Advices from other students
There is nothing better than sharing life experience. I often invite graduates who are working in the industry to come back and give a lecture in my class where they share their experiences and provide advices to current students. This year, I ask them to response to a simple question: “What do you wish you had known about college before entering?” Here are a few responses of what they wrote that they wish they had known when they were students.
“I wish I knew about career planning when I went to college. I selected the field of study that all my friends had selected so I could be with them. The fact was high school friendships did not last long in college and I struggled for a long time before I had the courage to switch to another field of study and found new friends. Had I known this, I could have saved myself a lot of time and efforts.”
“I was one of those college students who were too immature to realize why I was there. I spent more time in parties and meeting girls rather than study. I moved from one class to another without any direction and wasted my parents' money. I was placed on probation due to my poor performance. I struggled for a while and even thought about quit school until I took the “Introduction to Information Systems.” That class opened my eyes about what technology can do which set a new direction for me and I learned how to be a good student. My first “A” grade was very promising and even surprised my parents. Following was several “A” in the next few classes where I excelled in technology courses. I am working in Google now and enjoy it. If someone like me can do well, I think all of you can do well too. My advice: Study Information technology and build a good career.”
“I wish I knew that in the knowledge-based economy, the only thing more expensive than getting a college education is NOT getting one. Every student must understand significant economic gains from getting a college degree regardless of how much does it cost or how much work they must do.”
“I wish I had been taught on how to study in college. As young student I did not know how to study and I wasted a lot of time before I developed that skill. Studying in college is difference from high school and it never been taught. I learned it after several failures. I think university should have a class called “How to study in College” to all first year students.”
“I wish I should know more about the real world before going to college, so I had some idea why I was going. Had I known more about careers, skills and myself, I would have made different choices in college.”
“If I had known how much money I would make on the software engineering degree that I had, I would not have complained so much about the program had too much reading, too many quizzes and too many homeworks. All the hard works in this program really paid off. Students should not complain about the works but consider it is the best investment of their lives.”
“I wish that I had known more about several options that I could have about careers instead of selected the field of study based on what I did well in high school and get stuck with a low paying job on the degree that I graduated in.”
“My family was poor and I had to work to support myself through school so I learned about college cost very early in my life. With the cost college keeps increasing, students need to make sure that their education investment will be worth it. It is your money, it is your future, and it is your life so select the right school and the right field of study.”
“I wish I had known more about my field of study and the job market. I do not use my degree for my job now, and I keep hearing about how others are doing very well with their right skills in technology industry. Students should learn about the job market when they select their field of study else they will be sorry for the rest of their lives.”
“I was the first in my family to go to college. I wish I had someone who guides me in my first year as I learned from a lot of mistakes. College moves at a much faster pace than high school and if you do not manage your time well, you will be left behind. Time management is very important, especially in the first year.”
“I wish I put more time to build the foundation in the first year. Although I passed all classes but I struggled for I did not study hard when entered college. Learning is not about passing tests but about develop your own knowledge as each class is built on top of others. I spent more time on second year to relearn what I should have known in the first year and to catch up with my classmates. It brought my grade down and I had to work real hard to survive.
Sources
- Blogs of Prof. John Vu, Carnegie Mellon University
