Ask MetaFilter posts tagged with College

How does one make the transition between "college student" and business professional" without being wasteful?

DonSlice — Sat, 06 Sep 2008 21:22:31 -0800

How does one make the transition between "college student" and business professional" without being wasteful? My cousin recently took a nice job out west- something that is career-worthy. She's still living like a college student (ie: computing while sitting on the floor, instinctively buying cheaper things because they're cheap, etc).

How can she move from that "college student" mindset without being wasteful with her money?

I'm late! I'm late! For a very important--

Anonymous — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 10:41:30 -0800

How can I get to class on time? It is the third week of the college semester, and I have already missed three classes because I've been so late that I couldn't bear to walk in the classroom door. I've walked in 3-15 minutes late already to a number of classes. Not good... So. I care about school, or I think I do. I respect that other people need to learn. I loathe being a disruption. I appreciate and enjoy all of my professors, and I want to make a good impression. I want to learn! So why am I getting in the way of that by being late all the time? What's are some solutions?

This has been a problem, well, pretty much since I've started college. It has gotten a bit worse, though. I can't decide if that's because I'm so appalled with my tardiness that I won't walk in the door anymore, or if I'm really just running later than I used to.

A lot of times, I just can't get out of bed. Even when I have slept well. Even when I have a lot to do in the morning, or when I don't have much to do at all. It's even worse when I don't get enough sleep, which is often. But it's like I just don't have that extra oomph to get myself up. I just hit the snooze button repeatedly, or I turn it off and then fall back asleep.

Then, when I do get out of bed, I have a lot to do to get out of the door. A lot of times I'm rushing around. Sometimes I'm just moving slowly about. I can get so engrossed in certain tasks (checking e-mail, showering, fixing my bike helmet, etc.) that I just ignore the time.

I live off campus, so some days I drive or some days I walk or bike. Regardless, I'm a mess, and I'm always scrambling about.

What are you tricks for getting yourself out of bed and out the door in the morning?

Four year loyalty vs. seven year's work?

parmanparman — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 07:24:07 -0800

RelationsFilter: If you are a master's or doctoral graduate, what are some of the reasons you joined or chose not to join the alumni association of your graduate school? More to the point:

1. Do you feel an affinity to your graduate school if it's not the place you also received your B.A.?

2. Would you rather get information about jobs and networking events in your field or get information about parties and other events thrown by the graduate school in your area?

3. If you received fundraising appeals from your graduate school, how did you respond to them versus your BA institution?

Help me become the best atheist chaplain I can be.

internet!Hannah — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 10:27:08 -0800

Help me become the best atheist chaplain I can be. I'm in the ROTC at my University, and as a cadet master sergeant this year, I've somewhat taken it upon myself to assume the unofficial role of "atheist chaplain" for the Corps. There's no official position for this, though I'm told there was once an actual Atheist Chaplain some years ago (however, it seems to have been done more as a protest than anything, which has engendered some resentment for getting the position reinstated), but I've found myself filling the vacuum anyways.

The Corps has ~2,000 cadets. I've started in my major unit (one of 9 units) by getting the names of the atheist and agnostic freshmen cadets (as well as a deist and a neo-pagan), and I took 5 of them with me to the school's Agnostic and Atheist Student Group, which was a hit both with the freshmen and the organization. My current plans include trying to get all of the irreligious freshmen in the Corps to attend these meetings with me, pending cooperation with the Corps-wide Chaplain on just who those freshmen are. The AASG is a debate group that discusses such topics as morality without religion and so forth, and is actually a really fun group, so I'm definately going to be pushing it for these cadets.

However, since we're in a very conservative, religious university in Texas, these freshmen are getting inundated with religious pressure, and I want to expand my help to include something that passes as more of a alternative to all of the bible studies and prayer sessions they're constantly getting offered. (To get an idea of the atmosphere I'm talking about, we freethinkers sit through a mimimum of two prayers a day at morning and evening chow, and every speaker for every event feels the need to quote half of the bible. It does get a little old.)

I'm short on ideas of what all I can do for the freshmen, though. I've been thinking along the lines of having some group relaxed dinners (alternative to chow) so that they can get to know one another and realize they aren't alone, which would also let me keep tabs on if any are getting any harassment within their outfits (though in my experience, 95% of the reaction I got was, if not positive, then at least no worse than good-natured ribbing. Then again, I also know the Bible better than just about anyone else in my unit, which is a great defense against the conversion-minded).

What else could I be doing for them? I have a pretty good selection of Sagan and Dawkins and so forth, so I guess I could do either a borrow-a-book or book study thing, if there's any interest. Or maybe once monthly meetings about stuff like what it's like to be an atheist in the military (though not all are military bound)? There is an obnoxious attitude of "no atheists in foxholes" that I find offensive and I would like to try and counter.

So, please, does anyone have any suggestions? The normal chaplain types do bible studies, devotionals, church carpooling, BBQs, and general counseling, and nontheistic equivalents would be welcomed.

Please note, I am not trying to make waves with anyone. I will not be challenging prayers, or attacking the current chaplain system, so please don't make suggestions that would just create resentment for atheists.

What are the best ipod/regular speakers to use while studying abroad for a year?

daf81289 — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 10:32:07 -0800

What are the best ipod/regular speakers to use while studying abroad for a year? I will be studying abroad for a year and living in college-dorm type room (meaning cramped). I will have my iPod and my MacBook Pro with me. Right now I have the Harmon/Kardon Soundsticks II and love them, but they're too big to bring. What are the best speakers that I can get for uner $150? Thanks!

My google-fu has failed: Which Australian university courses are the hardest to get into?

[ixia] — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 04:49:00 -0800

My Google-fu has failed me. Where can I find a sequenced list of the admission requirements for Australian university courses? Ideally, I'm looking for something like "Top 50 most difficult-to-get-into courses in Australia". I'm interested in the individual programs - for example, "Arts-Law at Sydney University" or "Medicine the University of Tasmania", rather than a ranking of the universities themselves. Australian university admissions and school-leaver rankings are determined state by state, and I've been struggling to find a complete, national list.

Oh, and I'm not actually planning to apply to any of them, so I won't be needing any admissions advice myself!

Advice on Emailing Professors When Applying to Grad School?

davidstandaford — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 16:40:09 -0800

Any advice concerning email communication with professors who I'll be contacting at the various schools that I will be applying to for PhD programs in Political Science? As part of my application process I've been identifying the schools that I want to apply to and the professors at each campus that I would want to work with. I've been reading some of their recent writings so I can begin contacting them via email.

At the moment, my plan is to email them sometime soon letting them know I'm thinking of applying to their school, my planned research statement, and letting them know which of their articles I've read. I was going to include a comment about the articles I had read and ask them some question about something I'm unsure about or how their article might be in conflict with some other research.

If/when I get a response I was planning to follow up by asking to see any unpublished articles if they are working on something that also fits with my interest.

Firstly, I was wondering if anyone involved in academia has any thoughts about communicating with professors during the application process.

Also, is there some maximum number of emails that should be exchanged and at some point I would begin to annoy them, or it's ok to email back and forth for a couple of months?

Is there some number of emails I should exchange before I tell them explicitly that I am applying to their school and explicitly ask them for any help they can provide in the admissions process?

What about arranging a time to speak to them on the phone? Also good?

And finally, anything in my emails that I should be sure not to mention/include, or anything I should be sure to tell them?

[I'm focusing on email communication because, alas, I am out of the country and not able to make any more campus visits.]

Getting the Group out of Group Project

theichibun — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 12:17:37 -0800

What's the best way to approach a professor about going solo on a group project? Group projects scare me. Partly because I'm a productive procrastinator and don't like to do things way early, which is when a lot of people want stuff unofficially turned in. Partly because I tend to get a bit paranoid about other people pulling their weight (although not to a level that would be diagnosable as a psychological problem as far as I can tell).

I know I'm stereotyping here, but the idea of working with freshmen/sophomores (I'm a senior) that I don't know on something that is almost 20% (75 out of 400 points) of my grade scares the piss out of me.

The assignment for my Intro to Archaeology (taken for a social science requirement) is broken down as follows:

1 - 25 points for straight data input on two cemeteries.
2 - 10 points for some basic statistical analysis.
3 - 8 points for graphs based on #2
4 - 25 points for a 3-3.5 page paper interpreting the data
5 - 7 points for how well I worked with the group.

None of that seems like it would be too much trouble to do on my own. There are just a few things that make me wonder if it's worth it.

A) New professor at my school, although it sounds like she's taught other places before. So I can't ask anyone how she is.

B) What would I ask her to do with those 7 points for playing nicely with others? They can't be split evenly between the other categories. So would asking if I can just have those 7 points be appropriate since I would be doing 100% of the work anyway?

C) We're picking groups on Friday (the 2nd time the class meets), so I won't have any time to really get to know anybody in the class to alleviate my fears.

I've already checked, there aren't any other classes that would fit into my schedule that look even the slightest bit interesting. So switching to something else isn't really an option.

The best thing I can think of to do is to contract the class as honors and have my special extra work be that I have to do the project by myself. No mention of how I feel about group projects needs to be made if I do it this way if you ask me.

Is that a valid option? How would you feel as a professor if someone asked you if you could do this?

My Room Smells Disgusting. Help?

DMan — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 13:22:01 -0800

What is the absolute best/strongest/still-smells-good air freshener that money can buy? So my roommate at college moved in, and due to a myriad of factors including his apparent dislike of personal hygiene products and love of oats, our room now smells disgusting. At this time me and the other two guys in the room aren't willing to approach the problem directly because we don't think this guy will care or listen to us. So we need some kind of amazing air freshener.

Things we are doing now: I leave the window open in the bedroom that I share with him pretty much continuously, and it does seem to help a bit but it won't solve the problem. We also use Glade and Febreze as often as possible, but they wear off pretty quickly.

So, MeFi: What kind of air freshener can I get that will make my room smell better? I'm looking for some kind of "fire and forget" system that I don't have to remember to spray every hour or whatever. I'm fine with turning it off at night and on in the morning.

Almost forgot: We can't have real candles, but we can use candle warmers. This is in a dorm.

Thanks for the help that is sure to come!

So i'm frugal, but what's next ?

fizzix — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 12:28:42 -0800

I am a frugal person entering his senior year in college [age 21]. I have been following advice like the stuff in thread 84915and thread 99852 and living below my means. I sought advice in Financial books for college kids my age [for example, generation debt], but left feeling wanting more because they focus primarily on how to cut expenses [skipping the latte, etc]. So, I have some student loans already, but will need more for my senior year. I also have some money set aside, but I should I use this money to lower the loan amount that I'll take out or use this money for an investment (Roth IRA, index fund), and take out more for my student loans ? Here's my scenario:

- I have NO debt - EXCEPT from my Student Loan Debt

($46,025.40 for undergrad so far, heading into my senior year).
($27,519.40 are government loans - fixed rates, ),
the rest is from a private company, at variable rate -
A combination of federal and private loans
I am getting VERY Scared about affording this (right now, I have
estimated payments of $ 541.34, given the current interest rates and a normal payment schedule that is not income contingent).

- I have NO credit cards.

- I do have a checking account (with a debit card).

- I have a saving account (only 1.05% APR) of $ 800 (a 6 month
emergency reserve).

- In the past 5 months or so, I have saved 40 % of my income to a
general savings and a checking account

(it's only 1.05 APR, and I know there's better ones (ING, etc) but
both my [savings and checking]
banks charge a rather large fee (of $30 or so) for transactions from
one bank account to another,
for retirement.

My most important question is THAT I have received conflicting advice
regarding the following
situation:

This fall, I'll need to take out an additional $5,500 (estimated) for
living expenses (this is living frugally, rent, utilities, etc) (I am aware that I could work off campus more hours, but I have tentatively decided not to do that.
(I decided not to work more than 12-15 hours a week, while in school,
which can be for metatalk if you want to discuss that).

Should I take that 40% [which I saved - $650] and my federal work study job income ($2220) towards my expenses and take out a smaller loan (the advice from a counselor at the school financial aid office) ?
(Because any rate that I get on investing wouldn't be higher than my loan rate)
(I have not applied for the loan yet, so not sure of the rates that I'd be getting. This loan would be a private loan, because I am already taking out the maximum from Stafford and Perkins loans. I am looking at PLUS Loans - another govt loan, but that may not work, because my parents do not want a loan in their name).

Should I take that money and put it into certain investments for retirement (Roth IRA, Index Fund,etc) ?

Should I put that into something more safer like a money market account (Andrew Tobias' advice for those with less than $5,000) ?

Chances for ex-lawyer to enter clinical psych PhD?

shivohum — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 21:58:33 -0800

I'm a lawyer from a top law school with a year of work experience. I want to become an academic clinical psychologist (professor + therapist). After 9 months in a master's program, what will my admissions chances look like? I have no formal psychological background, thus my plan to enroll in a master's degree program before going for the Ph.D. Assuming the masters starts this spring, and I apply to PhD programs in the fall of 2009, how competitive will I be?

Assume:
-my undergrad grades are from a top-25 college and are excellent and my law school grades are only average (though from a top-5 law school)
-that I do very well in my psychology master's courses
-that I do very well on the GRE general and psych subject tests
-that I get some reasonable research experience in my 9 months, but it's limited by the fact that it's only been 9 months
-that I get good letters of recommendation from my psych professors (though again, whom I've only known for 9 months)
-that I have a good personal statement
-that I have maybe some internship experience, though this might happen after during the master's program after I apply and before I actually attend the PhD program

1. Would I be a:

-very strong (>75% admission chance to a top program)
-strong (40-75% chance)
-not so strong (<40% chance)

candidate to clinical psych programs? If I'd be average or below-average, is there anything else I could do to improve my chances?

2. Also, how much does the quality of the master's program influence your chances of admission into doctoral programs? If there's a serious influence, is there any good set of rankings I could use to decide which master's program to attend?

3. If I could attend a master's program which would give me a very strong "pipeline" into the school's doctoral program, would I be a fool not to attend that master's program, even if the school might be somewhat more expensive than alternatives?

4. Are there any good discussion forums where psych students or soon-to-be students talk about this stuff?

Thanks!

Casual Sex Caveats

Anonymous — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 15:03:39 -0800

If you're a straight male college student how do you signal to women of the same age that you're interested in sleeping with them - while avoiding the extremes of coming across as objectifying or amorous? I want to have sex without leading anyone on or being a chauvinist pig. For the sake of conversation, assume I'm not interested in a committed romantic relationship. If you're female: how would you like to be approached in this context?

Tired of vending machine food!

bilabial — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 08:51:44 -0800

I've read all the food questions. I have a new one. I need portable foods that don't need refrigeration or heating that can keep me alert and satisfied for 12ish hours.

I'm a full time student that packs all five classes into two days. My first class is Oceanography at 9am and my last class (Cultural Ecology) ends at 9pm. My four "breaks" that have me scurry across campus are 15 minutes (one is actually only 10).

The drive to school takes about 40 minutes. I could take a shuttle, but books for 5 classes may prohibit that some days, and it adds an hour to each end of my commute.

Of course, there is another constraint. I have a ridiculously fast metabolism. So bonus points for foods that pack in the calories, but don't weigh a thousand tons (see the aforementioned book hauling).

I might be able to get a locker to switch books at "mid-day," and could theoretically store some things there, but keep in mind this is for Florida. I cannot store peanut butter and bread in a locker. It would be gone overnight with the ants.

To give you an idea of the kinds of things I might be looking for (but getting bored with) here's what I'm bringing tomorrow for the first day, in roughly the order I expect to eat things. (Before I leave the house I'll have a granola and yogurt combo, when I get home I will not feel like heating anything.) I carry all of this in a super sophisticated plastic Publix grocery store bag. I will not be investing in any kind of cooler/laptop lunchbox/Mr Bento, but I'm not afraid of food poisoning.

11am sandwich - boring lunch meat/cheese. I'm ok with that, I can hold this and eat while I walk. Loved a previous AskMe topic for fun sandwiches, will move in that direction eventually. I do not need any more sandwich suggestions.
145pm Cold Quesadilla (beans and sweet potatoes with a little cheese and spinach)
230ish Cheese manicotti. I might be sneaking out of a lecture to deal with this one. I eat my left over pasta at room temp.
5pm Bean salad
615 2 boiled eggs with no yolks. (I'm not afraid this is going to kill me)
630 Peanut butter and pretzels
Trail mix

Further - I don't need suggestions for drinks and I have never found a protein/meal replacer bar that I like. Please do not suggest that I try any more protein bars. They make me gag, and I will not pay $1 to feel like I need to puke. Also, I have lots of intestinal fortitude. I am not worried that I am going to poison myself, and I'm not picky about eating cold things cold and hot things hot. I will not be buying a thermos because they are HEAVY. So, sad as it makes me, no soups.

(Fully) Online learning?

btkuhn — Sun, 24 Aug 2008 18:29:46 -0800

(Fully) online learning resources? I've been planning to self-teach myself several college-level courses, after reading previous posts about projects such as MIT Opencourseware. However, most of the classes on MIT Opencourseware require that the user purchase the textbook for the course to actually follow along, and the textbooks are pricey, even on half.com or ebay. On the other hand, the open-source textbook projects like wikibooks are often incomplete and don't provide the indepth material and exercises that you would get from a college course.

So my question is, what good sites or resources do you use for self-teaching college courses, where all the required resources are provided online? Are there any? I'd prefer resources that include written material as opposed to just podcasts, and bonus points for resources that include exercises that reinforce the course material so that it is retained. I'm interested in any and all subjects.

Thanks!

Suggestions for activism on a college campus?

nuclear_soup — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 13:28:34 -0800

How can I make volunteering/charity fun or interesting for college students? I just started working as an AmeriCorps *VISTA at a college, and I'm trying to think of fun events to hold on campus that have something to do with volunteering/social issues and/or philanthropy For example, in November I'm planning a Hunger Banquet, and in the past this campus has been involved with projects such as Daffodil Days. We also have students who are involved with organizations in the community. I did some googling, but I didn't seem to find anything that seemed quite right. Did any of you do anything great at your colleges, or know of any good ideas? This is a pretty small (around 2,000 students) liberal arts college, if that makes a difference. Ideas for events to plan, causes to donate to, or even documentaries to screen on campus are all welcome. Thanks in advance!

College Knowledge

chara — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 21:39:33 -0800

What are some good ways to motivate underprivileged high school juniors and seniors to pursue a college education? I work in several inner-city high schools and I'm trying to find innovative ways to help the upperclassmen enroll in some sort of postsecondary education, be it junior college, tech school, or a 4 year school.

From what I gather, the students have a vague idea of their future plans and how college fits in, but they don't understand the steps necessary to get there (i.e. filling out important paperwork and turning it in on time, taking more difficult classes, etc.)

Does anyone know of any one-on-one or group activities and materials that will provide students and their families with the most basic information about college and how to get there?

Should I study Finance or Management?

Theloupgarou — Sun, 17 Aug 2008 05:50:34 -0800

Is it better to get any degree or to get the degree that I want? I'm about to start my senior year of college but I find myself wanting to switch majors! What to do? Management: What I’ve been studying so far. I’m doing good, but it doesn’t excite me anymore.

Finance: This is what I really want to learn. I look at people studying this and I’m attracted; I want to be like them.

I’ve actually already done the paperwork to switch majors :P I find myself having second thoughts now. But I can easily do the paperwork to switch back.

Here are my overall concerns:
-I have no real experience in finance and don’t know what to expect apart from it being hard (at least it seems so to me). Part of what attracts me, however, is precisely that challenge – I feel good about taking it head on and I feel great about my math skills, which have improved immensely since entering college.

-I do realize that another part of what attracts me to this switch of major is simply being a senior and the uncertainty of entering the job market. Finance, after I get into the curriculum, is going to tack on a few extra months of work and possibly an extra semester (which will keep freedom – horrible, horrible freedom – at bay, at least for a little bit). And though finance seems to be more competitive than management, it also seems to me to pay way better at entry-level. That is the biggest draw.

-If I stay with management I can be done this year. Not kidding – it would be nice to be done and grin and not add more to my debt load.

-As far as work after college is concerned, I just want to make as much money as possible and live as comfortably as possible… at least at first (say… maybe first 5, 10 years, so I can get out of the hole and build some wealth. In that case, maybe accounting would have been a better major choice). Ultimately I want to work for government or an international organization like the UN or similar, so that I can work for the commonweal and feel all nice inside. I’m lucky to have good language skills: I’m bilingual in English/Spanish, have a good knowledge of French (which I’m constantly improving), and I’m very willing to learn other languages (Chinese or Arabic, maybe?)

Bottom-line is that I KNOW that I want to learn finance, I just don’t know if this is the right time to do it or not, and what I should do, and so I ask, what would you do?

Engineering Skills

gzimmer — Sat, 16 Aug 2008 14:52:27 -0800

Engineers: What skills do you use most often that you learned in college or anywhere else? I'm a college student currently pursuing a mechanical engineering degree (not totally set on mech though), and I wanted to know what skills I was learning that really mattered in the day to day workings of an engineer.

How to Improve My Grad School Chances

davidstandaford — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 16:35:35 -0800

Is there anything I can do to help myself get into grad school (PhD, political science/international relate) between now and January? I'm working on my grad school applications and I'm wondering if there is anything I can be doing over the next six months that might help me get into a good program.

I graduated from college three years ago and spent the last two years working on a college campus and this year I'm in a foreign country doing a one year study program (both unrelated to what I would be doing in grad school).

One of my thoughts was to start a blog about something I'm interested in concentrating on in a grad program (Sierra Leone) and writing about it for the next six months. Would grad school admissions committees consider something like that a plus?

Is there anything else I can be doing that would make me seem like a stronger candidate? Any info or advice would be a big help. Thanks!

Tell me about your job at a college or university

misoramen — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 14:38:54 -0800

Tell me about your (non-teaching) job at a US college or university! Specific things I'm wondering:

- Do you work full-time, part-time, overtime?
- Do you receive the benefit of taking classes for free?
- Are you able to avail yourself of that benefit?
- What was your training/history that enabled you to get your position?
- Do you work year-round, or only when school is in session (e.g. is August off, or spring break)?
- Do you know what background/training can lead to positions in admissions or academic advising?

Computer Engineering, or Linguistics? Or maybe web design... and how do I fit travel in there?

malapropist — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 13:50:49 -0800

I'm having a lot of angst about whether to continue with my major, Comp Engineering, or to find something else, such as linguistics or web design. Can you give me some perspective? Hi, I'm having some issues with my college education. Here are the main points:

I went to community college after high school, 5 years ago, with the idea that I would end up working with computers. But life, family problems and depression intervened and I've taken a bunch of gen ed but no actual major prep. So, basically, the major prep for transfering into a comp eng program at a CSU will take me 3 years. From now. The idea of being stuck in community college for ANOTHER 3 years makes me sick. I was under the impression that it would be more like a year and a half, or two, which is much more paletable. Considering that engineering is the most unit-intensive major you can take, I'm looking for another major that is less intense.

Two fields that interest me a lot are web design (an old hobby) and linguistics (a new interest). I've heard that linguistics intersects with computer science, and that there are jobs for linguists in technology companies, but I can't seem to find much more detailed information than that, such as which companies, or what kind of jobs exactly. I have seen some interesting programs, such as UCLAs Linguistics and Computer Science bachelors, which sounds right up my alley, but what is the application of this? What kind of work is it? Depending on what I'm reading, it either seems like there are exciting opportunities for someone with a linguistics degree, or that it's a theoretical degree that is only useful for academia. As far as web design goes, that's a whole another question whether to go with a design degree, a computer science degree, some kind of certification, or just say bollocks to a degree altogether.

I very much want to join the Japan English Teaching program after college, regardless of what degree I get, and perhaps teach English in Korea as well. This is one thing that makes me doubt pursuing a comp eng degree, because it feels like if I get that degree and turn around and become an English teacher for a couple of years, I'll let my engineering degree and skills go stale. It seems like if I follow that course of actions, when I return stateside I would be unhirable. How true is this?

After school, I would like to spend a few years either way, living in foreign countries or in a city outside of southern California, where I live. It seems like comp engineering would be a good option for this, because there is technology everywhere. Linguistics also seems like it would be a good idea, though depending on what languages I specialize in, it could be actually more limiting than CE. What do you think? I'm considering, if I do go through with linguistics, specializing in Japanese and an Indo-European language, probably French. Which of these two degrees would help me get a job and live in a wide variety of societies?

Anyway, I have spent so so so much time thinking about all this stuff, and it seems the longer I spend the further away it all gets. I'm feeling very demoralized. I'll be visiting the counseling department next week, as well as the career planning center and the transfer center around the beginning of term, but to be honest they haven't been very helpful in the past. I want to be as knowledgeble as I can so I can ask precise questions. I feel like there is a lot I don't know about simply researching careers and majors and colleges and programs and this and that and the other.

I know there are plenty of people here on Askme who have gone on to have amazing careers and/or travel a lot. Can you confer upon me your wisdom? Please. Give me an outside perspective. I feel so trapped in my head about all this. I search online, I go to the library, I talk to the counselors, but in the end it can't help me figure out what will happen 4 or 5 years from now with too much accuracy. Thanks for your time.

What are grad schools looking for?

Anonymous — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 12:41:55 -0800

I want to get into an excellent CS grad school, but I have no idea what I'm supposed to do, or what they're looking for. I'm currently a computer science major at UC Berkeley (starting junior year), but I don't know what I need to do to get into grad school. I haven't done much in the past 2 years, unforunately - no jobs, no internships, no interesting projets - and I only have a B average in my technical courses. In fact, I feel my only defining characteristic is that I'm double majoring in music.

Aside from improving my grades (which I'll try to do next semester), what should I do to become a more viable candidate for the top CS grad schools (particularly in England), and where can I find more information on this topic? What else will I have to do to get into grad school? (i.e., letters of rec, etc.)

(I feel one of my main problems is that I only started programming a year ago, so I don't really know how to do much yet.)

Work Hard and Hope for the Best, or Stay Safe and Lose It All?

dmaterialized — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 00:43:10 -0800

Am I making a huge mistake? I'm deciding whether I should take a term off from my beloved college in order to work in the "real world", scraping together money for a study abroad program (Semester at Sea). My instincts say to do it, but I'm suddenly hesitant and wonder if others might have suggestions. Here's where it stands. I planned on making tons of money this summer doing freelance work (in a job that in the past has made me quite a bit of money), but that didn't work out. Instead of having a wad of cash at the end of summer, I've basically broken even. Now I have to figure out what to do next-- and as senior year looms, things seem to be getting desperate.

I intend to go on Semester at Sea this spring (my final term)-- yes, I managed to convince the faculty to let me! SAS is literally the most important goal I have, and I desperately need to be on that boat, but I'm not sure how to make ends meet-- especially since the cheaper rooms all got snatched up and it now costs $5,000 more than it was "supposed" to.

I'm an entering senior in college, paying for the whole thing myself and have no family assistance whatsoever (thanks to a lot of financial aid, I have just enough cash to finish two terms there, but that isn't much). Semester at Sea costs $23,000 -- not including personal expenses or additional fees that might come up. Of that, roughly $12000 of my aid will transfer, and there is a $10k workstudy grant if all goes well. That pretty much means I could go-- though without a cent to spare (not even enough for things like plane tickets etc).

If I forego college for one term, it hinges on getting a full-time job (9-5) as well as supporting myself through my existing freelance work and bartending (which I haven't yet gotten a job in, but feel like I will if I give it some more time). I can stay at a friend's place for very little rent, and will have ultimate freedom (one of the things I seek most in life). I'll be running myself into the ground, but I really think I might be ready for the "real world": at least, I hope so. And at the end of it, I would be able to save up some money and have an amazing trip--potentially even able to buy a nice f/2.8 for my DSLR!

Things to consider: I would be leaving behind some people I care very much about and who I might not see again (including a long-term relationship that I'd pretty much have to give up on), I would need to graduate college a term late (and miss a whole year of watching my friends grow up), and I don't know how the job market is in NY (though I have an incredible amount of skills, I seem to have consistent trouble getting work normally). The advantage is that I would be applying for a fulltime position (with more than 4 months available to work) and I imagine there are certainly more opportunities for those than for part time/internship work. If it doesn't work, though, the whole thing is a bust.

If I stayed at college, I would be dirt-poor (just like always) and potentially miss out on being able to afford the trip (even if I got a gig bartending in the town, it wouldn't be enough to save up). Even things like visas, memory cards, or plane tickets might be more than I could handle. I have credit card bills that I would need to set money aside to pay over the 3 months I'm at sea, and I'm not sure how I could do that either. It would be so comforting, so easy, to go back-- but I'm not sure it's the right choice in the long run. I sense that I'll be changed a lot after SAS and I think being independent beforehand might be really important.

I'm pretty much at the max of my financial aid, though it's possible I might be able to take out a $5-7k loan. My credit's not great, so I'm not too sure of my chances of that.

I'm just trying to think this out-- what seems to you to be the sanest idea? Strike out and hope that a job will be waiting (I'm doing tons and tons and tons of research), or go back and be happy, finish school, and move on as best I can (my college is paradise on earth, and nothing else will ever be quite like it)? And what other options might I have for this kind of thing? Are there appropriate loans I might look into that are outside the normal structure of financial aid?

The whole thing is incredibly scary to me, but exhilarating... is it really just a question of courage, and working is obviously the right choice, or am I right to be cautious of abandoning ship in this economy?

What can I expect as a premed?

pandemic — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 00:01:46 -0800

As a new premed student, what should I expect (namely in terms of math courses/difficulty) to encounter later down the road? I spent my freshman year knocking out some basic classes while I pondered my major. I'm now certain that I want to at least attempt a premed regimen and am majoring in biology this semester. I've talked to friends who are premed and have searched all over the internet but the answers I'm getting are disparate at best. So I'm asking anyone here who's had in depth experience as a premed student--what did you go through? How much of a hit did your social life take? And most specifically, how difficult would you rate the math end of it compared to, say, a computer sciences major?

Any advice would most definitely be appreciated.

Apply now!!!! Or not.

Fuzzy Skinner — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 06:29:21 -0800

College student credit card: Besides the obvious (temptations to overspend and carry too much debt) is there any good reason for my daughter to not get her first credit card as she leaves for college? My daughter is 18, and leaving for college. Of course she is getting credit card offers. She is an adult and will make her own decision, but has been discussing whether or not to apply for one of the offered credit cards. So, I ask your input to help her decide. Here's some background:
-She has had a debit card for a couple years, and is pretty good at not overspending.
-Grants, loans, and work will pay her college expenses, so she won't use it for books, food, etc. except maybe in the short term if she has to wait for the other checks to show up.
-Dad's credit is worthless for co-signing, so she will be on her own as far as getting approval. I understand that shouldn't be hard.
-She probably needs to establish credit for her future plans.

Is there anything we are missing as she makes this decision? What would you do differently when starting out? Is there any advantage to just not getting a card at all right now? Your answers will help her make an informed decision. Thank you!