College Tidbits Blog

Guest Blogger: Aundrea Rogers

Picture this… You are halfway through the semester and you have been struggling with a class from the very beginning. Every test you get back has a grade lower than the last.

You are now to the point where it is too late to pull up that grade before the semester ends and you are on the brink of failing the class.

At this point you probably wish that you could turn back the hands of time to find a way to fix the trap that so many college students fall into.

What I can say to this is you should have gotten yourself a tutor.

College students too often have the mindset that a tutor is for those who are not as smart as others or have gotten themselves into trouble with a class halfway through the semester and need a quick way to bring up a grade. Both of these mindsets are myths. I got a tutor for reasons other than these.

Here’s my story:

I started off the semester knowing I had to take a very challenging Economics course. I had heard many negative things about the course including how much material was covered in only one semester and how tough that material was.

Since Economics was a totally new subject to me I knew I would need a little extra help. I walked over to the Student Success Center on campus the week after classes started and signed up for a tutor.

I went to my tutor two times a week and we went over the notes and material my professor covered in class and I even got explanations of the things we learned that helped me understand better. In addition to my tutoring sessions, I looked over my notes a few times a week and read the textbook to stay on top of what was going on in class.

Every test I got back was either an A or a B+ and I ended up with an A- out of a class that so many people around me received C’s or lower in. I owe my success to not only my efforts in studying but also to the tutoring that I received.

What I can tell fellow college students is do NOT wait until you are already doing poorly to get a tutor or go ask for help. If you wait until it is too late to get that extra help there is a good chance you will not be able to pull up that bad grade in time. A bad grade will surely hurt your GPA and you will be disappointed, especially if you know that grade could have been prevented. Seeking help early gives you a better chance at receiving a good grade as long as you put forth effort and do not rely on your tutor to do everything for you.

Having a tutor however does not mean you should pay less attention in class or not read over class material. A tutor is there for EXTRA help and a reference in addition to your own efforts.

Tutoring is a resource that all colleges and universities offer, so my advice to college students is to utilize this very important resource to make your college career as successful as it can be.

Free kit available with 30-day trial of Bento 3; runs on Mac, iPhone and iPad

SANTA CLARA, Calif. – May 25, 2010 – FileMaker, Inc. today announced a free, easy way for students to succeed by organizing their busy daily lives using the new Bento 3 Student Survival Kit. When students download a free, 30-day trial of Bento 3 for Mac, they receive a set of beautifully designed, ready-to-use templates for organizing lecture notes, courses, group projects, special events and job searches. The templates in the kit are an integrated set of student organizing tools.

The Student Survival Kit works with Bento 3, FileMaker’s popular personal database for the Mac, and can be synchronized for use with Bento for iPhone and Bento for iPad (sold separately). Bento 3 offers new ways for students to view and interact with their information—including integration with Mac OS apps like iPhoto, Address Book and iCal —so they can organize photos, contacts, projects and events and link all of the details together into one database. Bento 3 also works with templates offered through the Bento Template Exchange, a site that showcases real-world templates for Bento that students can browse, download and import into Bento 3.

“A student’s life is filled with a flurry of activities and projects that can become overwhelming,” said Ryan Rosenberg, vice president of marketing and services for FileMaker, Inc. “Our Student Survival Kit combines the latest features of Bento 3 with templates that give students a leg up in organizing their lives. It gives them many of the tools required for success in school, and in the job search at graduation.”

The Bento 3 Student Survival Kit makes organizing the details of a busy life fast and easy. It includes these five pre-designed, ready-to-use templates:

• Lecture Notes – Enter searchable notes and even include video, audio and file attachments for each lecture.
• Group Projects – Manage tasks and deadlines for multiple group members to keep everyone on schedule.
• Event Planner – Organize parties, class meetings, club fundraisers, and sports events, with ease.
• Course Tracker – Track classes, credits earned, grades, pre-requisites and more.
• Job Search – Track resumes sent, upcoming interviews, hiring manager names and important emails for every potential job.

“Take a look at any student’s schedule, and you can see why fifty percent of them leave college without a degree,” said Harry Harrison, author of 1001 Things Every College Student Needs to Know (Like Buying Your Books Before Exams Start). “Every week there’s at least one paper, exam or lab practical to remember. Every day they have mountains of reading, writing and research to accomplish. There are group projects, semester papers, important lectures to keep track of, not to mention organizing class notes so they can be instantly found. Without organizational and time-management skills, even the smartest students flounder. That’s where Bento 3 and the Student Survival Kit can really help.”

About FileMaker, Inc.
FileMaker is the leader in easy-to-use database software. Millions of people, from individuals to some of the world’s largest companies, rely on FileMaker software to manage, analyze and share essential information. The company’s products are the FileMaker Pro line - versatile database software for teams and organizations, for Windows, Mac and the Web - and Bento, the personal database for Mac, iPhone and iPad. FileMaker, Inc. is a subsidiary of Apple.

College 2008, the Movie — Was your college visit really like this?

When many of today’s high school students think of a college campus visit, what usually comes to mind are thoughts of scenes from many of the today’s movies about college visits; a great example is the scenes from College 2008 in the YouTube video clip above this blog post.  The truth of the matter is that your college campus visit will not look anything like what’s depicted on TV.

In fact most college campus visits can be quite intimidating to the average high school junior or senior. Often, neither they nor their parent knows what to expect and no two college visits will be the same.

So how does today’s high school junior or senior make the most out of their college campus visit?  Here are a few simple tips to help you make the most of your college visits:

1. Don’t Go Alone — While many of the recent movies show groups of high school seniors piling into a car and rolling off to wreak havoc on college campuses, I do not recommend that you attempt to do the same.  Bring a Parent or guardian along.  Let’s face it adults are adults because they have been around and have seen some things that the average high school student has not.  They just might be able to get a few more questions answered than you might.

2. Ask Lots of Questions — Make a list of questions before you go on any college campus visits.  You can use this list to ask any of the college tour guides questions about the college and college life.  EduGuide.org has published a list of questions you or your parents should ask during college visits.  You can use the list as a starting point.

Remember when it comes to your college future, no questions is a dumb question; don’t be afraid to ask it. The good thing is your list can be used for all visits. Continue to refine or improve your list as new questions come to mind.

3. Take Time to Look Around the College Campus — Walk around the college campus with and without your parents. While it is okay to be given a tour by the tour guide, you can walk around on your.  Ask random students about the school; just let them know you are thinking about attending college there, as your reason for asking the question(s).

In most cases you will find that they will be more than willing to answer your questions.  This is actually a great way to really get the true “low-down” on the college, because students will always speak their mind.  Also visit the areas (neighborhoods) around the college especially if the school is in an urban setting.

4. Stay Overnight — The best way to get a true idea of what college and college life is like, is to actually spend time on a college campus.  If possible stay overnight in the dorm. Try to stay at least one night.  Many colleges will allow it and will not charge you or only charge a small fee.

One of my neighbors and his daughter were able to stay the weekend during a college campus visit for only $40. Staying the night in the dorm, especially with a current student will go a long way in giving you a realistic view of what life at college (and living with a roommate) will be like.

5. Get Lots of Info — This is probably one of the few times when information over-load isn’t a bad thing. You should try to get as much information as possible.  If you are able to accomplish the 4 things above, then you should have more than enough information to make an informed decision. Ask questions, collect pamphlets, booklets and anything that might help.  You can throw it out later if it is not needed.

If you can think of anything I have missed, please feel free to leave a comment.

BTW — Good Luck on Your College Campus Visits!