Posts tagged university

Deep breath:

• i am not a letter grade
• i am not a gpa
• i am not a statistic
• i am not just a student
• i am good at something
• i am more than what an institution tells me i am

What grades determine:

• Your ability to memorize mostly useless things
• Your ability to regurgitate information in the way others want you to
• Your ability to understand what adults want from you and give it to them
• Your tolerance for working on tasks you don’t find useful because others want you to do them or believe them to be helpful/socially acceptable

What grades do NOT determine:

• Your intelligence
• Your creativity
• Your emotional capabilities
• Your likeliness to succeed
• Whether you’re a good person

Study Smarter, Not Harder

If you’re like me, your university resumes classes for the Spring semester tomorrow. In order to better prepare yourself for this semester, I have compiled a list of tools, gear and resources to help you study smarter this semester from Brett McKay.

Academic success comes to the students who study smarter, not harder. Successful students also utilize technology to achieve their academic goals.

Evernote [free]

Smart students take notes. Smarter students take their lecture notes using Evernote. Evernote is an application that allows you to remember and organize everything your professor throws at you.

Evernote is crammed with features that will help you upgrade your note-taking experience. Notes you take on the Evernote desktop app automatically sync with your Evernote account online. If your laptop crashes or gets lost, you’ll still have your notes sitting safely in the cloud. If you like to handwrite your notes, but would like to store them digitally, Evernote makes it possible. Just scan your handwritten notes into Evernote, and Evernote will use the magic of image recognition technology to allow you to search for your handwritten notes within the app.

Audio-Technica ATH-ANC1 QuietPoint Noise-Canceling Headphones [$80]

When noises distract you from studying, a pair of noise-canceling headphones can bring silent. QuietPoint noise-canceling headphones won’t give you complete noise cancellation like their $200-$300 cousins, for $80 you can get an 85% reduction in ambient noise.

Leechblock [free]

The internet provides limitless distractions: YouTube, Reddit, Facebook, etc. One of the biggest challenges in studying is avoiding these timewasting websites. Leechblock, a plug-in for the Firefox web browser, makes blocking timewasting sites a breeze. Simply tell Leechblock which sites you want to block and when you want them blocked and Leechblock does the rest. Now when you try to surf over to your favorite timewasting site, instead of the page, you’ll see a message from Leechblock telling you to get back to work.

The Pomodoro Technique [free]

Pomodoro is a time management method. The technique uses a timer to break down periods of work into 25-minute intervals called Pomodoros (from the Italian word for tomatoes) separated by breaks. The method is based on the idea that frequent breaks can improve mental agility.

Business School No Longer the Thing to Do

This year, according to Bloomberg Businessweek, application volume was down at 21 of the top 30 full-time MBA programs. The decline in applications is a trend that appears to be accelerating, with eight additional schools reporting declines in application volume this year over 2010.

Lessons & Wisdom About University

With it being September and everyone starting school, I thought of compiling a a list of lessons learned or some wisdom for university. When I began writing my post I thought back to mine from last year, “Freshmen. Accept the following, because they will happen to you.” Then I came across a great post from Summer Wind that I would like to share, hope she doesn’t mind. (Check out her blog, by the way, I adore it.)

1. The absolute number one thing I have learned is that your family is your family for a reason.
2. The second thing is that your parents are always right.
3. You know that saying… “Nothing good happens after 2am”?Well, it just might be true.
4. Count your blessings and remember all of the wonderful things in life that make you feel blessed.
5. If you truly love your friends and family and want to live a long and healthy life, then you will not take up smoking. The same goes for drugs and alcohol abuse. Drugs are illegal for a reason and alcohol should only be drunk in moderation. Never, ever, drive under the influence of anything. period.
6. Don’t gossip. If you must — kill them with kindness.
7. Separate your true friends from your acquaintances.
8. Vote.
9. Do your best in everything that you do and look your best doing it.
10. Don’t swear or use inappropriate/crass language.
11. Pray.
12. Tip well.
13. Always forgive.
14. If a guy truly loves you, he’ll do anything to keep you around.
15. Always be polite.
16. Go to class, take notes, and study.
17. Learn to nap.
18. Overdress rather than under-dress.
19. Travel.
20. Experience luxury.

Brooks Brothers College-brand

Brooks Brothers makes dignified casual apparel for American winners. But, what Brooks Brothers has agreed to do as a nod to modernity is to produce—for the first time in its history—college-branded “sweaters, dress and polo shirts and ties” for a select group of 15 American colleges.

UPDATE! Journalism: Worthless Degree

I found it quite humorous the amount of backlash and comments/emails I received after posting this about Journalism being the #1 Most Useless Degree. First, people need to to chill out because I didn’t make this up, although I do highly feel this way. Second, a very large majority of the people enrolled at the Missouri Jskewl need to lock it up and let go of their ego. Thirdly, I can totally say this and have factual information to back it up because I once was a jskewl n00b prince.

In the Fall 2009, Spring and Summer 2010 semesters, 4,507 people graduated from the University of Missouri. Of the 2,777 graduates who replied to the Destination Study, 68 percent of them are now employed or enrolled in a continuing education program. The school with the lowest placement rate was (drum roll…) the jskewl with 53 percent. (Information here.)

L00k @ meh! I go to the University of Missouri, the #1 jskewl in the werld! I’m kewl & gonna get a job, duhz!

Anyways, I have nothing to do with the jskewl anymore, so I wish each graduate the best of luck. I simply posted my previous post because I found it interesting. If you want to know more check out this most recent article from J-School Buzz.