My Future Goals for My USC Upstate Career

My experience so far at Upstate has been an overall positive one. My classes are going well, I love my teachers, and so far I am still striving to achieve my goals I have made for myself this semester. University 101 helped me a lot my first semester of college. The class taught me many different techniques that all freshman should know and much more just about my life goals. Without the great things Upstate has to offer and the knowledge I gained by taking University 101, I feel I would have struggled my first semester as a college student.

USC Upstate is a great school. I came here being very skeptical with whether or not I would like the school or not. I always saw myself at a bigger school but unfortunately I was not accepted into the schools I had in mind. That’s where Upstate came into play. I had always heard positive things about Upstate but still never thought about actually going there. But now that I am here, I would defiantly recommend Upstate to anyone who is looking to go far and be successful in their future. I am very happy here at Upstate and wouldn’t even think about going somewhere else next semester. Upstate has provided me with all the help I need, great teachers, a beautiful campus, and an opportunity to achieve all my goals I have set for my future.

My classes are just the right size in order for me to feel like I am actually a part of the class not just an outsider. This is very important to me because I have trouble concentrating in big groups, but as long as I am being active in the class and can tell that my opinion matters, I do a good job. Not only are the classes a reasonable size, but they are also a very reasonable distance from my dorm. Being able to walk to all my classes helps me out a lot. Since they are so close, it saves me the gas from having to drive to all my classes. Another positive thing about attending Upstate as a freshman is the top of the line living quarters. I was lucky enough to get one of the single rooms Upstate offers students. With the single room I am able to have time to myself and get away from the many distractions around me.

At most schools they do not offer the single room options to their students. But thankfully Upstate does. There’s no reason for me to go to a school with a bigger campus that offers exactly what Upstate has to offer. Especially if Upstate’s smaller campus helps me succeed. Putting all of this into perspective, there is no reason for me not to return to Upstate next semester. Even though attending upstate wasn’t what I had in mind for myself a few months ago, I have now realized that attending Upstate is one of the best decisions I have ever made for my future.

I set a few goals for myself this semester in University 101. Each goal was one I knew I could achieve as long as I tried my hardest. Being that this was my first semester ever as a college student, I was unsure on what to expect. High School always said that “this is preparing you for college” but after completing my first semester as a college student I beg to differ. The entire college atmosphere is nowhere near high school. That’s why I knew I had to set certain goals for myself for this semester in order to be motivated to do my best.

My main goal for myself that I set this semester was to maintain all A’s and B’s. I am so proud of myself because I have achieved that goal. It took a lot of hard work but I knew that if I tried my hardest I could do it and it would benefit me in the future. Another goal I set for myself this semester was to stay positive no matter how hard things might get. I feel this goal is a very important one. Staying positive no matter what this semester is one of the reasons I feel like I have been successful so far. There were many times when I felt there was going to be no way I could write a paper, study for three test, finish my homework assignments, and still have time to breath in just a few days.

But I kept reminding myself that even if it seems impossible, it’s not. It just might take more time but I will be glad I did it in the future. If I had been negative and just kept telling myself that there was no way I could finish the overload of work I was assigned, then chances are I wouldn’t have even bothered trying to do it. This goal of keeping a positive mindset is one that I am going to continue to try and achieve throughout the rest of my life. This could be helpful to me with not only school work, but life itself. University 101 helped me keep my head on straight and stay focused on my goals. It taught me different study techniques and much more about being successful my first semester of college.

Be able to practice time management in college is very important. Being in college means that you have to be the one responsible enough to get up in time for your classes on your own, turning in all your assignments on time, and manage everything in a way that is the least stressful. The lesson on time management that we did in University 101 this semester helped me a lot. Before the lesson I had an idea on time management, but wasn’t really sure on how to put it to use. Time management is all about priorities. You need to have your priorities straight in order be able to manage your time in an effective way.

After the lesson in University 101, I was able to get my priorities in order so that I could figure out how to manage my time. By managing my time, I have been able to get turn everything in on time, study for test in a reasonable time manner, and not feel stressed and overwhelmed with the work I am given. If I didn’t manage my time I would be overwhelmed with all my work. Time management has helped me be successful my first semester of college and has also been a big part of helping me achieve my goals I set for myself this semester.

Having the knowledge of time management and actually putting it to use is something every student should have to do. Especially during their first semester of college in order to get used to how college works. Because unlike high school, there’s no one to constantly remind you something is due besides yourself. With time management, this shouldn’t be a problem. At least it hasn’t been for me this semester thanks to our lesson on time management in University 101.

All these factors I talked about are all part of my future. Whether I realize it or not, every part of attending Upstate is helping me achieve my goals of being successful in my future. The positive experience, my goals I have set for myself this semester, and learning about time management are just a few factors. It’s not easy being a freshman anywhere, especially a freshman at college. Now that I am on my own, it is up to me to do everything I need to do in order to accomplish my goals and be who I want to be in my future. University 101 helped assist me with the process of starting everything on my own.

The class taught me lessons that might not have all been very interesting while we were learning them, but once the lessons came in to play in real life, I was very glad I learned them. College is where you finally get to strive to become the person you want to be and work towards having the future you have always wanted for yourself. This comes with many obstacles and takes hard work, but with a positive mind set, a great school like Upstate, and a few classes here and there like University 101 that help you with being successful in school, there should be no reason for you not to achieve all goals you set for yourself. Overall I am very pleased with my decision to attend USC Upstate and am also glad I took University 101.