Facebook Faux Pas: Protecting ourselves online

Facebook is one of those amazing feats of technology that does great things—but also opens up the possibility for situations like the one in Florida. So what are we to do?

Digital Bookbags

Last week, Elizabeth’s post about books that mattered in college was a poignant review of the lasting impression of books: both in our minds and in the groove cut into our shoulder from increasingly heavy over-the-shoulder book bags. While nothing will ever replace the tactile sensation of thumbing through hundreds of highlighted pages, e-books are here to stay, whether librarians like it or not. Fortunately, physical book-loving culture is alive and well in the world, so the advent of digital texts doesn’t seem to be obliterating page-turning just yet. A recent article in The Chronicle of Higher Education discussed a new state law requiring that all post-secondary education textbooks be digitized by 2010. (Post-secondary education = all education after high school.) While not affecting the existence of tree-made textbooks, the law will force publishers to ensure that all of their material is available electronically. College textbooks are expensive. In fact, textbooks [...]

Comparison-shopping for Colleges

With Hanukkah winding down and Christmas right around the corner, newspapers across the country this week have highlighted some cool websites and mobile phone applications that can make comparison shopping a lot easier. One product that caught my eye, was the mobile application, ShopSavvy, created by Big in Japan, a development company based out of Dallas, TX. Mentioned in the Wall Street Journal , and in the New York Times, the app allows people to take pictures of barcodes, upload them to ShopSavvy, and have ShopSavvy compare the price of that item across various retailers. Now, if Bettergrads had any input regarding how this app would function, I think our team would want the app to be able compare the cost of attending various colleges. Imagine being able to hold up an iPhone to any text document where the name of a college appears, and with the simple click of [...]

Majoring in Halo!!!??

Toward the tail end of my senior year, I would end most weeknights with the following ritual: Around 11:00 PM, I would climb a flight of stairs up to Jason’s suite, and would engage in a 30 minute session of playing one of Electronic Arts’ best selling video games, FIFA 2009 on Jason’s XBox. I went through a long and embarrassing newbie curve. Jason, and his suitemate, Josh, would select the worst teams imaginable while I would try my best with FC Barcelona, (the equivalent of the Los Angeles Lakers, in terms of talent, but in the world of soccer). It was not until the third or forth week when the 10-0 drubbings turned into tight, 2-0 losses or, if I got lucky, a 1-0 win! Jason and Josh are skilled gamers. Their talents were not just limited to sports video games. They could hang with the best of them [...]

STEMming off in all directions…

BetterGrads totally digs STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) initiatives.

Skills for Life

Somewhere within the never-ending piece of literature you might currently know as the Common Application (or any college application for that matter), you are asked to highlight some of your skills. Yes, it’s easy to write that you are proficient in Microsoft® Word®, Excel®, and PowerPoint® (the later will become the bane of your existence as you enter the collegiate world and eventually the working world). But there are two skills I wanted to highlight today, that will help you grow and succeed during your high school years and beyond. 1). Follow-Up or Fail This skill comes to you courtesy of author Keith Ferrazzi from his book Never Eat Alone (NEA). While Ferrazzi spends much of the book explaining the finer points of networking, he spends a significant portion discussing the importance of follow-up. So, what’s the big idea behind follow-up? Following-up shows you care and are thankful for that [...]

College Fairs Go Virtual

For high school students trying to pick the perfect college, the best thing to do is personally visit all of your top choices, meet professors, sit in on classes, and eat in the dining halls. But this isn’t realistic. That’s why students and parents rely on local college fairs to meet college representatives and ask probing questions about schools. These fairs are also great ways to learn about schools that you’ve never heard of before. HOWEVER, according to an article on eSchool News, more students and schools are turning toward “virtual college fairs” to fill this need. Colleges, large and small, are short on cash of late. They can’t afford to send representatives and erect information booths at every college fair around the country. At the same time, they need to continue to extend their outreach because competition for top students is fierce. Similarly, high school students and parents can’t [...]