Western Oregon University Top Questions

What's the one thing you wish someone had told you about freshman year?

David

I wish I had known how expensive college really was. There's the tutition cost, but before you come to college you have to know that you will be spending more money than just what you spend on the standard fees. There's the costs of room and board, all the supplies you will need and textbooks. Most colleges will give you an estimate to what this will cost but in my experience I ended up losing a lot more money than I thought I would. It put extra pressure on me and my family, I wish I'd known.

Miranda

I wish I had known more about the communities to live in as a freshman on campus.

Mariah

I would have loved to have more knowlegde as to what I was really suppose to do when i transfered over from a community college to a university. There was very little knowledge of how to officially start a degree plan. The coaches didn't really tell the tranfers how to do all that. There was a lot of paper work that needed to be filed.

Angel

I wish I had known how awesome the dance program is because I would have started it way earlier.

Charlene

I wish that I had been more prepared for the amount of research that is needed in order to do the work. I did not do a lot of reasearch in high school, so having to look things up and study was a fairly new thing for me.

Blanca

One of the things I wish I knew before coming to Western Oregon University (WOU) is knowing that I could of gotten paid for showing my dorn to the people that get a campus tour at our school. Another thing I wish I knew was knowing that we have many helpful resources to support us academically. For example, the learning center. The Learning Center is where WOU students get two hours of free tutoring for each class we have.

Kendal

Before attending WOU, I wish I would've known more about the nursing department and how loans really worked beforehand. It's very intimidating as a freshman trying to pay for college by his or herself to understand everything about each loan and choosing which one is the right one for you. Also, the lack of student jobs available was very disappointing,

Emily

Ill be beginning school at Western in the fall but have completed my AAOT at Chemeketa. I wish I would have known (before going to Chemeketa) that college is like an awesome version of high school. You get to choose your classes, which there are many more options of, and you get to pick your hours. The only thing that you don’t factor in when preparing for college is that adult life kicks in and you have to be responsible for yourself, bills and work. By managing time and budget well, you can lead a happy, successful college life.

Michele

That you need to be in charge of your own pacing to graduate on time. Many advisors don't know about specialty programs and deadlines.

Elizabeth

I wish I had known that a lot of people party. I'm not a party person so it would have been nice to know.

Caitlin

Before I came to Western I wish I would have known to apply for more scholarships. I also wish I would have been more aware of the fact that college is a huge step in growing up. I knew that it was a part of growing up, but didn't realize the impact it would have on me. I feel like I went from a toddler to an adult. It's all a learning process. One step at a time.

Ariel

I wish that I would have practiced time management more before coming to this school. That has been one of my biggest challenges. And if I was going to give advice to anyone about attending college I would say to manage your time wisely and if you don't know how to do that ask people who do. Talk to teachers, friends, or even find a class to take about time management.

Sonja

I wish I had known how important it was to pay your parking tickets before the next semester! If you had any unpaid tickets, they would hold your funds until they had been paid.

Janaye

I wish I would have known how difficult it would be being in a college setting at only 17. It's a challenge because you're a bit looked down on and sometimes left out when the kids go dancing or just out in general. Even though it's a challenge, it was worth it to graduate early and get a head start on my career.

Kelly

I wish I had known that the academic advisors were not very helpful.

Teresa

How small the community was and how accessable everything was if you weren't able to drive to go to major stores.

Sam

I wish I had known it'd be so easy to get in once I graduated. I graduated with Honors and a 3.69 GPA, but continued to work in my small town's supermarket. My girlfriend of 16 months now, was applying, so I decided to go through the same application procedure. We both got accepted, and we both love it. My social life has greatly increased, and I love every aspect of it. It's hard, but I aspire to becoming a successful teacher. Western offers that.

Mayra

n/a

Ellen

That I can do it!