<p>I am an incoming freshman this semester! I am not as excited as I should be; I am actually more stressed out. I NEED advice.
If you could redo some things, what would they be? It could be concerning anything from building relationships with counselors, friends, teachers, etc... to changing a bad grade into a better one. Thank you so much in advance! Any feedback will be appreciated! </p>
<p>Switching schools Junior year. Don’t transfer Junior year.</p>
<p>I’ll be a college freshman this fall. I would have tested out of more classes and tried to finish all my graduation requirements by the end of sophomore year so I could take dual-enrollment classes full time for two years rather than just one like I did, but I guess that’s too specific to be useful, so here are some random comments and advice. (A lot of this stuff is from old posts I made on other threads, so I’m not really as pathetic as you might think based on the length of this post.)</p>
<p>Talk to your parents about how you’re going to pay for college. This is at the top because it’s really important.</p>
<p>Remember that you’ll probably change a lot in the next four years…it’s fine to think about your future, but don’t expect your goals and interests to stay the same. People tell me this about college and I feel really sad because I like the way I am now, but that’s just how it is. :-S</p>
<p>This website has a lot of useful information and it bothers me when people try to push freshmen away, but it can also destroy your self-esteem if you let it. The fact that you’re on here indicates that you’re probably above average.</p>
<p>High school is a lot like middle school except with harder assignments. I know a lot of people disagree, but I don’t really understand why. You go to school, go to class, talk to people, and go home.</p>
<p>High school in real life is nothing like high school in any movie I’ve ever seen. People are more down-to-earth and less stereotyped, and there aren’t really discrete cliques with labels. No one really cares all that much what you look like or what you wear.</p>
<p>Don’t worry about having a social life. The operative word here is “worry.” You should talk to people and try to befriend them, but you won’t always succeed at this, so you should also be okay with being alone. Similarly, you might go through high school without anyone letting on that they want to go out with you, and that doesn’t mean no one will ever like you or that you’re defective or something. High school is just weird.</p>
<p>You shouldn’t judge people without first hearing them talk in a class discussion. 
I really love class discussions because they allow you to see people’s philosophical sides, and I’ve been surprised a lot of times by the intelligence of people I previously thought were dimwitted/boring.</p>
<p>You shouldn’t worry too much about the real-world applications of what you learn in high school. Learning is valuable for its own sake. High school and college are probably the only years of your life when you’ll be able to focus solely on learning more about the world and your place in it without having to worry too much about paying bills or working at a job. (Real life sucks a lot of the time and shouldn’t be shoved into everything more than it already has been.)</p>
<p>Most college students change their major at least once, so it’s fine if you don’t know what you want to do yet, but you should have some idea of what you want to do going into college so you can graduate in four years. Don’t worry too much about structuring your high school schedule around your intended major, though. You’re not supposed to be specializing yet. </p>
<p>Don’t let freshman year define you. If you’re behind, work hard to catch up. I took non-honors Algebra I as a freshman, but by the end of junior year I finished AP Calculus BC.</p>
<p>Procrastinating is okay if you’re good at it, but it wastes a lot of time and you should try to avoid it if possible.</p>
<p>Homework can be done at lunch, during slow times in other classes, or in the morning before school starts.</p>
<p>Different schools calculate weighted GPA differently, so your goal should just be to get straight As in the most challenging courses possible and be in the top 10% of your class.</p>
<p>Stay on teachers’ good sides as much as possible. Don’t annoy them about your grades unless it’s really necessary. </p>
<p>It’s actually possible to get a B in gym.</p>
<p>The difficulty of junior year compared to the other years is overrated. Either that or I don’t really remember how easy freshman year was.</p>
<p>If you live in Ohio or Minnesota (and maybe some other places, I’m not sure), you can take free college classes through PSEO while you’re in high school, and I highly recommend it. </p>
<p>The best way to prepare for standardized tests is by taking practice tests…just reading through the prep book doesn’t help all that much. I got high scores despite not taking a prep class, so I don’t think they’re worth it, though they might be for some people. I know this is really obvious, but take the PSAT starting now or next year, and practice for the SAT and/or ACT so you can get the best score possible. Having high scores will help you a lot for admissions and merit aid. </p>
<p>Start your ECs early. Remember that there are lots of things you can do other than just school clubs. You should try to find a couple specific things you’re interested in and really focus on them and accomplish things related to them. I think the word “passion” is really overused on here, because in my mind passion is something that develops over time after you make a choice to work hard at something. It’s not something the world just thrusts on you, so don’t worry if you don’t really know what you’re interested in yet.</p>
<p>College applications will not ask how many volunteer hours you have (though some scholarship applications might, and they might be required to graduate from your high school). Your ECs can involve community service, but they don’t have to. </p>
<p>Look for free, selective summer programs. The expensive non-selective ones aren’t as impressive. If you don’t get into a program, volunteer somewhere or get a job. (Paid employment is underrated on here for some reason. I mean, usually the work sucks, but I think it says more about your character and work ethic than something you had to pay for.) [url=<a href=“http://cty.jhu.edu/imagine/resources/internships/]Here[/url”>http://cty.jhu.edu/imagine/resources/internships/]Here[/url</a>] is a listing of internships and [url=<a href=“http://cty.jhu.edu/imagine/resources/summer_programs/index.html]here[/url”>http://cty.jhu.edu/imagine/resources/summer_programs/index.html]here[/url</a>] is a listing of summer programs for high school students. </p>
<p>Keep a notebook or a Word document filled with random sentences and essay ideas you think of. It will be useful when you write your admissions essays later.</p>
<p>The experience you’re going to write your college essay about most likely hasn’t happened yet, so don’t start your essays before the middle of junior year or so. Also, your writing will improve a lot from freshman to junior year.</p>
<p>Most of your merit aid will come from the colleges you apply to, not random scholarships you find on the Internet, so don’t waste too much time applying to them. </p>
<p>I’m graduating next school year! Class of 2015 woot woot! <:-P
Anyway, for your question, I regret not volunteering throughout high school. I wish I started getting hours as early as Freshman Year. To boast your college app as well as help you narrow down some career choices in the future if you haven’t already. Also, I wish I talked to my counselor more. Instead of aimlessly wondering around, questioning if I’m taking the right classes, right choices towards my college major/dreams, I wished I just went to her and asked for her help. I don’t know why I didn’t…I’ve always been a very awkward and shy kid. That brings me to my next point, don’t be afraid to just get out there. If you are shy like me, don’t be afraid to try things that are out of your comfort zone! Try to experience as much as you can (talking about things that could benefit you, NO DRUGS and other harmful stuffs). Another piece of advice, if you can, join a sports team. High school was better for me because I’ve met amazing people through the team. I met a lot of new people and made new friends. They became my best friends that made high school fun as hell!
Good luck to you! </p>
<p>Don’t spend your time obsessing over anything unless you plan to do something about it. I remember I spent ages looking up summer programs, but I never got around to applying to any of them and it was a complete waste of time.
Also, in the same note, start looking for summer programs early. I seriously regret not doing so.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>I would have done more things that made me truly happy. This includes not wasting hundreds of hours on something you think colleges will like and also hanging out and spending time with people whose company you genuinely enjoy. I made the mistake of being caught up in the drama of high school cliques and popularity in the first two years of high school. I was constantly surrounded by the negativity of who hated who.</p></li>
<li><p>I would have tried out more things. I regret being too afraid of failing to try out many things. I now wish I had tried out for a sports team or joined debating. It’s a lot easier to start and get good at something when you’re a freshman. At the same time, once I figured out what I liked, I would have whittled down my list of ECs to the ones I truly enjoy.</p></li>
<li><p>I would have taken better care of myself. I wanted to do too much, and ended up sacrificing my health. It’s not worth it sleeping 3 hours per night just to achieve what you want. I felt okay after a night of sleep deprivation, but the nights add up, and it definitely takes a toll on your health. I wish I had just avoided over-committing myself and slept more (as lazy as that makes me sound).</p></li>
<li><p>I would stop procrastinating XD Easier said than done.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>Bump.</p>
<p>I wish I had taken more difficult classes freshman and sophomoer year. I did not challenge myself because I didn’t know how much it mattered back then. Junior year I really loaded up and Senior year I’m attempting to “make up” for the lack of self-challenging I had shown in my first two years of HS.</p>
<p>Don’t be so uptight. And don’t be shy either. And don’t give a **** about what other people think. Even if classmates think you’re a total kiss-a**, don’t listen to them; instead establish good relationships with all your teachers, volunteer in class more, and don’t hide your enthusiasm for the subject matter. Be more assertive. Stop constantly comparing yourself to others. But at the same time, care less about grades, especially freshman year. Don’t covet the valedictorian title so much; instead do something (clubs, other ECs, whatever) that will actually make you stand out to college admissions.</p>
<p>Never assume you know what you want to do, and try to get as well-rounded of an education as possible.</p>
<p>Rambling personal story behind this if you haven’t seen other posts by me blah blah blah: I was so sure since middle school that I wanted to be a physicist or an engineer. I focused too much… in the beginning of my junior year, I dropped Latin, which I had taken for 4 years prior and which I had a real talent for. I took regular American literature rather than honours or AP lang, which I was recommended for. I took three honours/AP level science courses, and really only truly applied myself in classes that I thought were science-related. I applied to engineering/tech schools in senior year. After applying to colleges, I found that I wanted to major in English, so I took a gap year and now have to apply to schools a second time.</p>
<p>High school is NOT the time to focus your education.</p>
<p>Also, you’ll miss Latin when it’s gone.</p>
<p>With that said, best of luck :)</p>
<p>Don’t ever play games, just don’t.</p>
<p>Honestly, I would’ve kept to my self a lot more during freshman year and not really attempt to make friends. A lot of people at my HS already knew each other and had a lot of crazy past drama.</p>
<p>I wish I was also more aware of the college application process from the start and participated in more activities. I wasn’t made aware of this stuff until around second semester. I would have chosen more rigorous courses and maybe try and get ahead so I can be able to take all the classes I’m interested in by the time I graduate. Lastly, I would consider cutting my hair off before freshman year started. </p>
<p>@halcyonheather I wish I was in your HS, the clique situation at my school is unreal</p>
<p>This isn’t to stress you out more, but if I could redo anything in high school, it would be my entire freshmen year. Honestly, there were so many stupid things I ended up doing. I got a B in AP Human Geography the whole year, and a B in Algebra 2 Honors first semester. I know that I could’ve done better, and I was definitely slacking. I also ended up taking Digital Design 1, which was a complete waste of time since I could’ve taken a class with a Dual Enrollment credit, though at least I got Photoshop CS6 certified. I wasted a lot of time in clubs that weren’t relavent at all to what I was planning to go into, like Art Club and Writer’s Guild. I also didn’t even try with my science fair project, so I did a project on the “Effect of Different Color Lights on Plant Growth.” </p>
<p>I would redo freshman and sophomore year (Well just AP Psych and WHAP in 10th). I really blew off school and just waltzed by with my “intelligence”. Don’t become to arrogant for school. If you work hard you will succeed. I have a high GPA now because I turned my life around, but all of it could have been avoided if I just tried harder freshman and sophomore year. </p>
<p>I would have more fun!</p>