The full time had come. My bachelor’s degree ended up being newly in hand, and I decided to accept the first job I was being offered ( it was the Great Recession and the fear of unemployment was very real). Thankfully, working with high school seniors as they navigated the College application process turned out to be always a great fit for me! I discovered many things working at a senior school (did you know there is a software that calculates the likelihood you’ll obtain a snowfall day?!), and each fall was a training in how difficult it really is to be a 12^th grader.

Senior is tough year! You are in your most difficult classes up to now, you’re accepting more responsibilities, you’re hitting a milestone virtually every week…and then we ask you to college. 12^th grade may never be easy, you can certainly make it less hard. Though each pupil’s college process is unique, there are a small number of behaviors/mind sets that I have observed cause stress that is unnecessary and time again. Some call them the Four Horseman of the Appocalypse that is common by some i am talking about me personally), but they are all avoidable once you learn how to recognize the signs!

 Focusing too much on everything you can’t change.

Do you keep fretting about that C you’ve got in freshman English? Are you regretting your final decision to quit the track team? Many students invest their senior fall focusing on the past, and it drains their time and energy like Snapchat drains my phone battery. Rather than stressing about things you cannot change, spend time writing a well thought out essay, striving for great senior 12 months grades, and putting together the best application you can. Think upward and onward!

Ignoring the advice of your elders.

Can you nod if your therapist speaks then instantly wipe the conversation from your own memory? Do you reject your parents’ guidance like it is your work? I am shocked…really, I am. Keep in mind that, while they might not always be ‘hip and along with it,’ the adults in your life will offer important insight into your application procedure (and also assist you identify your strengths and that means you can better highlight them). Ignoring their advice can cut you off from some pretty information that is valuable so why don’t you take most of the help you can get?

Falling in love.

No, we’m not speaking about the lab partner you’ve possessed a crush on for years (them already) though you should really just tell! I’m speaing frankly about the head-over-heels feeling students often get for one university on their list. There’s a difference between having a choice that is first being so fixated on a school which you can not even fathom going anywhere else. It is called the college process for a reason—no one knows exactly how it shall end! Though I sincerely hope you might be admitted to your top choice (and obviously I hope your top choice is USC), I strongly encourage you to help keep an open mind in order to find a number of institutions you would love to go to.

Avoidance.

Are you currently making things to the last minute? Have you been putting off searching for what supplementary essays you will need to write? Have you been reading this post on 14th january? You are procrastinating! Despite what you may tell your self, no one works best under stress (trust me…this is a ‘do as I say, not as I do’ situation). Multiple drafts are the key to a good essay, and making significant progress before the eleventh hour is the actual only real defense against an application that is sloppy. You’ve got enough in your plate year that is senior. If you don’t have a plan yet for how you’ll complete every one of your essays, supplements, applications, etc. make one! You don’t wish to rush (or worse, forget something) in this method. So stop reading this blog and get to work—I know you may do it!

Pupil Highlight: USC Student Body President, Edwin Saucedo

Hey All,

It’s Natalie Guevara and I also’m excited to take effect with our weblog. While discovering subject ideas, I considered common concerns we get from potential pupils and another of my favorites is always: what’s it want to be described as a learning student at USC? And although I’m an alumna of the university and had my own great experiences…I really want you to know from current pupils with a bigger range of majors/involvement/background/etc. So rather than hear about all the cool things I have to say (many of you get enough of that), I’ll find current students to tell you about their experiences. For our first installment, we’ve Edwin Saucedo, the pupil Body President for the Undergraduate Student Government. He’s originally from South Gate, CA and it is set to graduate this coming May 2017. Some tips about what he had to say:

Four years back, I found myself where many of you may be right now: frustrated with my personal statement and fed up with looking for the college that is perfect. It was hard enough attempting to navigate college applications when neither of my parents talked English or had pursued degree themselves. The stress of finding the best place to spend the next four years was extremely overwhelming.

Than I could have ever expected as I think back at my college application process the first thing I have to say is, everything worked out better. Whenever I applied to college I never ever thought i might wind up at USC. I expanded up in South Gate, CA where just 6% for the total population pursues a college degree. It’s obvious, We never imagined i’d find myself being the Student Body President my year that is senior here. The four years in between my senior year of high college and senior year of university have brought on a wide range of classes, experiences, and friendships I never expected. However, the combination of all of the these unexpected life outcomes has indeed led me to where I am today.

Being Student Body President at the most prestigious universities into the country is an daunting job. It’s not easy trying to represent nearly 19,000 students who originate from over 100 different countries, are of all different races, and have extremely diverse economic backgrounds. However, it is also an extremely opportunity that is rewarding. Every i get to go into our student government office and ask myself: how can I make this university a better place for all students day? That is our goal in student government, to create the most effective undergraduate experience, and that’s why I made the decision to run for this place last springtime.

I invest at least twenty hours each week listening to pupils’ experiences, asking them just how I possibly could be of any service, and connecting them to your proper channels on this campus. On one other part of things, I advocate on their behalf to administration in efforts to produce better campus policies, address any issues, and plan money for hard times of our campus. My part that is favorite however taking the details we learned from both students and administrators and discovering unique solutions to addressing these issues.

In student government we pride ourselves in being innovators and thinkers that are creative. We challenge each other’s ideas and gives suggested statements on improvements. During the end of the day, we come up with proposals on how to address each and every issue. It is through these innovative proposals that we’ve been able to get our students free Uber rides from 7pm to 2 am and have gotten a weekly farmers market on campus. But our work does not end there. Over the length of the year our student government puts on over 300 free events for our students. These range between intimate discussions about our education system to bringing speakers like Laverne Cox or artists like Diplo for our students to take pleasure from.

We shape the undergraduate experience and give students the ability to explore perspectives beyond their own; because that is really what college is focused on. Regardless of yourself and be challenged by others whether you go to USC or choose elsewhere as your new home, dare to challenge. As President I always encounter students perspectives that differ from my very own, they’re not wrong or right but different, and that is okay.

As you approach the last months of the school application process don’t worry the maximum amount of about where you are going to wind up, but alternatively that which you will do when you get there. University is a right time for you to explore and find your passion. I found my passion within student federal government and working towards increasing USC for present and future students. For you shmoop master paper writers, that passion might lie in another activity. Regardless, enjoy your last months of high school and get prepared to embark in a journey that is new of unique and exciting experiences. Good luck on signing up to college and that we always Fight On if you ever get disillusioned, remember that what makes Trojans strong is!