top Questions

There is a ton of information I would give myself, because I had no idea how much it costs to attend. I would have told myself to enjoy high school more than I did. I wish I could go back simply because it was not stressful. I thought it was at the time. I wish I could have understood the value of a dollar before I got to college. I now am learning the hard way about how much even the smallest things cost. I in no way thought my parents gave me so much money. I have become much more humble in college and wish I could have been this way my entire life! I never knew that trying to impress all those people in high school was a waste. I hardly even speak to those I knew in high school, and it sort of makes me glad because many of them do not even attend college. I would yell at myself in high school for worrying so much about what others thought of me. It makes no sense now that I wasted so much on frivelous items. I could have saved that for college costs!

It is difficult to put in words the change that happens to us in these four years of college. I am a senior now, almost finished, and although only 24 years old, my life lessons are pages long. I am not a traditional college student. While I was when I began in 2004, 6 years later, 3 colleges, 3 kids and a husband later, I am a new woman. If I could look back to myself as a high school senior just preparing to begin college, I would only say to myself... "Hold on tight, for the ride of your life is about to begin." While I could stand face to face with myself and say what to do and what not to do, I wouldn't. I have learned to be brave, individual, and creative. I have learned to be responsible and respectable. I have cried and laughed, I have had highs and lows. I have learned, learned, learned. College is merely an experience, a small glimpse of our lives. But for most, it is our foundation. I would only say to myself in preparation for college, to listen, stand proud and pursue your unimaginable dreams.

be prepared to live on your own and understand that the professors are not high school teachers and they will fail you, and the key to college success is not being the smartest, its going to class everyday and turning in all assignments, also dont be affraid to speak in class, proffesors love it

I would tell myself, you are fixing to be on your own now. You have the chance to do it right this one time, so let's not fool around, pay attention, and get to working. You are going to need education to be successful in life, and it all starts here in your high school classroom. This is practice you will need to know in college, so do what you have to do to get where you want to go. Listen in class and no clowining around, do your work and stop being lazy, most importantly, pay attention to every detail the teacher says and learn from it. In the long run if you do what I'm telling you, it wil pay off and you will be happy.

If I were able to go back to my senior year and talking to myself about the college life I would definantly give myself advice. I would remind myself that I will be the one paying for my college and I should go into the field that interests me the most. Getting scholarships to play sports in college is like a commitment. Knowing this you need to remember that your education comes first; because it's the most important. Your goinginto a different sceen, one that your not used to and you need to stay who you are. Changing into who your friends want you to be is just something else you have to worry about on top of school and sports; you don't need that. College is going to be differennt, your going to be away from your family and on your own for the first time. Your going to have to remind youself constantly that you need to stay focused. You're the first out of your family to attend college. You're expected to do well, and most of all you don't want to let down your future, you hold your future in your hands.

Learn to study; it is the most important thing to do in college. All the times in high school when all you had to do was listen to a teacher talk and copy word for word what they wrote down, and never went back once you were done. Those days are over. Professors will not give you everything you need to know, the learning is up to you. Professors will lecture for hours and you are expected to write down the key points and go back later in you text books and put things together between your teacher and what the book has to say. It has been said that for every hour of class you have in college you need 3-4 hours of study time, this may seem like a lot but it is an important thing for you to do, without it you will struggle in almost every class you take. Also take it easy in the beginning and don?t try to rush through college. If you try to take to many credits the first semester of freshman year and you are nowhere near ready for the pace of college and it gets to be overwhelming.

If I could go back in time and give myself advice on what I know now, it would be to learn how to study the right way. Back in high school it wasn't hard to study. Usually, your teacher would tell you question for question what would be on the test, so all I would do is study and focus mainly on those questions and memorize them. Not in college. I quickly learned that in college, you must study, and you must study everything from your books and notes. Your instuctor in college might tell you some of the stuff that will be on the test, but when it comes down to it, you must have read the chapters and done the work assigned. I believe that if I would of learned to study in high school the college way, I would of been better off, and wouldn't of had to learn the correct way in college in my first semester.

Going back in time and warning myself of all the wrong choices I have made over the past four years could have saved me a lot of heartache that I have surpased over the years. Although, now that I look back on everything I have accomplished I would not be where I am today without making those mistakes that taught me a lot about myself and allowed me to grow into the graduating athletic scholarship student I am today. I would certainly assure my past-self to be open too experiencing new things and learning more than judging. There's a world of different people out there and ignorance is not a way to go about living one's life. The stories and advices I could provide myself with would shock a lot of people, but I would not want to deprive myself of going through all those expereiences because in the end it made me what I am today. Generally I would simply assure my past-self to enjoy life, be yourself, and make good choices that you feel are right in the moment. College is about living and learning, do not forget that lesson.

If I could go back in time, I would tell myself to focus more on my school work then on atheltics. I have learned in college that athletics are important for scholarship purposes, but academics are what will lead you to the future that you want. Personally for me in high school, I had family issues that kept me from completing my homework on time and to the best of my ability. College has showed me that homework is the key to succeeding and making good grades. The main thing I would tell myself as a high school senior is to complete and turn in ALL homework on time, because both in college and later on in life, turning in your work on time is very crucial to success.

Go and visit the colleges before making a choice.

One advice that i would pesonally give to the parents and students is obviously go to the college visit days. There is a large percent of students that drop out of college or transfer at their freshman year because they personally dont know how the college is. They need to get oriented about school activities, facilities, dorms, schedules,programs, community, etc. Making a good choice will make college an experience for life.

I would tell them dont go to a school just because your friends go there, pick where you going to get the best education and get the degree you need. Dont worry about anything but your school work and do it to the best of your ability.

Your education is very important, but do not forget about your social life, make sure you find a college that is going to suit you socially and academically. If you are from a very large city, you probably would not be happy with a small private college in a small town, you will get bored very easliy because there will not be much to do. Also make sure the other students have similar intrests as you, the best way to do this is plan an overnight visit to a college you are interested in, if you a not a big drinker and everyone there drinks, you proabably are not going to have a lot of fun.

When looking for your college you will have no idea what it will be like there. However, when you find the college for you you will just feel like you belong there. Don't worry about distance, but concentrate on your personal fit. If you are comfortable at your school you will most likely be more involved in the activities offered, allowing you to make some life long friends. The happier you are at your school the happier you will be with your school. Get out there and enjoy what your school has to offer! Don't be afraid to ask your teachers for advice. Most of all just be you.