The Georgia Institute of Technology

Situation 1) The classes are extremely hard, of an overwhelmingly large size, and the professor is difficult to understand.

Pitfalls: Stop attending lecture, bitch to your TA, be in a bad mood and half-ass your assignments because the professor isn't doing his job so why should you!

Life lesson: Don't victimize yourself. You will find that if you take the time to visit the professor during his office hours or make an appointment, he is always willing to accomodate and help an eager student. Homework becomes monumentally easier and more efficient this way. Take action. Don't expect success to come to you as it did in high school.

Situation 2) Everyone around you is a nerdy, ugly, arrogant prick. You have no social life and your workload is overbearing.

Pitfalls: Lock yourself in your dorm room and be miserable. Feel sorry for yourself. Become engrossed with your studies and perpetually frustrated at their difficulty level.

Life lesson: HAVE FUN once in a while. Get a hobby. Join a club. Take action (there's a running theme here). There is PLENTY to do on and off campus (Atlanta is amazing). Social life sucks at Tech if you don't know where to look. Some people say that you have to be in a frat/sorority to have any social life. Those people are wrong. If you dedicate yourself to developing your social skills (again..secondary education here) you will find a niche with people just like you. Trust me. This school is big enough. If all else fails, hell..do what I do sometimes. Go to random Home Park parties. No one cares if you don't know anyone. You will find a collection of all the random people you see around campus wasted at Home Park parties. It's pretty awesome. Join the band if you are a musically inclined incoming freshman who doesn't want to rush. It's a great way to meet people and get started socially.Ok I guess that's pretty much what I wanted to say. You will encounter a number of miserable complainers on campus, but that's because they have not learned to rise above the adversity thrown their way. Don't fall into this trap. Tech is an invaluable experience because it teaches you how to learn, how to time manage, how to be happy, and how to take action to make your life what you want it to be. After college, you will no longer be amidst 10,000 of your equals in 3 square miles, and you will have to be able to cope to be happy. This institution is true preparation for the real world, and I absolutely loved it.

I was rather involved on campus, partied like a crazy child, and still got good grades. I did sacrifice a lot of sleep along the way, but hey, I got in the number one PhD program for my field in the world. And then, I turned it down. What does that mean?

It means it prepared me beyond my expectations, but Georgia Tech did burn me out. Don't be afraid to take an extra year to graduate if you can afford it -- my quarters with 12 hours or less were the best of my life, and I wished I had taken it a little slower!

I have my dream job now, I own a house in California. I don't think I would have achieved either had I gone elsewhere!