Dear High School Matt,

You are about to make the biggest jump of your young life, try not to worry about it so much. It is a sig­nif­i­cant tran­si­tion, but you will soon find that you can han­dle it, so embrace it as soon as possible.

And I know that you stum­bled on UC Davis as your school, but don’t worry about it. You will come to love the school and the town of Davis sooner than your imag­ine. While it was not an easy deci­sion for you, it will turn out fantastic.

After you get set­tled in at Davis, get involved as much as you can as soon as you can. Don’t waste your fresh­man year in a mess of drama, when you could be par­tic­i­pat­ing in many pro­duc­tive ways.

Don’t wait to get involved or wait for some­one else to involve you. You will learn that in col­lege, and even more through­out your life, no one is going to give you any­thing. You must go out and advance your­self. Be an active par­tic­i­pant in your life.

I know that that isn’t your (our?) strong point, but it is the most impor­tant les­son you will learn while at col­lege. Apply for intern­ships early, join a club or two, and be an active mem­ber. Don’t wait until your senior year to become seri­ously involved in politics.

Lastly, there are some things you need to learn aca­d­e­m­i­cally. First, its not high school, which means you can’t half-ass through your classes or papers any­more. Go to the on-campus ser­vice where they edit your papers, because it is free and help­ful. Don’t be afraid of crit­i­cism, it is the best way to improve your writing.

The next four years of your life will go by in the blink of an eye, so try to do as much as you can dur­ing that time. And try to enjoy the uncer­tainty that will reign over your col­lege life. Uncer­tainty is scary, but it is also excit­ing, so don’t be afraid of what will come.

Improve your writ­ing, get involved, and have as much fun as you can squeeze into four years.

Good luck,

Future Matt, 2010 Col­lege Graduate

This let­ter was writ­ten as part of the Bet­ter­Grads spe­cial series: "Write a Let­ter to Your High School Self." Con­trib­u­tors are asked to answer ques­tions or con­cerns they may have had in high school, such as "What's the pur­pose of col­lege?" and "Is it worth it?" If you'd like to sub­mit a let­ter for pub­li­ca­tion, please read our edi­to­r­ial guide­lines and let us know here.