Grades, grades, grades.

CUC just posted their second semester grades online. No doubt there were tons of anxious and nervous students trying to avoid logging into MyCUC. It's scary when you click the link for "Grade Report"...who knows what might show up!

Undoubtedly there are high school students who are nervous about the same thing. Worrying about the SATs/ACTs, AP tests and grades makes lots and lots of stress.

But, here's the thing: as long as you try your best, who can ask for more of you than that? Forget about the scholarships, pressure and competition: just do the best you can do.

My parents always used to tell me that they would support whatever grade I got, as long as I put hard work and effort into it. I wasn't naturally gifted at math, so often I'd study and study and still not do very well on a test. My parents would always say, "We know that you studied really hard for this test. It's okay that you didn't do perfect: as long as you tried, that's good enough for us."

And it should be good enough for you too! If you know you did your best, you can't beat up yourself over a not-quite-perfect grade or score.

Just remember high-schoolers: you have a whole summer of fun ahead of you! Just get through the next couple weeks, okay?

Good luck!

Labels: Jaclyn Wile, student blog

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Are you a high school graduate? Are you about to be?

I'm sure you're tempted to take the summer off before college, lounging around at home watching MTV and the Travel Channel.

But beware: as fun as that kind of summer sounds on paper, just laying around gets boring.

Keep your mind active and your bank account full with a great summer job. Not all jobs have to be tedious, and you may be able to make pretty good cash only working part-time.

Check out some of the following jobs:

Tutor
- A lot of kids have to take summer school classes to improve their academic skills or to retake classes they failed. If you are really interested in history or English, you may find yourself loving a job tutoring younger students. Plus, it often pays well, especially if you can show them a grade report and sample work you've done.

Camp Counselor
- If you like hanging out with kids and meeting other students your own age, a camp counselor might be a great job for you. It gives you a chance to be outdoors and to influence the lives of younger kids. Plus, you're promised at least one day off a week, so you won't have to be bunked up with the youngin's all the time.

Hotel Receptionist
- If you work as a hotel receptionist, you'll make fairly good cash and you might be able to get part-time work. It's a good opportunity to interact with a lot of different people and become familiar with business practices.

Lifeguard
- I must admit: I was a lifeguard the summer after I graduated from high school. There were a lot of great things about it: the tan, the hours, the bathing suits, getting paid to yell at unruly kids...it was a fun summer job. Then again, it was also hot, tiring and boring some days (when it rained). Keep in mind that if you want to lifeguard, you'll want to join a lifeguarding certification and CPR class now!

Retail
- Retail is good for a couple reasons: you can either work full or part-time, get to make new friends, stay in an air-conditioned environment, and retail shops will also hire you back from summer to summer, or over holidays when you are home from college. If you work at a store you already shop at, you'll also save money with your employee discount.

What's your summer job? Let me know!

Labels: Jaclyn Wile, student blog

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If there's one thing a college student should always keep with them, it's a USB drive.

These little drives plug into your computer and allow you to transfer large files from one computer to the next.

This comes in handy when you have giant projects to print at the computer lab, or if you need to bring your homework to class.

Another cool thing about USB drives is that you can pick them up really cheap at places like Target (for less than $7) and use them to store your resume and portfolio on. When you go on internships interviews, instead of giving the company a "leave-behind portfolio," just hand them a neatly packaged USB drive filled to the brim with all the relevant pieces you showed them in your personal portfolio.

Want to see the Top 10 Weirdest USB Drives ever? Go here!

Do you have some creative use for a USB drive? E-mail me! jwile[at]cuc.edu.

Labels: Jaclyn Wile, student blog

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Dorm rooms practically beg for snacking and unhealthy eating. When you condense all your living space into one tiny room, it can be tempting to eat bags of chips in bed while you watch DVDs on your laptop. Ordering pizza and Chinese food is another pitfall. At the end of a long day, sometimes all you want to do is sit down and drink a Coke.

DON'T FALL FOR IT, PEOPLE!

There's a reason that the expression "Freshman 15" exists!

But, no fear. There are ways to keep your snacks healthy AND delicious, so that you always have something yummy to grab while you are relaxing in your dorm room.

Here's a list of stuff you should grab from the grocery store:

1. Skim milk or soy milk. Not to be too preachy, but soy milk is far better for you than real dairy, and you can supplement calcium into your diet. Of course, most soy milk has calcium added!
2. Healthy cereals. Most cafeterias offer lots of delicious, high-sugar cereals (Cocoa Puffs are a personal fav), but not too many versions of Kashi. Keep some high-fiber, healthy cereal in your room and try and trade on and off every day. One day, Cocoa Puffs, the next, Kashi.
   
3. Baby carrot sticks.
   
4. Hummus.
5. Big, crunchy apples and oranges.
6. Low-fat or "light" microwave popcorn--which is a great source of fiber!
7. Yogurt.
   
8. Pretzels.
9. Pita bread.
10. Sandwich meats, either "fake" (check your local Adventist Book Store or Safeway) or real meat.
11. Olives.
12. Low-sodium microwavable noodle dishes. Check the Asian section of your local grocery store to find some of these.
13. Bottled water.
14. Instant iced tea to make your water more interesting.

Any other stuff you love to eat in your dorm room? E-mail me! jwile[at]cuc.edu.

Labels: Jaclyn Wile, student blog

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Taking notes is an integral part of your college experience. No doubt you will come armed to classes with some form of note-taking device, ready to take down every word your professor says.

But...that's ridiculous.

You don't need to write down everything. You just need to know what is worth jotting down for later and what isn't.

Here are some general note-taking tips I've found helpful:

1. Use what's most comfortable. If you like using your laptop, go ahead and use it. But, don't let yourself get distracted by your laptop. I've had plenty of friends that use their laptops to take notes, but end up looking at photos on their computer or surfing the Internet instead. If you like to take notes the old-fashioned way, make sure you have pens and pencils that are comfy and that you like to write with. If you prefer to record your lectures--which I find sort of a waste of time--do that. Do whatever feels most natural to you.
2. Keep a highlighter handy. Even if you want to keep your textbooks as pristine as possible to get the best price at textbook buy-back, don't fall for it. Highlight everything. Mark up your textbooks. Another good thing about highlighting is that it keeps you engaged in the lectures and forces you to pay attention and re-read what the teacher is going over from the front of the classroom.
3. Organize your notes. Keep one big notebook for all your classes, or have a different notebook for each class. Try using fun notebooks for class instead of the same old-same old. Target has some great notebooks you can use for class.
   
4. Don't forget to read. Professors often assign reading for homework, but students rarely actually read. Beware of this! Often you will get called on to answer questions or to comment on something, and if you haven't read, you'll just look silly. Keep yourself engaged in class--it will pay off at finals!
   

Labels: Jaclyn Wile, student blog

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I have a confession: I am absolutely, 100% addicted to Typeracer.

Never heard of it?

Typeracer is an online game that tests the speed and accuracy of your typing skills.

Typeracer matches you up against other online users and you have to type a sentence from a song lyric, poem, novel or movie. The faster you type, the faster your race car moves across the top of the screen.

Typeracer automatically logs your average speed and how many races you have completed. The more you play, the faster you will be able to type!

Here's an article about TypeRacer if you want to read more about it. Or, go straight to the races!

Labels: Jaclyn Wile, student blog

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Textbooks are expensive.

Really, really expensive.

A recent study showed that most students average about $900 per school year on textbooks.

Isn't that crazy? They are, after all, just books. The oldest teaching medium in the world. A tree's worth of paper bound into a hardback cover.

But, here's the thing about textbooks: they don't need to cost you $900.

There are a couple different ways you can approach textbook buying for college. Each has its pros and cons.

Option One -- Buy from the Campus Bookstore

Buying your textbooks straight from the campus bookstore has some definite advantages.

• You'll get the right books. Your teachers have selected the books specifically for you to buy from the bookstore, so there will be no confusion over whether you have the right edition or not.
• It's easy. Your bookstore is right on campus. You can charge your books right on your student account. Which brings me to...
• Buying on your student account. When you do your financial aid, make sure to tell your officer to factor in bookstore charges into your overall tuition fees so that you have enough money on your account to cover your books. For students who rely on scholarships and student loans, buying your textbooks with your student account is a good idea. Then you won't be paying out of pocket cash for your books.
• Return policies for your campus bookstore are usually pretty lenient. That way, in case your professor decides you don't need that other $150.00 literature textbook, you can return it with ease.

Option Two -- Used, used, used!

Buying used textbooks is far cheaper, but requires a lot more work on your part.

• You'll have to contact your professors directly. Once you know your schedule and who will be teaching you, you'll want to e-mail or call them ASAP in order to get the textbook names and ISBN numbers from them. Keep in mind that your teachers may decide they don't need a certain textbook once classes start, or that they may change the textbook altogether at the last minute before the first day of classes.
  
• Check the Internet or local used textbook stores. This will be long and arduous work. Sometimes it's hard to find the specific textbook your professors suggests. Additionally, some textbooks aren't any cheaper even when they are used because it's a new edition.
  
• Go paperback. If you have a choice between paperback books and hardback books, always choose paperback. They are much more inexpensive. Keep in mind, though, that if you want to sell your books back, you won't get as much money for paperback editions.

Have any more questions about textbooks? E-mail me at jwile[at]cuc.edu.

Labels: Jaclyn Wile, student blog

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There's lots of talk going on about CUC right now. Program changes, new administration, buildings being finally built (hopefully)...the school is abuzz with change.

Some people are still unsure about CUC. They are the ones who ask me, "Why did you choose to go there?" They seem to find it shocking, for some reason!

I give everyone the same reasons I went to CUC, and still enjoy it here. I'm a senior, and although I can't wait to graduate, I can't help but feel a little bittersweet about leaving. Everyone has a love-hate relationship with their school, whether you don't like the cafeteria food, or the curfew, but you can't deny that if you really, truly enjoy your college, these things sorta blend into the background.

Here's my reasons why I still love CUC:

1. Location. Yes, it's a catch-phrase for the school ("the Adventist college at the Nation's Capital!"), but it's more than that. I got a great internship last summer in downtown D.C. that I would never have been able to get if I didn't have the proximity to the city and the experience from working at the college. I'm only about 2 hours from home, so I can go home on the weekends without having to sacrifice a whole of driving to get there. There are endless restaurants, shopping, museums and exhibits to see. There are so many reasons why living near a city, but not directly in the city, is great. Plus, Takoma Park is an adorable town, filled with organic-food-eating, environmentally-conscious people who are friendly and personable.
   
2. My department. The Department of Communication and Journalism is a big factor in why I love CUC. My professors are not only my teachers--they are sincerely my friends. I can call them by their first names, speak with them candidly, ask for help...anything I need. My classes are fun and engaging, and not completely lecture-based...everyone always starts a discussion. The department recently got approved to start a chapter of the communication honors society Lambda Phi Eta. I'm getting inducted next Sunday...exciting!
3. My friends. I have a diverse, unique group of friends at CUC. They are all from different backgrounds, different cities...even different countries. We all bring something special to the table, and there's always something new to be learned. Some of my friends are great at designing for projects, others will be famous entrepreneurs. It seems like a lot of students at CUC are preparing for great success and are focused on their futures, which is something that's important to me.
4. The on-campus spiritual life. CUC has been called less spiritual than other Adventist colleges, but that's simply not the case. Aside from the numerous opportunities by the Campus Ministries Office to get involved, there are local chapters of spiritual organizations, and many ways to share your spiritual gifts at churches like Sligo Adventist Church, right on CUC's campus. I recently blogged about visiting the New Hope Seventh-day Adventist Church. That's the kind of experience you can only have in an urban area.

If you have any questions about my CUC experience, please e-mail me at jwile[at]cuc.edu.

Have a great Sabbath!

Labels: cuc spiritual life, Jaclyn Wile, student blog

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There are some quirky things about college that people IN college know, but that freshmen or high school seniors may not be aware of. Today, I am going to save you the time and trouble of learning these quirky things through trial and error.

College Quirk #1

Writing notes is a pain in the behind, but I guarantee you will have AT LEAST one class every semester that requires prolific note taking. If you prefer to type on a laptop in class, fine. But for the old-school set, note taking in your Five-Star three ring is a reality.
Note taking can be annoying and frustrating, but there is a quirk of which you should be aware:
Using fun writing utensils (pens, pencils, etc) will greatly increase your fun while taking notes. I personally prefer using Sharpie retractable markers with a fine point. They come in lots of different colors, and although I can't use back-and-front pages in my notebook (the color bleeds through), it's a small price to pay for the delight of taking notes with a magenta marker.

Find your own Sharpies here.

Stay tuned for College Quirk #2....

Labels: Jaclyn Wile, student blog

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February is a good month for CUC. Here's why:

1. The SA Valentine's Banquet was this past weekend. All attendees said they had a wonderful time, the food was great and the entertainment wonderful. The event was held at the L'Enfant Plaza Hotel in downtown DC.
2. Black History Month means lots of special chapels and events in and around the CUC campus.
3. CUC Band Festival just concluded. Academy students from all over the Columbia Union participated in this audition-only invitational.
4. The Mock Trial team (out of the Pre-law/Political Studies Dept.) defeated the University of Central Florida and the University of Dayton in Ohio two weeks in a row for a win. The team is undefeated so far!
5. President's Day on February 18 means a long weekend and a day off of school!
6. Open House on February 24 means prospective students can come view the campus and get a feel for their major by meeting with professors and current CUC students.
7. The CUC Women's Softball team has their first home game on February 29.
8. The successful SA Cram Jam makes a reappearance at the end of this month, just in time for midterms.
9. Women's Basketball and Men's Baseball both have home games this week. Basketball plays tonight (Feb. 13) at 7 p.m. Men's Baseball plays on Thursday, February 14 at 12 p.m., noon.
10. Valentine's Day tomorrow means love is in the air on the CUC campus! Show a friend you care with a card or flowers this week.

Labels: Jaclyn Wile, student blog

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