On Hiatus

Get College Smart is taking its own advice and will be on hiatus for the holidays.  We will be back in 2012 with new features and more advice to help you succeed in college.

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!

-Get College Smart

This Holiday . . . Take a Break! Part II

For many of you, the semester has come to a close, and you are happily situated at home (wherever that happens to be), enjoying holiday activities, friends, family, and down time. 

The rest of you may be more like me.  I am up to my elbows in a minimester course, helping 10 brave souls to develop and improve their writing skills.  Others of you may have full-time jobs and/or families to care for and no time to slow down. 

If you fall into this second category, let me encourage you to find some down time in the midst of your busy daily lives to rest and enjoy the holiday season and all it has to offer. 

This may seem like an impossible goal, but if you are planning on diving into another semester this coming spring, you need that down time to refresh, revive, and give yourself the strength to face 15 weeks of academic challenges. 

Even one day of doing nothing, lounging around in your pjs, or having a family night of fun can help.  So embrace your inner couch potato and allow yourself to take a break this holiday!

Friday’s Fact

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Let’s go bowling!  This week’s fact (which just so happens to be a Saturday fact) pays tribute to the College Bowl season and the granddaddy of them all, the Rose Bowl. 

As many of you know, the very first bowl game was the Rose Bowl game of 1902, where Michigan routed Stanford in a 49-0 victory.

This year’s bowl season offers a lot of exciting matchups.  Is your team playing in a bowl game?  Who do you want to see come out victorious?

Wrapping Things Up

Did you think that your final exams and final projects were the only things you needed to worry about at the end of the semester?  Not so, my friends.  There are a few things that you should take care of before you head back home.

• Check your final grades (if they’ve been posted).  Even though you may not want to know the outcome of your semester, you should check your grades before leave campus so you can address any issues or inconsistencies before your campus shuts down for the holiday.
• Address any issues you discover.  Before you leave (not after) is probably the best time to address any issues you have or questions that come up about your grades.  So email your professors – or, better yet, locate them in their offices (if you can) – and discuss these issues and questions.  Be respectful (no professor likes to deal with an emotional or cranky student), ask specific questions, and make sure your concerns are logical and real.  If you handle the situation like an adult, your professors will be responsive – and even helpful!
• If you can’t find resolution, try speaking to the department chair.  This piece of advice is only for those of you who have spoken to your professors and still have real concerns.  If you have clear evidence that indicates the need for a possible grade change, and your professor is unwilling to hear you out, then you need to take your case to his/her supervisor, the department chair.  That said, you should NEVER talk to a department chair before speaking to your professor.  A chain of command exists for a reason, and in all cases, the chair will refer you to your professor if you have not yet spoken to him/her.  So don’t waste your time (or theirs) by trying to jump to the top of the chain.

Addressing any grade concerns you have immediately at the end of the semester, rather than waiting, will make life easier for you and will ensure that you a) follow up on the issue and b) have your case heard while the semester’s coursework is still fresh in your mind.

Also, don’t be shy about talking to professors about your grades.  If you don’t understand why you earned a grade or how your final grade is calculated, you should ask.  I always prefer that students leave my classroom understanding why they have the grade they see on their transcripts, and so do your profs. 

Friday’s Fact

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Spending a lot of time in the library lately?  If so, you should try out one of these libraries on CampusGrotto’s Most Beautiful Libraries list. 

The library above can be found on the campus of the University of Texas.  Pretty impressive, right?  Take a look at the list to see if your campus library is mentioned.  If it is, pay it a visit.  Studying is always more enjoyable when you can do it in a beautiful place (relatively speaking).

Last Minute Final Exam Advice

If you’re a regular reader, you’ve seen lots of advice on how to study for college here.  If you’re new, take a look at the archives to see what you missed.  And read on for a few last minute pointers.

1. Take care of yourself.  Eat regularly, exercise, and try to get plenty of sleep.
2. Moderation in all things . . .  Avoid binging on sugar, caffeine, and alcohol.  Binges will only serve as a roadblock to your goal of doing well on your exams.
3. . . . this includes studying.  Try to avoid the all night cram session – you will find that you have a hard time remembering everything you have studied.  Study in shorter blocks (2 hours or so) and then take a break (30 minutes to two hours) to refresh and re-energize yourself.
4. While you should focus on studying, you shouldn’t crawl into a hole to do so.  Make sure you spend time around your friends and/or family (if you leave near them).  It will help to keep you grounded and sane during this stressful time.
5. The day of the final exam, get plenty of sleep the night before, make sure you eat that day, arrive to your exam early, and wear layers to ensure your comfort during the exam.

Hang in there – it will be over before you know it.  Good luck!

Friday’s Fact

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Click to view the enlarged graphic.

This graphic seems fitting for this time of year, when exams loom around the corner and stress levels are high.
 
Don’t let stress get the best of you.  Instead, take care of yourself, get organized, study as best as you can, and get help when you need it.  If you do these things, you will give yourself the best opportunity to earn the grades you want and survive the end of the semester.

Fall Semester Rewind

The Thanksgiving holiday has ended, Black Friday sales are over, and the “Cyber Weekend” is coming to a close.  You’re back on campus, and you have to hit the ground running to make it through the end of the semester unscathed.

In the midst of this end of the semester rush, I recommend that you take some time to look back on this past fall term.  If I had to guess, I would say that most of you experienced a lot of changes over the last fifteen weeks.  Whether it was adjusting to college life as a first semester freshman, earning a failing grade for the first time, or learning how to live on a shoestring budget, every semester is eventful for college students.

Reflecting on what you have learned and experienced this past semester can help you take stock of where you have come from, and determine where you are going.  Hopefully you are a better student, roommate, friend, child, sibling and/or significant other than you were when the semester began.  If there’s room for improvement in any one of these areas, you can start to consider how to make changes so that next semester goes better.  You can also start looking ahead and strategizing how to achieve your goals for your future.  And if you don’t have any specific goals, now’s the time to make them!

Don’t float through the end of your semester.  Instead, be introspective.  College is short, so you need to make the most of your time here.

Friday’s Fact

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If you’ve spent any amount of time reviewing your class notes lately, you can see how much time you spend doodling on the edges of the page.  Turns out, that seemingly mindless activity can actually be good for you.

The September 2011 issue of Cosmopolitan magazine references a study by the University of Plymouth, which found that doodling during a lecture or meeting can boost your memory by approximately 30%!  Why?  Researchers aren’t exactly sure, but they believe that drawing while listening to someone speak engages a part of the brain that would zone out or otherwise distract you with daydreams.  So the next time you’re trying to focus during a long classroom lecture, pull out your pen or pencil and start sketching.

This Holiday . . . Take a Break!

The Thanksgiving holidays can be a rough time for college students.  While it's generally a happy time where you can enjoy the company of family and friends, you may also find that school responsibilities prevent you from fully relaxing

That's why I encourage to take a break.  In fact, take the whole holiday off if you can.  Try to put school out of your mind and focus on the people who are near and dear to you.

For some of you, this may not be an option because of the mountain of work you will have waiting for you after the holiday.  In that case, be sure to take at least one day off to rest.  Rest is essential to keep you happy and healthy.  Also, well rested students tend to be better students overall.  So enjoy your break as much as you can, travel safely, and have a happy Thanksgiving.

Friday’s Fact

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Have you ever taken an English course?  Then you should be familiar with the Modern Language Association.  It’s the group that determines the format for English papers that your composition and literature professors love so much.

You may not know that MLA does a whole lot more than simply make life in your English courses difficult.  The organization also tracks and keeps up to date on issues that affect college students.  The latest issue this group is interested in: student debt.  Here’s a statement that MLA recently issued on the subject:

“Public attention has been directed recently to the educational debt students accumulate in the course of undergraduate, as well as graduate, study. A major contributing factor has been the increasing portion of educational costs students must bear in the form of loans. To reduce debt burdens in the future, we call on Congress, state legislatures, and institutions of higher education to calibrate educational costs and student aid in ways that will keep student debt within strict limits. We also call on them to hold in check tuition increases, which often far outpace inflation, and to ensure that degree programs allow for timely completion.”

One thing I like about this statement - it proves that major organizations made up of faculty are concerned about the students that they teach.  And this particular concern is one that extends far beyond the classroom, for college debt has a nasty way of following you around for years after college. 

That said, it will take a long time for the government and institutions of higher education to act on these issues.  That means that the burden of responsibility for controlling college debt rests firmly on your shoulders. 

How can you control school expenses and get a quality education?  Here’s a few tips:

• Choose a college that excels in your area of study and is affordable
• Consider attending a community college to complete your general education requirements
• Complete your degree in the shortest time frame possible
• Try to limit the amount of money you take out in student loans, and never take out more than you need to pay for your schooling.
• Apply for all the scholarships and grants you qualify for
• Take advantage of work-study programs, or use part-time work to help finance your education while you’re in school

In other words, start being financially responsible now.  It can save you a lot of heartache and stress later.

The Home Stretch

I don’t know about you, but  I’m really starting to feel the pressure of the end of the semester.  I’m juggling multiple projects, I’ve got a stack of papers that I still need to grade, and I feel like I am barely able to keep up with the day-to-day activities that need to be done.

But I find that with some careful planning, I am still able to keep my head above water.  Here’s what works for me:

At the beginning of the week, I write out my schedule.  Just last night, before I went to bed, I spent about 15 minutes plotting out all the activities I need to complete before the weekend.  The first half of my week is packed, and I know it will be exhausting.  But I’m not intimidated . . .

. . . because I prioritized my week.  I know what absolutely must get done – paper grading – and when my deadline is – Wednesday morning.  So, I plan on spending the bulk of today and tomorrow tackling that project. 

Sure, there’s lots of other smaller tasks that I need to do over the next couple of days, too.  How do I manage those tasks?  I get the little, quick projects out of the way first.  That way, I’m not distracted from my main goal and can focus all my energy on my most important project. 

Let me add that this is not the time to slack off.  To get everything done, I find that I do have to get up early and work when I have the fewest distractions.  For me, that means trudging downstairs while my family is still sleeping, firing up the coffee pot, and getting to work.  You may work best at other times of the day.  Figure out when your optimum work time is, and minimize your distractions during that time.  That may mean heading to the library, or disconnecting your computer from the internet, or hiding your cell phone. 

Will I have to sacrifice some sleep during this week?  Probably – but I have planned my schedule well enough to know that this is a temporary situation, and I can squeeze in a nap or head to bed earlier towards the end of the week.  Why is that important to know?  Because getting adequate rest can affect the quality of my week – and my work.  So I make sure that I pay attention to my physical needs during this busy time, too, so that I can maintain a good quality of life and ensure that my family and students don’t have to deal with a grumpy professor.

What about you?  Are you ready for the home stretch?  If not, start planning now – the end of your semester will be here before you know it.

Friday’s Fact

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I was poking around on the American Association of Community Colleges website today, looking up facts for today’s feature, and came across some interesting numbers.

Not surprisingly, enrollment at community colleges is up 15% from the Fall of ‘08 to the Fall of ‘10.  I’m sure we can thank the financial collapse here in the U.S. for that increase, at least in part.  Also, community college students make up 44% of the undergraduates in the U.S., and they pay, on average, about $2700 annually for tuition.

Talk about a savings over the cost of your average 4 year college!  If you’re exploring your options for college, consider your local community college.  Attending one can really protect you from accumulating large amounts of school debt.  And if you’re just starting out at a 4 year college or university, check into what course you could take (on the cheap) during summer.  It’s an inexpensive way to free up time during your long semesters, and you might find that focusing on one course at a time improves your ability to concentrate on the course material.

November is the Cruelest Month

T. S. Eliot may have stated that April is the cruelest month in “The Wasteland,” but for college students (and professors), that month is November.

November is the time of year that most people start to get into the holiday spirit.  Thanksgiving is just around the corner, and many of you will be going home for the first time since the start of the semester.  It is a time for you to enjoy the company of family and friends, and when you return, you’ll be faced with tests, project deadlines, and final exams.  This, in my opinion, is cruelty in its rawest form.

What can you do to ensure that you don’t spend your holiday stressing over what is to come, and don’t come back to campus underprepared?  Repeat my mantra – plan ahead – and get yourself ready for the home stretch.

If you’ve taken my advice from earlier posts, you’ve already listed looming deadlines in your planner.  Take a look at what is due when, and create a study plan.  Your plan should identify all remaining major deadlines and include increments of time that allow you to meet those deadlines successfully.  Studying a little bit every day will prevent you from having to cram when you return from break and help you to avoid lugging all your books home over the holiday.  Preparing yourself now is the best remedy to the cruelty of November.

Friday's Fact

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Debt seems to be a theme for Friday's Fact, so forgive me if I go back to this topic.  A recent report found that two thirds of the graduating class of 2010 left school with an average of $25,250 in debt.  That puts quite a hole in the pocketbook, and if you plan on going to grad school, expect the hole to get bigger.  

How can you manage finances so that you don't return all your post-graduation income to the loan companies?  Here's a few pointers:

• Choose an affordable school that is academically strong in your areas of interest
• Consider completing your gen ed courses at a community college
• Look for scholarships, and apply for all the ones you qualify for
• Don't waste time "finding yourself" in college - it's a really expensive way to discover what you want to do
• Work hard to pass all your courses - having to repeat courses or extend the length of your edcuation only increases your debt.

What Classes Should I Pick for the Spring Semester?

It’s that time of the year again, the time when students are asked to think ahead and pick the courses they want to take in the spring.  For some, this is a stressful process.

Choosing your schedule can be difficult, especially if you have many courses to choose from or aren’t yet sure what to major in.  That said, there’s no reason to take the dart board approach to choosing classes (you know – when you post the class schedule on your dart board and toss a dart to figure out which class to take).  There are some simple ways to narrow down your choices and find a schedule that meets your needs – and your interests.

• Before you do anything else, consult your degree plan and talk to your academic advisor.  Smart people have already figured out what classes you should take when, and there’s no need to reinvent the wheel.  Even if you don’t have a degree plan yet, an academic advisor can guide you to those courses that all majors require.
• For in major courses: typically, your options are more limited when it comes to choosing courses in your major.  Thus, you should choose these courses first, and work the rest of your class choices around them.
• For gen. ed. courses: you often have many choices when it comes to gen. ed. classes, but that doesn’t mean they are all good choices for you.  After you narrow down your list to the classes that can fit into your schedule, start talking to your friends to find out which professors they liked and which ones they recommend you stay away from.  Also, do some online research.  Departments often post syllabi on their websites, and studying those will give you a good sense of what individual profs expect from their students.
• Other things to consider: how work intensive is your course load?  It’s not a bad thing to cut down your schedule a bit if that means that you will enjoy life more and won’t delay graduation.  Also, how well rounded is your schedule?  Perhaps you can add a PE or arts class to give you more variety during your week.  These courses are generally required, and some students find them to be more enjoyable than the other courses they are required to take.  Since happy students are generally more successful in the long run, it doesn’t hurt to take these fun classes, too.
• Finally, don’t be afraid to talk to professors.  If your profs are anything like me, they are happy to give you information about their upcoming classes and help you to determine whether or not the class will be a good fit for you.

Friday’s Fact

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In honor of Halloween, I bring you a link to the Top 10 Haunted U.S. Colleges list.  I can neither confirm nor deny the information presented here (meaning that it doesn’t necessarily qualify as “fact”).  But, I will reiterate the statement of the website’s author: my apologies to any readers who attend night classes at these institutions!

Have a happy – and safe – Halloween!

Planning Ahead: Summer Internships

While it may seem odd to start thinking about summer now, when fall is just settling in, now is the time to start planning ahead, especially if you are interested in any sort of summer internship.

Internships, like jobs, can be hard to come by in a tough economy.  Because more people are searching for these opportunities, the competition becomes fierce.  But there are some things you can do to give yourself a competitive edge. 

First, if you want an internship but don’t have a specific one in mind, do you homework now.  Google is a good resource, as are professors in your field.  Your profs may be able to give you insider information on what is out there and may even know a few people you can contact directly to find out more about internship possibilities. 

Next, start applying.  The application process can be long and grueling; just ask anyone who has applied for graduate school or full time work.  You will likely need to gather letters of recommendation, transcripts, and the like, and this takes time.  Stop by your transcript office to put in your requests ASAP.  Offices can get overwhelmed by requests at the end of the semester, which can cause delays for you.

When asking for letters of recommendation, be sure to talk to professors who have a good sense of the quality work you produce.  This means that you want to avoid requesting letters from profs in whose classes you did poorly.  Be sure you give them plenty of lead time – two weeks minimum – and make sure you have all the materials in hand when you ask.  Finally, to make life easier for your profs, provide them with envelopes, stamps, and copies of your resume.  They will appreciate your consideration and foresight – qualities that you may want them to emphasize in your letter or recommendation.

Finally, have a plan B.  If your prof is unable to write you a recommendation, who else can you ask?  If you don’t get the internship you want, what else will you do during the summer?  Thinking ahead will a) keep you from having to scramble at the last minute and b) help to ensure that you have some productive plans this summer.

Friday’s Fact

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Here’s a fact that will get you angry: according to a report by Mark Schneider at the American Institutes for Research, approximately one fifth of full time students at community colleges drop out after their first year, and they receive almost $1 billion in taxpayer money to help fund their education.

This is unwelcome news to those students who depend on federal money to finance their education and are actually working towards graduation.  You know who you are, and you are fully aware of the drop in the amount of federal money you receive. 

While we can point to a weak economy to explain why less federal money is available for higher education, we can also point to issues like this one: waste and misuse of funds.  Federal money should go to those who deserve it: students who need financial support, take their education seriously, are actively working towards their degrees, and plan on using these degrees to become productive citizens.

How do I Choose a Major, Part II

Last week, I offered a few suggestions for choosing a major, and made the Steve Jobs approach – find what you love to do – the foundation of those suggestions.

This week, I offer you the dark side of choosing a major.

It is possible that you could choose a major that fits within your passions, and one of two things happens after you graduate: you don’t find a job within your major; or you end up with a job totally unrelated to what you’ve spent 4 years studying.

Let’s face it: the economy is tough, and it will take a while for it to bounce back.  Jobs are scarce, and college is expensive.  You may need to be practical when you graduate to ensure that you a) have a job and b) can pay off your student loans.

How does all this relate to your choice of major?

For starters, it’s good to know what you’re getting into.  At the end of the day, everyone needs a job after college, and if you can be happy in a major that will likely lead to a job, even in this economy (think nursing), all the better.  If you’re like me, however, and your first choice major is really generic and typically leads into an oversaturated sector of the economy (teaching), you might want to think long and hard about your choice.  Are you dead set on a job that relates to your major?  If not, what other marketable job skills do you have?  What other skills can you gain in college, via part-time work, and/or via internships?  If you are dead set on a career within your major, what can you do to set yourself apart from the crowd?

Once you’ve asked yourself these questions and drawn your own conclusions, you should also consider adding a minor to diversify yourself and add to your marketability.  Finally, be creative!  Think outside the box when considering career options, and do all you can now to make yourself the right fit for the careers that interest you the most.

Friday’s Fact

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As I sit and enjoy college football this fine afternoon while writing a Saturday edition of Friday’s Fact, I am reminded of a headline I saw on CNN last month: a recent study by the National College Players Association shows that scholarship athletes are struggling to make ends meet, in spite of the funds that they receive for playing their sport.

The report recommends that universities fully fund their scholarship athletes and allow them to make money through endorsements and other avenues that have been off limits to college athletes in the past.

Surely these recommendations will be controversial, to say the least.  Just consider Ohio State’s football team, which got itself into a whole heap of trouble when a few players sold apparel and awards and received improper services from local vendors.  That violation got those players suspended and lost the team a fine head coach, Jim Tressel.   

But if there’s any truth to the NCPA report, then something should be done to ensure that these revenue producing student athletes are not taken advantage of by their colleges and universities, don’t you think?

How do I Choose a Major?

If you watched the YouTube video tribute to Steve Jobs that I posted on Friday, you should have noticed that he encourages the graduating class of Stanford to find what they love to do.

He’s talking, of course, about one’s life work – that day in, day out job that you commit yourself to and that earns you an income that you can (hopefully) live off of. 

When it comes to choosing a major, the same advice applies – find what you love to do; keep looking, and don’t settle. 

Why?  Ideally, that major will be the key that opens the door to that job you love and look forward to going to each and every day.

More immediately, that major will determine a large percentage of the courses you are required to take during your college career.  If you don’t enjoy those classes, college will be a pretty miserable experience.  So, when you open up your course catalog (or download it, as you are more likely to do), start searching for majors that line up with your interests. 

For some of you, that may mean pursuing less “useful” majors – majors that don’t immediately correlate to specific jobs or that don’t lead to high paying jobs.  Take for instance my undergraduate major – English.  Not quite the field people think of going into when they want to be rich and famous.  But for me, the English major was a perfect fit.  I have always loved to read, and studying English allowed me to dabble into all kinds of other fields – history, religion, sociology, psychology, etc.  In other words, I never got bored and felt like I had more to learn at the end of every semester.

Am I making lots of money now?  No.  Did all of my family think an English major was the best choice?  Definitely no.  But I am currently in a job that I thoroughly enjoy and am able to live comfortably as a result.  I couldn’t ask for a better, especially in today’s tough economic situation.

If you are in need of resources to help you choose a major, be sure to visit your campus’ career center and talk to professors whose classes you enjoy.  They can help you to determine if their area of study is right for you.

Friday’s Fact

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In lieu of our regular Friday Fact, we would like to pay tribute to Steve Jobs.  Jobs lost his fight with pancreatic cancer on Wednesday.  He was just 56 years old.  Perhaps the greatest innovator of our age, he changed the shape of the world with creations like the Macintosh, iPod, iPhone, and iPad.
In 2005, Jobs gave an inspirational commencement speech to the graduating class at Stanford University.

Below are some of the highlights of that speech in the form of a video tribute that was recently posted on YouTube.

College students take note; this speech contains words of wisdom for you. 

#WISHIHADKNOWN Postcard Contest

Check out the #WISHIHADKNOWN postcard contest sponsored by CollegeMagazine.com.  Upload a photo and your advice for college freshmen, and you could win $500!  And be sure to share your entry with us here at Get College Smart – we’d love to feature your advice in a column.  Simply email us your words of wisdom at askcollegesmart@gmail.com.

What advice would we give?  Check out our postcard creation.

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Bonus Edition: Preparing for an Essay Exam

Since teaching students how to write just so happens to be my forte, I thought I'd do a bonus edition on a particular anxiety-causing type of exam: the essay exam.  Even if writing is not your "thing," you don't have to lose sleeping stressing about the essay portion of your test if you follow these tips:

If the essay is on a particular topic and you are expected to regurgitate information:

• Study the material you will be tested on
• Plan a response - identify your main point and all the examples or explanations you will need to illustrate that point
• Practice writing the essay - by the time you take the exam, the information should be firmly planted in your head.

If you're unlucky enough not to know the exact topic in advance:

• Be sure to study all the material you will be tested on
• If you have the time, create a study guide on the topics you will be tested on (assuming you have an idea what those topics are), identifying the information relevant to each topic
• Practice writing essays on those topics.

If you're like my students and are being tested on your writing skills:

• Come to the exam with a plan - know, in advance, how much time you will spend planning, drafting, and revising your essay.
• Know the features of the essay you will be asked to write, and make sure those features are present in the essay you write on the day of the exam.

For any one of these kinds of essay exams, you should also know what your professor is looking for in your essay response.  If he or she does not give you this information in advance, be sure to ask.

How do I prepare for Mid-Terms?

Many of you are right at the mid-point of your semester and having several exams looming.  How should you go about preparing for these exams?

If you have at least a couple of weeks to prepare:

• Start reviewing your class notes.  Set aside 15 minutes or more each day to review your lecture notes.  This will allow you to study small sections of material, which are easier to remember.
• Reread key sections of your textbook.  How do you know which sections are important?  Typically, your professor will emphasize the material s/he feels is important in class and on quizzes. 
• Create study guides.  These are short documents that list all the major concepts/points that you might be asked about on your exam.
• Create your own quizzes.  This will force you to think like your professor and will help you to anticipate the types of questions that may be asked.

If you’re short on time:

• Be prepared to give up your free time.  The less time you have to prepare, the more cramming you will have to do.
• Avoid “marathon stretches” of studying, if possible.  Limit yourself to a couple of hour blocks of studying, followed by breaks.  This will help you to retain the information you study.
• Find a good study partner.  I’m not talking about the cute guy/girl in your class that takes your mind off your work.  Instead, seek out the student who stays on top of his/her work (like you do!) and see if s/he would be willing to split the study materials with you.  That way, you will only be responsible for studying half the material, and your study buddy will teach you the other half of the material.  Don’t forget to return the favor – a study group only works when each member carries his or her own weight!
• Attend study sessions, if offered.  The TAs who lead these sessions often are “in the know” about what will be on the exam.
• Get plenty of rest, and eat right. No one studies well when tired or hungry. Be sure to take care of your body while filling your mind with knowledge.
• Do what you can, and try not to worry about the rest.  No exam is worth excessive amounts of stress.  Sometimes, limited time will only allow you to cover a portion of the material you need to know.  While this is not the ideal circumstance for your grade, it should teach you a valuable lesson – give yourself more time to study for big exams!

Friday’s Fact

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Yesterday was National Coffee Day, so it seems only fitting to bring you a Friday Fact that honors one of the drinks that college students love best. 

Coffee accounts for 75% of all caffeine consumed in the U. S., according to a study by Hope L. Graven of Loyola University.  And while all college students know the benefits of getting their caffeine fix by drinking coffee (can you say late night cram sessions?), few understand the effects that this late night habit can have. 

Caffeine is considered to be a drug by some, and more people are addicted to it than any other drug, alcohol and tobacco included.  Overuse of this product can lead to behavior problems such as nervousness and insomnia.  Also, laboratory tests show that caffeine can trigger panic attacks.  So even though you may have been able to study all night thanks to your coffee buzz, chances are you may be too anxious during your exam to think clearly and too hyped up on caffeine afterwards to get the rest you need.

In a perfect world, you would not have to stay up all night to study, and you wouldn’t need a coffee buzz to get you through.  But let’s be realistic – cramming happens, and coffee can be a necessary part of it.  While the occasional late night coffee habit will not likely have a long term negative effect on you, you may want to consider whether or not that cup of caffeine is necessary at all times during the day. 

Why not try ordering up a decaf or half-caf coffee today?  Your nerves may thank you.

Work/Life Balance for College Students

Time management is a recurring theme on this blog.  Why?  Because in my years of teaching, this is the number one issue I see college students struggle with, and this is something I continue to struggle with in my professional career. 

What makes time management so challenging?  I think this is a personal question, and the answers to it are many and varied.  But one thing is true for everyone – determining how much time to devote to academic pursuits and personal interests is a constant struggle.  Demands on a student’s time vary from week to week, and even day to day.

How should a college student deal with this balancing act?  One key to the puzzle is planning ahead.   Remember that calendar that you use to keep track of all your quizzes, exams, papers, and projects?  Keep up with it!  Add new assignments as they are given and review the calendar on a regular basis so you know when a tough week is coming your way.  When those difficult weeks do come up, you can be mentally prepared to deal with them.

You should also try to work ahead of schedule when possible.  Have you been given a project that is due next month?  Why not start collecting research now?  What about that mid-term exam that is headed your way?  If you begin studying now, you will be able to study smaller sections, which are easier to digest, and have more time to familiarize yourself with exam material (more on this next week).

Have you been able to designate time for homework each day?  If so, have you stuck to your schedule?  Your life as a student is comparable to the life you will lead as a full time employee, so why not start the 9 to 5 routine  (or 8 to 6 or whatever works best for you) now?  The more committed you are to your schedule, the more time you will be able to free up for personal interests.

Which brings me to my next point.  No college student can devote all hours of the day to study.  Having a personal life is a necessary part of student success.  Hence the need for balance.  Time management helps you to achieve that all important balance.  Once you have put in your study hours for the day, you should (on most days) be able to set aside your work so you can have dinner with friends, work out, veg in front of the T.V., and forget your school worries and stress for a few hours.  

The work/life balancing act is even more complicated for those students who are responsible to their family or have busy work schedules outside of their school schedules.  For those of you in this situation, your downtime will be significantly less than the student who only has to worry about school.  You may have less time available to study and may even have to put off certain school activities in favor of spending time with a spouse or children or holding down the job that helps to pay your school tuition. 

But the general principle is still the same – you need a life outside of school to be successful in school.  Be sure to reserve some time in your day for the personal activities that make you happy and whole.  You’ll be a better, happier, and more fulfilled student as a result

Friday’s Fact

Check in each Friday for your weekly Get College Smart fact.




ABC News recently reported that college students have the power to create half a million new U.S. jobs just by decorating their college dorm rooms!

According to their research, American college students, on average, spend $800 on back to college gear.  That comes to a grand total of $46 billion for this back to school season alone.  If college students spent all that money on American made products, the could create half a million new American jobs.

Chances are pretty good, though, that most of the gear you bought was foreign made.  See for yourself – start checking the tags on your bedding, towels, curtains, and dorm decorations.  Was any of it made in the U.S.?

How about all that gear you bought in your campus bookstore.  Where were that t-shirt, hoodie, flip-flops, and football jersey made?  China?  Vietnam?  How many American jobs would be created if your school’s bookstore started selling more American made products?

You can make a difference.  Start a petition – let your campus bookstore know that you want to see more American made products available for sale there.  The struggling American workforce will thank you.

Month One Reality Check

At the institution where I teach, we’ve just passed the one month mark.  Classes have been in session for a full 4 weeks, and reality is setting in for most students.

By now, the first tests, projects, or essays have been submitted, and students are slowly learning whether or not their study tactics will hack it in college.  Those students who are still unsure of where they stand will soon find out – once their grades are posted.

What about you?  Has the reality of college academic life hit you yet?  Do you feel like you might not make it through this semester unscathed or you need to change your tactics?

Now is a perfect time to make a change.  At the one month mark, you still have enough time to right your ship and salvage your course grade.

Now’s the time to ask yourself some hard questions: are you studying enough?  Do you understand the material being covered in your classes?  Have you communicated with your professors?  If you answered ‘no’ to any one of these questions, I challenge you to set some goals for yourself to get back on course.  Perhaps you should commit yourself to staying in on week nights so you have more time to study.  Maybe you need to seek out a tutor to help you get through that challenging biology course.  Or maybe you need to make appointments with your professors to discuss your progress in their courses.

Don’t forget to check out our study tips in “I’m here . . . classes have started . . . now what?”; “How much should I study?”; and “Study Smarter, not Harder.”  Try putting a few of these strategies in practice today – they just might help you to stay on track!

Friday’s Fact

Check in each Friday for your weekly Get College Smart Fact.

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I’m taking this week’s fact from a CNN report I heard earlier this week, which stated that the number of college graduates declaring bankruptcy is on the rise.   While this certainly is not welcome news for those of you who are currently in college, I wholeheartedly agree with Benjamin Franklin’s statement that “An investment in knowledge pays the best interest.” 

So what knowledge do you need to avoid the debt crisis that a number of college grads are currently facing?  Here are a few take home lessons.

• This fact is a result of a weakened economy and it highlights the need for everyone to be smart about money – especially college students
• Remember that all the money you borrow for college will need to be paid back eventually.
• Student loans typically go into repayment 6 months after you graduate.  While there are options out there that allow you to defer payment, these options have limits as well. 
• Interest still collects on your loan during the repayment period, even if your loan is in deferment. 
• Your monthly loan payment can take up a large portion of your income, assuming that you have a job when you have to make those payments.

All in all, you should not borrow more than you need to pay for your school expenses, and you should seek other sources of income to help you pay for your education!

(Now that’s the kind of knowledge that really “pays the best interest”!)

New Feature!

In order to better serve the needs of our readers, Get College Smart has added a handy dandy new feature.  Please direct your attention to the right hand sidebar, where you will find a list of Get College Smart's different categories.  These categories represent the types of posts you will find on this blog and will help you get to the information you want to read.

• Traditional Students: these posts are geared towards the student who entered college immediately after graduating from high school and who falls within the 18-22 year old age range.
• Non-traditional Students: these posts are for those of you who are attending 2 year colleges, who go to school part time, who juggle work, school, and parenting responsibilities, or who are returning to college after a several year break.
• Graduate Students: all grad students know that graduate school has its own set of challenges.  These posts are designed to help you navigate the often rough seas of graduate life.  (COMING SOON!)
• Just for Fun: this is where we index features like Friday's Fact.  Be on the look out for our upcoming giveaways!

As always, if there's any content you would like to see here, let us know!  Drop us a line at askcollegesmart@gmail.com.

A Salute to Veterans

Yesterday, we commemorated the 10th anniversary of the September 11th attacks.  And to honor those veterans who have made huge sacrifices as a direct result of this national tragedy, Get College Smart devotes this week's post to veterans who are returning home and taking advantage of their educational benefits.

Let me start by offering you this disclaimer: I am no expert on the educational benefits that are currently available to veterans.  But I have taught long enough to have had the privilege to instruct many veterans and discuss their experiences with them.  This post is based on those conversations.

First, take advantage of the benefits offered to you.  For some of you, this may mean working extra hard to get what is owed to you.  I've met many veterans who had to deal with mounds of red tape to get what they were promised by the government.  While all the finagling is not fun, it's worth the effort.  In my opinion, giving veterans access to free higher education is the least we can do to give back for the numerous sacrifices veterans make.

Second, check to see if your college/university has a VA Liaison.  The institution where I work does, and this person is responsible for helping veterans to find out about the many resources available to them.  If your school has such a person, set up an appointment with him/her to discuss what you have access to.

Third, use the counseling services your college/university offers.  I have two kinds of counseling services in mind here: career counseling, and psychological counseling.  Good career counseling from your school's career services office will help you determine how best to use your skills and expertise, thus enabling you to focus your education on a particular field and, in some cases, graduate sooner.

Psychological counseling is often free at colleges and universities.  While many students may not want to admit they need these services, they can be particularly useful - especially for veterans who have been on several tours of duty.  There is no shame in needing to talk through issues with someone, and free professional services are hard to come by, so you should make use of the services offered to you.  One word of advice: contact your school's counseling office as early in the semester as possible - they tend to get bogged down and have to turn away students as the semester progresses.

Finally, communicate with your professors.  Even though you may not feel it is necessary and don't want any special treatment, it can help your professors immensely if they know a thing or two about your background.  Knowing students on a more personal level helps professors to be more sensitive to their needs and avoid assuming the worst about them (which, unfortunately, some professors - including this one - are guilty of on occasion).

We're Under Construction!

Please excuse our dust - we're under construction and working to provide you with a wider variety of content to meet your needs.  Stay tuned for personalized information for traditional, non-traditional, and graduate students.

Our regular updates will continue as we improve our site.  And we'd love your feedback - what advice could you use to help you navigate through your college experience?  Let us know by sending your requests to askcollegesmart@gmail.com.

Friday’s Fact

Check in each Friday for your weekly Get College Smart Fact.

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College enrollment has grown by leaps and bounds in the past several years.  According to the National Center for Education Statistics, enrollment in college increased 38% between 1999 and 2009, growing from 14.8 million students to 20.4 million students.

What does that mean for you?  You had a lot more competition when you applied to college, and you may not have gotten into your first choice school.  And now that you’re in college, you’ll have to work twice as hard to get into the popular courses or qualify for the best internships and scholarships. 
In order to stand out from the millions of other college students like you, you need to give yourself an edge.  Working hard in your classes, getting to know your professors, and networking – these are just a few of the things you can do to ensure your success.  And don’t forget to check in with Get College Smart for your regular dose of college advice.

Study Smarter, not Harder

Each semester, I have at least one student conference that goes something like this: Student A enters my office, upset about his first essay grade.  We discuss what went wrong, and I give Student A tips for avoiding these issues in the next essay.  Noticing that this student still seems upset, I ask, “Do you think you can make these changes in the next essay?”
Invariably, the student answers, “Yes.  I guess I just don’t understand how I got such a low grade when I put so much time into this essay.”
The idea that the amount of time one puts into studying and school work directly relates to the grades that person will earn is not uncommon among students.  Unfortunately, it’s also not true.
Investing lots of time into studying will not necessarily earn you high grades! 
Why not? 
You have to study and work on the right things – not everything – in order to earn the best grades in college.
So how can you ensure that you use the study time you have wisely and avoid overworking yourself?  Here’s a few suggestions:

1. Time management: as a student, you should have designated times for completing your homework and studying.  Use this time wisely – avoid distractions like Facebook and text messaging when doing your work.  Staying focused will keep you from having to pull all-nighters and losing hours of valuable sleep.
2. Selective reading: In some classes, you will find that you have more reading than you can manage.  How do you deal with these classes?  Read selectively – which means that you focus on the most important sections of the reading.  You should get a sense of what your professors view as important from in-class discussions and the syllabus.  Also, you can look for reputable study guides in your school’s library or on the web (just be careful to choose good websites authored by knowledgeable writers).  These will help you to understand the material in a fraction of the time.
3. Know what you’ll be graded on: students often make the mistake of trying to do everything perfectly.  Realistically, this is impossible – and unnecessary.  You only need to do really well on the items that make up the largest portion of your course grade.  Check your course syllabus to find out what the most important pieces of your grade are.  Then, schedule some time with your professor to discuss how to succeed on these assignments.
4. Talk to your professors: the value of keeping an open dialogue with your professors cannot be overstated.  True, some faculty prefer not to see their students outside of the classroom, but most are more than willing to sit down with students and discuss the classes they teach.  Take advantage of your professor’s office hours to track your progress in the course and determine what you need to do to succeed.
5. Refer to graded work: if your professor lets you keep your graded tests/quizzes/essays, be sure to refer to these when preparing for the next big assignment.  They should give you a sense of the areas that you struggled on and where you can make improvements.  If you are not allowed to keep graded work, make mental notes of what you were marked down on when given the opportunity to view these assignments in class or during your professor’s office hours. 
6. Study groups: working in groups can maximize the amount of material you can cover in a short amount of time.  But study groups are only successful when they actually study.  Too often, they become social hour and nothing gets accomplished.  If you can find a group of dedicated classmates that you work well with, try divvying up study material and get together to teach each other the course material in preparation for your big test.  Just save the socializing for after the studying!

In general, you shouldn’t have to kill yourself to make it through college – even if you have a tough work schedule or lots of personal responsibilities on top of your school work.  Try to study smarter – not harder – you might be surprised at the results.

Friday’s Fact

Check in each Friday for your weekly Get College Smart Fact.

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If you’re a college football fan, you know that ESPN’s College GameDay kicks off it’s 25th season this Saturday.  So this Friday’s Fact honors a college football staple. 
According to ESPN, Lee Corso (my personal favorite) has sported headgear over 190 times and has chosen the winning team 67.9% of the time.  Who will Corso pick this week for the LSU/Oregon game?  Tune in to ESPN at 10 am ET on Saturday morning to find out!

Reminder!

College Colors Day is TOMORROW!  Show your school pride wherever you are, and send us your pics of you in your college attire.  We’ll post them on our Facebook page next week.
Pics can be sent to askcollegesmart@gmail.com.

College Colors Day – This Friday!

This Friday is College Colors day.  Show your school spirit by wearing your college colors to work and school on Friday.  And send us your pics of you and your friends in your college gear.  We’ll post them on our Facebook page next week.  2JTMN5GDHFXS
Pictures can be sent to askcollegesmart@gmail.com

How much should I study?

I often have students who are unsure of how much time they should really invest to complete the work they are given in their college classes.  This isn’t surprising – if this is your first time in college, you have no way to judge the amount of work you will be asked to do or how much time it may take.  And even if it isn’t, new professors and more difficult classes can throw you a curveball.
Here’s the basic rule of thumb: plan to spend at least one hour studying out of class for each hour you are in class. 
You can break this down in two ways: for your classes that are worth 3 units (units equate to hours spent in class) , you should expect 3 hours of homework a week.  Or, let’s say you are taking 16 credits this semester.  You should then expect 16 hours worth of homework each week.
Of course, determining how much time to study for classes isn’t an exact science.  Some classes are easier than others and require less work.  Some classes or professors will make you want to work harder than others.  And some students simply have schedules that only allow them a limited amount of time to study, no matter what they “should” do. 
But knowing what to expect can help you to better manage your time and plan your schedule.  If you are taking a heavy load and you have to work, you can easily see that your 18 hours/week in class + 18 hours/week of homework + 15 hours/week of on the job time = 51 hours/week of work.  That amount of work will certainly wear you out quickly, and you might find yourself reconsidering your work or school schedule. 
If you’re lucky enough not to need to work while in school, you can use this formula to plan a study schedule that allows you some flexibility.  Say you spend 15 hours/week in class and have 15 hours/week of homework.  You now have a 30 hour/week schedule.  Treat it like a job, and you just might find that your evenings and weekends are, for the most part, open. 
Use this formula to empower yourself to make smart decisions.  If you have too much on your plate, don’t be afraid to admit it to yourself.  You can push back a class or two without delaying graduation.  If you have a relatively flexible schedule, use this formula to stay on top of your work.  You may even find that you have time to get ahead!

Friday’s Fact

Check in each Friday for your weekly Get College Smart Fact.

Photo from Tickle Me Elmo TMX

Did you own a Tickle Me Elmo as a child?  If so, you might be a member of the class of 2015, according to Beloit College’s MindList, an annual publication that gives insight into the world the current freshman class has known.  By the way, your parents probably stood in long lines at the toy store around the holidays, surrounded by other cranky parents, to make sure you had that Tickle Me Elmo (gotta love mom & dad – give them a call and say thanks).

At the risk of giving away my age, I can tell you that the Tickle Me Elmo of my generation was the Cabbage Patch Doll.  (Any guesses as to which class I graduated in???).  My mother bought me one but waited until the craze died down.  I’m pretty sure my Karen Sue doll is still sitting somewhere in my parents’ house, worn out and well loved.

I’m here . . . classes have started . . . now what?

If you’ve participated in your school’s new student orientation, you may feel a bit like you’re back in summer camp.  It can be a  challenge to shift from this mindset and get into “college” mode.  To make sure that you don’t let things slip during the first week of class and get off to a bad start, there’s one thing you should do during the first week of class: Get organized!
For some of you, this is easier said then done.  But let me tell you that being organized isn’t rocket science; you just need to know how to do it.
Step 1: Invest in a planner, or make use of your smart phone’s calendar.  This will be your time management guide during the semester and will help you to plan ahead and not fall behind on your work.
Step 2: Log your major assignments in your planner. This should include all your exam dates and essay and project deadlines.  Not sure where all this info is listed?  Check your course syllabi.
Step 3: Log your work/workout/activity schedule.  While you can’t expect to plan out your whole semester – nor should you want to – you should put other important activities into your planner.  Include things you have to do (like show up to your job) and things that keep you balanced (working out, volunteering, etc.)
Step 4: Review your calendar.  Feeling overwhelmed yet?  Relax, and remember that this organizing activity will help you to manage those extra busy weeks.
Step 5: Find a safe place to keep your course materials.  There are lots of different ways to do this.  You can keep a binder for each class, or use a separate notebook for each.  Choose the method that works best for you, and take care of all your paperwork . . . you might just need those notes you took on the first day to get through that comprehensive final exam.
Step 6: Keep it up!  Organization isn’t a one time thing; you have to keep adding items to your planner and keep putting your course materials in that safe place you’ve created for them.  If you fall behind on this, you might find yourself falling behind in your classes

Dorm Room Overkill?

This week, many of you are headed off to college for the first time.  For most, this is the first time you will be living outside of your parents’ home and sharing a space with a stranger.  In order to feel “at home,” it is important to have a comfortable space that reflects who you are.  But what stuff is necessary to make a dorm room into a home?
USA Today recently reported that the typical college student – and parent – overdoes it when it comes to purchasing dorm essentials.  Match-y accessories, supplies, furniture, new clothes, and technology don’t come cheap.  And not all of these “essentials” will fit into an average dorm room (at least not if you want to leave any space for your roommate).  In order to avoid ditching some of your new purchases in the dumpster or sending them home with mom and dad, you should keep a few things in mind:

1. Refer to your school’s dorm room rules & regulations before you go shopping.  Some dorms will not allow certain items in rooms – lamps, hot plates, microwaves, coffee makers, etc. – because they are a fire hazard.  Knowing your school’s rules can help you avoid making an unnecessary purchase.
2. Know the size of your dorm room.  Your college should have provided you with this information; if not, contact the Resident Director for your dorm.  Having a good sense of the dimensions of your room will prevent you from buying too much.
3. Pack light.  Take it from someone who has moved several times – less is more.  The less stuff you have to move, the sooner you can get settled.  Also, don’t forget that you will have to move all that stuff at the end of the semester, either home or to a storage space, and mom and dad may not be around to help you.
4. Chain stores are nearly everywhere.  It’s unlikely that your college is in the middle of nowhere.  You should find a Wal-Mart, and probably a Target, Bed, Bath & Beyond, and maybe even a mall, near your school.  You can always purchase the things you find that you need after you arrive on campus.

Good luck with the moving in process!  And check back next week for some advice on how to get through the first week of classes. 
Finally, be sure to send in your questions – askcollegesmart@gmail.com

Welcome to College Smart!

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