New Yorkers have cause to be a little on edge today–an Egyptian Cobra has escaped his exhibit at the Bronx Zoo. Though officials believe he slithered into the warmth of one of the buildings on zoo property, it’s of little comfort to the Zoo’s more squeamish neighbors–especially now that they’ve been told it could be WEEKS before they catch up to him. I feel safe enough on Staten Island, though, and have had a few belly laughs reading the tweets from the stray snake. Apparently when one does escape the Bronx Zoo, “open a Twitter account” is first the to-do list.
Indiana Jones and I have one thing in common: We don’t like snakes. In fact, the only way you could get me to like a snake is if it were…wait for it… a college mascot. Check out this reptiles that get the crowd roaring on campus.
SNAKES
Striker, the Cobra, lives at Coker College, Hartsville, SC. (See his charming self at the right.)
The University of California-Santa Cruz pays homage to the Banana Slug at its athletic events. (Too gross for a photo. Seriously, UCSC, what were you thinking?)
So you’ve gotten into college, but now you have to figure out where you want to live. Some colleges require freshmen to live on campus their first year, so that they can adapt to college life better. Some schools, however, let students choose where they want to live. Both options have their advantages and disadvantages economically. Take a look at some of the numbers:
Housing
• On-campus student housing tends to cost at least $5000 for the school year, but colleges usually offer different types of housing facilities at varying levels of cost.
• The cost of living on-campus usually includes furniture, utility bills, and other fees that you might otherwise have to pay for when living off campus.
• Off-campus apartments or houses with four bedrooms usually cost $300-$500 a month, and leases generally last for a full year.
• When considering an apartment, remember that since the lease lasts 12 months, you are responsible for payments over the summer unless you find someone to sublease from you or you stay in town for the summer.
• Also, factor in that apartments do not always come fully furnished, may not include a washer and a dryer, and rent may not include the cost of utilities.
• Some landlords love renting to students, others don’t. You will run into a mixture of both during your apartment search.
Food
• Campus meal plans generally cost around $5000 for the academic year, but once again, the cost varies with different meal plan options.
• Some schools offer meal plan options designed for students who live off-campus.
• Even if you are on meal plan, you will still spend money on snacks for your room and eating out at restaurants with friends when you get tired of cafeteria food.
• Most campus living facilities include kitchens, which can be a more affordable way to cook, but you need to consider where you will store your food and cooking supplies.
• To cut down on food costs, you and your roommates can take turns cooking dinner, and you can bring your lunch to campus instead of buying food there.
• If you’re not on meal plan, plan on your food budget being around $100-$200 a month.
Transportation
• If you’re living on campus, consider whether or not you’re going to bring your car, and where you can park and how much it will cost.
• If you live off campus, look into bus routes that run by your apartment or house.
• If you plan on driving to campus, factor in the cost of gas and how much a parking space on or close to campus will cost. Many places near campus will offer parking at a lower cost, you just need to ask first.
Of course, depending on the town or city in which you will be attending school, there will be other more specific questions to ask during your search for off-campus housing. But this list is definitely a good place to start. Happy hunting!
Delaney Young is a senior magazine journalism major at The University of Georgia.
In a not-so-surprising turn of events, we have learned that Alexandra Wallace, producer of the heinous “Asians in the Library” YouTube video, is leaving UCLA.
Wallace is not being expelled by the university, as many people assumed she might. Rather, she is leaving on her own accord–though the numerous death threats she and her family have received probably weighed heavily on that decision.
There are two interesting things to note here: One is that a university cannot expel someone simply because they are an idiot; apparently, Wallace’s ill-conceived video is covered by her rights to free speech. Another is that there is a contingent that believes death threats are an appropriate way to fight this display of hatred. Because really, there’s nothing more peace-inducing than a death threat…
We didn’t post Wallace’s rant because we saw no need to perpetuate her opinions. But we will post this wildly clever musical response that has also gone viral on YouTube. Enjoy–and let’s stop hating on people who are different from us.
Even if you’ve already taken the general campus tour at one of your college choices, consider using part of your spring break to check out what it’s like to actually be a student there.
Since most colleges have already had their spring break, your visit will likely be timed when school is in session, but double check the college or university calendar to make sure your trip doesn’t conflict with another holiday or special days off.
More and more schools are customizing spring visits, and this is a great option for you to consider, especially if you’re facing a May 1 deadline to reply to a school that has accepted you.
At Washington University in St. Louis, you can attend a student organization meeting, exercise with college students in the athletic complex, listen to a concert, or sit it on classes during a spring university visit.
Dickinson College’s day visit option is available each winter and spring (through April 26), allowing students to get a behind-the-scenes glimpse at campus life by eating lunch with a student and attending a class at the Pennsylvania college. The cool thing is that your campus visit is designed just for you.
Minnesota’s Hamline University also offers options for a spring visit, such as staying overnight with a student, eating with them, and going to classes with them; students also get to sit down with professors and coaches.
Don Fraser Jr. of the National Association for College Admission Counseling tells Education Week that it’s important to set up meetings with people in certain departments you’re interested in to get the most out of your visit. Another great tip from Fraser is to look at aspects of student life, even negative aspects such as crime, by checking out the police blotter in the student newspaper that you pick up during a campus visit.
Zola Dincin Schneider, author of Campus Visits & College Interviews, offers some good info about visits on the CollegeBoard’s web site. Among the tips: Spring break of junior year is a good time for a visit for athletes who are too swamped during the fall to visit or students considering applying for early decision.
So cure your spring fever by using your spring break to visit the campus that may be your home next fall!
As a college-bound student, you might have heard some rumblings in the news or even amongst your own school administrators about the SAT and other standardized tests being biased against certain students, usually in reference to their socioeconomic status.
I once heard about one particular SAT that was criticized for using the word “regatta” as a vocab word on one of the vocab sections. Now, there’s nothing offensive about the word “regatta”–it means a boat race–but there is a catch: If you live in a land-locked area where there are no bodies of water to race on, boating might be foreign to you. And even if you do live in an area where there are docks, regattas usually involve expensive boats, including yachts–and depending on your economic status, “yacht” is simply not part of your vocabulary. Of course, it can be said that there are many things that we don’t know about simply because they’re not in our neck of the woods, and the way we can learn about them is through reading, but the College Board was criticized over the word “regatta” and even “chandelier” simply because they are not equal-opportunity words.
A recent SAT essay question was biased in a way that test takers and administrators alike didn’t see coming–it was biased against those who do not watch reality TV. While it didn’t require specific knowledge, like being able to keep up with the Kardashians or to define what a fist pump is, the essay prompt did assume that one knew the basic format of a reality television. Problem is, the kids who get perfect scores on the SAT aren’t watching any TV, let alone these sorry excuses for entertainment. (Apologies to Kim K and the fam, because I actually am a pretty big fan.)
It seems as though the effort on the part of the SAT writers “to be one of us” by asking a question they thought would appeal to teens backfired miserably. Some critics say it was an attempt to dumb the test down, but the fact that it instead freaked out many bright, non-TV-watching students has to make you wonder what exactly the Scholastic Assessment Test is really testing.
There are many ways Facebook can be a distraction, whether by checking friends’ relationship statuses or playing Farmville. But yes, some Facebook efforts are for good, like the recent campaign to save student aid.
Art students, teachers-to-be, nursing students, members of the military, and others all have posted on the Save Student Aid Facebook page their objections to legislation that would chop federal student aid next fall. A bill going through Congress proposes cutting 2011-2012 the maximum amount of Pell Grants to low- and moderate-income undergraduate students by $845, from $5,550 to $4,705.
And the proposal sure isn’t getting the “like” button on Facebook.
Even school officials, like those at Emory University in Atlanta, are suggesting that students visit the Save Student Aid Facebook page. One expert, Rich Williams with U.S. PIRG, puts it like this: “The proposal to cuts Pell aid for next academic year couldn’t come at a worse time. The proposed cuts will discourage millions of students from pursuing college training and graduating at a time when our economy demands more highly skilled workers.”
Can you afford college without student aid? If you’re in the same situation as students who have shared their heartfelt stories on Facebook about not being able to afford college without every cent of financial aid possible, what happens to this proposal in Congress is definitely worth speaking out about and watching what happens.
Happy St. Patrick’s Day! With Irish and non-Irish alike wearing their green garb today, we thought it might be fun to look at some colleges that are decked out in green all year round. Here’s an interesting tidbit–despite the fact that Notre Dame is home to the Fighting Irish, the university’s colors are actually blue and gold.
This list, of course, is only a partial representation of all those green-loving schools. Are you heading to one next year? Let us know!
I’m staring at my incomplete NCAA men’s basketball tournament bracket, trying to figure out which teams I’m going to select, leading up all the way to the national championship game. I don’t have much time, as I need to fill out my bracket today or tomorrow to compete with my friends and even strangers (even President Obama filled one out last year!) who are hoping to be the one with the best bracket by the end of March Madness and the national championship game on April 4.
Choosing a college can be a lot like filling out an March Madness bracket. You’re pitting schools against each other, too, in making your decision. Call it your own college choice bracket. Sure, you probably don’t have 68 colleges to choose from, like those competing in this year’s NCAA men’s basketball tourney (it is March Madness, after all), and maybe you’re down to your sweet 16 or the elite eight or the final four. Maybe you’re at the point where there’s just two schools vying to get your enrollment, just like the basketball tournament. Only one can win–but which one?
Here’s what you need for a winning bracket, which also can relate to your school choice:
1. Knowledge of the schools. Just as with the basketball tournament, those filling out brackets this week need to research which teams can make the cut. You’re also looking at which colleges are the best fit for you and how they compare to others you’re considering. For the tournament, we’re looking at the quality of players, experience they have had this season and strengths and weaknesses as a team. In making your college decision, you need to look at the reputation of the school and its accreditation, what programs it offers that of are interest to you, and what makes it stand out in its student life–dorms, activities, and yes, athletics.
2. Location of the games. If a team has to travel all the way across the country, like Washington is having to do when it plays in Charlotte on Friday, the long travel time can be a factor in the team’s performance. It’s the same for you – you have to consider whether attending a school far away from your family will hinder your ability to thrive despite homesickness–or whether it’s just what you need to gain independence.
3. Underdog status. You don’t want to immediately discount the smaller, less-well-known schools in the bracket or your college choice. Teams such as Morehead State University, Wofford College, and Oakland University, described by The New York Times as a mostly commuter university in suburban Detroit, may not have the big-name recognition as others, but they could still give their opponents trouble in the tournament. Those underdogs that continue to perform well are referred to as the Cinderella team–a group whose talent is underrated, but just might result in a happy-ever-after ending. So if you are weighing a larger versus smaller school, look past the size and focus on what else besides an enormous campus.
4. Gut feeling. When it comes to two teams where they both have the same amount of strengths and weaknesses, I have to go with my gut. That’s what makes filling out the NCAA tournament bracket so much fun – and so nerve-wracking! But with your college choice, you should feel confident in knowing that there are many schools that will give you a wonderful education and college experience. Where your gut comes in is in knowing which school feels like a better fit for you at this time.
So fill out your college choice bracket and recognize that you’re a winner just in making the decision to attend college!
It’s one thing to have your college roommate mad at you. But for Alexandra Wallace, she’s got all of UCLA–and the rest of us–shaking our heads.
I like viral videos as much as the next person, but I prefer mine to feature giggling babies and talking dogs. But Wallace’s own contribution to YouTube–in which she rather calmly rants about “Asian people” on campus–is the kind of behavior that could warrant a “Jackass” spinoff of its own.
It used to be that when people got angry, they would write about their feelings in a diary, or maybe choose one close friend to bare their feelings. Wallace either couldn’t find a pen or a friend, so she uploaded her diatribe to YouTube. Could she have predicted that the video would go viral? No, because no one can predict that what sticks and what doesn’t with viewers, but what is important to remember is that you don’t post to YouTube in the hopes of remaining anonymous. Wallace–who happens to be a political science major–took the YouTube video down soon after the first round of backlash came around. But this kind of video is called “viral” for a reason–it has a way of getting around to everyone eventually. And boy, are we sick.
In a message to the UCLA community, Chancellor Gene Block condemns the video and states that Wallace is not representative of UCLA, a school that is proud of its campus diversity.
Good luck to Wallace in trying to live this one down, let alone run for office one day. And good luck to you if you still don’t understand the power and the reach of the Internet.
This Thursday is St. Patrick’s Day, and if you are still waiting to hear news from colleges, you might be hoping that some good ol’ Irish luck comes your way soon.
College admissions, however, have less to do with luck than they do with SAT and ACT scores, essays, GPAs, and letters of recommendation. At least they do in theory. But every year, we hear stories of how top-notch students get downright rejected from schools and–on the flip side–how other mediocre students seemingly pull a rabbit out of a hat and get accepted to their first-choice schools.
It’s true that the fate of some college applications simply don’t make sense. I’ve known people who have made their first-choice schools only to be rejected by their so-called “safety” school. But it’s not your job to make sense of it, nor should you just toss aside the books and instead start looking for that four-leaf clover or that pot of gold in the hopes that your college search will end happily ever after.
Join us today at 4 PM ET on Twitter for our #CollegeBound chat in which we talk about how talent, hard work, and yes, perhaps a smidgen of good luck, all combine to get you into the college of your dreams.
Find out more about the popular Twitter chat, #CollegeBound, which can connect you with college respresentatives and others who have the same goals, struggles, and questions you have. Every Monday at 4 p.m. EST on Twitter. Get detailed info here.
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Follow our smart and savvy CBN bloggers as they guide you through every step of your quest to find the right college. Whether it’s figuring out that FAFSA, making sense of the SAT, or simply dishing gossip about celebrity smarty pants, they’ve got you covered. But be warned—these bloggers are fully caffeinated and know how to use their social media powers for both good and evil! So, whaddya’ say — do they get an A+?
