Random College Related Rant

Everyone has their own opinions of their college experience. Everyone has their own ideas as to what should come out of their time spent at college. As someone who is a graduating senior this upcoming semester, I would highly suggest to younger students to begin thinking about what they want out of their experience as soon as possible. Advisors in college aren't the same as they were in high school, at least not like the one I had at my high school. Our brace advisor in HS was extremely helpful, making sure we knew deadlines and requirements. Advisors in college? They can change before you even turn your back around to say bye to them. &More likely than not, they don't know you personally so they don't know the best ways to help you get to your next step in life.

GRE, GMAT, LSAT. What do all of these things mean? Why do we have to take them after taking 4 years of college-level classes? Most students find out about deadlines and requirements a little too late and end up scrambling to get everything done. I, for example, speak from experience - repeatedly changing my mind about what I want to do after graduation didn't help much either. I've also seen firsthand through working in the graduate admissions office for psychology at FSU that there are a lot of students, from all different parts of the country and world, who just don't know what to do sometimes. I'm not sure why some students seem to know more than others, but seeing how universities and colleges employ advisors, in my opinion, they should advise more often. In talking with other friends, some have even told me they have spoken to advisors who clearly had no idea what they were talking about - at my school and at different universities. If this is a worldwide, or countrywide, problem something needs to change.

Do we come to college to find life-long friends, husbands, wives, etc? Some of us do. In between studying and partying and stressing out, some of us meet people who seem to be the ones we'll keep in our lives forever. Through finals and breakups and rough hangovers, a lot of us meet friends that will stand by us no matter what. The realization that college may be some of the most important, moving, and fun years of our lives has set in for me. With graduation in the somewhat near future, I think back on my years at FSU and even through the hard tests, unsatisfying grades on papers, drunken nights, and rough mornings - the friends by my side stand out in my memory.

So whether you decide after college that you're going on to graduate, law, or medical school, or plan to enter an armed force, or have every intention of getting a full-time job and never plan on going back to school, figure out what it is you want to do and go for it. Don't let deadlines and requirements hold you back. Don't let not knowing something stop you; although an advisor may not be the best source of information, your professors know a lot and so does the internet - of course. Ask your friends, your parents, and your peers. The only stupid question is a question not asked.


XOXO, E