Welcome to college! Chegg, the ultimate textbook company, is running a Freshman Survival Guide blog series to help incoming freshmen make the most of their college experience.
This new series will be jam-packed with tips, tricks, professional advice, and personal stories to make the transition to college life easier. Here are a few of the topics you can expect:
- Examining your financial aid
- Choosing a major
- Budgeting in college
- Planning your success
- And many more!
Visit Chegg’s blog for the full Freshman Survival Guide: How to Not look Like a Freshman.
4 Tips for Writing Scholarship Essays
The majority of scholarships need a scholarship essay to be applicable. This has to do with the fact that essays help scholarship committees get a feel for the kind of person you are. They also make it so students from different backgrounds with different accomplishments are equally applicable to receive a scholarship. So how do you write a fantastic scholarship essay? This article will provide 4 tips to get you started.
1. Determine the Theme
Depending on the essay, you may be required to develop a theme. If not, you’ll have to make sure that your essay fits the theme of the scholarship. For instance, if you’re applying to a sports scholarship, you should write an article that’s relevant to the world of sports.
If the scholarship provides you with no theme, there’s a simple way to decide what your theme should be. The theme needs to be inline with the award, scholarship, or organization. Usually, there’s a reason or a purpose why they’re giving out a scholarship. Your essay needs to be in sync with that reason.
2. Create Goals
In your essay, you should include some of your goals. Why do you need the scholarship? Why do you want to go to College? What for?
When you’re writing about your goals, think broadly, and consider what qualities the scholarship committee is looking for. This section of the essay can show a number of things. Here are some ideas:
- If the scholarship is named after someone, consider the traits of that person, and try to demonstrate those traits in your essay.
- Be optimistic and use present tense.
- Demonstrate balance between academic and family life.
- Talk about the things that contribute to your success.
3. Keep an Eye Out for Underlying Questions
Scholarship essays often have an underlying issue, or question that they’d like you to address. They won’t ask this question up front, they want you to dig deep and find it yourself. It’s important that you answer this question in a unique and interesting way.
Keep in mind that you’re one of many applicants. This is a competition where all the applicants have similar goals. This means the scholarship committee has to thumb through a large number of applications that all look very similar. Use the underlying question as a tool to make yourself stand out from the bunch. Prove to them that you’re the ideal choice.
4. Create an Outline
Before you even begin writing your essay, you should create an outline determining exactly what you’re going to say. Here are some benefits to writing an outline:
- With an outline, your thoughts will be clear, concise, and easy to read.
- The outline will guarantee that you cover all the points you want to cover.
- The points will be in the right order.
- You’ll have the freedom to build the essay in any way that you’d like, which can create a more dramatic and compelling effect.
After the outline is complete, write the essay, and then rewrite it. Do this to make double sure that there are no mistakes.
Guest post by Alexis, who writes on a variety of college and education topics.
One of the biggest concerns for college students and their parents is how you’re going to pay for your higher education. While some parents pay for their kid’s college, some students are on their own and resort to taking out students loans or trying to find scholarships and grants. The best thing about grants and scholarships is you don’t have to pay them back and there are so many scholarships for college students.
Finding scholarships is a lot easier these days because of the internet and the available resources. You can browse through their entire database of available scholarships to find the right ones for you. You can also search for specific types of scholarships. They add new scholarships all the time so you can keep checking for new ones.
There are many different types of scholarships by many different organizations, like Best Buy, Ronald McDonald House Charities ScholarshipKFC Colonel’s Scholars Program. You can also find tips to be the most effective scholarship applicant you can be, as well as other resources.
Websites like these really help high school and college students find appropriate scholarships and education grants so you can easily afford college.
More and more employers are requiring a college education, but with the rising cost of tuition, it’s hard for low and middle class students to afford one. There are many financial aid packages available and some are contingent on your school, but some of them are only about you.
Scholarships are one of the best ways to get help paying for college because you don’t have to pay the money back. Something many college students don’t realize is there are scholarships out there for almost everyone. You don’t have to be the best student or a star athlete to qualify.
There are many different types and categories for scholarships and one of the most popular areas is minority scholarships. You can qualify for one of these by simply being a part of a minority group. There are also career-based scholarships if you already know what career path you want to take. Other areas include religious and military scholarships.
When looking for scholarships, first talk to your school(s) of choice and their financial aid department. They can point you in the right direction and hopefully give you some guidance. Many universities offer scholarships from endowments or alumni programs. Another way to find scholarships is the internet. There are many search engines that will help you find the right scholarships for you.
If you’re looking to do any post-graduate education, the odds are good that you’ll need to take the GRE, a standardized test that can best be approximated as the SATs for grad school. Everybody will have their own way of studying for the exam, but whether you’re looking for a Master degree in healthcare administration or a Master of Arts, there are a few pointers that can help anybody looking to do well and improve their chances of getting into the graduate program they want.
Start Early
The earlier you start the more time you have to study. Also, the earlier you start the more time you have to ease into it. As soon as you know that you want to get into a graduate program make sure that the GRE is the exam that they’ll require and then start gathering study materials and begin working on your studying.
Know the Exam
Knowing the parts of the exam will allow you to study in a more effective way. There’s no use in studying biology when it’s not on the test. Math, vocabulary, and analytical writing skills are at a premium to focus your work on those areas of study to maximize your time.
Create a Study Program
There’s no standardized study program you should have, but having some sort of regimented program will definitely help keep you focused on the task at hand. Whether you study in the morning, after dinner, or just on the weekends, create a program that not only works with your study habits, but with your life.
Take Practice Tests
There are numerous practice tests available to those that want them, and it’s best to start taking them as soon as possible. Not only will this get you familiar with the layout of the exam, but you can time yourself to make sure that you’re completing all parts of the exam within the allotted time. Leaving a section blank because you didn’t have time means you don’t even have a chance of being right and getting credit for the question.
Don’t Forget to Rest
Our brains don’t process information as well when we’re tired to be sure to get some rest. Not only will this help you retain the information better, but if you’re well rested you’re more likely to want to study in the first place.
Balance Your Time
This goes hand in hand with starting early and having a study program. Both of those things will allow you to balance your studying with your life and will prevent you from cramming at the very end as you lead up to the exam. We don’t learn as well when we cram so giving yourself enough time to do the studying you want is crucial to learning the material.
Know Your Weaknesses
If your vocabulary is strong you might not need to spend as much time on it as you do your math and analytical writing skills. Be honest with yourself when assessing your weaknesses and adjust your study program accordingly to maximize the time you have to study.
Guest post written by Olivia R Solis, a teacher with a masters in education.
With the increase in global business ventures, knowing other languages is becoming a requirement for some careers. If you happen to know more than one language, there is a career opportunity you might not have considered: translation and interpretation.
First, what’s the difference? Translation deals with the written word, while interpretation deals with the spoken word. Both are similar in that you are taking ideas and concepts from one language to another, opening up barriers between cultures. You can do one or both.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the job prospects are much better than average because of the increase in global commerce. Earnings depend on experience, language skills and other factors like most careers. There are many different places you can work from large international companies to schools, hospitals and courtrooms.
There are many translation agencies around the world, from Washington D.C. to London to Beijing so you have different opportunities for where to live. A career in interpretation or translation will offer many incredible opportunities for travel and exploration of the world.
One of the best things about this career path is that the flexibility: you can be full-time with a translation company or you can freelance and be self-employed. Flexibility in an industry allows you to make your own choices and find what works best for you and your future.
College is not for everyone because it is demanding in every aspect of your life, but it is also extremely rewarding for most people. Here are five reasons why you should get a college degree.
Some people think they can’t afford college, but with financial aid available, almost everyone can go to college. If you need help with financial aid, the Department of Education is a great resource.
5. Better Salary
There is no doubt that if you get a college degree, you will make more money every year. There is an upfront cost to going to college, but think of it as an investment you will make back.
4. More Opportunities
In addition to making more money, you will be open to more opportunities. College is a great place to network and make contacts for future job opportunities.
3. Better Candidate
There are many jobs that require a college degree, but there are also jobs that don’t. Having a degree opens up your choices to a much larger pool of companies and positions and makes you a better candidate for a company to hire.
2. Increased Knowledge
You will learn an incredible amount of things in college, even if you don’t give it your best shot. By being around other people who value knowledge and learning, you will pick things up even if you don’t mean to.
1. It’s Fun!
One of the best reasons to go to college is that it is incredibly fun. You get to meet all kinds of people with different lives and customs. You get to experience new things and live as an adult while still being protected by your school. It’s a great transition between being in high school and being a full-fledged, bill-paying adult with heavy responsibilities.
Choose a location that fits you, like a Miami college or Colorado – you can go anywhere you want to have the experience of a lifetime.
