Then and now... and what I hope I learned in between

What I know now that I wish I knew then... This post could probably be more than this space allows, but I'll keep it simple. I've made many mistakes throughout the three years I've been at GCSU, but I've learned from all of them. I wish I could say that this is a guide so that others won't make my same mistakes, but it's not. I still believe that you have to make some mistakes on your own in order to learn from them. Some advice that I can give you is:

1. Time Management. It can save your life. In order to get through college, there will be a degree of stress everyone faces, but it doesn't need to be unbareable. Everything can't be put off until a later date because that later date will soon catch up with you. The way to beat it is handle tasks as they come. Make time for these tasks and only handle one at a time. If you try to juggle too much, a ball is bound to drop.
2. Get to know your advisor. I've found that some students are intimidated by their advisors, but they shouldn't be. You shouldn't be afraid to ask questions. Advisors are there to help. They know that students are clueless about what classes to sing up for each semester. One thing I found really helpful was sitting down with my advisor and mapping out the rest of my college career. Of course, I didn't do that until my Senior year, but it would have saved me some worried if I had gotten that over with my Freshman or Sophomore year. Some of my classmates have reached their Senior year and still have one random core class to take that they had forgotten about. Map it all out because that one class you forgot to take might be the reason you have to stay another semester!
3. Don't procrastinate on completing practicum hours. For a Mass Communication major, three practicum hours must be completed, and only one hour can be completed a semester. The moral of the story is, map out your schedule for all four years!
4. Participate in internships. In the Mass Communication major, an internship can only count for credit if you have completed three to four of your chosen concentration classes. Don't let this discourage you. You can still do an internship. Class credit is only one of the many benefits of participating in an internship. I've worked at internships every summer throughout my college career. Even though I didn't get credit for some of them, I gained real world experience that will help me with my career down the road. As a matter of fact, I probably wouldn't have gotten my most recent internship for class credit if it hadn't been for my previous internship experience.
5. Networking. Any one you meet can be a contact for a potential opportunity in the future. These connections play a big role in getting employed out of school. Remember who you meet and always be professional. You never know who can help you later in life.
6. And probably the most important... GET A PLANNER! You will loss your mind without one.