Blog

by Chelsea Slaughter

Social media gives us what we feel like is a platform to express our thoughts and feelings on any issue around us. We can connect to people we know (or may not know) globally with ease but we must be cautious about what we say and what we post on these open sites. Your platform for free speech can either help or harm you.

If you check Scholarships.com’s blog regularly, you read a post about a college student who was expelled because of what he posted on Facebook. A lot of students may think “Wow, that’s crazy. That could never happen to me.” But in fact, it can! When posting on your favorite sites, keep these dos and don’ts in mind:

• DO try and connect to people you may not have a chance to meet sans social media. (i.e., people you look up to, international students, etc.)
• DON’T post anything you would not want your parents, professors or employers to see. These days, employers and college officials will often use social media as an extension of your resume to give them a better idea of who you are as a person.
• DO keep a clean, PG profile. Untag yourself in any compromising posts or photos.
• DON’T assume that since your page is private, it cannot be seen. There are plenty of ways to bypass such “protection” that you may not be aware of.
• DO separate yourself from situations that could involve drama or negativity.
• DON’T say anything about someone or something that you would not say in front of them. One of the main causes of lost friendships and peer conflicts is based off of social media.

Your social media accounts are a direct representation of you. Make sure the image presented is one you can be proud to call yours!

Chelsea Slaughter is currently a junior at Jacksonville State University majoring in communications (public relations concentration) and minoring in art. She serves as a resident assistant on campus, is the treasurer in the Public Relations Organization and is an active member in W.I.S.E., NAACP and Omicron Delta Kappa Honors Leadership Society. She aims to work in the entertainment industry post-graduation and is well on her way thanks to an internship with a digital marketer to several music artists. Chelsea strives to achieve all of her goals and motivate others along the way.

by Carly Gerber

Making the decision to go green is not only environmentally sound but cost effective and healthier. Here are a few tips you can take to go green on your campus!

• Choose CFLs (a.k.a. compact fluorescent lamps): They use 75 percent less energy to produce the same amount of illumination and last eight to 15 times longer than incandescent light bulbs.
• Start recycling! Once you start recycling, you’ll notice how much can be recycled – your recycling bin may be fuller than your trash can!
• Buy used textbooks. Buying or renting used books is much cheaper than buying new books, plus it eliminates trash in the landfills. You can buy and sell used books at your campus book store, as well as rent them from sites like Bookrenter or Chegg.
• Many of you have already signed leases for next year but that may mean filling your new space with couches, TVs, kitchenware, etc. Instead of going to retail stores to buy these items, you can go to websites like Craigslist, Gigoit, Freecycle and eBay. Remember, every time you buy something new, you’re adding to your carbon footprint so buy used when possible!
• Use recycled printing paper. Recycled paper may cost slightly more but it saves tress, energy, water, is a pollution reducer and the use of harmful chemicals and bleaching are much less than that of virgin paper production.
• Don’t drive to class – walk, bike or use the campus/public bus system instead. When you drive to class, you waste time trying to find a parking spot, increase the pollution in the air and spend unnecessary money when you pay for parking.
• Use a reusable water bottle. Not only will you be saving cheddar by not buying packs of water bottles but you’ll be decreasing the amount of plastic that ends up in landfills.

Have any other tips for going green on campus? Leave a comment with your suggestions!

Carly Gerber is majoring in journalism at Columbia College Chicago. She loves fashion and hopes to cover the topic for a Chicago-area magazine. In her free time, she focuses on her blog, loves making jewelry and spending time on Pinterest and Pose. She hopes to use this blog to guide and relate to its followers: college students like herself!

by Suada Kolovic

We’ve all been there: Going about our day as if we don’t have a care in the world when it dawns on us that (go figure) that term paper on the pros and cons of procrastination in the creative process is due tomorrow. Panicked, we consider emailing our professor an excuse about a death in the family but given we killed off Nana (who’s actually alive and well back home) last semester during finals week, we decide it’s best to pull an all-nighter. The next day, we’re irritable, unmotivated and just plain sluggish and while the simple solution is to overcome procrastination and not leave an assignment until the last minute, a Harvard student has suggested a different approach: a nap room on campus.

The Harvard administration is considering creating a designated nap room after sophomore Yugi Hou started an online petition. “Most students operate daily on a sleep deficit, to the detriment of their health and productivity,” said Hou. “For those getting insufficient sleep at night, naps can provide alertness and help students take a break from their hectic schedules.” Hou started the online petition through the Harvard Undergraduate Council’s “We the Crimson” initiative, which is meant to foster direct dialogue between students and school administrators. Each month, the three petitions with the most votes are sent to the Dean of Harvard College for review. Harvard administrators have yet to make a decision on the initiative but Hou has said that until a siesta center is set up on campus, she plans on creating a “nap map” to help plot the best spots for students to nod off on campus.

If you’re a fan of napping between classes, do you think it’s your university’s responsibility to provide nap rooms for students? Let us know what you think in the comments section.

by Samuel Favela

Every year, thousands of college students waste their money at the gym to get workouts they could get for free around their own cities. Here's how to make the most of your workouts AND your budget!

If you are looking to build lots of muscle, the gym is for you but if you’re just trying to get some cardio in, spots around the city would be perfect. With little research, students can find trails, high school tracks, parks and clubs. For example, I found out the times and days my local high school’s facilities were open to the public and I started going there to run on the track and up the bleachers – I could feel the difference in my legs and waist in two weeks! I also bought a jump rope so I can add a little extra cardio and I am even considering joining a Crossfit club so I can write more in detail about the benefits and procedures of this type of workout.

When beginning a workout routine, some students may feel insecure seeing others around them running a little faster or lifting a little more. This could translate into a student giving less than 100-percent and decreasing the quality of his or her workouts, thus wasting money. Exercising at various spots across the city can help eliminate this insecurity because the surroundings (both scenery and people) are always changing. Working out outside also helps on a more spiritual level; connecting with nature is something everyone needs to do and some of us don't get enough of that in our busy schedules.

So save your money and go for a run outside – it really is more enjoyable for your wellbeing and your bank account!

Samuel “Samwell” Favela is a journalism major at Long Beach City College. He’s interested in all things media – he enjoys blogging, Instagramming and hosting his own campus radio show – and is always excited to meet new people. Samwell’s educational journey has already taken him from Pomona to Long Beach and shows no sign of slowing down...which is exactly the way he likes it!

by Suada Kolovic

What is the National History Day Contest, you ask? Each year more than half a million students just like you participate. You will choose a historical topic related to the annual theme, and then conduct primary and secondary research. You will look through libraries, archives and museums, conduct oral history interviews, and visit historic sites. After you have analyzed and interpreted your sources, and have drawn a conclusion about the significance of your topic, you will then be able to present your work in one of five ways: as a paper, an exhibit, a performance, a documentary or a web site.

The National History Day Contest is open to students in grades 6-12 in the junior (grades 6-8) and senior (grades 9-12) divisions. The projects relate to a specific historical topic or theme. There are seven categories, including individual papers, individual exhibits, group exhibits, individual performance, group performance, individual documentary, and group documentation. Within each category, the first place winner receives $1,000, the second place winner receives $500, and the third place winner receives $250. The national contest is held in June.

For more on this scholarship and other scholarship opportunities, conduct a free scholarship search today!

by Mike Sheffey

The college experience is a great one but can be a little challenging with respect to housing and its wide range of options. For example, many students choose to live off campus at big universities following their freshman year, while others who attend smaller schools might be in student housing or dorms all four years. I know that at Wofford, we have it pretty good but there are some general things that all colleges seem to do the same.

The housing at your prospective college will get better each year. The dorms will get bigger, nicer and easier to live in. The difference between first-year student housing and senior housing, regardless of institution, is huge. At my small college, our senior housing is essentially apartments (though our laundry is in a separate building) and our junior housing is huge dorms. If you go back to my first year, the housing was livable but far from spacious. That’s par for the course for anywhere you look (generally, though, there are smaller rooms at big universities).

There is always the option (sometimes the preferred/recommended option) of living off campus after your first year. Many of my friends have taken this option to get better rooms, more independence and, in some cases, cheaper housing. Lots of apartment complexes are still qualified as “student” housing and have primarily students that live there. And it seems that they are constantly being built as enrollment grows each year.

So whether it’s on campus or off, student housing or apartments or simple dorms, the best way to determine what works for you is to visit, tour or maybe stay at a friend’s dorm or apartment to see how it is. Small spaces were never an issue for me in freshman and sophomore dorms because I did all my work in the study building but if you’re someone that might need space to work and can focus in a dorm, you might want to look for the option with more room space. Research before you move in. Just remember that living conditions improve in college over time, though small rooms and hall settings can make for great memories!

Mike Sheffey is a junior at Wofford College double majoring in computer science and Spanish. He loves all things music and has recently taken up photography. Mike works for an on-campus sports broadcasting company as well as the music news blog PropertyOfZack.com. He hopes to use this blogging position to inform and assist others who are seeking the right college or those currently enrolled in college by providing advice on college life, both in general and specific to Wofford.

by Suada Kolovic

For a college student, an internship is viewed as a rite of passage, a box that must be checked, a prerequisite for future ambitions. And while obtaining an internship is a success in its own right, finding one where you’ll be compensated in something other than experience and a reference is a challenge…but not necessarily impossible. A new report from Glassdoor lists the highest-rated companies that not only pay their interns but pay them extremely well. Check out the top 10 companies that made the cut below (for the complete list, click here):

• Microsoft: Monthly Base Pay - $5,910
• Google: Monthly Base Pay - $5,787
• Amazon: Monthly Base Pay - $5,564
• Qualcomm: Monthly Base Pay - $4,955
• IBM: Monthly Base Pay - $4,609
• Intel: Monthly Base Pay - $4,280
• PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC): Monthly Base Pay - $4,154
• Cisco: Monthly Base Pay - $4,077
• JPMorgan Chase: Monthly Base Pay - $4,042
• Procter & Gamble: Monthly Base Pay - $3,997

by Katlyn Clark

Going to college is a huge decision to make but choosing a major can be an even harder choice! You may seem a bit confused about what to major in but whatever you do, I have always heard not to remain “Undecided” for too long. Go ahead and major in a subject that catches your interest...but what happens if you cannot decide between two majors? Double up!

College students have the option to double major or add a minor to their course of study. I knew that when I decided to major in communication studies with a concentration in journalism that I wanted to minor in marketing as well: It gives me sort of a back-up plan if journalism does not work out for me. I also have a greater chance to combine my two majors in my future career since they relate to each other.

The perks of double majoring are enticing but the additional credit requirements could alter your progress toward graduation. I know several students with double majors and minors and though this decision may translate into a later graduation date, they chose this path because they wanted to pursue all fields they are passionate about.

As I was selecting the college I would eventually attend, I told my parents that I was going to pick up a minor in addition to my major field of study. If this sounds like your plan, check with the colleges you’re considering to see if you have the opportunity to double major or pursue a minor along with your major of choice. It will be helpful in the long run!

Katlyn Clark is a freshman at Campbell University majoring in journalism and minoring in marketing. She hopes to become a broadcast journalist for entertainment or write for a magazine such as People or Seventeen. In her spare time, Katlyn loves to hang out with friends and family and watch sports; she is a Christian who is so thankful for God’s many blessings in her life. Katlyn is from Elizabeth City, North Carolina and loves Tim Tebow, Pinterest, the WWE and cats.

by Chelsea Slaughter

Being on your own at school really makes you appreciate the little things in life. There are so many things we took for granted because we never had to pay for them and being in college teaches you how to prioritize your time and money. It’s good to remember that having fun doesn’t have to kill your pockets – be wise and learn how to have fun on a budget!

Have you checked your school activity calendar? Find the different events your school is holding, grab some friends and GO! The majority of on-campus events provide free food, music and a chance to get to know your fellow students. Don’t pass up the chance to interact with campus leaders; you could wind up planning the next event!

Constructive fun is sometimes the best fun to have. Have you considered volunteering? Why many may think there is no way to have fun while volunteering baffles me. Like to build? Find a local Habitat for Humanity project and help create a home for the less fortunate. Love working with children? Volunteer at your local YMCA and help out with after-school programs. There are many opportunities out there so turn your extra time in to amazing fun that can even build your resume.

Get active! While Netflix and Redbox movie nights with friends are always enjoyable, don’t be afraid to get out and move around a little. Create an intramural team with some friends for your favorite sport. Don’t feel athletic enough? Hit the park with some friends and a Frisbee, volleyball or tennis raquets. Pack a lunch and spend the day outside enjoying the weather!

While movies, malls and parties are the “norm” in terms of college fun, consider the cheaper alternatives. The more you save every weekend, the more funds you will have for important matters!

Chelsea Slaughter is currently a junior at Jacksonville State University majoring in communications (public relations concentration) and minoring in art. She serves as a resident assistant on campus, is the treasurer in the Public Relations Organization and is an active member in W.I.S.E., NAACP and Omicron Delta Kappa Honors Leadership Society. She aims to work in the entertainment industry post-graduation and is well on her way thanks to an internship with a digital marketer to several music artists. Chelsea strives to achieve all of her goals and motivate others along the way.

by Carly Gerber

Choosing a major is quite possibly one of the hardest decisions to make in college. We all have our different stories of how we chose our major – many of my friends chose their major because it was the easiest college to get into at the university while others selected their major because their parents thought the field would yield the most opportunities after college – but what happens when you want to switch majors?

I’ve switched majors three times so I know the situation can be stressful. If you’re no longer enjoying your original major, the idea of attending another class in that field may feel like it’s going to send you over the edge but keep calm. First things first: What’s your new dream major? Only you know what interests you so don’t let others influence your decision. Once you’ve answered this question, do all the research you can to learn how to get into the program. Some universities make you apply to each college while others let you freely move from college to college. Each university is different so be sure to meet with an adviser if you have any questions.

Next, start the transfer process. Hopefully you do get into the college of you dreams but if you don’t, I promise the world won’t end! Life’s setbacks can open many new doors but I would highly suggest not continuing to major in something that doesn’t interest you – you’re the one who will have to attend those classes...not your friend, your aunt or your mom. This may also be your time to reconsider college in general...maybe you don’t just want to switch majors but transfer universities entirely!

Finding the right major is about knowing what you will enjoy and knowing what you can use later on. That leaves every major known to mankind as a possibly!

Carly Gerber is majoring in journalism at Columbia College Chicago. She loves fashion and hopes to cover the topic for a Chicago-area magazine. In her free time, she focuses on her blog, loves making jewelry and spending time on Pinterest and Pose. She hopes to use this blog to guide and relate to its followers: college students like herself!