University of Minnesota-Twin Cities Top Questions

How competitive it really is.

I wish i would have known how liberal it is. I came from a small midwestern, very conservative town so it was quite a surprise to be surrounded by a very liberal environment. However, due to the large population, there are still conservatives around, just not as many as the midwest. I also wish I would've known how big the campus really is. In part it's awesome to have such a huge campus, but it makes for a trek to class if you have to cross campus. Bring comfy shoes!

I wish I would have known how "at home" I would feel at the University of Minnesota. The University of Minnesota was my essentially my last choice for continuing my education, and to this very day I still don't know what compelled me to choose the University of Minnesota, but today, I couldn't be happier to attend such a great school. I feel like I'm apart of a community, and that I have over 48,000 other classmates, and professors, that want to see me succeed as badly I want to succeed myself.

It is ok to fail, no one will hate you and it won't ruin your academic plans.

I wish I had known about the financial aid options available to me sooner. I decided to go to a smaller university for my first several years of college because I didn't think going to a large college would be affordable. I think I would have gotten a more efficient route to my degree if I would have started at the University of Minnesota rather than transferring. That being said, going to the smaller university first has allowed me to participate in a unique dual degree program that I would not have heard about otherwise.

More people.

I wish I would have known to try out a few different major paths before committing to one. The University of Minnesota has so many different degree options (including a create your own degree where you can pick portions from three undergraduate majors) that it would have been nice to try a few more classes before launching into my degree.

I wish I knew how helpful the professors were going to be. I went in thinking that they weren't going to care about me. I'm just one out of hundreds of their students, but they really do care about you and want to help you succeed.

One thing I wish I would have known is what food choices I had offered by my university. I do not find our dining hall meal system to be as good as it could be. Although this likely would not have been important enough to me to change my decision about attending my university, it may have been helpful to take it into consideration before comnig here.

I wish I had known about campus resources for financial aid, disability services, and had help about finding jobs.

College is not as easy as high school was. It is necessary to pay attention in class, take notes and study before tests. There isn't as much required homework in classes but it is still necessary to work on classwork every night and it's harder to pass a test without studying. It's also important to make friends when the school gives you the opportunities during orientation because it's hard to make them once the semester begins.

Nothing, the university seems great and I love learning all about it through orientations.

That some classes are unnecessary to take. They may be fun/easy but don't help you with your major.

Be ready to grow. You can achieve whatever you want. Sometimes it is easy to get into a fixed mindset and feel as if there is no chance of improving because you have to inheriently be good at something. Keep trying and know that you will improve at whatever you are struggling with. Don't be afraid to ask for help.

That I was going to have to push myself harder than ever. I've always been ambitious and driven but living on my own and not having that support of my mom there with me was hard. I think I knew that this time would come but I wasnt expecting everything to become a big reality check. Also the transportation is something I wish I would have known about. The campus is huge and not knowing how to ride the campus connectors can also be a great hastle. My classes would be so far apart and walking is tiring.

Though I already knew a fair amount about the University of Minnesota by taking some high school courses there, I was pleasantly surprised that the overall rating of the University is not representative of each individual college. I learned that the College of Biological Sciences (my college) was by far the most selective, and during Nature of Life (a summer course required for all CBS students), I learned that the professors were incredibly approachable and knowledgeable.

I wish I had known what it was going to take sooner.

I wish I knew more about the campus. I kind of attended it on a whim and you should never do that when choosing something that is going to have a big part in the rest of your life.

If you don't get to know people right off the bat, it can become really cliquey and hard to form friendships outside of the ones you made

Become involved in activities that you care about right away. The University of Minnesota is a huge school and joining extracurricular activities is a greast way to make friends and to make yourself stand out. There are so many things to do on campus that cover every area of interest that there is no reason to not be involved in something.

I wish that I would have put more time and effort into studying so that I would be better prepared for the work load.

I wish I knew how hard it was to transition from high school to college. I also wish I had applied for scholarships in high school. I wish I would have been open to attending community colleges. I wish I knew my studying boundaries. More importantly, I wish I was financially prepared for the university of minnesota

I wish I had known myself better. I wish that I had taken some time to work at getting to know my dreams, hopes, and my strengths better. I look back on my undergraduate career and realize that I didn't take this time in my life seriously enough. I should have spent more time working in my community, exploring other options and living away from home. The University of Minnesota has so many career paths available, I thihind prospective students should give themselves time to really know themselves before deciding on a major.

That it is very easy to get around with the bus system.

I wish I would have had a better idea about how much it would cost and how little help I would get financially.

Nothing. I attended both a student and parent school orientation. In both situations, we are allowed to ask any questions we had and were given complete tours of all dacilities of the school. I was completely sold and comfortable with my knowledge of this school before making my choice.

How hard the classes would be, this being a science and medical based university, those classes are alot harder than at other universities.

Too be honest, I thought the school did a great job in giving me information about the school and the process in making decisions for classes. Therefore, there isn't anything I would wish i had known before.

That there is no real film program.

To read everything and stay on top of your school work because it is easy to fall behind in your classes.

I wish I had had a better sense of direction of where I wanted the remainder of my college and professional careers to point to before I came the University of Minnesota. I am currently in my 4th semester, and have taken numerous classes that fulfill requirements and help decide what not to pursue. I wish I could have started a major track as a freshman rather than a year later. It would have proven to me that I did have time for Marching Band, the greatest collegiate decision I made this year. I am glad I made that choice.

How to ride the free buses around campus. Plus, I wish I would have looked into all the groups, so that I could have become involved in sooner.

I would have wished to know how intense some courses are. Some were easy with hardly any work, yet classes with the same credits had lots of hard work.

How expensive off-campus housing is.

Nothing really. I got to know everything I needed to know before I came.

Before attending the University of Minnesota, I wish I had known more about classes and the grading systems used at our school. There really is not much I was completely unaware of because I did a lot of research before transferring to the University.

I wish that I would have known that most classes are designed to test who really knows the material and separate them from who does not. Many undergraduate level courses are designed to distinguish students who should be in that field from those who shouldn't. Therefore, sometimes it feels as though professors want you to fail. However, this school is really just requiring a stronger work ethic from its students than many other universities.

I wish I had known how to use the bus system more efficeintly before going to the University of Minnesota Twin Cities because it is located in a metropolitin area and I could not bring my car with me to college.

Although this could be applied to any college, I wish I would have know how to study properly. In college you really need good study skills and time management which I didn't really practice all that much in high school. I think that once you develop a good skill set for how to handle your school, work, and social life that you'll experience less stress and enjoy your college experience. It's all about balance, and that is exactly what college teaches you.

Think about everything you want to accomplish or experience while in college and try to plan it into your schedule ahead of time. Your advisors will not be as helpful to you as you can be to yourself if you plan ahead. They are mostly focused on meeting your academic requirements, not extra activities like studying abroad or internships. Don't just follow their advice blindly, think about if it makes sense for you.

I wish that I would have known how to manage my time better, because there are so many things going on at the University that I would like to participate in, but can not because I do not have time. Also, I wish that I would have known that it would be harder to make friends than I had thought it would be, since it is such a big school.

I wish I would have known how important high school was and if one has the opportunity to take AP classes, they should take full advantage of that because it will help in the end.

I wish I had known how hard it was to get financial aid or a scholarship from the university.

I wish I had known more about the clubs and other social activities. It didn't feel like the orientation was very helpful in that respect.

I wish I would have known that at the University of Minnesota - Twin Cities, every student is a number, rather than a student. Rarely, if ever, your professors know your name, and if they think they may know it, they don't bother trying because they figure they will say the incorrect name and the student will get angry at them.

How expensive it is to live in a city.

Nothing! its an adventure

Nothing about the school itself was a problem to me- I had enough knowledge about the school to prepare myself in that sense. The things I wish I would have known prior to attending are simply better financial and time management skills, but I would have had this problem at any school I attended.

I wish I had known about this school much earlier. During my college education, I have attended four different universities in two different states. Being at the University of MInnesota is the first time that I have felt that I belong somewhere. This university is a perfect match for me. I am currently being challenged in ways that I never thought possible, and am learning things about myself that I did not know until now.

How hard I was really going to have to work to succeed at this school.