Teen College Education

Picking Your High School Classes

noreply@blogger.com (basilace) — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 07:55:00 +0000

It is that time of year again; time to pick classes for next year. High school students are faced with hundreds of potential classes that they can take, ranging from college prep/regular (CP) to Advanced Placement (AP). There are just sooo many choices. EVERY student faces the choice of whether to take one class or another, and this often makes picking classes a difficult task.

So what classes should I take?? - The answer is pretty simple; take the most challenging classes of what you like/are good at. For some students this will mean taking 6 AP classes, while for others this advice translates into just regular classes. Colleges like to see students take challenging classes, but a few AP/honors classes is more than enough to meet that requirement. At the same time, however, taking many college prep classes will lessen a student's competitive edge over other students. There are sooooo many high school students out there right now who are taking 5 or 6 AP classes (in one year), that it is essential for everyone to have a few in order to show colleges competence. In my opinion, that many AP classes in one year is overkill, but my motto is "whatever floats your boat." The thing about AP that many students forget/overlook is that many colleges will only accept up to a certain number of classes for credit or extra GPA points. The U.C. system (University of California), for example, only accepts a maximum of 8 AP classes. So why take any more than that? Honestly, colleges like to see well rounded people, and someone who takes 6 AP classes is not going to be as well rounded as someone who takes 3 or 4. AP students are always short on time, it comes with the title, as I explained in a previous article here. 6 AP classes = no life other than school.

So what if any AP classes should I take? -- Take the subjects that you like most and are thinking about studying in college. If a student absolutely hates math (as I do) then it is not necessary to take AP or even honors math. Although it will look better on college applications to take a higher level math, students should not take it solely to look better. Colleges would rather have happy students who study what they like to study than depressed and overworked students who only take classes to look good. Another factor to consider is the amount of other AP classes that a student will take the following year. One AP class on its own is not that much additional work (unless it is AP Chem*) but multiple classes can really add up. (*I have a personal gripe against AP Chem because of a bad teacher who made me learn everything by myself. AP Chem is NOT a fun class to learn just from a book.) When it gets tricky is once a student has 3 AP classes in one year. From here on, students must really prioritize and they had better know what they are getting in to. So in short, students should take the AP classes that they think they will enjoy.

There is also the dilemma of what class looks better for college. Students should take 4 years of Math, 4 years of English, 3-4 years of language, 3-4 years of science, and 3-4 years of History in order to get into a good college. 4 years of each would be optimal, but 3 years in language, science, and history will suffice. Colleges like to see progression though each subject and sticking with a subject shows dedication. For specific requirements for the college that you want to go to, look at the admissions page on their main website.

In summary, students should pick the classes that they enjoy or think that they will enjoy the most. They should take a few AP classes so that they can compete with everyone else in the country, but only to a certain point. 6 AP classes is wayyy too many in my humble opinion. Most importantly though is have fun in high school; don't kill yourself with hard classes. High School is only 4 years so make the most of it!

-Basil Ace

Ask Me Your College Questions on Twitter

noreply@blogger.com (basilace) — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 05:32:00 +0000

So I was sitting at home studying for a French test when I had a great idea to help all of my readers/students who are confused about college. I thought that I would start a sort of Forum on Twitter where anyone could ask questions. I will try to answer these questions to the best of my abilities, but other readers can feel free to help me out a bit as well if you want.

Here is the link to my twitter http://twitter.com/teencollegeeduc. Please ask away and tell your friends!

Tips To Help You Get Into College (part 4)

noreply@blogger.com (basilace) — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 03:19:00 +0000

Continuing from Tips to Help You Get Into College (part 3), today we have tips 7 and 8. Last time I discussed standardized tests and college visits (in part 3) so tips 7 and 8 have to do with being organized and showing interest in colleges.

7. Be Organized!! College application for early decision are due in September/October in most cases. If students plan on applying to a college via early decision, then they had better meet these deadlines. This will probably require working on applications over the summer, but then again, it is for college, so it's worth it. It is immensely important that students start to work on their college apps in all cases over the summer. Once school starts again in the fall, time just flies by and it will be December in what seemed like a few weeks. Stay on top of your applications!! Missing deadlines is the WORST thing that you could do for colleges. Universities have so many other applicants that they will not fret over one lost potential student; there are 5 others who can just as easily fill that space (and who applied on time). Senior year is tough because many students choose to take multiple AP classes and are usually leaders in their classes and sports. This is all the more reason to be organized and get applications done piece by piece, whenever possible. There will be plenty of time for students to party and relax come March, when acceptance letters are mailed. Although I do NOT recommend it, from this point on, seniors could basically just show up to class and twiddle their thumbs the entire time. This would get kind of boring, but you get the idea. The important thing is that students get all of their paperwork in on time and have the time to put into it. So, all that I can say is BE ORGANIZED!

8. Show some interest in the colleges that you want to attend. Although, in the grand scheme of applications interest is not as important as grades, tests, or extra curriculars, it is something that can make the difference between 2 students. College obviously want students who are interested in what the school has to offer, because above all else, they want students to enjoy their experience. They prefer to have students who will absolutely love the campus than students who will settle for it. So how does a student show interest in college? The answer is actually pretty simple; sign up for their information. The colleges will email students information and soon they will start to send snail mail. College visits help a lot too. Different colleges have different methods, so it is up to students to figure out the best way to show interest. You can probably find out how to have the college contact you on their official websites. Try to get their attention somehow.

-Basil Ace

For Part 1 Click here
For Part 2 Click here
For Part 3 Click here

The Top 10 Things that a High School Student Needs to Know Before College

noreply@blogger.com (basilace) — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 01:11:00 +0000

Image via Wikipedia

There are plenty of things that high school students need to know, but I have compiled a list of a advice that is essential to all high school students to know before college. The sooner students read this list, the better.

1. Know the college rankings. Those can be found here on an old post along with some commentary on 2010 College Rankings. It is important to know the college rankings because it helps in student's applications and everything leading up to those decisions. Obviously, students who want to apply to the top 10 schools will need higher grades and test scores than if they want to apply to the bottom 50. Knowing where the college you want to go to ranks is very beneficial in the long run.

2. Know why it is essential that high school students go to college. I detailed some of the main reasons in GO TO COLLEGE!! Students who go to college make more money than those who do not. They are happier than those who do not and, obviously, they are more educated than those who do not attend college. It is important that EVERYONE goes to college.

3. Do not fall for The Biggest College Myth. The myth is that only the best colleges, like Harvard, will help students to succeed in life. This is absolutely untrue. Any college will help students develop the skills needed to succeed in life, whether it is Ivy or a local community college. It is just very important that everyone goes to college.

4. So now students are in high school and deciding what classes to take and whether or not to take AP classes. It is important that these students read about the life of The AP Student so that they are fully aware of what they are getting into. AP life is not by any means easy; I call it an endless cycle of sleep deprivation for a reason. While AP classes look great for college, there is major sacrifice to be made for them.

5. Soon test time comes around and students are faced with standardized tests for the first time in their lives. Unfortunately, standardized tests are very important which I discuss in Just How Important are Standardized Tests? These tests are the only way that colleges can compare all of the applicants on a fair and even playing field, because EVERYONE takes the same test on the same day. So needless to say, they are pretty important.

6. Then the question arises of whether or not to take SAT prep classes. Some people do not need these classes, but for most high school students, they are absolutely necessary. The article Is Test Prep Worth It dives into the value of test prep. Long story short, SAT test prep classes, no matter where a student takes them, will positively affect a student's scores and college applications.

7. During this entire time, students are faced with the everyday challenges of school. Tests in high school are very common, and finals kill all students. It is important that high school students know how to study well and efficiently, so that they do not kill themselves of exhaustion and still get a C. I discuss many tips and good study habits in Crunch Time Study Tips: How to Study for Finals.

8. Besides school, students also need extra curriculars for their college applications. Extra curriculars are VERY important to any college application because they put a face on a piece of paper that is otherwise just monotonous numbers. Activities Outside of School is my most popular article as it is brief and really gives a great summary of extra curricular activities in general. For a more in depth analysis on extra curricular activities, Using Extra Curriculars for College explains how to get the most out of extra curriculars and look the best as possible for college.

9. All of these activities and events leave high school students with the impression that there is Not Enough Time (another article) for everything that they want to accomplish. Students must realize that in order to succeed in school they need to sacrifice some things, such as excessive partying and laziness. School and school related activities take up around 12 hours of every day, not counting homework. Students must learn to prioritize and focus their time on school if they want to succeed.

10. Finally, all students will need some sort of help getting into college. I have a nice list of tips and suggestions on Tips to Help You Get Into College. This article is a nice summary of almost everything that high school students need to focus on in order to gain admission into the colleges of their choice. Make sure to read this article!

-Basil Ace

100 Niche Search Engines that Every College Student Needs

noreply@blogger.com (basilace) — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 00:51:00 +0000

So for this week's article I again found something interesting on the internet that is of use both to college and high school students. I found this article on Online Universities.com, along with many other interesting posts. I did not know that there were sooooo many different search engines on the internet! Besides Google, Yahoo, MSN, AOL, Bing, and a few other biggies, there are a ton of other engines. You will thank me when you have to finish a paper the night before it is due and need something other than Google to find resources!
Enjoy!!

-Basil Ace

While the big names like Google and Yahoo will likely always rule the search engine market, sometimes you want something a little more focused when it comes to finding what you need on the web. That’s where these niche search engines come in handy. Using these tools you’ll be able to search through everything from academic research articles to deals on video games, making your life at college easier in a myriad of ways.
Research
Use these great search engines to aid in your research for papers, projects and more.

Google Scholar: With Google Scholar you can search through thousands of guaranteed scholarly (and appropriate for use in a paper) articles and research reports.
WorldCat: If you need a book and they don’t have it at your local library, use this tool to find out where the closest location you can find the book is.
Scirus: Using this search tool you can browse or search through loads of great scientific articles–great for last-minute research.
HighBeam Research: This tool searches through numerous sites to find the articles that you’re looking for.
iSeek: Students and teachers alike can find great information using this site that searches through only trusted resources.
Librarian’s Internet Index: Make sure you’re finding reliable, truthful information by using this search tool.
Vadlo: This search engine allows users to search through thousands of resources in the life sciences and biomedical fields.
Virtual Learning Resource Center: You’ll find a great collection of resources on this site to help you complete your projects in everything from economics to art history.
Open Library: If you don’t have time to run out to the library, you can find online resources to use for free using this search engine.
Online Journals Search Engine: Use this search engine to find great scientific journal articles.

Getting Answers
Check out these search engines for help finding answers to your important questions and organizing information.

Answers.com: Ask a question and other users will post their answers on this helpful site.
AskMeNow: Use this search site to find answers from experts on a wide range of topics.
Powerset: This tool uses Wikipedia to answer your question, bringing up the most relevant information.
Lexxe: Simply type a question into this site to get search results that best answer it.
Online Conversion: You can convert just about any unit to another using this great tool. Simply search to find the conversion you need.
Tablefy: This site will allow you to compare just about anything from products to websites and give you the information in an easy to use table.
MetaGlossary: Using this tool, you can find the meaning of millions of phrases, terms and acronyms.
BrainBoost: Try out this question-answering engine to see if you can’t find just what you’re looking for.

Med Students
Whether you’re already in med school or planning to head there when you graduate, these tools offer great search capabilities for all kinds of health-related information.

PubMed: This site lets you search through the holdings at the U.S. National Library of Medicine and the National Institutes of Health.
MedScape: Find all kinds of useful health-related articles through this site.
OmniMedicalSearch: This medical site lets you search for articles, news, photos and more.
Healthline: Check out this basic site to find information on a variety of medical conditions.
Healthfinder: Here you’ll find a collection of government health resources that you can search through in both English and Spanish.
Antibiotic Guide: If you need to know anything about an antibiotic, you’ll find it using this search site from Johns Hopkins.
Medical Student.com: Designed with students in mind, this site is full of searchable information that can help you in your studies.
PDR.net: Use this search site as a starting point to learning more about prescription drugs of all kinds.

Law Students
Search through all kinds of legal history and information using these tools.

Everybody’s Legal Glossary: This searchable resources puts legal terms into plain English so that you can understand them.
Catalaw: Catalaw is a site that brings together the world’s law catalogs and lets you search through them.
FedLaw: This site will help you find everything from the meaning of acronyms to forms and legal restrictions for businesses.
Supreme Court Decisions: If you need to look up a Supreme Court case, this site makes it simple.
LawGuru: Using this site, you can ask any kind of legal question and get answers or find out what kind of law offices are open in your area.
Hieros Gamos: Find law firms, jobs, legal information and just about anything else related to the law by searching this site.
Meta-Index for U.S. Legal Research: This site makes it easy to search for Supreme Court decisions, legislation, regulations and more.
World Legal Information Institute: Search through this database to find information related to legal cases from around the world.

Business Students
Keep up with the markets and the big names in business with these search engines.

Business.com: You’ll find a wide range of business information through the search engine on this site.
DailyStocks: Keep up with the ups and downs of the market by searching for specific stocks on this site.
Inomics: Sign up for this site to search through a wealth of economics-related information.
Zapdata: By becoming a member of this site, you can search through businesses from across the nation and get great leads and connections.
Bloomberg: Use this site to learn more about economic and financial news and to follow the markets.
BPubs: Search through a variety of business publications for articles that interest you using this site.
ThomasNet: Look up companies, product names, brands and more and find all the information you need on this site.

All-In-One
These search engines will allow you to conduct big, personalized searches.

WikiSlice: This site will let you search through wikipedia for a given term, giving you all the articles that reference it.
Dogpile: Use this search engine to search through Google, Yahoo, Bing and Ask all at once.
MetaCrawlerWeb: Save yourself some time and search through all the big search engines at once on this site.
mamma: Whether you’re looking for web results, video or images, this site brings you the best results from the biggest search engines out there.
Myriad Search: Search through several major search engines on this site, with the option to customize your results.
HotBot: Choose from several search engines to use on this meta site.
SurfWax: This site will help you make the most of your searches, offering custom tools for searching Wikipedia, RSS feeds, news, shopping and more.
Clusty: With the option to limit searches to topics like blogs, images, Wikipedia and more, this site makes finding what you need a whole lot easier.
Copernic Agent: Find what you’re looking for in a snap using this customizable search tool.

Images and Visual Displays
If you need images for a project or just for fun, these sites make it easy to find what you’re looking for.

Image Toss: Use this search tool to find great images.
Picsearch: This site will let you search through billions of images to find what you need.
Fagan Finder: An indispensable tool for searching for images, this site lets you search through stock photos, search engines, photo sharing sites and more.
TinEye Reverse Image Search: Have an image but don’t know where it came from? This search site can help.
Pixsy: Use this site to search through tons of pictures and images to find what you’re looking for.
Netvue: With this site you’ll see images and animations displayed beautifully so you’ll find just what you’re looking for.
Creative Commons Search: Find images you can use for free on this site.
Middlespot: Search through the images on this site and collect them using the site’s tools so you can use them later.

Media
Find videos and music galore using these search engines.

Last.fm: List your favorite bands on this site, and the search feature will direct you towards other artists you might like.
Dailymotion: On this site you’ll find thousands of videos you can look through each day.
YouTube: As the best-known video-hosting site on the web, this search tool is a best bet for finding the videos you need.
FindSounds: Whether you need a new ring tone or just want to entertain yourself with funny sounds, you can find just about everything you need here.
Blinkx: Search through tons of videos on this site.
SeeqPod: Use this tool to search through millions of songs, and you can even listen to samples of your results.
RadioLocator: Search through this site to find the best radio stations in your area.
SkreemR: Find a wide range of MP3 files through this search engine.

Entertainment
Find fun things to do in your college town using these helpful entertainment search sites.

Gnod: Find music, books and movies that meet your interests using this search engine.
ConcertFinders: Try out this site to find out what concerts will be happening in your area.
FestivalFinder: If you want to attend a music or any other kind of festival this summer, consider using this tool to find out more information.
Fandango: Look up information about movies and find show times and tickets on this site.
Restaurant Row: Enter in your city, a type of food or a restaurant name and find all the information you need for a dinner out.
TV Guide: Find out what’s playing on your TV by searching through the listings on this site.
Zvents: Discover fun things to do in your neck of the woods by searching through this site.
Goby: Simply type in what you’d like to do, where you’d like to do it or when you’re free, and you can find all kinds of fun activities.
IMDB: Settle your movie trivia debates using this excellent movie and television information database.

Shopping
If you’re a college student on a budget, take advantage of these shopping sites to find great bargains on just about anything you could need.

Like.com: This site is home to some of the best deals and selections on the web from sites made for women, men, home and more.
Slifter: Find out where to buy products in your neighborhood using this online tool.
Pronto: This site searches top stores for great deals and trendy fashions to save you the trouble of doing it on your own.
The Find: Search for a product using this site and it will tell you where to get the best deal and if there are coupons available.
retrevo: Those in the market for new electronics should try out this site for finding great deals.
BizRate: Here, you’re able to search for items, price compare and buy them from the site with the best deal.
Shopzilla: This site is the ultimate comparison shopping search engine. Simply type in what you’re looking for and it does the rest.
AuctionMapper: Use this site to totally hack the listings on eBay, get the best deals and find what you’re looking for.

Life
These search sites will help you find a place to live or a job to pay for that place.

HotPads: If you’re in the market for a new apartment, then this site can help you find some great new digs.
Rent.Com: Find a place to rent that’s within your budget using this search site.
Apartments.com: Use this site to make sure you’re getting the most bang for your buck in your college apartment.
MyNewPlace: This site lets you search through millions of apartment and rental listings.
Internship Programs: Try out this site to secure yourself an internship for the summer or after college.
indeed: If your graduation is looming, start looking for work now using this job search engine.
JuJu: Search by field, location, or company on this site for a job that will make use of your college degree.
Careerjet: This site scours numerous other websites for the best job listings, letting you search through them from one place.

Miscellaneous
If you’re still looking for a different kind of niche search engine, give one of these a try.

Snopes.com: Before you get freaked out about that forward your grandma sent you, take a look at this search site to see the real deal behind the often sensational stories presented in urban legends and around the web.
NewsLookup: Use this search site to find news from anywhere around the world and on any subject.
AlltheWeb: Find the news you need using this search engine.
Rollyo: This search engine is what you make of it, meaning you can customize it to fit any niche you’re trying to search through.
Wink: If you’re looking for a person, use this search engine to find out their phone number, address or email.
Spock: This site will help you connect with old friends from high school you may have lost touch with.
Technorati: Use Technorati to scour the blogging world for posts and sites that match your interests.
SearchBug: Find people, companies, services and more using this helpful online tool.
Soople: This site is the ultimate search tool, allowing you to do basic things like search Google or more advanced things like find a library book.

This article can be found at http://www.onlineuniversities.com/blog/2010/02/100-niche-search-engines-every-college-student-needs/

100 Organization Posts To Help You with School

noreply@blogger.com (basilace) — Sat, 30 Jan 2010 02:34:00 +0000

To do something a little different this week, I thought that I would share with all of you this great post that I found at Online Degree Programs. This post has 100 different posts with tips to help organize your lives, whether in college or high school. I would especially recommend reading the article 7 Secrets of the Super Organized (#6) as well as 5 Important Benefits of Time Management for Students (#72). There are 100 post to choose from, but these two were very interesting and definitely worth reading. Enjoy!!
-Basil Ace

100 Awesome Organization Posts Start Your New Semester

Many students start out the school year with every intention of staying organized, sticking to a study schedule and meeting personal goals. Where they end up come second semester is often a different story. Whether you’ve made it your resolution to be a more organized college student this year or just want to actually be able to use your desk space again, these great blog posts will help you get in the organization groove and hopefully stay there through the end of the semester and beyond.
General
These general organization tips will work for students at any place in their education or just about anyone else.

Organizing Tips for the New Year: Check out this post for some basic ideas on how to get organized and start your year and semester off right.
Getting back on track after break: Getting back into the habit of studying, going to bed at a decent hour and sticking to a schedule can be hard after a break, but this post offers some helpful tips.
Keeping Those Resolutions: If your resolution was to get organized, you can find some advice on sticking to it here.
Heading Back to College in Organized Style: This post offers ideas on how to get organized while you’re away at school.
Staying Organized in College: This post will provide a great collection of tools online and off to keep your organized at college.
7 Secrets of the Super Organized: Learn what you’re missing when it comes to staying organized from those who do it well in this post.
20 Ideas to Help Students Get Organized: Take a look at these simple tips on ways that you can lead a more organized life.
College Clutter Crisis: Learn how to reduce your stress by getting organized in this post.
Organization Tips for New Graduate Students: You don’t have to be a graduate student to appreciate the advice for students in this post.
Organization and Clutter Methods For Dyslexic Students at College or University: If you’ve got a learning disability, you can do yourself a big favor by reading this post and figuring out ways to keep yourself organized.
Organizing for College: Read this post to learn some of the essentials of being organized.
College Life: Dispelling Myths About Getting Organized: Learn why getting organized doesn’t have to mean being super neat and other facts that could help you along your way to getting organized.
8 Ways to Get Organized in 5 Minutes: Getting organized doesn’t have to take hours of your time, as this post shows. A little bit at a time can go a long way.

Desk
If you haven’t seen the surface of your desk or study space since the first week of classes, maybe now is the time to finally straighten it up so you can use it for something more useful than storing your junk–like studying.

Homework Haven: Organizing Your Homework Station: While this post is intended for younger studiers, the tips can be applied to anyone looking to create a clean and distraction-free study space.
5 Easy Ways to Keep School Papers from Piling Up: Learn how to tackle that stack of old paper, syllabi and other junk in this post.
Tips for organizing your home office: You may not have a home office per se, but your desk area is an office of sorts, and you can learn how to clean it up here.
Conquering Paper Clutter: With notes and assignments, not to mention bills and letters, your desk can pile up fast. Use these tips to conquer it.
Organizing Paper Files: Keep your academic and financial records organized with advice found here.
Tips to Tame the Clutter Monster: Tackle your messy space with tips here on getting all that clutter under control.
What to Do When Your Desk is a Disaster: If your desk is a wasteland, consider trying some of the methods in this post to get it under control.
Today is National Clean Your Desk Day: Even if it’s not, you can use this post as motivation to tidy up your workspace.
Organizing Your Home Office Desk: Keep your desk a place to work and write and not a storage place for junk with advice in this post.
Create More Desk Space with These Organizing Tips: Make the most of your desk, however tiny, with this organization-focused post.
Five uncluttering things you can do in your office right now: Use these small steps as a starting place to organizing your study space.
12 Tips for an Organized Desk: You’ll be able to enjoy a clean and organized desk with a few pointers found in this post.

Computer
If your laptop or desktop has become a jumble of photos, music and files, it’s time to give it a good old fashioned clean sweep. Use these tips to learn how to do it right.

Computer Organization for College and Grad Students: This blog post offers to teach you how to keep your computer neat and easy to use.
Decluttering: Sort Out Those Files: Read through this post to learn how to organize, delete and manage all your digital info.
Organizing Your Electronic Files: Don’t waste time searching through your files to find what you need. This guide will explain how to get organized.
Top 10 Ways to Declutter Your Digital Life: Lifehacker offers some ideas on how to reduce the clutter on your desktop and online with a few simple fixes here.
Five Ways to De-Clutter Your Desktop: Those with Apple computers can use this guide to get their computers looking ship-shape.
3 Ways to Organize and De-Clutter Your Windows Desktop: This guide offers some of the same tips only geared towards Windows users instead.
Email Zen: Clear Out Your Inbox: Learn how to finally clear out and organize your inbox so you won’t be sorting through numerous files
Using Technology to Organize Your Life: This post will show you some ways that technology can help, not hinder, getting you organized and on track.
How to Organize Your Computer: This post will show you some simple ways to keep your computer neat.
Oops, I Forgot My Password: 10 Simple Steps to Organizing Your Passwords Forever: Find yourself forgetting important passwords all the time? This post will show you how to keep them organized.
Organizing Your Desktop-Computer Desktop That Is!: Use this post to help you create a pretty and clutter-free computer desktop.
Four Tips to Speed Up Your PC: Sometimes clearing out the clutter can mean speeding up your computer, as you’ll learn from this post.

Apartment
Clean up your dorm or apartment with helpful advice found on these blogs.

10 Tips for Staying Organized: This post from Apartment Therapy offers some great ideas on ways you can stay organized around the house.
Spring Cleaning: Organizing the Junk Drawer: Whether it’s a junk drawer or a whole junk dresser, learn how to clean it up and clear it out here.
Get Rid of Useless Crap: This post will help you learn how to get rid of all the stuff you no longer need so you won’t have to move it or have it take up useful space.
Organizing Your Apartment: Try out some of the ideas in this post to make the most of your apartment.
Organizing Your Apartment: The College Student’s Nightmare and Fantasyland: Here you’ll get straight shooting advice on how to keep organized as a student and why it actually is important.
Tips for Organizing Small Spaces: Often, dorms and college apartments are pretty small. This post offers some ideas on how organization can make the most of the space.
Cleaning and Organizing Your Bedroom: You likely spend a good amount of time in your bedroom studying or sleeping, so learn how to tidy it up through this post.
Two Best Organizing Tools that Don’t Cost a Dime: Organizing doesn’t mean buying a million containers. This post shows how what really matters won’t cost you anything.
Cleaning and Organizing: Check out this collection of informative posts to learn how to organize just about everything in your home.
Organizing, Moving and Cleaning Ideas for your Rented Space: Get tips on controlling clutter, cleaning and getting organized from this post.
The Super Easy Approach to Decluttering your Home: This post takes a no-nonsense approach to determining what stays and what goes.
Dorm Room Organization: Those still living in the dorms can get some ideas on organizing and storage solutions here.

Schoolwork
Learn how to study better, improve your grades and be a better student this semester from these blog posts.

Organizing Academia: This post will teach you to more effectively use your time and resources when it comes to doing well in school.
Organizing for test taking: Learn how to prepare yourself and get organized when you have a test coming up.
Psychological Tips for Effective Studying: Organize your space and your mind for getting the most out of studying with advice found here.
Organizing My School Work: In this post you’ll find some great tips on getting your school work organized.
Use Better Tools to be a Better Student in 2010: Try out the tech solutions suggested in this post to make school work go faster and more efficiently.
Homework Tips for Students: Learn why organization will not only help you do better with homework but in the rest of life as well, and get some tips on how to get there in this blog.
How to Improve Your Grades in College: Want to improve your grades? The vast majority of tips on this post say getting organized is the key.
Homework Tips for Busy College Students: Learn how to create a schedule and organize your time most effectively to get homework done with help from this post.
Develop Your Academic Discipline to Succeed in College: Through this post you’ll learn why it’s important to stay organized and have a set study schedule for doing your best in school.
Organize Your Homework: Here you’ll get tips on ways to organize your homework with color coding.
Organizing Your Notes for Studying: Get some great advice on pulling together your notes to study from this post.
7 Insanely Simple Ways to Ensure Your Project Gets Done: While it’s geared towards those in the work force, the advice in this post will help anyone with a big project to complete.

Time
If organizing your time effectively is more of your problem, take a look at these great time management posts.

Getting Things Done Explained for Students: This post will explain the GTD method as it applies to those in school.
Organizing Your Time Isn’t as Hard as You Think: Learn why creating a schedule and employing good time management only sounds hard, but really isn’t.
Time Management Tips for Students: Here you’ll find valuable advice on time management that stresses the importance of planning and keeping a calendar.
Time Management Tips for Graduate Students: Students at all levels can use these tips to get ahead in their studies.
Take Control of Your Life by Taking Control of Your Time: If you feel like you never have time to relax, learn how to you can take control of your time and make it work for you.
Tips on Organizing Your Time: Make time for everything that’s important to you in your life with advice from this post.
Hack Your Work: 23 Ways to Get Ahead, Work Less and Achieve More: Whether it’s homework or something else, you can learn how to work smarter, not harder, in this post.
Five Productive Ways To Blast Through Your TV Addiction: Those who can’t tear themselves away from the TV to get anything done can learn helpful ways to break their bad habit here.
The Dead Simple Guide to Beating Procrastination: Procrastination can be useful but it can also be stressful, so get some pointers on avoiding it from Zen Habits.
Top 20 Motivation Hacks: An Overview: Try out this posting to get some ideas on how to get yourself motivated to accomplish what you need to do.
5 Important Benefits of Time Management for Students: This post will explain just why time management matters so much for students.
My Ten Principles of Time Management: Get pointers from someone working in the real world on how time management can really work to organize and augment your life.

Life
These blog posts will help you to organize your life. From setting goals to figuring out your life’s passion, you’ll get some great life overhaul tips.

7 Attitudes of Successful People: Are you having trouble meeting your personal goals or even determining what they should be? Learn how to act like the successful person you want to be with help from this post.
Simplify Your Life: Delete Unwanted Commitments: In this post you’ll learn how getting activities you don’t really care about out of your life can help you make better use of your time.
8 Ways Doing Less Can Transform Your Work and Life: Getting more done doesn’t always mean working harder, as this post demonstrates.
12 Easy Ways to Organize Your Life: From jotting down important ideas to keeping track of contact information, this post offers some good advice on getting everything in order.
Improve Your Life by Following a Schedule: Read this post to learn why a schedule can have a good effect on your life.
The Short but Powerful Guide to Finding Your Passion: Still haven’t figured out what you want to do with your life? This post offers some advice.
How to Create Your Life Plan: All of that organization won’t help you much if you don’t know where you want to end up. Learn how to create a life plan here.
11 Useful Tips on Setting Goals and Achieving Them: Learn how to organize your time and your ambitions by setting and working towards goals.
Schedule Your Life, Find a Balance: This post offers some advice on why scheduling can offer you some much needed balance in your life.
11 Ways to Cure Someday Syndrome: Stop putting things off and start working towards them today with advice found here.
How to Clear Your Life’s Obstacles by Performing a Home Organizing Audit: This post offers some advice on cleaning out your home and your mind to clear a path to where you want to be.
Simple Living Manifesto: 72 Ideas to Simplify Your Life: Learn how paring down and focusing on the things that really matter to you can help in the long run.
Unclutter Your Life by Setting a Goal: Read this post to get some pointers on cutting out all the other noise from your life and honing in on what really matters.
50 Ways to Organize Your Life: From organizing your health to your time, this list offers loads of tips on pulling it all together.

Miscellaneous
These blog posts cover everything from cleaning out your car to making sure you’re not wasting money.

Financial Inventory: How to Organize Your Finances: Do you track how much you spend or know where your paychecks go? With a little help from this post, you’ll learn how to get your financial life in better shape.
All about iPods and organizing your music library: If you’re like most college students, you have a pretty healthy collection of music. Visit this site to learn how to back it up and keep it neat.
Organizing Your Books Using Catalog Software: If you’re a real bookworm, you can learn how to keep your books tidy using technology.
4 Easy Tips for Organizing Your Digital Photos: Have a mess of party photos and shots of you and your friends? This post will teach you how to keep them neat so you can look back on them.
How Disorganization Costs Money: Learn why getting organized can actually save you money and time here.
8 Liberating Strategies for Clearing the Queues in Your Life: Have a lot of tasks backed up that you need to complete? This post offers ways you can finally get those pesky tasks completed.
The Definitive Guide to Sticking to Your New Year’s Resolutions: Get some additional advice on sticking to New Year’s resolutions here.
Organize Your Grocery Budget: Do you know how much you spend on food every month? Check out this blog for advice on creating a budget and sticking to it.
A Few Jewelry Organizing Tips: Whether you have the real deal or just fun fake stuff, this post will teach you to keep it need and untangled so you won’t end up with a lone earring or a knotted necklace.
5 Ways to Organize Your Health and Fitness Goals: Getting organized can help you stick to health and fitness goals, as this post states.
Getting Organized: Participating in Extracurricular Activities: This post offers some advice on balancing those clubs, sports and other activities with work and school.
Car Organization Tips: Those lucky enough to own a car can learn how to clean it out and get rid of all the junk passengers have to push to the side when they get in.
How to Organize a Party: Use your newfound organizational skills for something fun and organize a party with a little advice from this post.

Using Extra Curriculars for College

noreply@blogger.com (basilace) — Sun, 24 Jan 2010 06:31:00 +0000

It is no question that extra curricular activities are essential for college admissions. As I briefly discussed in my previous article Activities Outside of School, extra curriculars put a human face on an application that is otherwise just numbers and letters. The way that a student chooses to spend his or her time leaves a very large impact on college recruiters and admissions officers. If you have ever been to a college night at high school, then you know that one of the first questions college representatives ask is "what do you like to do during your free time?" Colleges want the most interesting people (who are qualified) to make up their student body.

The first step in using extra curriculars for college applications is finding something that you like to do. Experiment! Students should join many different clubs and organizations early on just to get a little taste of everything that the school has to offer. In the long run, this experimenting will also help students "discover themselves" as many psychiatrists call it, during their sophomore and junior years. Besides the mental advantages from finding something to do, colleges love to see activity. Although a student will probably not stay in all of the clubs that he or she originally joined (and I recommend keeping only a few), common sense says that students will find passion for something. Peruse that something!! If it just so happens that your school does not have something that you are interested in, then start it. Colleges love to see initiative as well.

So now that students have something that they are passionate about, what is next? -Dedicate more time to it. For example, I play tennis and am a member of the mock trial team at my high school, just to name my two biggest extra curriculars. Dedicating more time to it would mean practicing tennis more, both alone and with the team, and doing legal research for Mock Trial, so that I am more prepared for next year's competition. In the end, this time translates into better teams and more accomplishments and achievements. There is nothing better for colleges that having the best tennis or mock trial team in the city. This would really make you unique. This also shows dedication, which is my next big point.

Next, students need to show their dedication to the team/activity that they are a part of. This might be by participating in tournaments outside of school, performing, or a variety of other things. The point is that students need to have something to show for their time. A few awards never hurt anyone either. These kinds of "showcases" are also great because they give students something to write about in their college essays, if they are braindead.

Students need to take some initiative and show their leadership skills. Yea, ok it is great that you were a member of a team for a few years, but being captain of the team really makes you stand out. Colleges love to see students lead others; who doesn't like leaders? Leadership shows dedication to the extreme. If students are members of a sports team, then they should run for "office" in school groups or just take the lead in other activities. Every group needs a president, from the cheer squad to the robotics club. Students should take this into consideration when they choose clubs to join. One club might have less members, so a student will have a higher chance of gaining a leadership role. The basic point is that students need to show leadership.

Finally, students need to put it all together for their college apps. To do this, a student needs to choose the 2 or 3 activities that best represent him or her and write a killer essay/app about them. Unfortunately, I cannot help with the essays, all I can say is that it must completely own. My key rule of thumb regarding extra curricular activities is that less is more. Students are better off having 2 or 3 activities and dedicating a lot of time to them than they are spending little time on 7 or 8 activities. The most important thing to remember is that Extra Curriculars put a human face on an otherwise dull and monotone application. DO NOT IGNORE THEM!!!!

By: Basil Ace

Other articles that you might like:
Activities Outside of School
The AP Student
GO TO COLLEGE!!!

Crunch Time Study Tips: How to Study for Finals

noreply@blogger.com (basilace) — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 01:14:00 +0000

Crunch time, as high school students like to call it, is the last 2 or so weeks before finals. This is when students finally realize that they had better get in gear and be prepared to sit down and crank out some serous studying. In addition to that, the SAT this year is the weekend after finals for many schools. Some serous work needs to be done, but luckily there are some tips that can help student study more efficiently.

Study

This may seem like a no brainer to just about anyone who reads this blog, but there are people who do not study for their finals. They expect somehow to do miraculously well on something that they are completely unprepared for. Granted, there are some prodigies out there in the world who can ace finals without studying for them, but those students are far and few between. Seriously, STUDY!! Everyone has their own study habits, so use whatever works. Hard work is rewarded in the end.

Do not Procrastinate

Start studying early and often. Ideally, students should be studying the entire semester and actively learning the material, but that just does not happen. If you are one of these students, you need at least 2 weeks to cram everything into your brain for the big day. For everyone else, study a little bit every day until the material is mastered. The more time that you spend studying, the higher grade you will get. This is a simple concept, but I run into soooooo many people who think that studying is a waste of time. Logically, the more time you have to study, the more studying you will do, which will lead you to a higher grade.

Don't kill yourself

Although it is important to study, that should not be all that you do during the day. Take some time out to exercise for an hour or go out to lunch/dinner. You will learn more efficiently with breaks in between your studying and your brain certainly will feel better. However, I advise that you avoid Facebook, during your free time. We all know that a few minutes on Facebook can soon turn into a hour. You would be best to avoid Facebook altogether until you are completely done studying for the day. Make sure to take breaks, just not for Facebook.

Eat

Well this might seem simplistic as well, but you need to eat in order to study well. If you are on a diet, forget it for finals week, and eat whatever makes you comfortable and relaxed. It is never a good idea to eat an entire carton of ice cream, but you get the idea. Do not worry about your diet when your grades are on the line. There is the entire rest of the year to diet and make up for you relapse. Most importantly, eat a good breakfast/lunch right before taking the test. Your brain functions better when there is food in your stomach.

Do not Re-read the text book

This is the worst thing that you could do right before a test. It is a complete waste of time. You will (A) fill your brain with a ton of new information right before the test and (B) not retain any of that information. It also takes a lot of time to re-read the book, so just don't do it. So what to do then? -Read the chapter summaries if available, definitely re-read notes, and take a glance at any charts, pictures, or maps that might be in your text book. This will take about 1/4 of the time that it takes to reread the text book and it will be more effective. I even recommend buying a review test prep book. For high school classes, there are AP review books and SAT II books that are very useful. Read these if you want, just do not re-read the text book.

Do not study for a test right before taking it (optional)

This tip is more a matter of personal preference, but I think that studying right before a final is counter-productive. I find that I preform better on finals when I DO NOT study extensively the night before or right before in the morning. I try to finish my studying a few hours before I go to sleep, so that I can clear my mind, relax, and get a good night's sleep (free of numbers, calculations, facts, maps, etc...). I also get stressed out if I study the morning of a final, because I feel like I do not know the material well enough. There is no worse feeling than walking into a final and feeling like you do not know the material. Feel confident in your knowledge of the subject and then dedicate some time to rest and relax.

Sleep

We all perform well when properly rested. Unfortunately, high school students, especially AP students are in a constant cycle of sleep deprivation. Despite this, it is important to get a good night's sleep before taking finals. It has been scientifically proven that humans are more productive after a good rest. Make time to sleep; you will test better if you sacrifice some of your studying for sleep. Do not underestimate the power of rest.

By: Basil Ace

Other articles that you might find interesting:
Vacation is for relaxing
School is too Competitive

Is Test Prep Worth It?

noreply@blogger.com (basilace) — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 17:56:00 +0000

Image by octopi via Flickr

Many High School teens, at one time or another, ask themselves (their parents also ask) if test prep is worth the time and money. The answer to this question really depends on the student, but in most cases, the classes are worth the expense, especially for SAT classes. There are also SAT II classes, AP review classes, and a few others in addition to SAT and ACT classes, but prep for the SAT is the most useful.

First I will start with the classes that I think are useless: Subject prep classes. Kaplan, Princeton Review, and other companies try to make a killing on subject review classes. These are flat out useless. All that these classes really do is re-teach most of the material already covered in school. That is not to say that students should not study for AP tests and SAT IIs, but paying for classes is not worth it. The best solution is to just buy a review book for $20 or so dollars. Better yet, buy the review book at the beginning of the year and use it to help study for regular tests in class. These books do a great job of summarizing entire chapters into more manageable pieces, especially for History. All that students really need to study with for subject tests is a review book. Save the money that classes would have cost and put it towards SAT prep.

SAT classes are amazing. It is that short and simple. The only downsides to SAT classes are that they cost a good chunk of change and eat up students' weekends for about 2 months. Good classes will also give homework, but its only about one hour's worth and students have the entire week to do it. Regarding the cost, SAT prep classes usually range from $500 to $1000 depending on the type and quality of the class. There are some classes that only cost around $300, but you get what you pay for. Next there is the time involved, and I am not going to lie, it is a very large time commitment. Students can expect 2 to 3 hours on Saturday and Sunday mornings along with practice tests that take 4 to 5 hours every other week. With all the time that you put into preparing, students will feel prepared when the actual test comes around. The homework is not a big deal, it is simply more practice on SAT type problems.

Now for the positives of SAT classes, and there are many. The most obvious is the score increase that students will see by the time they are finished with the class. Students can easily improve their SAT scores by as much as 400 points by the end of the class and some even improve more! All of the time that goes into the class allows students to practice SAT problems over and over. Especially considering that there are only certain types of problems that the test maker puts on the test, this repetition really helps. These SAT prep classes teach what kinds of questions are on the test and how to tackle them. They basically teach students how to take the test, which is very important because the SAT tests how well students take tests. These classes really do help most students.

As for ACT classes, I have mixed feelings about them. The ACT tests on knowledge already learned in school, but it also covers only certain material. Although the test maker states this, it helps to know how to take the test as well (just like the SAT). Classes for the ACT are not necessary like they are for the SAT (unless students are absolutely brilliant) but they help. However, taking SAT classes have the same effect as ACT classes, so there is no need to take both. It is just important that students pay attention in school for the ACT.

Overall, test prep is necessary for the SAT only. There are many high school students who have inflated egos and think that they do not need prep, but that is their choice. It takes a truly smart person to realize when to ask for help, and in this day and age, students need all of the help they can get.

Other articles that you might enjoy:
Tips to Help You Get into College
The AP Student
Activities Outside of School

By: Basil Ace

Not Enough Time

noreply@blogger.com (basilace) — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 19:27:00 +0000

Image by simpologist via Flickr

The life of a high school student is jam packed with so much more than people realize. It can be summed up in one common phrase: "I dont have the time." There really is no time in this day and age to do anything but school. Granted there are those students who could care less about school and simply party all the time, but for the majority of students, school takes precedent over everything else in life. There are not enough hours in a day for a high school student to accomplish everything that he/she needs, let alone wants.

Let's walk through the average day of a high school student. A student usually wakes up around 6:30 (on average) in the morning to get ready for school. Obviously, some students wake up earlier and some later, though not much later. Why so early? -Because most high schools start before 8am every morning. Many local schools in my area start classes at 7:45. Teens are obviously slow in the morning due to staying up so late the night before, so they need more time to prepare for school. For those who drive themselves to school, they need to leave even earlier than others because finding parking could sometimes take a long time. (not to mention having to walk from the car to school) This could easily add 15 to 25 additional minutes that a student needs to get to school. That is 15 to 25 minutes less of sleep in the morning. Somehow, they manage to get to school on time, many by skipping breakfast, driving unsafely (usually speeding), or a variety of other hazardous (sleep induced) actions.

So a student arrives at school to be met with an average 7 hour day. Unfortunately, students know that school is rarely just a 7 hour day. So students go through a full day of classes and receive homework for EVERY class. The bell rings around 3 many people have the impression that students just go home, finish their minimal homework, and have fun for the rest of the evening. This is COMPLETELY FALSE. For starters, a very large number of students do not leave school at 3, but stay for extra curricular activities or sports, which occur at least until 5 or 5:30. These are usually the students who have the most school work already, and realize the importance of extra curriculars in their college applications. So by the time that these students get home it is somewhere between 6 and 6:30, sometimes even later. So the 7 hour school day just turned into a 12 hour school day: from 6:30 in the morning until 6:30 at night.

Now at long last, the students can finally start their homework. However, before this, they must first eat dinner, and many need some time to collect their thoughts and relax after the grueling day they just had. Homework usually starts around 7ish. Fortunately for these students, there is only 3 hours of homework tonight, it could have been much worse. Especially if we are dealing with AP Students, then 3 hours is nothing. Quite frequently, reading for AP History could take 3 hours alone! By the time that students finish all of their homework, it is between 10 and 11 pm. So much for enjoying the rest of the evening! ... These students finally go to sleep around 11, or 11:30pm. On average, these students get 6 and 1/2 hours of sleep a night, which is 1 and 1/2 less than strongly recommended by almost all doctors. (8 hours minimum to life a healthy life)

So this is the average day of a high school student who does more than just go to school: a constant cycle of sleep deprivation. Add to this additional activities, either for fun or school, there just is not enough time. Many students take SAT prep classes over the weekends, which require them to wake up early and study for 3 to 7 hours on Saturday and Sunday. Some students manage to take these classes during the week! (I have no idea how they survive) People, especially teachers, always think that high school students have all the time in the world but this is not the case. Students wish that they just had more time to sleep, not to mention have fun. The just is not enough time.

Other articles that you might enjoy:
The AP Student
Activities Outside of School

By: Basil Ace

Technorati test post

noreply@blogger.com (basilace) — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 06:31:00 +0000

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The AP Student

noreply@blogger.com (basilace) — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 02:23:00 +0000

Image by antimony funk! via Flickr

It is common in this day and age for high school students to get little sleep on a regular basis. That is simply part of the high school experience. What varies is how often a student needs to sacrifice sleep in order to get work done.

I introduce you to the AP student, one who spends more time studying than sleeping. It is common for students to take multiple AP and honors classes to look as good as possible for college. Students take as many as 4 even 5 AP classes in one year simply to strengthen their college apps. Something that these students do not tell you is that these classes often ruin their lives. It is common for these students to spend more time studying at home than they spent learning in school; this is simply the way it is. Life becomes almost routine; 18 hours of studying followed by 6 hours of sleep (and that's on a good day). These AP classes truly take a toll on the student and drain him/her of all energy. The week becomes one long, extended cramming session with almost no sleep. This is the life of an AP student.

This sounds pretty bleak right? - It gets better. AP students are more often than not required to work over vacations and take the initiative to perform well. There is ALWAYS work to be done, even when the students think they are done. These classes ruin vacation. An AP student might get a random Wednesday off from school, but all of the teachers take note of this day off, and use it as an excuse to give extra homework. Thus the student spends his/her entire day off catching up on AP work. So much for a day off from school. All that vacation does is speed up the AP class. The teachers think that because a student does not need to spend the day in class that he will have more time to work, so they adjust their workload to reflect this misconception. Even summer and semester break are corrupted with AP work.

So what about the classes themselves? -Honestly, students usually fall asleep. The classes are interesting in themselves, but AP students usually run on 6 or less hours of sleep every night for the entire school year. This lack of sleep makes it very hard to stay awake in AP History, for example, even though the subject at hand might be interesting. Students lose class time because they are so tired from all of the AP work that they had the previous night. Thus they need to work more diligently and longer after school to make up for the time lost in class because of dozing off. They stay up late finishing AP homework and are tired again the next day, which usually causes them to fall asleep in class once more. The AP student is caught in an endless cycle of sleep deprivation.

What of weekends? -HAHA, weekends do not exist for the AP student. Many students need to go to school during the weekend just so that the student will learn everything by May for the AP Tests. Time not actually spent at school is used working on, you guessed it, AP homework. Just like vacations, AP teachers use weekends as an excuse to pile up more work. Most AP students simply accept the fact that they will have no social life at all due to their work. The ONLY good that comes from the weekend is that students can sleep in a little longer.

Then there is the issue of extra curricular activities. Most AP students realize that extra curriculars are key to college applications and are involved in a few. For a previous post on why Extra Curriculars are so important, please click here. These activities take away from valuable study time, but are necessary (if not just to remain sane). As if AP students were not already stretched thin enough... The point remains that everything takes away from study or sleep time. Pure leisure time is virtually nonexistent. The word "Party" does not even exist in the vocabulary of an AP student, is is replaced by words such as "perseverate."

AP students are caught in an endless cycle of work and sleep deprivation. School becomes life, life becomes monotonous. Students only escape this cycle once they graduate, but are only met with real college work. Consider this next time you sign up or tell someone to sign up for an AP class.

By: Basil ace

Tips to Help You Get Into College (part 3)

noreply@blogger.com (basilace) — Sun, 04 Oct 2009 04:42:00 +0000

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Continuing from Tips to Help You Get Into College (part 2), we have tips 5 and 6 today. Last time I discussed living life and finding something to represent you; today I will focus on tests and college visits. These are just as important as grades, extra curreculars, living life, and finding something to represent you (tips from previous posts).

5. Tests - It is common knowledge that it is important to score well on standardized tests for college, but which tests are the most important? - In my humble, objective opinion the SAT IIs are the most important. They are like a final that is the same for everyone in the world, so everyone is graded on the same scale. No two schools teach or grade material exactly the same way, so SAT IIs provide a way to grade everyone in the country in a fair way. Unfortunately, more and more school are eliminating their requirements for SAT IIs, most notably the University of Calfornia schools. Then there are AP tests, which are also very useful in much the same way as SAT II tests. They cover some subjects that the SAT II does not and are more comprehensive (they have a free response portion). Next is the ACT. This tests on learnt knowledge and is similar to a regular test in school. You do well on this test if you know the material. Lastly, and my LEAST favorite is the SAT. This test is absolutely worthless and does nothing. It is called a "reasoning test" and tests on how well you can take a test. It is possible for an otherwise stupid person (for lack of a better word) to score higher than a straight A student. This test ruins the lives of almost all American teenagers. How is that fair? This test only adds stress to the lives of teenagers and the sad part is that the SAT was designed to ruin their lives.

6. College Visits - Too many people go to or apply to a college just because of the name. That is the wrong reason to attend a university. You want to go to a school because it is the best that you could attend that focuses on your interests. It does not help you in the long run to attend Harvard for Hotel Administration, even though Harvard is the best University in the world. If your interest lies in Hotel Administration, then you would be better off applying to Cornell or even University of Las Vegas. They are the best in this particular field. Additionally, it is important to get a feel for the campus and the surrounding area. Students are going to spend four years of their lives attending the school, so they had better like the feel of it. Visiting colleges is vital to get to know the area and make the best choice regarding your education. This is one of the most overlooked parts of applying to college, DO NOT ignore this.
To continue and read part 4, please click here.

To read part 1 click here
To read part 2 click here

Come back soon for part 4.

by: Basil ace

Tips to Help You get into College (part 2)

noreply@blogger.com (basilace) — Sun, 27 Sep 2009 02:08:00 +0000

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Continuing on from Part 1 of Tips to Help You get into College, we have tips 3 and 4 today. To find part 1 please click here. Last time I discussed grades and extra curriculars, which are really the most obvious requirements to get into any college. Today tips 3 and 4 involve living life and finding a passion to represent you.

3. Live life. Nothing is more boring that someone who lack life experiences. Colleges know this and look for applicants who live active lives. One of the most important questions that colleges ask during the admission process is; "What can this student add to our student body that this other student cannot?" The solution- make sure to live an active life and participate all of the time. Additionally, living life will give you more experience in matters outside of the classroom. You will be a more well rounded person, thus more desirable to colleges than a less rounded one. Granted, all schools need some book worms, but that is only a small portion of the student body. Your unique experiences make you interesting and make you stand out among other students. It is important not to let tests or grades completely destroy your life, because it will only hurt you in the long run. Save time for yourself to try something new, or go to the movies, or hang out with friends. Do not neglect your studying, but DO NOT over-study on a beautiful day, when you could go outside and have fun.

4. Find Something to Represent You- This is usually an activity or a hobby. This is THE activity that you spend most if not all of your free time on. It is something that you are dedicated to and are willing to practice , even if you have to stay up later to finish homework. For some people it is a sport, for others it is a hobby like juggling or painting, but you need to find something. Do not just party with friends all of the time, do something productive. Why? - because it makes you special. Colleges look for special students who would add to the student body, so you might be that student. Come time for filling out applications, this activity will really come in handy. You will probably be able to write essays about it shows that you are willing to dedicate yourself. This "something" is different for everyone so just go out and explore things that you enjoy.

5. Tests - Which tests are the most important? - In my humble, objective opinion the SAT IIs are the most important. They are like final that is the same for everyone in the world....

To Continue on to Tips to Help You Get Into College (Part 3) click here.

For part 1 of Tips To Help You Get Into College click here

Tips to Help You get into College

noreply@blogger.com (basilace) — Sat, 12 Sep 2009 03:10:00 +0000

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Many teens/high school students are worried about college, and for good reason. College is VERY important and everyone should GO TO COLLEGE just to go. There are so many benefits to attaining a higher education, as I wrote in a previous article and as President Obama recently stated in his speech. The hard part is getting into college. Here are some tips and guidelines that should be helpful to any teen applying for college in the future.

1. Grades, Grades, Grades. Unless you plan on going to college on a football scholarship, then focus on your grades. Selective colleges look for the smartest students with the best grades for multiple reasons. They do not want to waste a college education on someone who will not benefit from it; especially someone who does not care about education. Grades in High School tell colleges how serious you are about learning, so an A student obviously cares more about school than a C student. Grades also make you stand out from millions of other potential applicants. Besides that, school is about learning anyways, so you should try your best regardless.

2. Extra Curriculars. Activities Outside of School are very important to college applications. They put a face on an application that is otherwise all numbers and letters. Even more than that, they are a way for students to take a break from schoolwork. How depressing would life be if it was all work? - Exactly. While trying a bit of everything at first to get exposure is good, it is important to narrow your list, especially for college. A few activities that you constantly participate in show that you are capable of committing yourself to something, whether it is a sport or debate. Do not ignore the importance of extra curreculars.

3. Live life. Nothing is more boring that someone who lack life experiences. Colleges know this and look for applicants who....... to be continued

To read part 2 of Tips to Help You Get Into College please click here.

By: Basil ace

2010 College Rankings

noreply@blogger.com (basilace) — Sun, 30 Aug 2009 05:53:00 +0000

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US NEWS AND WORLD REPORTS just posted their 2010 college rankings for this year. There are a few surprises, but other than that the usual schools are in the top rankings. All of the Ivy Leagues are in the top 20 along with other notable schools; MIT, Stanford, and those goodies. A few schools that I thought were interesting were Princeton, which moved up to #1 along with Harvard, University of Chicago, which moved up to 8th, and Washington University in St. Louis, which moved up to 12th. For the full list of national college rankings go to US New and World Reports.

The list of Liberal Arts colleges looks about the same as it always does. Williams and Amherst are numbers 1 and 2 respectively followed by equally respectable schools. For this full list look at the Liberal Arts Ranking Page.

Fixing America's Education System

noreply@blogger.com (basilace) — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 18:40:00 +0000

Image by cena carioca via Flickr

One of Barack Obama's biggest goals as president is fixing American Education. The problem; too many students drop out of high school and college or don't even go to college, making them "useless" in society. Granted, we will always need people to flip our burgers and collect our garbage, but these people do not help to advance society as "learned" citizens do. People with a degree or specialization in a specific area earn a significantly higher salary than those who lack a "skill," and the reason most homeless people (not all) have no homes is because they do not have an ability that they can perform better than most other people. So how do we fix this problem, one which will affect America more than health care?

The first and most obvious change would be to educate the general people about the importance of education. Kind of an oxymoron right? -well the reason why most people who don't value education do not value it is because they do not understand how much it will affect their lives and the lives of those around them. These are the people who need the most help, because once they realize how much an education can improve their lives, like all other Americans, they will strive to attain the best that they can. Why do families take out a second mortgage on their house and loans to send their children to college? -because they realize the importance of it and how it will improve their child's life. Once everyone in America receives some sort of higher education, the standard of living will increase tremendously, which is why Barack Obama urges every American citizen to attend at least a community college. This would be the ideal solution to America's education problem.

However, regular high school and college is not for everyone. Some students are just not capable of "book learning" that is done in a classroom for 7 hours a day. I will admit that there were times when I could not stand sitting still for such a long time, but there were students who were much worse off. For this reason it is important for high schools to re-instate "workshop" classes. Very few high schools today have woodworking, metalworking, auto-mechanics, and other similar classes which existed decades ago. These classes were cut in order to make room for the "more important" math and science classes, which really are not for everyone. These hands on classes provide another outlet for students to express themselves and find their abilities. They expose students to much more than books, and teach them a skill that can be used to make a living. One of these students might fail all of his or her other classes, but make a good living as an auto mechanic thanks to taking the class in high school. That is at least how school used to be in the past, before test scored became the most important aspect of school and life (as I discussed in a previous article We Fail At Education).

Another great alternative for students who cannot handle book learning is Trade School. The students who excel in their shop classes in high school would go to college to become even better at their specific trade. A very good mechanic or craftsman could make as much money as a lawyer or doctor, because almost everyone has a car that needs attention to run well. Trade school could also be an alternative to regular students who did not do very well in high school or shop classes. Much like a liberal arts education from a college, these schools could teach a little bit of many different skills that are needed today. Someone might find a career in plumbing, which also makes good money, or even farming. This way, everyone will have some sort of skill/specialization that they can use to earn a living, making America better.

Unfortunately, there is the cost of going to college. Those who realize the importance of education are willing to take out loans, hoping to improve their lives in the long run. Obama's plan to have students contribute to the community in exchange for money for college helps a bit with the cost, but education is still worth it. If everyone went to some sort of college and learned a skill, society would be better off and poverty would be virtually demolished. The benefits of going to college are tremendous, we just need to make sure that everyone goes.

By: Basil ace

Vacation is for Relaxing!

noreply@blogger.com (basilace) — Sat, 15 Aug 2009 06:09:00 +0000

It seems that vacation gets shorter and shorter every year. In addition to this, holidays are being taken away. Long gone is Columbus Day, even other holidays are becoming shorter. Not only that, but schools now give homework over vacation. It is very rare to find a "good" school that does not give summer homework, Christmas homework, Thanksgiving homework, and Easter homework. Even worse, there is ALWAYS homework over the weekends when taking difficult classes such as AP (Advanced Placement). This is odd because AP and honors classes that give weekend and holiday homework are typically the ones that are the most tiring and difficult, requiring more time to recover after each. Instead of letting students rest, these classes just pile on the work. The only escape from homework is graduation.

Summer homework is becoming especially popular. Not only is it used to start off a class, but it is also used to get ahead. Common AP history homework is reading the first 5 or so chapters of the history book, to attain "an understanding" of the text. The first 5 chapters usually cover a larger time period than the rest of the book! Then of course there are always standardized tests to study for as well. Many incoming Juniors in high school spend their entire summer memorizing SAT review books. What kind of a vacation is that? So a student ends a very difficult year (it is generally agreed upon that sophomore year is the hardest in high school) to be met with a summer of more stressful studying. After a 2-3 month long headache, the now junior has to actually take the tests and keep up with everything else that happens in a 17 year old's life. These years in a young adult's life are when they need vacation the most, due to added stress of school, work, and growing up. Vacation is turning into an extension of the year; the only difference is that a student can sleep in past 8 am during vacation.

People seem to forget the importance of rest and relaxation. Vacation is meant to be a time to enjoy oneself and not feel an obligation to do anything. It really is a necessary state of mind, one that occurs less and less frequently. Society as a whole is scared of falling behind during vacation and does everything possible advance itself. There is always some sort of work that needs to be done during vacation.

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Activities Outside of School

noreply@blogger.com (basilace) — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 16:50:00 +0000

Besides actual work in school, extra curricular activities are the determining factor for college admissions. A school might have two very smart and qualified applicants; one who plays computer games during his free time and another who volunteers at the local animal shelter. Who do you think that the school will admit most of the time?

The way a student chooses to spent his or her free time leaves a very powerful impression on a college. Some of the most notable questions that a college tries to answer before admitting a student are; What will this student bring to our school? Will admitting this student make our school a better place? and What can this student add to our community that the other student (who plays video games) cannot? Extra curricular activities are the best way to show colleges what a student is interested in and how he or she expands on that interest. Because most of admissions are tests and grades, activities outside of school are the best way to show a student's personal self. They put a human face on an application.

It is important, however, not to overwork oneself with extra curriculars. It is better to have 2 or 3 particular hobbies or activities to spend time on than to have 6 or 7. Participating in just 2 or 3 means that the student can dedicate more time to these activities and become better at them. Schools like to see dedication, not sheer numbers. Colleges also realize that a student cannot do everything and do not expect him or her to. For this reason, less is more regarding extra curricular activities. Most importantly however, is not to abandon living a normal life. Although school and applications are important, it is only one part of life. Colleges want students who enjoy living life, because these people make life worth living. Living and experiencing life is the best extra curricular that any student can participate in. Try and work hard, but never give up living life to its fullest.
For much more on this same topic please read my article Using Extra Curriculars for College. It goes into much more depth about extra curricular activities and college.

By: Basil ace

If you are curious about the impact of test scores in addition to grades and extra curriculars, please read Just How Important are Standardized Tests?

School is Too Competitive

noreply@blogger.com (basilace) — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 05:15:00 +0000

Image by quinn.anya via Flickr

Everyone wants to graduate the top of their class, valedictorian, with a 5.0 GPA, etc, but what does it all really mean and how do you get there? Well for starters, this is not for everyone, and if you are chasing after a school title, it is a lot of hard work. What does one of these titles get you? - honestly, not much for the work involved.

For starters, climbing up the ladder to earn one of these titles requires taking AP (advanced placement) and honors classes, just to have an even playing field with everyone else who is shooting for awards. As I discussed in a previous article Too Much Homework these classes all add homework, taking away from living and enjoying a normal, teenage life. That is the easy part, now that you take these advanced classes and do the extra work, you need to get A's in all of your classes. You wind up competing with at least a dozen other kids who can get A's, not to mention thousands of other students around the country, and for what? - a better chance to get into a "good" college. The odds of having your dream come true are slim, but people don't realize this and compete even harder. Yes, there is a chance to attain that coveted Ivy League education, but not a high one. So you take years of advanced classes, sacrificing your teenhood, all to compete with other students who want the same thing. School should be about learning, not competing.

So lets suppose that you still want to compete, and are a good student, capable of doing well. Now education gets dirty. Just as with politics, students who really want something will do anything necessary to attain it. I have heard of people sabotaging other's reports and stealing information, just to get an edge over the competition. Not many students are honest about homework and tests anymore because those few extra points can mean the difference between a top notch college and just a "decent" one. There are still honest students out there, but their numbers are dwindling as they realize how intense the competition is. Students will compete any way possible to put themselves in a better position than their neighbor. Again, school changes from a place of learning to a place for competing and proving oneself.

Is it worth it competing in school to graduate with a title? - that is for each individual student to decide, but everyone needs to realize that work involved. There are nights when students don't go to sleep until 2am and wake up again at 5am just to finish homework. School is rough, too rough in my opinion. Older folks always tell me that they had sooo much fun in school and that they really enjoyed it. I wish the same could be said about schools today.

By: Basil Ace

The Biggest College Myth

noreply@blogger.com (basilace) — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 18:07:00 +0000

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Everyone in today's society runs under the impression that going to a "good" college (good usually referring to Ivy League status) will help them achieve more in life. I hate to say it, but this is completely and utterly FALSE. It does not matter where you go to college, just as long as you go. As a matter of fact, some people do not even attend college and are still very successful in life, though I would not recommend skipping college. I am sure that you have all heard of Bill Gates, well he DROPPED OUT of HARVARD in order to create his first computer. Today, students would kill to attend Harvard, and Bill Gates just dropped out because he had other ideas for success. Look at him now, he is one of the richest men in the world, owns one of the biggest and best companies in the world, donates a TON of money to charity, just to name a few accomplishments, and he dropped out of college.

I strongly recommend that everyone goes to college as can be read in my previous article GO TO COLLEGE and it does not matter where. Everyone who thinks that going to Harvard or Yale will make them more likely to succeed is wrong. Especially in today's society, anyone with good ideas is more likely to succeed than someone with a "good" education. I see this happening all of the time; people who go to UC Riverside or Wichita State University come up with great ideas and make millions of dollars. Why do they do well while other students don't? - because they have creative ideas beyond the ability to crunch numbers. Everyone can co math and science, but not everyone can think of the next million dollar gadget. This creativity is what ultimately makes one successful, not what college he/she attends.

The reason that most people try to go IVY is because of the name recognition. The education might be a little better than most other schools but not enough to merit the floods of applicants. The Ivy league notoriously turns out Supreme Court Justices and American Presidents, but has no more success in bringing out the creativity in students than the local city college. There is only a stereotype of Ivy League schools being better than others because some famous people come from them. People think that going to Harvard will make them as successful as Barack Obama, which is blatantly false. This belief drives college applicants to forsake living a "normal" life in place of studying to attain admission to the coveted Ivy League. Students and parents often forget that a "normal" life will expose students to more than constant studying, nurturing their creativity and improving their chances at happiness.

In short, the college you attend does not make you any more or less successful than other people. It is the creativity that one gains from college that really makes him or her successful. Everyone can solve mathematical equations, but not everyone has the ambition and creative ideas to succeed in life. No college can teach these things, which is why the college you attend does NOT matter.

Just a service update.

noreply@blogger.com (basilace) — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 18:54:00 +0000

Sorry about not having posted a new article in the last few weeks. Starting July, I am going to post at least one article a week, so check in then on whatever days to see the new content. I hope you enjoy my blog! Spread the word.

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Too much homework!

noreply@blogger.com (basilace) — Sat, 20 Jun 2009 05:25:00 +0000

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Every student says at one time or another that they have too much homework, as if the teachers care. Honestly, they don't. This is especially true if a student takes multiple honors or advanced placement classes, which give the most homework. The teacher simply says that "it is an advanced course, meaning that there has to be more homework." I do not understand why teachers act this way. Learning is meant to be done in school, so by extension, so should work. It even makes more sense to do homework in school because one can ask the teacher for help, something that a student cannot do at home.

What makes the homework even worse is that teachers never communicate and frankly, they do not want to. It allows them to give as much homework as they see fit, without feeling bad about overworking their students. A student who takes advanced English and advanced History will have at least 3 hours of homework for these two classes every night. Why? - because reading a chapter in a history is very dull, even for history lovers, and takes a long time, same with English. Reading in English is NEVER for pure enjoyment, but to analyze diction, tone, theme, motive, etc, which all take time as well. Add to this the rest of your classes, and you are looking at around 5-6 hours of homework EVERY night. So school ends at 3:00 pm and most students will get home around 4. This means that with all of the homework, the student cannot hope to go to sleep before 10:30, accounting for dinner and short breaks during studying. This leaves no time to "enjoy life" as I like to say because life has turned into work. For students in after school activities, they are lucky to finish their homework by midnight. I know some students who work until 2 am every morning because they have to in order to finish all of their homework. I do not think that homework is meant to work us to death.

I was talking with a friend of mine while playing tennis and he told me that when he was in school years ago, that there was not much homework. He said that he had about an hour of lunch when he could work if he desired and a study hall almost every day to finish the rest of his homework. My friend only had an hour or so of homework every night and could spend all of his free time on other aspects of his education, such as learning to play an instrument. Today there is barely enough time for students to sleep, let alone master the violin. There really is TOO MUCH HOMEWORK!!!!

By: Basil ace

GO TO COLLEGE!!!

noreply@blogger.com (basilace) — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 21:00:00 +0000

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Aside from the experience of college, there are many other advantages to attending a university, even if for just one year. This is the primary reason why president Obama encourages all Americans to attend at least one year of higher education at either a public or private school.

The most obvious reason to attend college is that in this modern age, a high school education does not mean much anymore. High school does not provide specific training for a career that is necessary in today's world, unless working at a hamburger stand appeals to you. It does not matter where you go to college, just as long as you go. As opposed to high school, which is more of a liberal arts and general education, college gives you a specialization that is needed by modern society. Having work leads to other advantages of attending a university.

You will make more money and be happier after attending a university. By learning a career instead of general concepts, you put yourself in high demand for that field. By the laws of supply and demand, if there is high demand for your job, then you will earn more money. There is a much higher demand for a criminologist or economist than there is for a burger flipper or lawn mower. For most people, more money means more happiness. You could afford to buy that new cell phone or computer, which in turn might make you happy. Success also makes people happy, and attending college makes you more likely to succeed in life.

Some unexpected advantages for college graduates are that they have longer life expectancies and are in better health than non grads. This comes from basic logic; having a steady income means that college graduates can afford better health care, which in turn leads to better and longer lives. Additionally, most college grads do not face the stress that non grads do when looking for well paying jobs. High school dropouts have the stress of moving from job to job, simply trying to earn enough money to feed themselves. College grads usually have a secure and well paying job compared to dropouts and do not face this unnecessary stress. Stress is known to shorten lifespan considerably.

The basic message is GO TO COLLEGE! It does not matter where, when, or how, just GO. You will live a better, happier, and longer life than students who drop out of high school or who just do not attend college. Below is an interesting link that is similar to this article and expands on ways to fix education.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/08/opinion/08levy.html

We Fail at Education

noreply@blogger.com (basilace) — Sat, 13 Jun 2009 04:03:00 +0000

Teens studying, probably for a standardized test. Image by NJLA: New Jersey Library Association via Flickr

Although it is the most important test in a high school student's life, the SAT and education in America is seriously flawed. Students are trained from birth to do well on standardized tests such as the SAT and do not even get to be children anymore. With the creation of products to give your son or daughter a head start over other 2 year olds, children lose the most important aspect of their youth; their childhood. The other day I saw an infomercial on TV that advertised a product that promised to teach your 16 month old baby how to read. What does a 16 month old baby need to read for?!? So great your child can read a few years before other children, but at what cost? Parents and America as a whole, are so obsessed with getting their children into college, that from birth they take away the fun of being a baby and most of the experiences that come with it. As humans, we learn more from experience than we ever will from a book or classroom, and replacing childhood experiences with activities to improve test scores only hurts future generations. I once heard that no one truly knows the danger of fire until he burns himself; childhood is a time to "burn ourselves" so to speak, and learn many of the basics of life that a classroom can never teach us. It is a chance to explore and experience the world through a set of young eyes that we will never have again. We gain perceptions of the world that influence our future lives, and childhood is the only time that we can live without the burden of responsibility. Anyone who tries to replace this monumental period of human development with book learning only hinders our growth. As children we did many things that we would never imagine doing as adults, such as playing in the mud or even eating worms, and we learn from the consequences of these actions. (For example, worms taste bad.) We learn right from wrong as kids and being able to read at 16 months will not help teach us to share our toys. Thus the SAT, the pinnacle of American education, corrupts children from birth, taking away the fun of life. How can a 5 year old child have fun writing on the walls when he/she is learning from a book instead?

The same is true for teenagers. The teen years, which are often a time to discover who we are and what kind of people we want to be, are being replaced with years of SAT classes so that we can score higher for America's Ohh so amazing education system. With all of the advanced classes and tests that are necessary to succeed in this system, there is barely enough time for high school students to sleep, let alone find their identities. As a result, we have a generation of teens that will grow up without knowing what makes their heart beat, lacking true happiness. Education is meant to improve our lives, not make life meaningless, as is occurring.

By: Basil ace