Mistakes I made my first year in college and how you can do better

 Hello everyone. Long time no read, huh? Sorry I have been away for almost a year but as you might know last year was my first year in college and with COVID-19 it was crazy. As you all also know, I am now a Senior in college since I received my associates last August so reflecting on the year that just past I wanted to give you some advice. 

So here is a list of mistakes I made in my first year of college and how you can do better!

1. Apply to scholarships year round. So something I was not expecting at all was how little scholarships I was going to be eligible for once I no longer was in high school. It seriously went from thousands to a couple dozen. Scholarships for college students in my experience have way more requirements such as major, concentration, career interest and even more. Out of the 200 some scholarships on my college's scholarship board I was literally eligible for 2... and one of them I couldn't apply for because I needed work experience in the PR field to reflect on in the essay and well the scholarship was due a month before I started my PR internship. The other scholarship I was eligible for was for only $900. Of course that is better than nothing but it's not as much as you'd hope for. With such a narrow pool of scholarships it is important to apply year round and always keep your eye open for opportunities. Thankfully, I ended up getting an internship with a stipend of about $3,500 and I still have my academic scholarship so I will be fine, but if you depend on scholarships and financial aid to go to school, you need to seriously consider taking an hour each week to apply or try and find scholarships for college students.

2. Work experience. I made a minor mistake when it came to work experience and college so I want to share it with you so you can learn from me. College obviously is expensive and many of us work to pay for it or for our living expenses. I did too and I still do. My big mistake was that I was more focused on working and my cost of living than on my resume. So now, I am a communication major with a concentration in PR who has 2 years of relevant work experience in teaching and childcare but only one internship in PR. Instead of keeping on looking for jobs that suit my career goals and plans after graduating, I went for a guaranteed teaching job as an early childhood teacher. Personally, I don't regret it because I love my students but if you have the ability and luxury to be able to shop around for jobs and wait for one that will actually build your resume for your future careers, I would. I am a senior now, and luckily I have had wonderful internships which taught me many skills but if I didn't have these it would be a major back set and I'd have to start from the bottom once I graduate.

3. Don't listen to other people's methods of doing things unless it helps you. My first semester was hard, I am not going to lie about this. I am going to say though that it was only hard because I was trying to follow everyone's advice on planners, time management, schedules, reading books, taking notes and anything else you can think of. After awhile I realized that I was fine but what was actually not working was the methods people were giving me. So big takeaway here is that no one really knows what they're doing and the only real challenge is finding the right thing to do for you. You don't need to force yourself to have a planner if it's only going to stress you more. You don't need to write notes for every chapter if you don't think you do. You need to follow your intuition and then everything will work out. 

4. Don't live checklist to checklist. With the feeling of being overwhelmed I often hang on to the only way I know to control things which are checklists. My first few months of college I made a big mistake by living checklist to checklist. I literally did not give myself the time to enjoy college. College is an experience and while GPA and studying matters, please don't forget the exciting things like walking around campus or going to a coffee shop. Personally, I found the cutest little Boba shop to do some of my readings at and even though COVID-19 ruined traveling during Spring Break I still got to go to a river to go hiking near SA. Don't forget to actually experience college, because I almost did in my first semester.

~~~Alright, I know that was a lot but I hope it helps. I also have some exciting news! I am creating a new resource list to include both high school and college level scholarships! I will post it soon so keep an eye out for that! Lastly, HAPPY SUMMER AND STAY SAFE FROM COVID!

Things I wish I would have know as a freshmen...

Hey guys, the new school year is just around the corner and I was talking to my mom about what I should write on my blog. She said: "Don't you always talk about all these things you wish someone would have told you when you started high school?". And you know what? She is totally right! There are a million things I wish someone would have told me when I started! So I am going to share with all you incoming freshmen some of the central things! Here we go!

• You should start applying to scholarships in freshmen year - there are scholarships specific for freshmen's that you don't want to miss out on. Also if you don't know yet where you want to go to college make sure you will have the financial resources to go where you want to. 
• Summer programs- What you do during the summer can be important to your college application process. Many College Interview questions and the activity section on your applications will ask about your summers and what you did. I will make a future post with specific summer programs I have attended and/or can recommend. Also do not worry about the cost of them since you will be able to get scholarships for.  
• Internships- even though you might be 13 or 14 when you enter high school and not technically allowed to work a job, you can work certain internships during the summer. Not only is it a good way to test out fields of work you are interested in but also a way to save up some money for college applications and college.
• Start setting up your CommonApp and Coalition- while you might think that you don't have to worry about applying to college yet, but it is a good idea to be set up early and add to your application gradually instead of trying to rush it in your senior year. Your application will be more detailed and more thought through. In your Junior year the essay prompts should start coming out for your applications so start writing the essays then.
• Start studying for the ACT and SAT- the ACT and the SAT are hard tests if you do not study. By study I mean you have to be prepared for how the test is structured and what kind of questions to expect. Also try to find what test is a better suit for you and try taking them as early as you can. Most colleges will super score your ACT/SAT so it is a good idea to study and take it as early as you can.
• Be mindful of classes you choose- if you only choose easy classes but have a good GPA  colleges will take that in consideration when looking at your transcript. If you take harder classes like AP classes they will also consider that with your GPA. A 4.0 with regular classes won't mean as much as a 3.9 with all AP classes. Classes start mattering freshmen year.
• Become involved in at least one organization- In my freshmen year I didn't know what a big role extracurricular activities played into everything, including college and your own happiness. I recommend everyone should part take in at least one extracurricular activity that they like and see themselves be part of all of high school. Try to also go after leadership positions!
• Start going to the College &Career center at your school- In my freshmen year I didn't even know this existed at my school but if I would have I would have taken full advantage of having this resource! The college and career center at your school should have at least 2 counselors (1 college counselor and 1 career counselor). The counselors are different from your guidance counselor since they fulfill more specific tasks. For example, your career counselor will be able to help you write your resumes, find jobs/internship opportunities and even be able to practice interview skills with you. And your college counselor will be able to help you with sending transcripts, signing up for testing, applying to college, scholarships, etc. Without my college counselor, I think, I wouldn't be half as prepared as I am. Huge shoutout to Miss Perez!
• Try to talk to people who work in the field of your interest- Sometimes talking to someone can give you a more in depth and realistic view of things.
• Do a reality check- Make sure your career fits the lifestyle you want to have later on in your life. There are helpful websites like: Texas Reality Check. Since you still have time to reconsider your career pathway in freshman year so it is a good time to have a good picture of your future.
• Consider taking classes at your local community college- Many community colleges allow students to take classes during summer or even during the year at their campus for free. You only need 60 credit hours for an associates degree meaning that if you do all 4 of your core classes each year dual credit (meaning college and high school credit) you would have 48 credit hours. I you take one additional class each summer you would have 12 credit hours for all summer classes. 48+12=60 credit hours and the only cost you would have would be books and maybe a small fee for summer classes. An Associates degree's fulfills all your core requirements a college meaning you will only spend 2 years on your bachelor's degree. So you saved money and times. 
• Start finding teachers and mentors for recommendation letters- it is always good to have a plan so if you like a teacher and think they would be good to write you a letter ask them right away even if it is early.
• Have fun- there is no year like your freshmen year! Make some friends, have fun and make memories!

How to become an AP scholar

Hey guys, as you may know I recently was sent my award certificate for being an AP scholar and I am super excited about it! When I first told my friends (most of them are also AP students) they were really surprised and thought that it was impossible to do for them to be AP scholars. I'm here to tell you how you can easily become an AP scholar:

My Award :) Sorry it is blurry:(

All my scores so far... don't mind the Chemistry one...

As you can see above I passed most of my AP test except for Chemistry. I am not happy with my Chemistry score but I was a hard test and I am going to retake it next year so it really doesn't bother me that much. Some people have ask me how I was able to become an AP scholar even though I failed a test. Well, to become an AP scholar you only have to pass 3 or more tests with a score of 3 or better. Here is a link of All AP scholar awards.

Now to the main point. How can you become an AP scholar?

1.  Are you fluent in any language other than English? Is that language offered as an AP test?- If your answer was yes to both of those questions then I suggest you buy yourself a Princeton Review book to look at the structure of the test and take the test. That is what I did with my German test. Also if you need a review book for the German AP test comment down below because I have a totally unused one, that I can give you!
2. Do you have a passion in a particular subject field?- If you have a natural gift like memorizing dates or all chemistry formulas use it. Buy an AP book for a subject you are informed in, even if you haven't taken a class in it, and teach it yourself. You can even go to teachers for help!
3. Take tests you find easy- if you think that the hardest test ever is Art History and Calculus BC is easy to you... take your strong suits!
4. Take all the tests corresponding to classes you've taken- Even if you aren't 100% sure you'll do great on the test make sure you still take all the tests corresponding to your classes you've taken. You'd be surprised how much easier the test is from the actual class and how much more you remember when it really comes down to it.
5. Take as many tests as you can- I know they are expensive but hear me out. At my school they didn't give the German Test on the sign up sheet so I went to talk to our AP coordinator. They ended up requesting the test for me and I got a 5 on it! With this score I will have 12 credit hours at the school I intend on going to. With that test alone I am 2 classes short of a minor in German! The moral of the story is don't skip out on tests!
6. Retake tests you failed- I will retake my Chemistry test next year because it did not reflect my true abilities since I did not study or truly prepare. So if you feel like that with any of your test do retake it. It is better to fail twice instead of not trying at all.

I wish all of you the best of luck in becoming AP scholars! 

Here are some helpful links to help you study:

• Crack AP tests
• Princeton Review
• AP practice exams
• College Board
• Ask students who have past the tests for help and tutoring if they are willing
• Khan Academy
• Crash Course with John Green
• NMSI