Archive for the 'College Fun' Category
So, we’ve been through movies, TV shows, and video games (although the last one wasn’t a top ten), so it’s time for the top ten most popular books in college. Now, clearly college students have to do a lot of reading anyway (even engineering majors and math majors have to read huge books…go figure). In any case, again using the wonders of facebook, I’ve come up with a definitive top ten list. Keep in mind, if textbooks counted, I’m sure this list would look different.
10. The Giver - The first book on the countdown has only been around since 1993. It is also the first of a few books on the list that many college students will have read either in grade school or high school. The Giver is classic tale about a utopia that may not be so perfect. Who knew that you could ever read books in school that you actually like?
9. Pride and Prejudice - To be honest, we all know what type of college student reads Pride and Prejudice (women). I have yet to meet a female who’s heart doesn’t melt at the thought that Mr. Darcey and Elizabeth Bennett might actually end up together. Couple that with the Keira Knightley movie (and for some of the more enthusiastic, the Colin Firth mini series), and college females just love Jane Austen’s prized work. Now I need to do something incredibly manly, someone throw me a football.
8. The Notebook - Well, I just ruined all my attempts at manliness by listing this next book. Ever since McAdams and Gosling hit the scene in the popular romantic film, people have been reading the book. I will make a guess that once again more women than men are reading The Notebook, but I’ve been wrong before. To be honest, I didn’t even realize the movie was based on a book until researching for this top ten list.
7. Lord of the Rings (trilogy) - We next move on to a fantastic trilogy. Yes, some people actually read the books rather than just watching the movies (I know you think it’s crazy, but I actually have met people who are obsessed with the films yet have never read the books…shocking). In any case, between completing required reading, you may just find some people with their noses in a Lord of the Rings book. Just remember the maxim coined by Flight of the Conchords, “Frodo, don’t wear the ring.”
6. To Kill a Mockingbird - Rarely can you find someone who has read this novel and not enjoyed it. In fact, a 1991 survey by the Book of the Month Club ranked it second among books “most often cited as making a difference” (in the lives of readers). Guess what book was first? That’s right, the Bible.
5. The Great Gatsby - A book that many may have read in school. It wasn’t required for me, but I read it anyway. Students still love F. Scott Fitzgerald’s book. The sad thing is, that it wasn’t very popular until after his death. At least it’s still here for loads of college students to enjoy.
4. Catcher in the Rye - Another book that college students may have read in high school. The story of Holden Caulfield has captured the attention of teens, and college students for years. Who doesn’t love a story about teen angst that contains profanity AND sexuality?
3. Angels and Demons - Perhaps The Da Vinci Code is more famous (as well as controversial), but it all started with Angels and Demons. Talk to many college students, and they’ll probably tell you that Angels and Demons is much, much better.
2. 1984 - Given how some people view the present administration, it’s no wonder that 1984 is among the most popular books in college. In fact, just last year I saw a production of 1984 at Kenyon College. George Orwell’s story still proves to be quite interesting to many students. Who says college students are politically apathetic? At least they’ll read about dictatorships.
1. Harry Potter (series) - This may not surprise you, but much like people in grade school, high school, and the work force, college students LOVE Harry Potter. The sheer amount of facebook groups would definitely support that fact. Actually, one can even meet many people in college who resemble Harry Potter characters. Given the tremendous success of the series, it’s no wonder that Harry Potter tops the list as the most popular book on college campuses.
So ends the top ten series. We here at College and Finance may bring it back at some point, but for now, we can’t think of any other top tens that you should know of. If you haven’t read any of these books, you seriously need to take a trip to your local library and see what all the fuss is about.
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September 29 2007 | College Fun | 4 Comments »
I was doing some research for another article when I came across a post on eyeRmonkey called 9 Survival Tips for College Freshman. It’s full of great advice for any first year student. I’ve decided to expand on those points and add some of my own insight.
1. The first week defines the rest of the year - When it comes to dorm/hall dynamics, this is probably true. I wonder encourage any freshman to try to follow the advice in the article: talk to as many people as possible, and try to do things as a group. The fact is, though, that not everyone has the personality type that lends itself to this kind of behavior. And that’s fine. If that’s not really your style, don’t worry. You’re not going to ruin your freshman year by being a little shy during the first week. Plenty of more-reserved people go off to college and have a great time.
So, if you can follow the advice in the article, go ahead and do it. If that’s not you, it’s not a big deal.
Most importantly, keep in mind that the first week really doesn’t define the year. Plenty of students are scared and sad (and shocked) during the first week of school. By the third week, they’re having a great time.
2. Organize Study Groups - Study groups can be very helpful, if you really take advantage of them and work productively. I’ve found them especially helpful in showing me what I still need to learn for tests, papers, and assignments. There should be a caveat with this tip, however. A lot of people, including myself, do not work productively in groups. We use study groups to procrastinate with our friends instead of doing our work. It’s fun, but it’s not the best idea when you have a big test or paper.
3. Study for Tests - This should be obvious. If you’re not studying for any of your tests, what are you doing in college?
I would like to add that it’s very helpful to start studying early for your tests. In fact, you’ll retain a lot more information if you review your notes each day after class and take some time at the end of each week to go over what you learned. When test time comes around, this helpful tip is going to save you a lot of time and a lot of stress.
4. Get Involved - This is essential. Getting involved in something—anything, really—will definitely increase the quality of your college experience and ease the transition into college life. The easiest way to get involved is to do something you already enjoy or are passionate about. If you love sports, join an intramural team (or even two). If you’re passionate about conservation or the environment, join a group that advocates recycling or environmental protection. Even at a small school, there will probably be a group for whatever you want to do. And if there isn’t one, start it.
5. Always Check Your Work - This is an easy and important way to improve the quality of your work AND boost your GPA. You should be doing this on all your assignments: quizzes, tests, papers, research, etc. I should add that this is especially important for writing-intensive courses, where an error-free paper can inspire confidence in your work in the mind of the professor. This confidence can mean the difference between an A and a B at the end of the term. On the other hand, a few typographical errors or missed words can distract from an otherwise solid piece of writing.
It may help to have a friend, classmate, or faculty mentor read over your work before you turn it in. Sometimes a fresh set of eyes can make a huge difference. It also helps to give yourself some time (a matter of days, if possible) between when you finish a draft and when you read over it again. You’ll have more patience for the process, and you’ll be able to catch errors that you would’ve missed before when the work was so fresh in your mind.
6. If you don’t like your roommate, switch - Agreed. If you don’t like your roommate, you are just going to be suffering every time you go back to the place that is your “home” on campus. It’s not worth it just to avoid appearing rude. Make the switch.
7. Go to sporting events - Like most things in life, you get out of sporting events what you put in. So grab a friend and bring along all the enthusiasm you can comfortably muster. You may be surprised at what a good time you can have. (Trust me, I know from very recent personal experience.) If your friends don’t want to go, offer to buy them pizza, and if bribery doesn’t work, you can always go by yourself. Games are great place to meet new people because the energy level is so high.
8. Figure out housing for the next year - Start early, and have a back up plan. A lot of my friends have made great housing plans only to see them fall through at the last minute. You can avoid a lot of stress by considering a back up plan, just in case your main housing plan doesn’t work.
9. Don’t buy books until you need them - I absolutely agree. If you follow this advice, you are going to save yourself hundreds of dollars. And if you care about money at all, you should always be buying used books when they are available. Shop online for the best prices (I would recommend Half.com and Amazon, though there are many other great sites) and avoid the university bookstore. On-campus bookstores are going to be charging more for the same books than any other vendor.
10. Relax - If you can only pick one piece of advice from this whole page, this is it. Just relax. The most miserable people in college are the ones taking everything (especially themselves) too seriously. Remember, there is a reason so many people say that college is the best years of your life. If you can relax and just go with the experience, you will find out why.
So there are my tips. If any of you reading this are freshmen, cherish this moment. It is such an exciting time. It won’t always be easy, and in fact for most of you it will sometimes be tough. But it is also great, and I, personally, wish I could be in your place.
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September 03 2007 | College Advice and College Fun and Housing | 1 Comment »
College students surf the web constantly. The Internet helps them to obtain the useful information needed for papers, or it provides them with a nice diversion so they can avoid doing papers. Knowing how many college students seem to be on the Internet 24-7, I started wondering what are the web sites that college students just can’t live without. I interviewed a whole slew of students, went off of past experiences, and used a bit of common sense to come up with the list. It’s not a ranking, it’s just a list. Although if it were, the obvious winner would be the first web site I’ll mention. Without further intro, here’s a list of some very important web sites for college students.
1. Facebook - Mark Zuckerberg may have not known how great his idea was when he came up with it (or he may have known, and stolen it, but that’s up to the courts to decide). Almost every college student I’ve ever met cannot live without facebook. Some check it twice every hour; some check it even more than that. Facebook is a great way for college students to stay in touch with high school friends, meet new people, and post embarrassing photos of their friends at parties. Keep a college student away from his or her profile, and you might as well remove a limb from them. That’s how serious students are, seriously.
2. ESPN.com - You may think I’m crazy, and true, fewer women do check ESPN every day than men. However, it doesn’t take away from the fact that many college students love their sports, and ESPN is a great way to check everything out. During March Madness, Bowl season, and so on, ESPN gets loads of visits from college students, checking rankings, scores, schedules, and even the occasional ESPN article (which generally always contain some utter nonsense). Yesterday, Michigan was upset by the little engine that could (Appalachian State or “The Other ASU”), and where do you think college students headed to see exactly how “The Victors” got rocked in their own back yard?
3. Wikipedia - Yes, we’ve all heard that Wikipedia is very shady because anyone can edit it. That doesn’t change the fact that if one needs to turn in a paper about a topic that they don’t know anything about, they will turn to the Wikipedia Gods to help them. Some professors actually accept Wikipedia citations. So, I guess it works out for everyone. You may think I’m crazy, but if you take Wikipedia from a college student, they may just lose the cornerstone of their academic research. Now that you realize how much Wikipedia is used, don’t go vandalizing and changing facts. After all, it could affect me; I have a paper due soon.
4. eBay - College students don’t have a lot of money, but that doesn’t stop them from using the worldwide garage sale to buy games, books, and whatever else they can successfully bid on. Living in the dorms for two years showed me how many people are constantly eBaying. Packages of all shapes and sizes come in daily to students buying random stuff. The weirdest purchase I ever say was a student who bought pink slippers with huge eyes on the front. I didn’t bother asking, I was too confused.
5. Amazon.com - If eBay is the garage sale, then Amazon must be the retail store. When it comes time to get books, some students will opt for eBay, but many others will go the Amazon route. Again, talking to college students and my own observations has shown me how crucial Amazon is. Last year I had a class that needed two books that were only available on Amazon. It annoyed me because I had to spend extra cash and couldn’t find a used copy. But it illustrates how important those sites are to college students.
6. RateMyProfessors.com - When it comes time to schedule classes, you may notice loads of web browsers flocking to RateMyProfessors.com. This site was yet another ingenious idea that I didn’t come up with. College students are always interested in what professors are the best, and what classes are the easiest. In fact, when I scheduled for this quarter (we’re on quarters, not semesters here, and I hate it), I scheduled two classes based on professor ratings alone. That shows you the importance of this web site. From this site, you can see how difficult the subject is, how hard they grade, and if people liked them or not. My favorite part is the “hot” ratings. Unfortunately, one man’s trash can be another man’s treasure, because I once had a professor who was supposed to be hot, and believe me, she looked worse than Renee Zellweger in Bridget Jones’ Diary.
7. FAFSA - The Free Application for Federal Student Aid is a big hit amongst college students (although many won’t qualify for anything but a few low interest loans, but I’m not bitter). Every year around March, millions will go to the web site, enter their FAFSA PIN and start the process of applying for aid in the upcoming academic year. It’s not as enjoyable as going to facebook or ESPN.com, but it is useful (especially if you get some aid).
8. Yourschool.edu - Yes, the university web sites are also very important to students. If the university web site goes down, then students can’t get access their webmail, check their grades, or schedule classes (of course, what students can actually do on their university’s web site varies from school to school). When you apply for college, one of the first things you do is check the university web site, and click “prospective students.” Once you’re in college, you get quite acquainted with the “current students” section.
9. CollegeHumor - Many parents may not find the subjects, videos, or pictures to be very amusing, but college students just can’t get enough of CollegeHumor. There’s always very amusing stories, and pictures to be viewed. I know many college students who are members (albeit many more males than females, although some females may have pictures on the site, I don’t know). It’s a very rare day indeed when I don’t get some link to a funny video. If College Humor shut down, I think campuses would be sadder places.
10. StumbleUpon - Much of college students’ desire to avoid boredom (or the perpetual need to procrastinate) can be accomplished via a nice little button and web site. Loads upon loads of college students stumble thumbs up the things they enjoy, and give a thumbs down to things they hate. Without StumbleUpon, papers might be completed weeks before their due date. I don’t want to see the type of world that could be created in the absence of Stumbling!
11. MySpace - Compared to facebook, MySpace doesn’t hold a candle in the eyes of college students. However, there are still many college students who have MySpace accounts (most left over from when they were in high school). Those who do still tend to check them fairly regularly. Also, it’s a great place for college students to find out new bands and support their favorites. College students still love their music.
12. PayPal.com - Logically, since eBay is popular amongst college students, then PayPal would be as well. But you don’t need logic to realize that college students are sending money everywhere on a daily basis through PayPal to purchase their various books and whatever else they might need.
13. Any Major Torrent Site - That includes isohunt, torrentspy, and many others. College students are naturally poor, so they like things that are free. Getting games, videos, and CDs for free doesn’t get much easier. Again, males more commonly visit these sites than females. Also, with the RIAA cracking down (my University just had about 20 students have lawsuits brought against them), the numbers may dwindle slightly. As long as there is a fast University Internet connection, there will be plenty of pirating.
14. Google - Yes, the most popular search engine is essential to the college student. Statistics show that most college students use Google. Of course, what they are searching for always varies. However, if Google were to all of a sudden fall off the map, there’d be many disappointed college students, who may have difficulty finding some last minute sources for their term paper.
15. University Newspaper - Whatever your college’s news publication is, its web site will undoubtedly be popular amongst students. Ohio State’s paper is The Lantern, and thousands of students visit the online version daily to read the latest news around the University. It’s also a great way for students to comment on various stories, and sometimes deride the University administration.
Those are fifteen web sites college students can’t live without, but I’m sure there’s many more (considering I left out individual forums and sites focused on one popular topic). Who knows, College and Finance could even be on someone’s list (not likely, but there’s always hope!). So if you don’t visit any of these sites, get with the program and start browsing!
September 02 2007 | College Fun | 5 Comments »
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