More Than a Test Score

Summer’s coming up but don’t lose focus! Angelina Modica, Zinch’s Student Ambassador at SUNY Fredonia, took some time to lay out some helpful tips for all you graduating seniors.

Three hours. One-hundred multiple choice questions. Three essay questions. One fifteen minute break. Repeat two, three, or maybe even four times for some of you. But guess what? It’s over! AP Exams are done with and now it’s time to relax, but only a little bit, because school is not over yet! Finals, final projects, and state exams are still in your future and it is your job to continue excelling in school! Here are the top 3 “Do’s and Dont’s” of the end of your senior year.

DON’T

-Don’t skip your classes. Although it may seem like the cool thing to do, going to the beach instead of going to calculus class may not be the best idea. At the end of the semester a lot of teachers prepare you for post-AP final exams and some teachers even offer extra-credit opportunities during this time.

-Don’t fall behind in your classes or let your GPA skip. Although you may be already accepted into a college or university, your final transcript is still sent to colleges. I have heard stories of people losing scholarship money or even admittance into a university because they slacked off so much in their last semester of high school. Although the warm weather might be calling your name, make sure you’re getting all of your assignments done. I don’t think anyone wants to be studying and doing final projects on Memorial Day Weekend when all their friends and family are at barbeques and are enjoy the beautiful weather!

-Don’t let end of the year finals or Regents exams surprise you! Yes, the hard part for many of you (AP Exams) are over with! But while you don’t need to pass AP exams in order to gain your diploma, you do need state-mandated exams. Although you might be ready to check out of your high school, focus for these last few exams. Your grades on these may decide which kind of diploma you graduate with!

DO

-Check your mail and email often as your future college will be contacting you. One of the most important messages you’ll get from your college is your school email address and password. It’s quintessential to check this email often because they will be sending you information about orientation, information about scheduling, financial aid, and housing information. Don’t miss out on these opportunities!

-Schedule yourself for an early orientation session. Although it might be a little inconvenient because the earlier orientation sessions are either right after high school graduation or 4th of July weekend, take advantage of these early orientation opportunities. The main reason to do so is because this is when many colleges arrange meetings with advisors for scheduling. Classes have already been available to the sophomores, juniors, and seniors for a few months and classes that you might want to take (or would be convenient time wise fill up fast!) Also, after returning home from orientation, make sure to check out textbook prices online so that you can order them and have enough time to receive them before school starts!

-Have fun and enjoy the end of your senior year of high school. Attend senior-only field trips, barbeques, picnics, proms, or whatever your school does to celebrate the senior class. A lot of people who don’t attend these events definitely regret it in the future. It’s a great way to remember the things you love about your class and maybe even talk to some people you were never close with in high school. Sign lots of yearbooks, take tons of pictures at prom, and celebrate!

All in all, enjoy the end of your senior year but make sure that school is still a priority. If you have any questions about this time of the year, don’t be afraid to ask any of the Zinch student ambassadors! They’ll be more than happy to help!

Image courtesy aeypix / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

- Know where your local amenities and facilities are situated, and how to locate them from your residence. Know the location of your local hospital and police service, and familiarize yourself with emergency numbers (e.g 911 in the U.S. is 000 in Australia). This website contains most of the emergency numbers you will need from around the world.

- Make sure you have appropriate medical insurance/cover – you could be stuck for thousands of dollars if you don’t! Keep all your records in a safe, easy to access place. If you speak a different language to your host country, make sure you memorize a range of phrases that allows you to communicate your needs with emergency services. You should also memorize how to say your address in your host country’s language.

- When you get to your destination, take the time to figure out a “safety route” for all your major day-to-day activities including going to school, workplace and social spots. Your safety routes should be areas that are well lit and well populated i.e travel down bright major strips as opposed to darker laneways. If you can, talk to some locals about where the dangerous spots are to avoid in your local area – everywhere has them! Also, let your nearest consulate know you are in the country studying and engage with the student affairs office to learn about neighbourhoods, housing and transport links from lodging to campus.

- Watch out for shady landlords/accommodation operators. In many major cities there is a tendency for bad people to take advantage of the vulnerability of students and strip them not only of their cash, but also of their dignity. Try, to the best of your ability, to organize accommodation through legitimate providers – and also take the time to shop around. Look at the market rate for rental properties/rooms for let in the area you wish to stay in and use that as your benchmark. Also, most countries have practices that protect the rights of tenants, and this also applies to students, so familiarize yourself with what rights you have. You don’t need to get ripped off, and you don’t need to live in a room the size of a cupboard!

- Campus culture is very important to your study – take the time to research potential campuses to make sure they are right for you. This recent article from the New York Times EducationLife supplement is a good example of what opportunities and challenges international study presents.

- Also, take some time to learn the local customs. What is polite, impolite, offensive and acceptable behaviour in your host country? If you have travel safety questions about your destination or are planning to explore your new host country, hop on travel discussion boards to ask questions of locals and other people who have been there such as Zinch or World Nomads Answers. Before you go, learn about tips and advice that can keep you safer and confident in your new host country. A little bit of research could save you a lot of trouble!

Content written and provided by World Nomads

Summer vacation has peaked, and you’ve had a chance to lounge in the sun. Now it’s time to embark on an adventure…whether it’s meeting your favorite vampire in Twilight, enjoying the romance of a lifetime in Jane Eyre, or exacting vengeance in The Count of Monte Cristo. There are so many worlds to explore and discover, and summer is the perfect time to do it. Reading over the summer is relaxing and fun, but that’s not the only compelling reason. It will also help you become more successful in and out of school:

Research has shown that the average student loses up to one month of school instruction over the summer… it’s often referred to as the “summer slide.” These learning losses can accumulate over the years and have devastating effects on the outcome of your school career.

In addition to preventing summer setbacks, reading over the summer also promotes and maintains good study habits and good grades. Studies also show that for every one million words you read, you will add another one thousand words to your vocabulary.

There are many reasons to enjoy a good book over the summer. So sit back, relax, and enjoy!

You’ve got the grades. You’ve got the activities. You’ve got the wide array of interests, the killer essay, and the teacher and neighbor who will tell every college in earshot how great you are. But, if you’re like a lot of students, when it comes time to fill out that “Volunteer” section of your scholarship and college applications, you may be stretching to come up with a few good examples. Well, don’t worry – not only is volunteering a painless way to help out in your community, it’s also easier than ever to find volunteer opportunities that you can do today, tomorrow, or anytime.

Scholarship America’s Dollars for Scholars program is just one organization that’s always looking for student volunteers. Many of our chapters, led by adult volunteers, need student help for events, awards nights, and general chapter business, and a lot of them even give scholarship consideration to their student volunteers. And they’re not the only ones; check out volunteermatch.org or createthegood.org to find volunteer opportunities that are tailor-made for your interest and availability.

Once you get started, you may find volunteering to be addictive, too. When you find a cause you’re passionate about and start working on it, even for a few hours a week, you’ll have a wider, more worldly perspective on it almost immediately – and when your awesome application gets you into your favorite college choice, you can check out the same resources and connect with people on campus who’ll help you take the next step.

Whether it’s helping fellow students, supporting younger kids, or serving those who are less well-off, volunteering can be much more than a field to fill out on your application.

Building a resume can be very intimidating but it is a critical part in getting hired for that perfect job.  

HR professionals and hiring managers often receive hundreds of resumes for any given position.  With hundreds of resumes to sort through at a time, they will likely only spend 10-30 seconds per resume, which means you have to make your resume stand out. 

The very first thing that you need to do even before starting your resume is to determine your objective.  Your objective should clearly state what type of job you are looking for and the skills necessary to do that job well.  For helpful questions to determine what type of job you are looking for, refer to our article Finding a Summer Job.

Once you have determined your objective you can start building your resume around that objective.  Remember that the most important roll of the resume is to obtain an interview.   You need to be clear and concise.  Think of it this way, if you were the interviewer what job qualifications would you be looking for?

Now that you’ve determined what you need to include make sure you use bullet points and short sentences in describing your skills and qualifications.  Having key phrases will help the reader see the most important information at a glance.  Don’t worry about listing the specifics; you’ll be able to discuss that in the interview.

Also be sure that you use action words.  Words like: prepared, managed, and developed will help your resume to stand out. 

By following these guidelines you will be able to build a resume that will stand out among 100’s.