<p>I wish I’d developed the relationships with my professors. Looking back, now, i see how many opportunities I had for that and the way I passed them all by. It’s the only advice I gave my daughter when she went to college, and, fortunately, she actually listened. (One sign your child is actually ready for college.)</p>
<p>She has had so many really awesome opportunities because of this.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Ditto for my D1.</p>
<p>^Yes, I’m sure our experiences (or lack thereof) contributed to how we encouraged or discouraged our children. </p>
<p>Both of my kids are/will be away for college and that’s a big departure from my experience.</p>
<p>Oh I have a long list, but the reality is that I met my DH at college #2 and we have a wonderful life. Having said that, if I knew that my current reality wouldn’t be changed I wish:
-my parents would have filled out a FAFSA
-that someone had shared with me what National Merit could have meant for me
-that I hadn’t commuted
-that I had the nerve to push back on my parents about “going away” to school
-that I had gone to school for the education and not just for the piece of paper
-that I had done a study abroad</p>
<p>Ditto on the experience or lack thereof influencing advice. I know that this is a big part of the attraction of St.O for me. I really got no advice when I needed it and bad advice at all the wrong times. The idea of an intentional, integrated, articulated process of vocational discernment, mentoring, shadowing, experiential learning, resume and interview help and job networking sounds really appealing to me. I wish I’d had that and want D to have it.</p>
<p>I wish I had studied abroad for a semester .</p>
<p>I wish I had used sunscreen when I went tubing right before graduation. I could barely straighten my legs the next day and only wore a pair of shorts underneath my cap and gown.</p>
<p>I wish I had studied abroad, joined a sorority, and built a mentoring relationship with at least one professor. </p>
<p>I had a bit of a minor falling out/drifting with my roommate at the end of 3 years of living together, and senior year moved to a single in one dorm while all of my girlfriends were together on a floor in another dorm. For years after I graduated I had dreams that I hadn’t finished college and had to go back - I’m sure it’s related to feeling like I let my friendships slip away my senior year. If I had joined a sorority, I’d have had a network to stay with after graduation. And after attending a small LAC specifically so I could have small class sizes, I failed to make a real connection with a single professor - probably because I never really tried to make one.</p>
<p>I wish I had studied more in the subjects that didn’t interest me. I did great in my major but could not have cared less (or tried less) in those that I thought were meaningless. </p>
<p>Also, like someone else said, I wish I hadn’t partied so much. Even at a school ranked #1 in partying I was the king of partying. Luckily nothing bad ever happened to me, but I was incredibly lucky I wasn’t killed, or that I didn’t end up an alcoholic (like the time I was so wasted I ran in front of a car and it hit me, knocked me up the street, and ran directly over me). </p>
<p>Kids, if you read this please realize that excessive drinking can cause SO MANY problems that you aren’t even aware of at this point in your lives.</p>
<p>I wish I did a study abroad, heck I wish I looked INTO a study abroad. I just assumed I could not afford it but had I looked into it further it wouldn’t have cost me any more doing that then staying on campus other than the plane fare (for the school I attended). I paid 100% of my own schooling so money was TIGHT but I could have figured out a way to do that if I had known. We told the kids they WILL do a study abroad (and they are more than willing).</p>
<p>Found time to take an economics class. Gotten more involved in extra curricular activities. I did try out a bunch of new things freshman year, but as it turns out I might have been better off doing things I was actually good at! I saw more of Boston through architecture classes than most of my friends, but still could have done more I think.</p>
<p>What I did right was to pick a tiny major I loved. In a school that has a reputation for not being nice to their students, I knew most of mine by their first names and worked intimately with two of them on a senior thesis. It was almost impossible to do a junior year abroad back then, but I did finagle the college into giving me a grant to spend the summer before my senior year doing research in Europe.</p>
<p>I didn’t take art history 101 (Fine Arts 13), but I did sit in on all the lectures and bought a copy of Jansen (which I still own and has been used by my kids). I also persuaded my boyfriend (now husband) to audit art history as well! The best part - I got to see Professor Ackerman the quintessential absentminded professor set himself on fire with his pipe.</p>
<p>Not nursing. I would have been happier as a teacher. Or something to do with language.</p>
<p>I’m another one wishing I would have done a semester abroad. But I was putting myself through college and at the time the $5000 price appeared too steep. Plus the four months away from my boyfriend seemed too long. </p>
<p>Thirty years later I tell my daughters debt eventually gets paid and boyfriends may come and go.</p>
<p>I was just so happy to get away from home. College was great. I did a summer abroad in '76. Met H. Son did year abroad. Said summer wouldn’t be enough. D did year +summer internship abroad.</p>
<p>Of 10 kids in a highly dysfunctional family, I am the only one who ever graduated from college.</p>
<p>I wish I had taken advantage of the gym, swimming pool, yoga classes, etc. I had no idea how expensive a gym membership was going to be once I was out of school.</p>
<p>I also put myself through college and never considered a semester abroad. Although I’m alright with that. One of my older brothers (5 years older) paid for my flight to Europe summer of freshman year. Otherwise, I could not have afforded it.</p>
<p>Oh, my gosh … there is nothing I wish I had done in college. Everything I did made me the person I am today (and yes, I made some mistakes ;)). There is nothing I didn’t do that I wish I had done. I was in a co-op school so worked all through & had a good job when I graduated. I had small classes with profs we knew well … some even joined us at the bar (18 was legal back then). I was in a sorority, went on spring break in Ft. Lauderdale, made the Dean’s List, had a very eclectic group of friends and acquaintances from all over the US, Ontario, and Quebec. Best of all I met my husband!</p>
<p>Last night, we got together with a bunch of H’s fraternity brothers — I have loved knowing them all these years, seeing them settle down with wonderful women and raise great kids. I am so grateful that I got stuck attending my alma mater (I didn’t have money for college & it was cheap + I got paid for my every-other-semester co-op job).</p>
<p>Has more fun!!! Since I was paying my own way through, I took 21 credits a semester to double-major in four years. Not fun!!!</p>
<p>I wish I had NOT take a Year Abroad. Preferable for me would have been:
<ol>
<li>I wish I had attended more concerts, lectures, plays, etc.</li>
<li>I wish I had taken more survey courses in areas I knew nothing about, and fewer courses that I only took because I was “supposed to” or it was a “good idea.” (Calculus, accounting).</li>
<li>I wish I had avoided all classes with professors who were boring or obnoxious, and had pursued more classes with excellent profs.</li>
<li>I wish I had gone to more office hours (of the good profs).</li>
<li>I wish I had more seriously considered grad school instead of law school–I should have sought out more advice.</li>
</ol>