You Got Into Where? is a college admissions advice blog for high school students created by Joi Wade. Topics include the college search, SAT and ACT, college essays, the common application and college scholarships.
"Oh yeah, she's not coming back this year. Didn't you hear? She transferred to public school. You can just tell from her Instagram feed that she's changed a lot, if you know what I mean. You know public school kids."
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If you were to hasten towards a graduated high school senior during their graduation party and quickly ask them about their one regret during college applications, don’t expect a hesitated answer. Almost anyone that recently went through the college admission process will give advice lines of starting something earlier, whether that’s their essays, extra-curricular activities, or getting focused in school. A quick “congratulations” and a thank you for the Target gift card you gave them, and sadly one of your only resources to learn from the best is gone. Now while you may have more follow-up questions to ask, a quick call from their parents for them to start cutting the cake leaves you alone and empty-handed with a bunch of little pieces of advice you don’t know how to execute. Until now…
Your scores on the ACT and SAT, two standardized tests required by a large majority of colleges in the United States, is one of the biggest factors in a collegiate acceptance, wait-listing, or denial in the admissions process. Since test scores, a number on a page that although easily countable to six-year old’s but is a tiring task for anyone, holds near as much weight as your grades and courses, it’s a number that you really want to perfect.
Many high schools’ recommended track for testing, which is taking your test with the school in the spring of your junior year, puts many students on a track that leaves little to no time for improvement. First generation students, the first child in a family, or anyone who’s just naive to the college admission process may fall into this trap, and may be the same senior giving a speech about starting early before quickly diving into your graduation cake.
While not having the tests scores you want not only adds stress to your junior year, it completely delays the rest of the college application process. Since your practice test scores can’t be sent to your colleges, and thus you’re practice test improvements aren’t official, you can’t create a college lists with accurate safety, match, and reach schools based off of your profile, as you don’t know if your test scores are an accurate representation of match, safety, and reach schools based off of your academic profile. This results in you either having to send in scores blindly, which no one wants to do, or not having the flexibility to apply to colleges and universities early action or early decision, both deadlines that require you to submit your application earlier than in January when most regular decision deadlines are. The timeline below is one that can (almost) guarantee all of your testing is done by the end of your junior year, allowing you to get a good amount of sleep each night.
September-December: Introduction to the testing life
The beginning of junior year is the best time to get exposure to the SAT and/or ACT, as you’ll have plenty of time to get practice tests. While some high schools and school districts have the PSAT and practice ACT requirements for their students, it’s also good to take the extra initiative and take a real version of this test on your own, to gain more exposure and experience. Once you get the scores back from the test(s) taken in these few months, you can see if your satisfied with that score if you’re going to put in some additional practice, if that means doing self-studying or private tutoring, which you can read about in the article here: https://yougotintowhere.com/2016/08/22/sat-prep-courses-what-i-learned-and-my-experience/
January-April: The testing grind continues
The cold and rainy months are a great time to do more work when you need it. This is the time to have the work ethic push you did in the fall and beginning of Christmas months show in the scores for the tests for these months. You can either schedule the test on your own, wait until you take the test with your school, or both. Just make sure you pace out when you take each tests so you can balance out your school work, extra-curricular activities, and everything else you have going on.
If after your extra studying, you found that you found your score didn’t move as much as you would’ve liked, this is a great time to possibly take the SAT instead of your normal go-to of the ACT (or vice versa) to see if you do better on one than the other naturally. You may find one test easier than the other, and thus find improving your score easier to do as well. At this point, you could’ve taken full length practice and/or real exams upwards to four times, which will hopefully have you at the score that you’d like.
May: AP Season
If you are taking AP classes, and are taking the exam, May is the one month you want to take a break on the SAT and/or ACT and focus on AP exams. While AP exams are heavily rumored to not have near as much weight as your regular test scores, it’s important to make sure you focus on AP exams if you're already registered for them, as they do cost a lot of money per exam.
June: The Last Attempt-SAT subject tests and the last time taking the SAT/ACT
Some more selective colleges either recommend or require SAT subject tests also known as SAT IIs. These tests are one hour exams on one specific subjects. SAT subject tests are offered in a myriad of foreign languages, US and World History, two levels of math, English literature, biology, chemistry, and physics. You can take three of these subject tests on the same date.
I found the easiest way to end the school year stress free and to not worry about these exams is to take the subject tests in the corresponding honors, or AP and IB courses as applicable. So if you took AP Spanish and Honors English Lit during your junior year, and studied hard for the AP exam and the final exam at school, you’ll be more than ready than the subject test in June.
They’re a plethora of colleges, including but not limited to Duke, the eight colleges in the Ivy League, Northwestern, and the University of Michigan, that require or recommend two SAT Subject tests. It’s important to check with the schools you may have slight interest in to see if they recommend or require them, so you can sign up! To check your testing schedule availability and registration dates, click here: https://collegereadiness.collegeboard.org/sat-subject-tests/register/test-dates-deadlines
Standardized testing is one of the most stressed portions of the college admission process. With much weight that it can hold in your acceptance, or how adding one point to a score can be the difference between a half and whole tuition to your dream school, you want to be able to have the best shot as anyone else. This timeline allows just that, with a schedule that gives you many opportunities to improve your score to your maximum potential!
The I.B MYP personal project is a seemingly complicated project that is due at the end of your sophomore year in high school. This is completed as a part of the International Baccalaureate Middle School Years Programme.The MYP personal project is a project an I.B student does to achieve a certain product or outcome, over the course of many months. You are required to do your project on a topic of your choosing. The topic you choose can be virtually anything, but it must relate to an “Area of Interaction.” During the process, you must complete a process journal of your thoughts and procedures. Alongside the process journal, you must complete a 1500-word report to summarize your feelings of your outcome and your experience doing the MYP personal project.
The key to a successful MYP personal project is time management. It is ideal to start thinking about your MYP personal project during the summer before your sophomore year. That way once school starts, you can be ready to start the actual project. To begin your MYP personal project, you must select a research topic and a supervisor to assist you during the duration of your sophomore year.
Choosing a topic can seem daunting at first since there are so many possible topics you can choose from. So how do you choose one? A key tip would be to choose a topic that you’re actually passionate about, because you are going to be working on it for an extended amount of time. For example, since I’ve always loved music, I decided to do my MYP personal project on learning to play the guitar. It was something I’ve always wanted to do. So when it came down to the long hours of practice, I actually enjoyed it.
Even though some schools assign a supervisor to a student, some do not. So, this is a crucial step in completing your MYP personal project since a good supervisor can help you in many different ways. Their sole role is to guide and support you throughout your project. But they may also provide feedback on your work, help you with deadlines, and ensure that your project is meeting the criteria. Even though it may seem like a good idea to choose your favorite teacher to be your supervisor, if he or she isn’t a teacher that specializes in your project topic, you may not want to ask them to be your supervisor. For example, if your favorite teacher teaches music, you may not want to ask them to be your supervisor if your topic is about science. Instead, maybe ask your science teacher since they can probably give the most accurate feedback. Also keep in mind that you are required to meet with this person often to discuss your progress. You should follow your school’s guidelines on how many times you have to meet with your supervisor.
Once you have discussed your topic with your supervisor, then it’s time to get started. Start by gathering the needed materials for your project. Then, research background information to give you a better understanding of what you’re researching. For instance, I researched how to read music. Creating an outline or monthly to-do list can also help you in managing your time well. Make sure to include appointments with your supervisor. Once you have done that, begin your project.
Once you begin your project, you will begin to accumulate a lot of information. You may also make mistakes or have to make changes. This is where your process journal will come into place. In this journal, you will write about the procedures you took to create your product or outcome. You may write about anything that occurred with working on your project. Be sure to include dates and write legibly since you will be revisiting this journal at the end. It’s completely okay to include mistakes that you made or unfortunate events pertaining to the project. Also include any information you learned through researching. In my process journal, I wrote about my difficulty with playing at a steady beat when I was just starting. I also included how I was going to fix my problem by using a metronome and practicing more.
Now it’s time to reflect on what you have done. Your report is a time to evaluate how your product came out versus what you set out to do. Your overall report must be at least 1500 words and be printed out. Even though it seems like a rather long essay, it is relatively easy to write if you use your process journal entries to help you. This is why it’s important to write useful information in it. Gradually writing small paragraphs instead of writing them all at once can also make the process easier. All in all, The MYP personal project is a time to explore your passions and demonstrate all the useful information you have learned during the MYP Program. If you follow these steps and tips, you’ll be well on your way to achieving a high score!
Just because guidance counselors don’t wear tights and a cape doesn’t mean they can’t save the day by helping you with high school survival and college prep.
Real Talk: High school is hard. Between studying for tests, completing homework, trying to keep a social life, and preparing for the next big stage of your life (hint: college), high schoolers are lucky if they manage to remember what the cafeteria is serving for lunch (bonus points if you remembered what the cafeteria was serving, and then remembered to pack a bag lunch). Your parents don’t always understand what you’re going through, your friends are too busy with their own workload to commiserate over the size of yours, and your dog, while comforting, does not keep an interesting conversation. Well, now your dog can stop working overtime as your therapist because there is someone whose job is to help you with each and every high school problem you encounter: your guidance counselor.
Don’t roll your eyes just yet. I use the term “guidance counselor” loosely, because in actuality, they are superheroes here to save your day from overbearing class schedules, toxic friendships, and general college prep procrastination. Their super powers include gaining access to scholarships you didn’t even know existed, switching you out of the science class taught by that crazy teacher (...you know the one), and seeing the potential in you before you learn to recognize it in yourself.
So, how do you gain access to these men and women wearing invisible capes? You ask. Notice how the word “you” is bolded. Guidance counselors are happy to help you, in fact they want you to succeed, but they are not going to save you from the burning building that is your crazy teacher (you know the one) kicking and screaming. No, in contrast to your parents, your guidance counselors will not nag you to apply for scholarships, take AP Chem, or apply to your dream school. You have to have the self-motivation to reach your goals, and you have to ask your guidance counselors for help in reaching them.
Once you ask for help (no, the word “you” will not be bolded for the rest of this article), your guidance counselors will channel Clark Kent and spring into action (outfit change optional). Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No, it’s just your guidance counselor working their butt off to help you have a bright future. Your guidance counselor can help you make sure you have enough credits to graduate, that the rigor of your classes is right for you, and you are taking the type of classes colleges look for. As mentioned before, your guidance counselor also has access to information about many scholarships, and can help you find the right ones for you. Your guidance counselor can also nominate you for scholarships your teachers or supervisors can’t (hello, the Presidential Scholarship). Your guidance counselor can also help you figure out your passion, and what career you may want to occupy by taking interest tests, directing you to job fairs, and even getting you in touch with career coaches to guide you. Also, many colleges are now requiring letters of recommendation from your guidance counselors. So, the sooner you get to know your guidance counselor, the more he/she can help you.
But you are not the only student these superheroes rescue on the daily, the other students in your school use the help of the guidance counselor as well. Depending on the size of your school, your guidance counselor may be the most accessible person on the planet, or they may schedule your appointment three months out. Whatever the case, your time with them is precious, so here are some questions that can help you get acclimated with what your cape-less hero can do for you:
No matter your age, college is right around the corner and it is never too early to start planning. Your guidance counselor can help you get in touch with sports coaches, direct you to clubs that fit your interest, or help you connect with a teacher who needs someone to help them with research. If there are no activities at your school that you are interested in, your guidance counselor will help you start your own club!
Not only does this give you and your guidance counselor a chance to fix any mistakes that may have been made, but it also opens the door to a conversation about the classes you are taking, if there are any classes you should be taking, and if you have enough credits to graduate with your class.
Your guidance counselor will tell you whether you should take the SAT, the ACT, or both. They will also give you information on how to sign up for the tests, when the tests are being given, where the tests are being given, and the prices of testing. If you are unable to pay to take the tests, your guidance counselor can help you figure out a way to still test. Also, if you are young enough, your guidance counselor may recommend taking the practice ACT and SAT, and will have information about those as well.
Depending on your age, the answer will differ, but I can guarantee the answer will never be “no.” If you are a freshmen, there is always a new class to try, new activities to join, new passions to discover! If you are a senior, even if you think you are on top of your applications, there is always something more you can do to get extra scholarship money and improve your chances of being accepted. How do you do this? I don’t know, ask your guidance counselor.
At the end of the day, the help your guidance counselors give you is what you (last bolded “you”, I promise) make of it. You can either go back to puttering around on the internet while simultaneously putting off your math homework (I see you), or you (I lied) can take their advice, hustle, and make the most of high school. Don't play damsel in distress in your own success story when you can be an ally to your own academic achievements.
Student council is a great vessel in which you can use to become involved in your school. Being a student council officer is not only great for your college resumes, but also provides you with a great platform which you can use to achieve great things within your school. If you are someone who enjoys taking initiative, is an excellent team player, and a strong advocate for change, then student council might be just the activity for you.
Before you consider joining student council, it is best to evaluate your options. “Evaluating your options”, means to make sure that you have enough time so that you will be able to exhibit the dedication necessary to do the job. Being a student council officer takes a lot of work. This is completely different from being the captain of the cheerleading team or president of the science club, because unlike being in those positions where you will only preside over a select group, with student council you preside over your entire school, which involves nearly twice as much time and dedication.
With Student council there are school dances, organizing various clothes and food drives, and you will be expected to do this all while planning the destination and date of the next school trip. Student council is a lot of work, and it requires a great commitment. If you are currently the president of another club or committee, then I would highly recommend that you suspend any interest to run for student council until a time when you will be able to handle the job. Whatever committee you preside over, whether big or small, deserves all your time and effort. You don't want to “spread yourself too thin’, meaning engaging in more than three times your capacity (consuming extracurricular activities, while balancing your three, four, or five AP classes will do just that).
Yes, the magic formula. The Campaign Strategy. Formulating an excellent campaign strategy is a very essential step on the path to winning an election. The purpose of a campaign strategy is to be able to communicate your values, ideas, and the individual approach you will take when handling student council affairs.
When forming a campaign strategy, think on these things:
In order to run a successful campaign, you must center it around your strengths. If you have any special talents, abilities, or hobbies, use them. Those strengths make you unique. Those strangers will make you shine against the toughest competitors. Make sure to utilize those strengths, because they will be your best asset while running your campaign.
Ex: If you are an artist, you can design beautifully artistic flyers, and elaborate on how you want more artistic expression throughout your school. If you are a comedian, make sure to crack a joke or two when introducing yourself to others.
Use your talents, they will help you create a campaign that is not only interesting, but also personable to you and your talents.
The secret to winning anything is to play to your uniqueness. This part is easy because it is innate. We are all born unique. Utilize your unique qualities. Whether you are a computer nerd, or an all-star dancer, varsity soccer star, or skilled violinist, you each have something unique that can help you stand out against competitors. This strategy is extremely helpful when student council elections at your school seem to be one “big popularity contest” and you just don't seem to fit the bill. If you aren't popular then use your “unpopularity” to your advantage. Make students know that you are similar to them, tired of student council being a popularity contest, and that you aim to change that by running for a position. If you have been bullied, or harassed within your school, and want to make it a safer place for everyone, reach out to other students who feel the same.
The concept of utilizing your uniqueness, and what makes you different from everyone lies is in how you see yourself and how you see your school. There may be improvements that need to be made around the school that only you will see, and there will be challenges that exist for some students that others may not be aware of. Use your perspective, have faith in it and let it propel you forward!
This is the most important facet of your campaign. In order for people to be led to vote for you, they need a glimpse of what their school would be like with you as an officer. You need to communicate your vision. Your vision is your plan for your school, how you plan to make it better, the improvements you see to be made, and how you plan to go about achieving these improvements. People need to know what it is you plan to do. If you fail to plan, you plan to fail (Benjamin Franklin)! So plan whatever it is you want to accomplish as an officer, and make sure to communicate it to your fellow students.
Now that you have a clear view your strengths and the perspective you take on your school, it is time to get some publicity. Post some flyers, take to social media, tell friends to spread the word, whatever you do, make sure to get your name out there. Unfortunately, a big part of a school election relies on the amount of publicity you receive. You can have some amazing ideas, and a catchy campaign slogan, but without the proper publicity your campaign won't be able to gain much leverage against other competitors. So make sure to get your name out there, because the success of your campaign depends on it.
TIP:
Now I know there are some rather shy people who too want to run for student council, but feel they will struggle with the “getting your name out there” part. If this is you, fear not because I too can be shy. Because I am shy, when running for student council I made sure to write my flyers in a way that made sure the readers would know everything (almost everything) there is to know about my unique qualities mission, and campaign. I also enlisted others to help me, so getting some friends involved won't hurt either.
So now that you've gotten the campaign, now it's speech time. What type of statements do you want to include in your speech?
A. Your belief system
B. Your positive attributes
C. Your proposal for change
D. Solutions for problems that exist within your school
E. Ideas for events/fundraisers
F. Anything else you would like to add
With your speech feel free to get emotional. Make sure to express your passion and show the love that you have for your school. Communicate your dedication and make sure to let your fellow students know how much you are willing to work to improve your school. Your speech should have feeling and be able to move the hearts of your fellow students. It should also be good enough to make your competition shiver in their boots.
It's your time! Make sure to say your speech with all your passion and power. Do not be afraid of the competition, just focus on yourself and make sure to encourage yourself. Know that the position is yours. You’ve made it this far. You’ve made it through your entire campaign, ups, downs, and everything else that comes with the territory. Now it's time to seal the deal with a winning speech. Go out there and seize the day.
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A guide on how to handle your junior year so you will be successful senior year.
“Junior year is admittedly the toughest year of high school student’s life, but in every part of life there is a need for balance” -Unknown
Junior Year. Finally, an upperclassman! You’ve gotten through your first two years and now you’re a step closer to your senior year. Don’t let all that get to your head because as a junior, you have more responsibilities which means you must have more accountability. As prom, homecoming, extracurricular, jobs, AP Testing, and etc. come speeding towards you, make sure to keep these four points in mind to have a successful junior year.
Make sure to keep your grades up. Your junior year transcript as well as your transcripts from your previous years will be the ones you will send to colleges in the fall of your senior year. Make sure you study for your classes, as well as participate, and ask questions if you don’t understand the content. They say that junior year is the hardest year and for good reason. When selecting your classes, be sure to include rigorous courses (i.e. AP classes or any advanced level class). College admission boards really like to see that a student is challenging her/himself with a college-level class in high school. Take about one or two AP Classes a year. I wouldn’t go as far as to take more than three unless you know you will be able to handle the amount of work you will be given.
Procrastination is something you really don’t want to do as a junior. Try to do your homework right after you come home. Be sure to know when your deadlines are so you won’t to be shocked when you have a project due the next day. You don’t want to be stressed with a difficult task because stress equals no success. When you receive a project, start working on it immediately. Spread out the amount of work you need to do within your given time-frame and try to finish it early so you know for sure that you have completed your work. With the extra time, you can use it look for any mistakes and to review your objectives so you know what you’ve done is to your teacher’s accord. With tests, make sure you know when you will be testing whether it’s for the ACT/SAT or just a regular test. And set aside an hour every day to study.
Junior year is a great time to start compiling a list of colleges you would like to attend. You can meet with your counselor as well as your parents to figure out what major you would like to pursue. While compiling your list, note the admissions requirements of each college to make sure that you would be the right fit. Plan on going on a few college visits during the school breaks so you can really get a feel for the schools you have listed. This will help you narrow down the list of schools to apply to.
Last but not least, make sure you have some fun. Continue with the extracurricular activities that you enjoy and even take up some more. Colleges like to see that you can balance your school work as well as a few extracurricular activities. As a junior, try to attend as many school sponsored activities such a sports games, school dances, or parades as possible without hindering your grades. Life can’t just be all work and no play.
I hope these tips will help you out these upcoming year. Leave a comment down below if you have any questions. And as always make sure you follow us on Instagram and Facebook.
Sources:
http://8448-presscdn-0-13.pagely.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/Good-Grades.jpg
https://piratenationsurvival.wordpress.com/2015/05/05/take-a-deep-breath-the-junior-year-crisis/
Finding relevant scholarships can be a challenge; anyone who’s spent more than five minutes searching for one can tell you that. There are numerous scholarship search websites that boast about having millions of scholarships worth billions of dollars in total and that they’ll match you with the perfect ones just for you, but do they actually work? Are your scholarship matches really individualized? How many of those millions of scholarships can you actually apply for? To find out, sign up for six of the most popular free scholarship websites. I filled out each profile as thoroughly as possible in order to get the most relevant matches, listing three different majors (journalism, biomedical sciences, and mathematics) for each website, so as to distinguish between a website not having major-specific scholarships and there not being many scholarships for a specific major.
After a week, here, in no particular order, are the results:
Number of Matches: 51
I’d used Fastweb before as a college search engine, but never to search for scholarships. Every time I would open the website, their main page would always boast about their more than 1.5 million scholarships and how their system targets the perfect scholarships for you based on your interests and skills, so I had high expectations. After filling out my profile, I was matched with 49 scholarships, most of which were pretty general. I only found 3 scholarships that correlated with the majors I put in my profile, but most of the others were ones anyone willing to write an essay or create a short video could apply for. These scholarships seem to be based primarily on age, though the ones I was not qualified for based on my profile were eliminated, so I didn’t have to do a lot of voting through. These types of scholarships are great if you do not know what you’re majoring in or you aren’t super passionate about anything, and if you want to apply to a large quantity of scholarships that don’t require pages and pages of essays.
At the end of the week, I had 2 new scholarship matches, so it seems that their website is updated quite often.
Conclusion: While most Fastweb’s scholarships may not be individualized, it is nevertheless a great resource for scholarships, especially for those who don’t know their major.
Number of Matches: 39
Cappex is primarily a college search website, and, from what I’m told, is a pretty good one, but it also has a section for scholarships, which sounded very promising. Despite my rather thorough profile, the scholarships I matched with on Cappex weren’t at all individualized; I didn’t find a single one that correlated with the majors I entered in my profile, unless you count the FeetRemedies.com Scholarship on plantar fasciitis for biomedical science. Like Fastweb, it seemed I was matched with scholarships based only on my age, taking nothing else into account. This can actually be a good thing, as I previously explained, but unlike Fastweb, some of the scholarships I matched with I could not apply for because I was simply ineligible for them. Whether it was because I was not a returning college student or a resident of Texas, these scholarships could have been weeded out easily using the information in my profile. The remaining scholarships I was eligible for were of quality, but they could also be found on Fastweb, which had a few more than Cappex did as well.
Conclusion: Although it may be a good college search website, I found it to be a mediocre scholarship search website.
Number of Matches: It’s Complicated
Raise.me is a bit different from your typical scholarship searching website. Instead of matching you with scholarships that you then have to apply for, you are awarded with micro-scholarships from different schools based on your achievements in high school: $500 for each A you get, $200 for having perfect attendance, $10 for every hour you volunteer, and so on. You’ll receive more or less money from an achievement based on the school, as some schools are more focused on community service or extracurricular activities more than others. The most money I received from a school was $70,150 ($17,538 a year) and the least was still $1,455 ($364 a year). It all seems a little too good to be true, and, depending on your preference in schools, it is. Of the 130 schools offering micro-scholarships, most of them are small, liberal arts schools; only 38 schools on the site have over 5000 students, and there aren’t exactly any big name schools. Most of the schools I received micro-scholarships from were from schools I had never heard of in cities I had never heard of. So, while I would definitely give Raise.me a chance, if you know you want to go to a large school or an Ivy League university, it may be best to look elsewhere.
Conclusion: Fantastic for small liberal arts schools and a few large state schools.
Number of Matches: 120
To my complete surprise and excitement, this was the first scholarship search website I visited that actually took my profile into account when matching me with scholarships. The scholarships I was provided with fit not only my majors, but also a few other factors listed in my profile such as my religion and high school activities. While I was matched with a few seemingly random scholarships like the ones for PlumbersStock.com and the Maine Grocers & Food Producers Association, most of them either matched my interests or were just generally geared towards all students my age and only required an essay, both of which are things I want when applying for scholarships.
Conclusion: By providing largely relevant scholarships with varying degrees of difficulty, Scholarships.com is a fantastic resource and lives up to its’ name.
Number of Matches: 194
The College Board website is one many high school students are familiar with in some capacity, mostly from viewing scores for the SAT, the PSAT, and any AP tests, but it also can be used to search for scholarships. Although it matched me with the most scholarships in total, I was not able to apply for many because they were either past the deadline or I was just ineligible. I did, however, get matched with scholarships that were relevant to my major, but not to anything else; it seemed this was the only website that did not take my age and high school status into account when picking scholarships for me. They only provided a few general anyone-in-high-school-can-apply scholarships: most of their scholarships had specific qualifications such as race, religion, and membership to an organization that I did not fulfill, making me wonder why they were presented as options to me in the first place. All that being said, the scholarships specific to the majors I put in my profile were pretty fantastic on a monetary level and, as a whole, not that difficult to apply for.
Conclusion: Can provide one with great scholarships relevant to their major if they are willing to comb through the ones they’re ineligible for.
Number of Matches: 86
When I began looking into different scholarship sites, I had a bunch of people tell me that should sign up for Zinch because they either read an article about it or knew someone who used it. So, sure enough, I typed in Zinch.com and was redirected to a site called Chegg, which specializes in textbook rentals. Thinking I had typed it in wrong, I tried again, but it still came back to Chegg. I soon came to realize that Zinch had been bought out by Chegg in 2011 and their scholarship section had been moved to the last to the last section of the last tab on the homepage. I was curious to see if, despite this major status downgrade, the famed scholarship search engine still lived up to its’ name.
I was matched with scholarships on Chegg based solely on my age and year in school, which at this point I’ve come to expect and appreciate in some ways; however, a little over half of the 86 scholarships I was matched with I was ineligible for. Attached to each scholarship were little tags that showed what aspect of my profile it matched: my age, year in school, or sometimes, my citizenship. These tags only graced 37 of the 86 scholarships I matched with, and the rest I was not eligible for because of my age, year in school, or citizenship. The scholarships I was eligible did have a wide range of participation levels, ranging from collecting peanut butter for a food bank to writing an essay about how collecting peanut butter for a food bank can affect your life. Community service was a common theme among many of the scholarships I matched with, which gave the website a bit of a flair in my opinion, as many of the scholarships I looked through over the week were more about academic achievement.
Conclusion: Not sure it lives up to the glory of its’ original name, but it proved it deserves more than being the last section of the last tab.
AP Human Geography (or APHuG, as students often call it) is a useful introductory AP course that provides a challenge for many high school students. While it can be a very rewarding course, it also requires a lot of hard work, which is daunting to some students. To fix this, I have compiled a list of helpful tips that should make that elusive 5 much more attainable.
Your textbooks will be one of your most accessible and useful resources while taking this course. It provides most of what will be covered on the AP Test and will be much easier to access and find than many other outside resources will be. It is also probably what your in-class tests will be based off, so actually reading the textbook will be helpful in that sense too.
And what do I mean by “actually” read the textbook? I mean that you should do more than just merely skim over the chapters. Take time to thoroughly read the chapters, make flashcards on terms that are bold in the text, note the different graphics and maps (and trust me, there will be a lot of them), and study and understand them. If you start doing this at the beginning of the course, you will have the ideal preparation coming into the AP Test.
This may sound obvious; however, it is essential to have and actually use a prep book in order to prepare yourself. The best thing to do would be to purchase a prep book at the beginning of the year and use it as you go. What I mean by that is, if you are learning about agriculture, along with reading your textbook’s agriculture chapter, also review the prep book’s agriculture section. Most textbooks do not include every little bit of information that will be on the AP Test. By reviewing the prep book along with the textbook, you will be filling in gaps in your knowledge, that way there will be less to actually review when tests roll out in May.
Some of you might be wondering: what prep book should I use? The one that I personally found to be the most useful, and many of my classmates found to be helpful as well, was the Princeton Review prep book. It was packed with a lot of information, which is why it is crucial to start reviewing early, and also had several practice tests with questions formed very similarly to the ones asked on the actual AP Test. The Barron’s prep book was a much more condensed book that was mainly useful for vocabulary review. Both of these books can be found on Amazon for fairly inexpensive. However, if you are unable to buy them, your local library should have AP prep books available for you or a former student may be willing to donate their old one to you. Do not be too concerned if you are not using the current edition, as long as it’s relatively recent the content is largely the same, with maybe a few formatting changes and some new practice questions.
The College Board website will become your best friend while taking this course and generally throughout your high school experience. College Board is basically the company that administers all of the AP tests and has information on every AP class that is offered. Look at the page specifically dedicated to AP Human Geography and read over the class description and overview. This will get you acquainted with the course and, as you get closer to the test, remind you of everything that you need to know.
Another extremely useful feature on the College Board website is under the “Exam Practice” tab of the AP Human Geography page (Under this tab, you will find previous FRQs that were on the actual tests and their scoring guidelines. An FRQ is a Free Response Question and it is the second component of the AP Human Geography exam and most other AP exams in general. It basically gives you a question with multiple components that you must respond to in a paragraph format). Look at all of these old FRQs and do them! Not only will it give you practice on the writing style needed to write an FRQ, but it will also help you become familiar with the kinds of questions that will be on the AP Test and the knowledge necessary to answer them.
Whether it is your teacher’sweb pagee, a newspaper article, or another student’s Quizlet, finding reliable and helpful online resources will make studying a lot more diverse and interesting. For example, my classmates and I used our teacher’s class web page as a resource. She would often post related articles and YouTube videos that she did not have time to share in class. The students who actually utilized her webpage found studying for tests and the AP Exam much easier, as they had a diverse wealth of knowledge from multiple different resources.
Here are a few particularly helpful resources, videos, and articles that I found to be useful to get you started.
One of the best things that I got out of this class was the knowledge I gained about the outside world. This class is incredibly relevant and applicable to the world as a whole, which makes it very easy to apply current events. For example, the most useful thing I did while in this class was research on the political situation in Iraq. Not only was this interesting to me, but it also applied to the AP HuG concepts of centrifugal/centripetal forces, multinational states, etc. This enhanced my knowledge of these topics, and also brought my attention to current affairs.
Power of Place videos are probably my favorite and least favorite part of taking this course. They were not always the most exciting videos, but they are extremely useful.
For example, my class watched the “Ethnic Fragmentations in Canada” Power of Place, which directly corresponded to one of the FRQs on the 2016 AP Test about language and culture in Montreal, Canada. It was incredibly helpful, to say the least, and I would highly recommend watching them, especially if you are concerned about applying concepts in your FRQs. Here is the link to all the videos.
Overall, you will get out what you put into this course. It is challenging, but a 5 is easily attainable if you work hard, pay attention to concepts both in and out of class, and start preparing early. Now go study and kill that AP test!
“So this is it,” you think as you walk through the crowded hallways on your first day of high school, “this is where I’ll spend the next four years making some of the most important decisions of my life and determining the rest of my future career. My whole life lies within the palms of these classrooms” Ok, maybe not. You'll probably be stumbling through the halls filled with tall, intimidating upperclassmen while struggling to find your next class within the unfamiliar campus. Your mind will be too occupied with the pressure of being the little fish in this giant ocean of sharks and dolphins. College and your career will probably be the last things on your mind as a high school underclassman, but as time progresses, you'll realize that time flies faster than lightning, and your future is much more imminent than you think. Here’s how you can grasp and shape your future before time does it for you.
So many high school underclassmen, including myself, make the mistake of believing that “it's too early to be worrying about the future.” I mean you barely just got to high school… you still have plenty of time, right? Well, yes, you have 3-4 whole years, in fact. But like I said before, time will fly, and if you leave the idea of preparing for college on the back burner for the first couple years, you might find yourself lost and struggling to make rash decisions as upperclassmen. You don't have to know exactly what career path you'll want to follow right away, and you don't have to have your list of top ten dream colleges on your first day of freshman year either; these things you'll figure out within your time in high school. You just have to be mindful of what you are building for yourself as you continue your academic journey. The smallest things will make the biggest differences in the long run when it comes to college preparation.
As a freshman, something that will doubtlessly help you determine what you want to do with your future is getting involved with school. Whether you are involved in athletics, clubs, student council, or community service, participating in these kinds of groups will give you an idea of the things you like and don't like. Don't be afraid to try things that are unfamiliar or new; freshman year is the perfect time to test different waters. This way, you'll discover activities that you love and will be able to pursue those passions in your remaining years of high school, and possibly decide your intended career path through these experiences. However, you should remember to not put too much on your plate and wisely choose activities that you think you'll enjoy. It's better to be completely involved and passionate about a few things than to be slightly involved in an abundance of activities. The great thing about exploring different things in freshman year is that you'll have plenty of wiggle room to change your mind in later years. Being involved in extracurricular activities can also help you build lots of new friendships, which is a great way to get more comfortable with high school. Extracurricular activities are an essential part of college applications, so starting them right away will definitely be beneficial to your application process in the future.
Sophomore year is definitely one of the most exciting and relaxing years of the high school experience. You've adjusted well enough to the aspects of high school, you're finally comfortable with your atmosphere, and plenty of new opportunities that weren't offered to you as a freshman will be provided to you. Though it may not seem like it, you have lots of control over your future within this school year. You're not yet an upperclassman but you're no longer a freshman, so it's the perfect time to fix any mistakes you made last year, and set yourself on the right track for the upcoming years. If you didn't do so well with grades in your freshman year, now would be a good time to step up your game, and put a little more effort into studying. Sophomore year is also a perfect time to begin the college search. Yes, it may seem a little early, but like I said previously, the smallest things will make the biggest differences. Doing a little research on potential schools won't hurt you. You should start by thinking about the kinds of schools that you would have a good chance of getting into based on your current transcript (GPA, classes), extracurricular activities and potential career path. Though you may not have that much information, and these things can always change as you continue high school, it's good to have a general idea of where you could possibly end up. You should then look for schools that you want to go to or “reach schools”. These are schools that exceed your current grades but you still would love to attend and have a small chance at getting into. The thing about looking into reach schools as a sophomore is that you still have chances of improving your academic performance in your junior and senior years and raising your average GPA. This way, you'll have more motivation to progressively do better in school.
As an underclassman, especially freshmen, you may not worry too much about getting a 4.0 GPA right away since it's only your first year and you'll have plenty of room to grow. This is exactly right, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't try your best to get the grades that you want. You'll later realize that freshman year is the easiest year, so take advantage of this and excel in all of your classes. Since your transcript is the most important element of college applications, it’s better to start off on the right track than to realize too late that you could've done better. But of course, if you don't do so well, you still have plenty of years ahead of you to make up for it. Colleges like to see that your GPA moves in an upward trend as you get older; they like to see that you're progressively getting better and consistently trying to do your best.
The first two years of high school can be a sort of trial and error experience. You might have difficulties determining who you are and what you want to do with yourself at first, which is perfectly fine because that's exactly what the whole high school experience is all about. But once you start junior year things will get so much more legitimate and serious, so it's important that you consider lots of things before you become an upperclassman. The summer after every school year, you should make a list of things you succeeded in as well as a list of things you wish you could've done better in. You could then have an idea of the things that you want to continue next year, things you want to improve on, and things you want to try next year. Doing this will really help you prepare for every new school year and will keep you ready to tackle any challenge that comes your way. As said before, improvement is something that college admissions officers pay close attention to.
You may not know it as an underclassman, but your guidance counselor is one of the best resources for the college search and college admission processes. Discussing these things with them at an early stage will be nothing but beneficial to you. You should go to them with any questions or concerns that you have about college or your future in general and frequently update them with any information that you come upon while doing research (such as an interest in particular schools or career paths). Keeping in touch with your counselor can also be beneficial to your application itself as they can possibly be writing you a recommendation letter in a couple of years.
The main aspect of being prepared for the college admission process before it comes to you is to simply be aware of the whole situation. Being mindful that your future is a lot closer than you think will definitely prepare you for the challenges that are to come to you in the long run.
As for students with learning disabilities, self-advocacy is a crucial skill to have in the classroom, in order to obtain the best educational experience for yourself possible. Although, everyone can benefit from self-advocacy in and outside of the classroom.
As elementary school students, we so often hear the term “stick up for yourself” without receiving a complete understanding of what it truly means to do so. This results in naïve misinterpretations about self-advocacy; that it is an easily manageable task that accumulates with time and age. Well, at least that was my belief. I was met with the harsh realities of not “sticking up for yourself” as a high school freshman. Because I did not have the confidence, courage, and acknowledgement, I found that my academic wants and needs weren’t being met to my full satisfaction. Thankfully, because of the experience, I discovered the secret power that lies in self-advocacy and the impact it can have on one’s educational (and life) experience. Start the school year off right and be assertive in your education.
Our educational lives are constantly monitored by a small army of adults including our parents, teachers, guidance counselors, club advisers, etc. In this triumphant sea of elders, it becomes very easy to lose your voice. Especially if some of these adults feel automatically inclined to exercise their authority over those younger than them, rather than with them. This lack of a platform can be discouraging to certain students, causing them to withdraw from the nucleus of their educational process rather than towards it. One of the most significant ways to dispel this unequal share of powers in one’s personal education is to know yourself well enough to vocalize your presence. By the simple act of acknowledging your academic wants, needs, strengths, weaknesses…etc. you lay the foundation for strong confidence and assurance that cannot go unheard by the adults in your educational journey.
A large part of self-advocacy is communication. And for my fellow introverts, allow me to rid of the ridiculous myth that extroverts are the only ones who can naturally speak for themselves. It merely takes a thorough understanding of self in order to communicate fluently and effectively with those who can provide aid to you. Taking initiative and being assertive means, in no way, to overrule the authority figures in your education. Rather, it means to be proactive and engaged in the learning process alongside them. The learning process is different for everyone. As for myself, I struggle with severe-to-profound hearing loss, which puts me at a slight disadvantage in certain oral-orientated classes. (Yes, I am calling you out, Honors Spanish.) Because of this, I had to commence personal conversations with my school advisers in order to address and accommodate these issues.
Self-advocacy does not come easily. It stems from self-confidence which can, in most cases, take time to build. With that being said, however, confidence is constantly evolving, so you should not decide to “wait” until you feel that you’ve reached the status quo of confidence that the media portrays. In the end, you must find what is most important to you as a student and person and inform people of the internal and external barriers making it difficult to attain the educational experience that you deserve.
During the summer in which I was a rising sophomore in high school, I was invited to a leadership program for teenagers with hearing loss called LOFT. It was here that I learned to be self-advocate. If you are a high school student with any measure of hearing loss/deafness, click on the hyperlink for more information about the program.
Distance Learning, or Virtual Classes, is quickly becoming a valid option for many prospective university students because of it's many positive aspects, but do those factors apply to every student wishing to pursue secondary school?
Convenience is something that everyone in our modern world looks for, and most online courses offer an out-standing opportunity to 'create' your own schedule. At the very least, earning an education with Distance Learning is efficient time-wise.
With a traditional MBA, or in-class education, everything must revolve about the time of your classes. That includes work, social interaction, and any other daily events.
However, with Distance Learning, self motivation is a huge key factor. Although the thought of gaining a degree with minimal strict guidelines, or a solid schedule, may sound like the better option, it's harder than it seems.
Online learning requires excellent time management skills, motivation, new-found computer literacy, discipline and definitely forms an adult-like independence that'll get you ready for the real world with a dramatic wake up call. Everything depends on you (Yes, that means class material, completed assignments, book readings, and even self-taught information), so be prepared.
Evangeline Hanson, a senior high-school student who successfully completed a secondary-language course online, says, "I think students who work better at their own pace, and in a quiet environment, would get the most out of this (online) course. It allows the student to get full understanding before moving onto the next task and although there are no teachers standing in the same room, there are always people in the course who are only an email away."
"Some students learn better in a classroom environment rather than one on one, but I think both options should be available to all students," she told; "Online courses take patience and Independence because sometimes if help is needed, you'll have to wait for a response. Where as in a classroom, help is always available nearly instantly."
One of the most asked questions about earning a degree online is: Will future companies look at my education the same as someone with an MBA?
The answer is yes, absolutely.
Society has geared up into a fast-paced, technology run environment, and employers are not longer holding a stigma around online graduates. In fact, a survey conducted in 2012 by Society for Human Resource Management concluded that 79% of employers hired a candidate with an online degree.
"The recruiters who look at our hybrid EMBA really don't differentiate between the two, " Robert Bruner, Business Administration professor at University of Virginia, states; "I would say the online program, even the hybrids, require a higher level of maturity and determination to make the online components a meaningful and successful learning experience."
A Distance Education course can be completely valid as the in-class course, but that also depends on if your program is accredited.
Make sure that your university, and chosen course, is accredited by the U.S Department of Education. This makes your education legit in the eyes of your future employer, and can give you reassurance on your decision.
With Distance Learning, the idea of taking classroom material outside of class is tried and true.
Most online courses require one-on-one meetings with instructors every so often, and some even offer iClass sessions. iClass is a collection of students taking the same online course who meet via internet to discuss classroom topics.
Online gatherings, like iClass, offer students a chance to interact with students from different areas while ensuring that each student maintains a relevant understanding of the subject being learnt.
Distance Education was first invented for the average middle-class family member who wanted to enhance their education, or change careers, while remaining in the same area with family.
A lot has changed since those times, and largely accredited universities like Harvard, Stanford, and MIT are now offering the same excellence in an MBA, though online courses.
Whether you decide to experience the full university experience on campus, or if you decide to conveniently earn your full education online, there are now an abundance of options at your fingertips! Good luck choosing a course that suits your needs, and hopefully the information above will be of good use.
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Deciding on what classes to take in high school can be a daunting and intimidating process. It seems like any wrong choice can come back and haunt you when it comes time for college applications. Truth is, there's no secret formula into getting into college. Not even a perfect score on the SAT or a GPA or a 4.0 GPA can guarantee admittance to the nation’s top schools.
So, if even being in the top 1% of test takers can't guarantee you admittance to Harvard and Stanford, then what are college admission officers looking for?
Here's some advice on how to take classes that interest and challenge you, while still being a competitive applicant in the eyes of an admission officer.
Your high school transcript is one of the most important parts of your application, but let's not forget, it's not the only thing admission officers take into consideration when deciding whether you’re a right fit for their college. They look at everything from test scores, extracurriculars, grades, teacher recommendations, GPA, class percentile, essays, extenuating circumstances and many other factors when deciding to admit or reject students.
According to College Board, you should aim to take:
Keep in mind that these requirements are the bare minimum for high school, but depending on the specific colleges you intend to apply to, they may change. Regardless, even if you're not sure where you want to go to college, you should strive to take the most classes in each core subject if you can.
If you're not sure if you're on track toward your goals, it's a great idea to visit your guidance counselor to help map out your high school plan. This can help you meet your high school and college requirements and also see if you need to take any prerequisites for certain classes.
Colleges want to see you taking the most rigorous course load within the context of your high school. So whether if you go to an inner city high school that only provides 3 AP courses with no IB (International Baccalaureate) program or a top-notch private school with 15+ AP classes and strong IB program, colleges will focus on what resources were available to you and if you took advantage of them or not.
For example, Yale's admission Q&A page stresses how much they take context into account, when they view your high school transcript: “We know you did not design your school’s curriculum... Different schools have different requirements that may restrict what courses you can take. Again, we only expect that you will excel in the opportunities to which you have access.”
You should be spending your time in high school challenging yourself more and more each year with an increasingly load of honors and AP classes. Each year you should try to push yourself a little farther in the context of your abilities, keeping in mind your extracurriculars and time availability.
When it comes down to taking better grades or harder classes, harder classes should always win. Colleges can tell when you're not pushing yourself if on your transcript all they see are standard classes. The best advice I can give you (from personal experience) is that it looks way better to push yourself and take an honors class and get a B or an AP and receive a C, than a standard class and receive an A. Why? It shows that you're taking initiative and not afraid of a challenge, it also shows that you love to learn for the sake of learning and that's something you want colleges to notice about you.
When it comes to the number of AP classes you should take, think QUALITY over QUANTITY. There is no magic number of AP’s you should take during your high school career. YOU have to decide what YOU can handle. Remember, every high school is different, as is every applicant, so they will access your rigor based on the context of your high school, community and circumstances.
If your school lacks rigorous courses, try to look into a dual enrollment program at your nearest community college. Classes and books usually are free, but check with your guidance counselor to make sure. Another option is to take online classes during the school year or summer classes during vacation.
If you’re given the opportunity to explain your circumstances on the application, TAKE IT. Communicate to your colleges that you came from a low-performing high school and explain the lack of course selections and programs available, to explain any holes in your application. Believe it or not, college admission officers play close attention to details like these it’s part of the holistic process.
You should take classes that interest you and not what you think colleges want to see you take. If you enjoy math or a foreign language, take the most classes you can in that subject. The reason for this is that admission officers want to see you begin to develop interests and passions, during high school because it gives them an idea of who the student/person is that they are admitting.
Your electives are a place on your transcript to demonstrate strengths and should show interest and passion. If you're taking challenging classes in your core subjects, then you can have more freedom when it comes to choosing your electives.
Whether you decide to take classes such as theatre, psychology, computer science and the visual arts, you should find what you enjoy, show commitment in that area and pursue that interest to the highest level of your ability.
One of the best advice I've ever heard about the college admission process, went something along these lines:
“Colleges don’t want well-rounded students, they really want a well-rounded class of individual people, but in order to make that class they need people who are highly specialized in a certain field or area”
This is basically motivation for you to do what you love, whether it’s swimming, traveling, double-dutch, coding or parkour. You should pursue whatever it is that makes you happy. Remember, there might be 30,000 applicants, but no one has your experiences and insights. It’s your job (and to your benefit) to show the admissions committee how unique you are and why they need you on their campus.
There's no guarantees when applying to college, because each university is looking for different types of people who they believe will thrive at their school and bring something special to campus. But if you try your best and be true to yourself and who you are when you apply, it’ll make all the difference and your authenticity and talent will shine through in your applications.
Believe it or not, the time for submitting college essays is just around the corner. If you’re anything like me, summer break has given you major writer's block. I’ve compiled a list of ways top stay motivated and dig you out of that creative funk!
Researchers, like Claire Bustarret, a specialist from ‘the Maurice Halbwachs research Centre’ in Paris, suggests that writing by hand allows the creator to visually see the creative process, thus allowing for growth and greater ideas to come up, as you’re writing.
Adding to that, when you’re writing on paper, don’t erase your ideas—allow your writing to grow from those ideas you didn’t like so much and let new, better ideas rise from them. I had an ‘ah-ha’ moment researching this because it’s happened often where I have an idea but I can’t word it right, so I scrap it. DO NOT do this. Get all of your first draft, non-sense, messy ideas out on paper, and then organize.
Talk to your friends about your ideas and their ideas. Let them read your work and critique it. You never know, someone could say something that sparks a brilliant idea. Human interaction and feeding off of others opinions and thoughts help us grow as learners and writers.
This is the simplest tip. Just start writing. No matter how bad you think it is, just write. If I ever get into those awful writer’s blocks I just start writing—get out of the mindset that everything you write isn’t ‘perfect.’ Just be patient, and the ideas will come.
Get into your flow. I know that’s easier said than done, but getting into a good head space for writing isn’t all that difficult. The main aspect of this is to know what you’re writing about and what needs to get done. This can help focus your mind and get your ideas flowing. Make a list of the things you want to say, and do your research. Then take a break. I find that if I soak up all the information and ideas and then let that settle, the inspiration and words flow out of me.
This is my favorite tip, for obvious reasons, but it’s actually more helpful than it seems. Drinking warm green tea with lemon has helped me get an incredible amount of work done. It is an excellent source of caffeine and the lemon helps restore your mind—and all around the tea helps you relax.
Napping is going to let all those ideas settle—I’m not sure if there is some science to this or if it’s just me, but I write best when I first wake up or when I’m super tired.
I’ve found that this actually doesn't help everyone, and some people prefer silence when they’re creating. But I get a lot of inspiration from listening to music—make a playlist of your favorite songs for writing time. If music is too distracting, put on a podcast; listening to people speak is very relaxing and gives me tons of inspiration.
Whether you’re writing a college essay or making an application for a job/internship, the most important, and sort of clichéd tip, I can give is to not doubt yourself. If I erased everything I didn’t like in a piece of work, I’d never finish anything. Colleges and potential employers are looking to see your personality and your best work—so if you do that, there’s a huge chance for success!
For more tips on staying creative check out this YouTube video: ‘40 Ways to Boost Your Creativity’ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mqUfn9wOzZI
Four days a week, four hours a day, I sat in a freezing, green classroom. I was at Elite Educational Institute taking SAT Prep classes. After completing their eight week summer program, I have learned and experienced a lot. Here’s what you need to know about SAT Prep courses.
The main reason why I decided to take an SAT Prep course is because I didn’t believe I would be disciplined enough to study by myself. Yet, I found that with a SAT Prep course, I was unsatisfied with the instruction I was receiving. If I really wanted to learn the material, I had to read and complete the workbooks and practice problems I was provided on my own. You have to be willing to learn in order to improve.
Unless you’re the smartest in your class, you will hear people complaining about their “low scores”. Their lowest score might be just above your highest. It honestly feels like a kick in the stomach, but you have to relax and focus on your progress. This is about YOU getting better and feeling bad about yourself isn’t going to get you anywhere.
I always struggled with section three of the SAT: the no calculator math section. I would leave at least five of the free response questions blank because I simply ran out of time. The worst part was when reviewing my test, the free response always seemed to be problems I knew I could get right. The other problems that held me back in the multiple choice section kept me from a higher score. In my prep classes, I learned to do the free response portion first and do the multiple choice portion after. That way, if I’m running out of time, I can at least make a guess. Another strategy I learned was in the reading section. The two-part questions involving textual evidence are so much easier when you find the textual evidence first and then compare it to the previous question. All these little techniques are probably what have raised my score the most.
When I first registered for classes, I had to take a placement test. On that placement test, I scored the same score that I had in the seventh week of classes. What happened was that I was given an easier PSAT test as a placement test. When I took my first real test on the first day of class, my score was about one hundred points lower than the previous test. Even as I made the climb up one hundred points, my score would decrease a little every few weeks. This happened to everybody in my class as well because the tests were sometimes a little harder and sometimes a little easier. Unlike the real SAT where the score is curved, my academy had a fixed grading scale with no curve. Be wary of this and don’t be disappointed in yourself if your score goes down!
All in all, I don’t regret taking the SAT course over the summer, and will be continuing in the school year for another five weeks. I feel a lot more confident taking tests, and it gets easier to sit down and focus for such a long period of time. I’ve also met a group of great people who I can compete with in a friendly way to help myself improve. SAT courses aren’t for everybody, but I recommend it for people who need something to help them along the path to a higher score.
When it came to my first semester of college, I was a little bit frazzled by vastly different being in class was. My professors seemed to talk at the speed of light, I never wrote down everything I needed fast enough, and it was difficult to get down anything concrete before they were moving onto the next power point slide. College can be like that a lot – especially in classes where the subject is your weak point. It was different from any of the classes I’d taken in high school because I was expecting what I'd already been used to. Here, I’m going to break down just exactly how note taking in college is different from high school, as well as a guide you on the right path to excellence in note taking.
In high school - even most AP classes – a teacher can only go so quickly with the notes. A good teacher makes sure everyone’s gotten what they needed from the slide before switching up. A good professor will probably give you an extra five seconds before moving on.
It’s the nature of the classes, really. College classes (specifically the humanities) tend to be shorter, with more talking necessary to get complex ideas across in a linear fashion. There’s also a large volume of material necessary to cover before the next test, be they every few weeks, or every few months. STEM classes go on longer, but are still just as information packed and speedy on note taking days. Your professor expects you to be jotting down those differential equations at the speed of light, quite frankly.
It’s important to be prepared for the speed, and to adjust to it. It might be tough if you’re a naturally slow writer, or if you put time into the neatness of your notes, but it’s definitely possible. Even if you're typing but enjoy spending time in properly formatting what you'd just jotted down, you might have to make sacrifices. It works in your favor if your notes are disorganized and cluttered enough to warrant a rewrite: take it as an extra studying opportunity.
As I said earlier, your classes will be jam packed with information. Though, that’s kind of expected. It’s tough covering thousands of years of civilization into four months.
After all that note taking, you’ll start to realize how much work will be going into studying. There might be dozens of pages of information that you’ll have to memorize to pass your midterm, final, and all the in-betweens (if any). Many of us have the bad habit of typing down every single thing that comes out the professor’s mouth verbatim, but that’s not very conductive when you go back into your Google Docs to see a thousand words of your necessary information, littered with unnecessary fluff.
The real difficult part comes with studying. Vast amounts of knowledge are forced into your brain for several months before you spew them out onto a test paper, but most of the time, you’ll be forced to interpret that information in a coherent fashion. It doesn’t matter that you know that Alexander the Great conquered Greece – what effect did it have?
Becoming comfortable with your memorization skill takes time, especially with so much pressure put on passing your tests, but not impossible. Finding methods that work best for you is the most important part. And remember that your professor is always there to help.
You’ll hear this a lot, but college is test based. Most of the time, you’ll have very little outside assignments. Sometimes, all you’ll be left with for the semester is an email address, a syllabus, and a date for your final. (Honestly, nightmares have an awful way of finding their way into real life).
High school classes mostly grade as an relatively even amalgamation of your grades. Classwork, homework, tests, quizzes, and other arbitrary sections are calculated and graded up. If you didn’t do so well with your classwork, but aced your homework and the test, you could still end up getting an A for the semester. It goes both ways. Usually (athis rings especially true in AP classes) the most important part was getting your work done.
The most important part of a college class is passing your test(s). That’s about it. And all semester, you’re taking notes, studying, and gearing up for them.
This is where a lot of freshman in college make their mistakes. Since they have little to occupy themselves with aside from studying, they slack off all semester, only zeroing back in on their work when a sudden essay or project is assigned. That’s how it worked in high school for them, except those errant assignments are much less frequent and routine.
If you can’t take tests, and at least pass them, you won’t pass your classes. That’s sort of a terrifying fact when you either hate tests or just aren’t very good at taking them, but have no fear. If you study right, you’ll be fine. Your professors are there to help you along the way, as well as your fellow classmates, so the important part is to kick your but into gear.
Personally, the studying I did for my first semester of college was like how I studied for my SAT’s my whole year of junior year. Constantly reviewing, revising, and rewriting – although, I was an honest slacker as a high schooler, so maybe that doesn’t hold much weight. None of my classes were engaging or challenging enough for me to study at that level. Keeping up with the classwork and homework was study enough for me on most days.
Your notes in college are your literal lifeline in college for some classes. That’s why skipping a day or two can end up being detrimental. You think it’s cool to miss that Romeo & Juliet discussion for Thursday in your Early Shakesperian Literature class? Good luck writing a decent essay on the play when the prompt is “free will vs. fate” because you expected something simple like “love vs. lust”.
You have to seriously engage with the notes you take in college, and study them more than once. They have to be neatly rewritten, clear, and easy for you to digest.
And also, probably cute looking, since you’ll be looking at them a lot.
It’s tough, honestly, and you might struggle a little in the beginning. Experimentation is important. If you feel like a certain method isn’t working for you, then feel free to change it. Switch from typing to hand writing, or from a study partner to a study group. College is about exploring who you are, even things as mundane as what type of learner you are, and how to capitalize off your strengths.
So get to studying. You have A’s to collect.
Heading into my last year of high school, I’ve seen so many friends leave behind some of their longest lasting extracurriculars, add on some fun activities, and also give themselves the break they’ve always wished they could have. If you’re trying to figure out the best ways to spend free time as you deal with balancing college applications and school with real life, hopefully this will help you to prioritize and take on what really is right for you.
Stick with what you love.If you’ve been doing something since freshman year (or longer) and can’t imagine your last year of high school without it, there’s no doubt you should stick with it. Having things you’ve cared about for a long time looks good to colleges, but another huge benefit here is having something you truly enjoy doing.
If you’re wanting to start a club related to an interest you’ve had for quite some time or take on a leadership role in a club or sport you’ve been involved in, go for it! Now’s the time to do things you’ve wanted to do and lead the activities you’ve grown to love in high school. Make sure, though, to keep note of how time consuming your activities may be and balance them out.
If you’ve done something the past three years, but aren’t really into it anymore, don’t sweat leaving it behind. If you’ve got other activities to keep you busy, or if you need more time and the club or sport is too time consuming, it’s not a big deal. There’s always something else. I’ve seen my own friends leave behind swimming or band just because they lost interest or wanted a different type of senior year, and that’s totally fine. Even though doing four years of something does look good, freedom feels good and gives you the chance to delve even deeper into other things that look good as well as being more important to you.
Keep it reasonable. While it is common to hear about how being well rounded is really important, joining ten new clubs your senior year is probably going to make you more stressed than anything else. Like this article says, colleges value quality of your extracurriculars over quality, so opt for a few you really care about being involved in over a ton that you’re just using to look better.
Make sure you’re not overcommitting. Manage your time well, leaving some days open so you can work on homework and college applications as well as having fun. Before you fully commit to a handful of clubs, I’ve found that writing them all out can help you to understand just how much time they’re taking up. When you read over your schedule and realize that you wouldn’t be getting home until 10:00 for most of the week, you may opt to continue doing those things or you may want to let a few go.
Every person’s different in how much they can handle, how much homework they do at home versus at school, and how they balance their weeks. Just be wary of overcommitting, especially when you’ve got so much to do and your last year of high school to enjoy.
While you may love all of your extracurriculars, make sure you leave time for yourself. Have fun during your last year of high school, both in the activities you choose to be involved in and in your everyday life at school and with friends. For a few ideas on how to enjoy yourself despite the stress, here’s a senior year bucket list perfect for making sure you’re smiling your way through the year.
Extracurriculars are meant to be fun ways to explore your interests, so don’t let them take over your life completely. By choosing wisely and making sure you really enjoy what you’re committing to, they won’t feel stressful, instead helping to take the stress of college and senior year away.
A few months ago, I remember receiving an email from Ana McCullough titled, “An invitation from Questbridge.” Admittedly, I simply selected it and marked it as read, as I do with all of my college emails. However as time passed, I continued to receive more and more emails from Questbridge inviting me to apply, so I finally clicked the link. That is when I learned about the College Prep Scholarship program. On their website, I discovered the plethora of resources they were offering to students who were awarded their scholarships: counseling with college essays, full rides to pre-college summer programs at top universities, and more. I did not end up applying to the program however, and it is something I regret as I begin my college application process.
Questbridge was created by Stanford students as part of an initiative to increase student outreach. Their mission is to help high-achieving, low-income students learn about a myriad of opportunities available to them by assisting in their application process to top universities partnered with the organization. In addition, they offer a variety of resources on their website for everyone to use such as tips for writing a college essay and using the low-income strategy. Questbridge offers three main services: College Prep Scholarship Program, The National College Match, and The Questbridge Scholars Network.
The College Prep Scholarship program is targeted at low-income, high achieving, high school juniors. The application opens in mid-February and is due in the last week of March. It includes a very extensive application that requires personal information, financial background, academic records, letters of recommendation, personal essay, short answer responses, and an activities list. Even though a lot is required of applicants, the benefits for the scholarship winners are endless.
As the name suggests, the program offers rising seniors with college preparation resources. Members will receive the opportunity to attend Questbridge’s annual conference to sit in on exclusive presentations by admission counselors. Students who previously had not thought of applying to a selective college often leave the meeting inspired after learning about the generous financial aid offered by top colleges and the large support system waiting for them at these universities.
The essay used for the application will be used for college applications and will be reviewed by a college counselor for free, a service that can cost up to thousands of dollars, and is otherwise unattainable for low-income students.
Another major component of this program is full-rides to attend pre-college summer programs at these prestigious universities, including Stanford, Columbia, UChicago, to name a few. Students are able to earn college credit and experience learning in a college environment while still in their high school years, something that low-income students would not have the chance to experience otherwise.
In addition, admitted students are able to receive information throughout the year regarding topics such as fly-in programs, mentoring programs, and will have the opportunity to apply for Quest for Excellence awards.
While the application may seem daunting at first glance, if you start early and work step-by-step without procrastinating, you will complete it in time. If accepted you will be able to meet with a community of people who have gone through significant challenges in life, and you will be able to have them as a support group for your college admission journey and beyond.
The National College Match is a program targeted at rising high school seniors. The application opens in June and is due in late September. It is very similar to the application used for the College Prep Scholarship, in fact, you even have the option to reuse its application for this program. The National College Match helps high school seniors apply to college and gain admission to top universities by providing them with a free application that is able to highlight the strength of their accomplishments in regards to their circumstances. This program offers opportunities for low-income students to be recognized in the same light as their competing peers.
After submitting the application, members have up to mid-October to rank Questbridge’s partner colleges from 1-12, 1 being your top choice and 12 being your last, of course you don’t have to fill all 12 spots, you could even only submit 1. Ranking colleges means that these are the colleges you want to be considered for admission with a college match scholarship which provides a full-ride for all four years of college. While all partner colleges provide students with scholarships to fulfill 100% of demonstrated financial need, the college match scholarship eliminates the need to fill out FAFSA and the CSS profile every year. However, with the exception of Stanford, MIT, Yale, and Princeton, the college match is binding, meaning you have to attend no matter what. You will only be matched to the school that is higher up in your list that wants to offer a match. (Say the University of Pennsylvania is your second choice and Trinity College is your fourth and both schools are interested in providing a college match scholarship, you will only be matched to the University of Pennsylvania). Students will receive notification of their status in the first week of December, students who do not match have the option to apply early action/decision or through regular decision.
To some students, this may seem as a high degree of commitment, therefore some finalists opt to not enter the match, but rather choose to apply through Regular Decision. Applying through regular decision allows them to apply to partner colleges for free, and are still able to receive a generous financial aid offer, and are able to compare offers if admitted to more than one. If admitted to a partner college either through the match or regular decision, students gain access to the Questbridge Scholars Network, a community of scholars to guide you through college and other elements of it such as internships, to help you succeed through it.
Bottom line, applying to the National College Match does NOT guarantee admission to a partner college, in fact most students are not admitted. However, there is nothing to lose from applying. You are granted the opportunity to begin applying to college two months before applications even open on August 1st. By September, you will have everything needed for your other non-Questbridge college applications, minus the supplements. Even if you are rejected, you almost have all the materials needed to apply to schools through the Common Application. And of course, there’s also the chance of being selected as a finalist, and even admitted to a top university.
Once a student commits to a partner college they become a member of the Questbridge Scholars Network chapter at their respective college. The QSN will send information about internships and grants throughout your college career to help ensure each student's success. In addition, the chapter serves as a support group, preventing students to drop-out as a result of unforeseen pressures and stress, allowing them graduate in four years, and helping each other overcome the hardships that come being a low-income, first generation college student.
I encourage all students to read more information about Questbridge and their many programs offered. Every year, low-income students are given a once in a lifetime opportunity to attend a top university for free.
“This is my Year.”- Every Student Ever.
There isn’t a school year where you don’t reflect on your past self and realize you need to drastically change. Whether it be a behavioral change, a work ethic change, or just a change for yourself. Most people try to change the small things before the major aspects that goes into your school reputation. Yes, changing your wardrobe can improve some things but what about your GPA? In this article, I will give you 5 tips on how you can improve yourself for the upcoming school year.
Find a quiet space to sit down and concentrate. Find something to write on and something to write with. Ask yourself, “Last school year, how was I?” Be completely honest with yourself; don’t sugarcoat anything. The purpose of making this list is so you know what you did wrong and how to improve from there. It could hurt to say you were a distraction in class, but in the long run you’ll thank yourself. If you can’t think of anything, phone a friend or email your teachers and ask them.
How can you change without at least other person knowing your plan? That same friend and teacher who helped you find your flaws should be the same person who knows your game plan. Who knows, maybe your friend will decide to change with you. Not only will you not be doing this alone you’ll have people to hold you accountable in case you slip up.
Whenever you go back to school apologize to everyone you’ve wronged or had problems with. First, apologize to your teachers. If you can’t verbally apologize, write a nice letter and hand it to them in person. Your teachers truly will make your school year… and later down the road you’ll need them. Next, apologize to your peers. You have to have class with them, eat lunch with them, and truly just see them all day long. You can’t change if the person sitting next to you is hoping for your downfall.
Regardless of what you wish to change you need to be aware of yourself. If you find yourself slipping into your old habits, punish yourself. You didn’t do your homework, ask the teacher for more work plus the work you didn’t complete. You find yourself having too many side conversations in class, remove yourself from your friends. Another way to hold yourself accountable is to ask one peer and one teacher in each class to observe you. After they made their observations ask them for a weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly report on your behavior; sort of life parent-teacher conferences… but with only you.
Chill out, change doesn’t happen overnight. It takes 21 days to break a habit, 21 days to develop a habit, and even longer to master that habit. Hold yourself to a standard but don’t break your back trying to improve yourself. This is a process; take it day by day, you’ll see change. Trust me.
As an international student, transitioning into college or university can be stressful—and that's without the change of climate, culture shock, or language barrier—so here are six savvy hacks to make your international studies easy-breezy!
Trying to scrounge up a few extra dollars for the next lunch of Raman noodles is the sad reality of most college student's lives, but lucky for you, keeping track of your money couldn't be easier.
Mint, an app available for free on iOS, Android or desktop, easily connects to your bank account to manage all aspects of your activity, including spending, savings, earnings and budgeting. (They also update a cheeky, informative blog called MintLife for all your financial/lifestyle questions).
This well-trusted app also determines your spending habits and can alert you whenever you're nearing your budget limit, keeping your credit in line and extra cash in your hand.
Navigating through a brand new area, especially a large place like California or New York, can be intimidating and downright irritating. But how do all of those other people get around so quickly? Easy; they know the ins and outs of the city, and soon you will too. Google Maps is a great GPS tool for newbies, but knowing the city is about more than just recognising the street names—It's about discovering the local shops and attractions, as well.
Like A Local, a free app, is exactly what the title claims to be. This handy app tells you what the locals' favourites are around your area. Now you can let yourself explore while staying away from those tricky tourist attractions.
Even with the confusion of foreign currency, you'll be the best sale-scavenger around if you utilise one of the most accessible, underrated tools out there: coupons. I'm not talking about your grandma's $1.00 off Dish Soap discounts, either. How does up to 85% off your retail purchase sound? Sounds like my wallet is yelling, "hallelujah!"
Apps and websites like Yowza and Groupon offer sales that can save you big time, and here's how it works—Just type in the store/item you're looking for into the search bar, and the app will give you a selection of coupon codes to enter into the 'discount' section on your chosen store's website.
There are also coupon apps that offer digital discounts that allow you to save your chosen coupon, then present it on your phone at the check out in-store. Just like Grandma, except more $$ saved and it's much more convenient.
Organising any priorities for the day should be a habit that any university student utilises—especially international students. Within the hectic mixture of moving, having new classes, meeting new friends, and all the other struggles that non-international students don't have, a to-do list is a must. The easiest way to keep track of your assignments, or whatever else you need to do, is to remind yourself. Sound's simple, right? It is. With technology, to-do lists have been modernised into something that's reliable and simple, and it's never been easier to remember things.
My personal favourite for this specific task is Wunderlist; Wunderlist is an app (plus it's available for download to your desktop!) that helps you organise your busy life in a minimalistic, trustworthy fashion.
The reason you even became, or are thinking of becoming, an international student is because of the education opportunities, right? You should make sure that your class marks stay in tip-top shape by using Evernote.
If you had to pick only one of the apps listed , Evernote should be the one you choose. It's the smooth-running, multitasking king of organisation, equipped with note taking, bookmarking, online chat with other students, to-do lists, and more!
So whether discovering convenient, local shops is your forte, or if you're more of a study-on-the-go type of person, hopefully you can find some great resources within these top six apps! Good luck on your journey to a new life, and don't forget to let us know in the comments if you've ever tried one of these apps!
August 1st has come and gone, which means that college application season is now in full swing. As students across the country decide which schools they want to commit four or more years of their lives to, the subject of money weighs heavily in the back of their minds and influences where they apply. It’s no secret that a higher education puts a dent in your pocket, but knowing what financial aid options you have can make it less severe.
The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is the most common form of financial aid. In fact, most colleges require students to fill it out so that they can be considered for the schools’ own merit or need-based scholarships and grants. Depending on your financial situation, the FAFSA might do a lot for you, or barely anything at all- still, even if you think that you don’t qualify for aid, you should still file, because you’ll never know what you might get until you do.
Two big changes have been made for the 2017-2018 application cycle: one, you can use your income information from 2015 instead of 2016, and two, the FAFSA will be available on October 1st, 2017, which is the earliest it’s ever been accessible. So, mark your calendars and when October comes around, make the wise choice of filing your FAFSA. For more information, check out this website.
Scholarships are probably the most obvious form of financial aid, but many students wait for scholarship opportunities to find them instead of taking matters into their own hands. It is better to be proactive throughout the coming months by researching what you are eligible for first on a local, then national scale. Make sure to talk to your counselor for assistance. If you want more insight into how to find scholarships, check out Joi Wade’s post, How to Get Scholarships for College!.
These programs are not often talked about, so here’s the scoop: by being a part of one of them, you can pay in-state tuition at an out-of-state school. For example, when participating in the Southern Regional Education Board’s Academic Common Market, a student who is a resident in South Carolina can get the in-state tuition at colleges in many other states, from Georgia to Alabama to Maryland.
Be wary of these programs, though; it is usually the case that someone is only eligible to take part in them if their major is not available in their home state. Learn more here.
Whenever the word “loan” is mentioned, students and parents alike get a bit uneasy. The thought of graduating with debt to pay back for years to come is unsettling for most people, but there are multiple options for loans that you can research. It is recommended that you apply for federal loans before searching for private ones, with the most popular being the Stafford and Perkins loans.
There are two different types of Stafford Loans: subsidized and unsubsidized. The subsidized Stafford Loan is available to students who qualify for aid based on the FAFSA, and interest that accrues is covered by the government until six months after the student leaves school. The unsubsidized Stafford loan is available to any student who has filed the FAFSA, regardless of need, but interest payments are the students’ responsibility from the get-go.
The Perkins Loan is for students with exceptional financial need. The student’s school acts as the lender, using funds provided by the federal government, which also pays the student’s interest throughout their college career. Not all schools are a part of the Perkins Loan program, so it would be wise to contact the schools you apply to so you can verify their participation status.
For more information on these loans and others, check out this website.
Hopefully by knowing your options for financial aid, you will feel more confident about paying for your higher education, and won’t be deterred from applying to certain schools simply because of their price tag! Remember that these are not the only options and just a few to get you started. Always talk to a trusted family member about all of your financial options for paying for school.
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