What initially started you thiking about college? How did you decide on the particular college that you are attending? How did you know what to major in? How has this process changed you as a person? How has this process changed the way you see the world and that you interact with the world? Has this process thus far been postive, negative, or a combination? What wil this process ultimately bring you/
124414
What initially drive me to think about college was the pressure of my parents and the people around me to attend college. I decide on the college that I would go to by just checking all their program and see what match. This progress is very tedious, although in the end i was able to control my life and the way i see fit. Along the way I have met many who share the same interest as me. This process will bring u a sense of acccomplishment once u fully are invigorated in that idea.As it seem I chose to major in dentistry because it is a profession that have been long to fulfill.
104774
at the end of high school, I asked myself: "wow very wonderful all those general knowledge (sincere consideration) but ... how do I complete a cheque?"\n\n\nat the end of university (and had to look myself for it, very hard, having not much time), I asked myself "who am I?, what kind of job fits with my heart?, what do those sciences explain?, what does my degree mean?, what kind of society are we living in?, what and how can I contribute?\n\nI would have appreciated:\n\n- science phylopsophy included in the curriculum:\n\nso to warn not to narrow down the way you view the world and life; positive western sciences are rational limited explanations of how's with each one of them having its own logic and method; they do certainly not give answers on the why's and need therefore to be situated towards other disciplines like life considerations (religions, philosophies e.g.), culture, sociology, politics, ...\n\n- courses of learning to learn & of learning to search and select information & learning what you as an adult and your degree/job mean in society (which law, services, ....)\n\nI discovered in a more systematic way all that afterwards, feeling then not too much alone with my feelings and opinions while in my job\nI consider myself blessed by those discoveries and conscious of the benefits those would bring to others if they had the opportunity (time) to do them too;\nit is a hard way, the other way for fresh students, certainly in today's context of more and more liberalism, individualism and financial strains\n\n\nI must say I appreciated a lot a course of biology, while studying electromechanics, studying the human body so to understand how you can cope with stress, food, ... i.e. keep your health\n\n(and otherwise I cannot complain about my education)
126024
There are many factors which will influence what your college experience will be like.  Just remember that it REALLY IS what you make of it.\n\nHopefully, you'll be living on campus, or at least away from home!  Make friends...but be weary, many people change while in collge.  What you think a person is all about on day one, freshman year, will most likely change by soph or jr year....you'll change too, even if you don't realize it.\n\nKnow what you want:  are grades your priority?  then get comfortable w/ the library and work out a system to do your reading and studying.  \n\nkeep an ear out for where the parties are.  i dont know of any college where the parties aren't fun, at least for freshman.  you will probably drink a lot, maybe gain a few pounds b/c you're eating disgusting cafeteria food, but just try and STAY BALANCED!  \n\nwork out at the gym, or if you hate gyms, swim at the pool or walk around the town where your college is to get aquainted.\n\ni always made my own food b/c i hated cafeteria food so much.  if you like being inependent and wouldnt mind grocery shopping, you'll be amazed w/ what can be done in a mircrowave and toaster oven.  \n\ngood luck!
172837
My first semester of college I nearly went insane. I was sick all the time, I was scared to meet new people, and it seemed like everyone else was a genius compared to me. My chemistry class is was kept me sane. \n\nIt helped that it was smaller (60-70 people.) It was still twice the size of my high school classes, but less than half the size of a normal lecture at my college. The professor was GREAT. He was the first professor to learn my name, or even seem to care that I, as an individual, understood the material. AT the time, it was a big deal. He was also a great teacher in general. He liked to do demonstrations and involve the students in them. \n\nMost importantly, for whatever reason, I ended up becoming friends with a lot of people in that class. Nerds are drawn to one another, perhaps? I'm not sure what I would have done without it.
493351
I'm an instructor at a community college. I wish I had more students like you. Here are some of the conclusions I have come to. First, many of the students are there for reasons other than learning. Many of my younger students are there because their parents have issued ultimatums making them choose to work or go to school. For some reason they think school is easier and choose that option. Second, too many students come out of high school under prepared for college. They don't know how to organize their time, study effectively, or take notes. Third, our society has moved away from the idea of personal responsibility. Everyone is so worried about blaming others for their faults or believing that everyone else is responsible for their learning. They don't understand that the only person responsible for them is them. I am a facilitator of learning but I do not have the power to just give them knowledge. From talking to my friends at other colleges (4 year state and private) they are seeing the same trends albeit not on the same scale.
521325
I would think long and hard before I decided to graduate early. There are some people it's right for, but they are few and far between. \n\nThe people I've known who did that were notably emotionally behind their peers in college. A lot happens in your senior year. People change a lot in those last few months. The pressure of grades is off once you're accepted to college. The pettiness of teenagers starts fading once they realize it's almost over. It doesn't seem as important to pick on each other, and they start getting nostalgic for the high school days that are ending. This frees everybody up to stop worrying, have fun, and mature a lot.\n\nThat said, what is college like... well, it's harder than high school. The work is harder, and so is the personal responsibility. There is no one to tell you to study, no one to tell you to go to class, no one to tell you that doing <insert bad decision here> is a really bad idea. Which is nice if you're ready to take on that responsibility yourself, but can get you really screwed up if you're not.\n\nThe nice thing about college is it's a fresh start. No one knows you, no one cares who you were in high school. Some of my best friends my freshman year were people that I never would have talked to/never would have talked to me. All the freshmen are nervous and unsure and pretty much all you have to do is say hi for them to latch onto you and be your friend. For the first week, anyway.\n\nThe bad thing is that you usually don't get any guidance unless you actively seek it. You may have to learn to be very assertive to get an idea of what classes you should be taking, what majors lead to what careers, whether you should do an internship and how to arrange it, pretty much everything. You can float through and hope to fall into a good job (which does happen to some people), but more often you'll just get lost if you aren't really motivated and self-directed.
159466
I found it the most exciting, eye-opening, mind blowing experience of my life.  Everything you think you know will be challenged, what you don't know anything about you will discover, and what you have a passion for will be revealed. It will set you on the course of who you will become, the kind of person you want to be and give you the tools you will need to accomplish that.\n\nOf course, you can also party through school, squander the opportunity and turn a blind eye to everything you learn that challenges you to think. I know many people who did just that and regret it today.\n\nI learned so much as an undergrad that I continued educating my self through a post graduate degree.  I don't believe I would have been so successful in my businesses if my experiences at the universities would not have taught me so much about the world and myself.\n\nGood luck, remember to have some fun and enjoy the challenge.
326598
The best part of college is that it allows you to figure out what you really love!  You don't have to declare a major to start college.  Just take a wide variety of classes, you may discover that you want to major in a subject that you never even considered.  Explore and follow your heart!  You'll be fine!
631878
In my ideal world, I would have stayed in college meaning I would have been done a long time ago. Right now, I plan on graduating December 2007 with an associates degree. Of course I want to fulfill my dreams and ambitions, that is what is driving me and motivating me to finish school.\n\nRight now, I feel that I am headed in a very good direction. I have a job, albeit a fast food job, but a job none the less. I plan on looking for a job after the new year in the profession that I'm majoring in in school.
642545
Completing my college degree is important to me because I came up from nothing. I did not have good influences in my life, I dropped out of high school and I was on the wrong path in life. Several years later, at an age that most people have already graduated college, I began taking classes. It was to prove to myself, my family, and my community that I was not another statistic. I ended realizing that I am smarter than I ever thought. I am now a sophomore with a 4.0 GPA pursuing my degree in Industrial Engineering and I hope to go on and get my M.B.A. \nAll of that in itself will be a major achievement to me, but I hope to own a Engineering firm someday and also play a major role in my community by helping troubled youth and others who might not otherwise go to college. Bottom line, it has saved my life.
350504
I'm glad that I went to community college.  The classes are smaller, and the professors usually know your name.  It's a good adjustment to college, and then after two years you will be ready to transfer to a big college, and enjoy the college life.  Good Luck on your decision....if you need more advice on this topic, just email me.
480545
What Are Your Strengths?\n\nWhat Do You Regard As Your Major Achievement?\n\nWhy Did You Decide On This College?\n\nWhat Did You Get Out Of Your Academics?\n\nWhere Do You See Yourself N Years Later?\n\nHow Would Your Friends Describe You?\n\nWhat Have You Learnt From Your School Experience?\n\nWhat Has Been Your Biggest Failure?\n\nWhat Skills Will You Develop Here?\n\nWho Is Your Role Model?\n\nWhat Do You Do In Your Spare Time?\n\nIf We Accept You, Will You Join us?\n\nWhat Do You Not Like Doing?\n\nDo You Have Any Questions for Me?\n\nWhat Other College Options Have You Considered?\n\nWhat Are Your Weaknesses?
663672
This question dominates most students' minds when thinking generally about "what to do" in college. Your attitude toward your interests, and selecting a college or university that is a good match for your learning style, abilities, and skills is as critical as the financial considerations of going to college!\n\nToday, the largest universities offer hundreds of degrees in programs that range from preparation for graduate school to specialized education in an emerging technology. With all this to choose from, how do you know what to pick?\n\nMost guidance professionals in colleges and high schools will tell you that the average student changes majors three to five times during a four-year degree, and the average working adult makes at least three career changes.\n\nLet's use the analogy of a career "toolbox". No matter what you choose, you will need a standard set of tools that will serve you during your working lifetime. This toolbox should include, at minimum: communications skills (critical reading, writing, listening, and public speaking); information management skills (identifying, retrieving, assembling, and presenting data from sources such as libraries, the World-Wide Web, etc.); and human relationship skills (being able to conduct business with people from a variety of cultural backgrounds.\n\nThese tools are considered transferable and essential by most corporations and non-profit agencies throughout the American, and, increasingly, the global workforce. Now, think of your interests. For example, if you are interested in teaching, love geography, are very comfortable with computer software,\nand have been playing the trombone for 10 years, you know a lot about yourself!\n\nYour first job is to use any of the common college search guides, such as Peterson's, Barron's, Fiske's, etc. to narrow your choice of schools that offer all of these interests. The CD-ROM technology and on-line services such as CollegeLink or CollegeTown make this process easier. Next, determine\nwhich colleges offer your interests in the form of a major, a minor, a series of elective credits, or non-traditional programs such as self-designed majors.\n\nIf you really do want to combine academic areas, such as geography, education, and music, you will want to choose a college where it is normal for students to develop individualized programs. Make sure faculty mentors are involved with course selection, and you can graduate within the time frame you expect. If you really want to teach, but want to keep up with your trombone playing, you may want to consider taking electives in music and "major" in one area.\n\nFinally, understand that you do not have to choose your major or academic area at most colleges until the second, or sophomore, year. Most schools have common freshman requirements that allow for exploring different majors.\n\nIf you are interested in so many things that you find it hard to choose, consider that a good thing! Find a school that specializes in integrating your interests into a personalized academic program. See your guidance counselor for advice on picking colleges that offer this option.
626596
I've changed sexuality (or rather my perception of it) First I was straight, then I was gay, then I was ashamed & scared so I thought I'd be straight...\n\n...I was in my twenties before I realised I was Bi - would I change it? Not on your nelly.\n\nI hope you have a fantastic time in college - but remember you're also there to study LOL!
670315
People have given you some good advice here, and I just wanted to add one thing from my recent admissions experience.  I was just accepted to a PhD program (not psych, but another social science) with a 4-year funding package to work with a professor I really admire.  \n\nI wanted to share that one of the most important (and overlooked) steps in the grad school admissions process, in my opinion, is the program visit.  I was accepted at all of the programs I visited, and I was denied by the one I didn't.  I wrote to the grad program directors of the programs to which I was applying and requested interviews with professors and current students.  At my chosen program, I met with the professor who will be my advisor, the dept. chair, the admissions committee members, current students, the head of the certificate program I'll be pursuing outside the department, and, of course, the secretaries (also known as "the gatekeepers" in most programs).  It was a lot of hard work (and quite nervewracking), but SO worth it.  Not only did I get inside advice on the admissions process, I got a "good word" from the prof I wanted to work with and a good feeling about fitting in with the department.  \n\nI wish you the best!
574900
Hello Tiffany,\n\nI had my doubts about going but once I completed my AA I felt more confident about the online programs... It is a lot harder than a campus because you have to go at your on pace but stay focus and you will go far!\n\nJAM
535986
For a while after I got my B.A. (in English Lit) I felt like I would have been about the same as I ended up, at least economically.  I did learn a lot of cool stuff though...  \n\nAfter 5 years, I went back to school for my Master's degree, which I couldn't have done without getting my B.A.  Now I'm in a much better situation than I could have been without going to college ( I make about 3 times what I was making when I finished undergrad), and I do what interests me.\n\nSo at this point, I'd say it was definitely worthwhile to stay in school.