The first step in making sure that you have a successful J-term experience is determining exactly what you want to do. There are several options. Probably the most common is just taking a J-term class. This is very similar to taking a class during the semester, with a few notable differences. First, obviously, is the shorter length of the class. Because you only have one month to complete the class, you’ll be going to it more often and for longer periods of time. You might go four or five days a week, and anywhere from three to five hours at a time (depending on how your school does it; there is a lot of variation). And while this may sound like way too much studying when you’re supposed to be out of school, you have to think about the class you’re taking. For example, I took an English class focused on hard-boiled detective fiction, in which we read books like The Maltese Falcon and The Big Sleep. How cool is that? Many departments offer fun classes over J-term, so check out the catalog and see what you can find.

Another study focused option is studying abroad. Most schools offer study abroad programs, and those that don’t can hook you up with one that does pretty easily. You can travel all over the world and study whatever you’d like. Many students at my university studied theater in London, theology in Rome, and business all over Europe. I studied ghosts and monsters in 19th-century British literature in the UK. You have all kinds of options, both in classes and destinations. Some programs even travel through different areas, so you may be able to see several different countries over the course of a month. To find a study abroad program, check out www.studyabroad.com.

Another great J-term option is the service-learning trip. This is less focused on academic learning and more centered around volunteer service. You could be building houses in Mexico, helping out at a school in Tanzania, or doing natural disaster cleanup in South America. There are many service-learning organizations that take J-term trips with college students—ask around your campus, and you’ll be sure to find at least one that you can hook up with.

No matter what you do over J-term, I recommend making the most of it. Take one or two to do nothing (you deserve it), but use the rest of them to do something beneficial for yourself and others. Maybe it’s studying, maybe it’s serving, or maybe it’s something completely different. What have you spent your J-terms doing? Leave comments below and let us know!

Many people go into a sort of hibernation during the winter and hide out inside throughout the cold months. And this is certainly a viable way to go about it. There’s something to be said for grabbing a good book and parking yourself in a chair for the day. But if you do this all the time, you’re missing out on a lot of opportunities! Winter, even though the weather can be nasty, is a great time to do outdoor activities. You just have to know which ones to go for.

Something that a lot of people forget about once they get out of elementary or middle school is sledding. When was the last time that you went sliding down a hill on a flimsy piece of plastic? It’s probably been a long time. But do you remember how fun it was? You can buy a sled for a couple bucks (or make your own—large lunch trays work pretty well), find a hill near your house, and go for it! Get a group together and get out for a couple hours. You’ll be surprised at how much fun you have.

Another activity that you may not have done in a few years is ice skating. Whether you’re good at it or not, it can be a really fun time. Yes, you might fall a few times . . . but so will everybody else! Unless you’re friends with several people on the hockey team, it’s pretty likely that no one will be a very proficient skater. Many skating rinks have student nights when you can rent a pair of skates for a few dollars, and if there’s a skating rink on your campus, you may be able to rent skates and get on the ice for free (if not, it should be very inexpensive).

One great winter activity needs little explanation: the snowball fight. Whether it’s organized or impromptu, throwing snow at your friends and family is awesome. It’s just that simple.

In addition to all of these classic activities, I encourage you to get out and try something new this winter. Rent cross-country skis or snowshoes, and spend an afternoon at a state park. Try skiing or snowboarding. Do something that you do in the summer—throw a frisbee or a football, or go for a run—in the snow instead of inside. Just start trying things, and you’re bound to find a winter activity that you enjoy!

One of the more immediately obvious differences is the way in which you’ll find out about opportunities for involvement. Because universities are so much larger than high schools, there’s almost sure to be a volunteer coordinator or another similar person working there. A good way to go about finding this person is to contact your college’s office of alumni affairs or alumni council (both of which you should be able to find on the school’s website fairly easily). Someone in this group will be able to direct you to who you need to talk to.

After you talk to the correct university representative, you’ll probably start noticing another significant difference between high school and college in this respect: in college, it’s much more organized. In high school, it’s often pretty informal, and you can just walk in and start helping out somewhere. At the post-secondary level, you’ll probably be placed in a very specific place to do a more specific task. You’ll still have the choice of what you want to do, of course, but it’s likely that the options will be tailored to the needs of the school. It’s also fairly likely that you’ll be working in a group; groups of alumni often gather to do some sort of service project for their college.

Alumni organizations are also good ways to get involved. Many alumni groups organize regular volunteer sessions at their college, and you can hook up with them by contacting your alumni office and asking about organizations that stay involved with the school. It’s often easier to do it this way, because you might know a few of the people that you’re working with, and at the very least, you have something significant in common. A lot of these groups use Facebook or another online social networking tool to stay in touch, and this makes it really easy to find out about events that you can take part in.

However you get in contact with your school or an alumni group, it’s good to get out there and give back to your school. You’ll be working for a good cause, get to meet other alumni from your college, and have fun. So, whether you’ve graduated already or not, find out about doing some volunteer work around your campus. You’ll be glad you did.

Why stay involved? There are many reasons, most of which have to do with helping the school and the faculty that have helped you out over the past four years. And while you may not think right now that they did anything to help you, it’s possible that you’ll change your mind in six months (or a few years). Try to imagine what it’s like to be a high school teacher or administrator. You get up every day and go to work, where hundreds, if not thousands, of teenagers are waiting for you. And they’re usually not very cooperative (and often not friendly). But you still do it every day, because you want to help them move on and improve their lives. Sound like a tough job? It is. It’s people like these that make big differences in lives, and it behooves every high school graduate to give back to their high school.

If nothing else, it’s good to stay involved in your high school so that you can help out the students there. They’re probably thinking the same thing you were—that they’d rather not be in class, that the teachers don’t like them, and that administrators exist to give them trouble. Wouldn’t it be nice if a former student could talk to them, even if just to sympathize? You, like the teachers, can make a difference in these students’ lives.

So giving back to your high school sounds like a good idea. How do you get started? Different schools allow different levels of involvement, so it’s important to talk to someone at the school first. Call up the principal or another high-level administrator (if your high school is large enough, you might even have a volunteer coordinator or some other such person to talk to) and ask them how you can help out. Maybe you can be a chaperone at a dance, or stop into a classroom once a week to help out one of the teachers that you liked a lot. Or you could be a gym monitor over a lunch period. Some athletically inclined alumni will get involved in a high school sports program that they participated in as a student. I know people who have gone back to help coach a team that they were on many years before.

Regardless of how you give back, you will be greatly appreciated, and you will make a positive difference in the lives of the students, the teachers, and the faculty at your high school. And isn’t that reason enough? Call up your high school today and see what you can do to help out.

Fortunately, finding volunteer opportunities is pretty easy. You usually don’t have to look very far to find quite a few ways that you can get involved right away. Local community groups (clubs, and such) are good places to start, especially if you’re already involved in one. Faith communities are also known for taking part in a lot of volunteering. Talk to someone at a local church and ask how you can help. Schools, from elementary schools to colleges, also usually have many volunteering opportunities, both inside their walls and without. Call any one of these places and ask about volunteering, and you’ll be sure to get a quick answer.

If you have to look a little farther away, using a website like 1800Volunteer.org can be very helpful. You can look for opportunities both by location and by keyword, so if you’re interested in a particular cause, you can find groups that you’re interested in helping out.

Finding a cause that you believe in is a great way to make sure that you’re interested in your volunteer opportunity. If you don’t really care about what you’re doing, you won’t be very engaged, and your volunteering will drag on, and you won’t feel very accomplished when you get done. If you find an issue that you feel strongly about, however—something like the environment, a particular political party, kids, or a marginalized social group—you’ll be much more inclined to work hard, come back in the future, and feel good about what you’ve done. So think about what you feel strongly about, and find a group whose interests are aligned with yours.

After you find an opportunity, it’s time to get out and do it! It can be a lot easier if you have a group of friends or family that are willing to volunteer with you, so ask around and get a crew together. Even if it’s just one or two other people, it will make it a lot easier. You’re bound to meet at least a few other cool people while you’re serving, but having someone else along can ease the process. Be open to talking to others and meeting new friends! You can learn a lot from the people that you’re working with, and you may even forge some new friendships that will last a very long time.

Writing like you speak isn’t necessarily a bad thing. There is certainly a time and a place for it. There are certain types of writing assignments where it can actually add a lot to your work—in things like scripts, speech notes, and dialogue in stories. Other than these situations, though, it’s probably better to avoid. But to avoid it, you have to be able to recognize it. It’s tough to explain what speech-like writing looks like—the best way to learn to recognize it is to see it yourself. Ask your friends to read their papers, both first and final drafts. After you read a few, you’ll probably start to be able to see and predict the differences between the two. You’ll see better word choices in final drafts, longer sentences, and clearer presentation of ideas. These are some of the hallmarks of better writing, and you’re less likely to see them if you’re reading writing that looks like a speech.

So what can you do to avoid writing like you speak? The first thing that you should do is to a href=”http://www.wikihow.com/Edit-or-Proofread-an-Essay-or-Paper”>edit your paper several times after you write it. Try to have the whole thing written a few days before you have to hand it in; after you’re done writing it, take a day away from it and don’t look at it for at least 24 hours. Then read over it and make edits. And a day after that, do it again. You’ll probably find that the more you look at it, the better you can make it. Keep a dictionary and a thesaurus handy, and make sure that you’re using words that clearly articulate your ideas (as well as vary your vocabulary choices—don’t be too repetitive).

It’s also essential to not forget to have others check over your paper. Ask your friends, family members, co-workers . . . anyone who might have some writing skill or could provide a different perspective. Ask them to make sure that your writing is clear, your ideas make sense, and you present your case well. Also, ask them, after they read it, if your writing is very similar t your speaking. If you are writing that way, see if you can get any opinions on how you might make it less so.

Like I said before, learning to recognize speech-like writing is something that comes with reading a lot. Start reading a lot of other peoples’ papers, and you’ll start seeing ways to improve your own writing.

Tough times can be caused by many things. Maybe you have a bunch of tests at the end of a single week. Or you have to write a paper that you just really aren’t ready for. Or you’re having relationships issues. Or you’re homesick. It could be any number of things. Everyone has their own reasons. But that’s not what this is about. This is about what to do when you’re have trouble.

Different people have different ways of dealing with stress. Not every method of stress relief works for every person, but there are some pretty common ones that I’ll detail here.

First, a very popular method and my personal favorite, is exercise. Many, many people find that taking a walk, going out for a bike ride, playing a game of basketball, or throwing a frisbee helps them clear their head and feel better when they’re having a bad day. Even if you’re not usually big on exercise, it’s good to at least get outside for a while. Walk around campus, take a nap out on the quad, sit under a tree and enjoy the sunset—just get out and do something under the sky! It’ll help.

Some people find that instead of exercise, they need the opposite: rest. College students are notorious for not getting enough sleep for long periods of time (which you probably already know). If you haven’t been sleeping much, that can amplify any stress that you’re experiencing. And what’s the obvious solution to being overly tired? Sleep! I know that you have a lot of things to do, and that you’ll get behind if you’re not studying. But think about it this way: what’s going to make you lose more time? Your current state, or taking a two-hour nap? It’s worth it.

If exercise isn’t your thing, and you don’t feel like sleeping (which is often the case if you’re really stressed), you can also try reading. For pleasure, that is, not to study. Pick up a novel that you enjoy, or grab a magazine related to something that you’re interested in. Whatever it is, make sure that it’s fun reading. Don’t read a textbook.

I hope that these ideas help you think about what might help you relieve some stress. If you have any other good strategies, leave a comment and let us know!

Many people and small companies hire college students to help them move. Many students are in good physical shape, and almost all of them need money, so why not? It’s cheaper to hire students than it is to hire professional movers, and it’s not like you have to be really skilled to move boxes from one house (or office) to another. You can actually make a pretty good amount of money if you move enough things, but keep in mind that it can be pretty physically taxing. If you have trouble getting up and down the stairs, or lifting your textbooks is hard, you may want to pass on this one!

Another unskilled-labor-type job you could think about is painting. A lot of people don’t like to paint, so they’ll find others to paint their house (inside or out) for them. Again, you don’t have to be talented to paint a house, so college students serve as effective cheap labor. If you decide to do this, know that you’ll probably be going for quite a few hours at a time, and it may take more than one day. If you’re working outside, it could get pretty hot, and you may be on a ladder for a long time. Then again, you’re getting paid, right?

If manual labor isn’t your thing, you could look into babysitting or nannying. These are more regular than the above jobs, and have the potential to become more of a part-time job than a one-time thing (especially if you’re good with the kids). There’s more responsibility involved in caring for someone’s children than there is for painting there house, so if you have trouble getting to places on time, or following instructions, you may want to reconsider this one. If you have experience from high school, you’ll definitely be a step ahead of everyone else.

These three ideas don’t really begin to scratch the surface of what’s out there, but they should give you an idea of what you might be able to do for someone. You can also find a great deal of odd jobs on Craigslist and local bulletin boards. Keep your eyes open, and you’lls tart seeing opportunities all over the place. Think about what you like to do, what you’re good at, and what other people might not want to do themselves. Then get someone to hire you to do it!

There are many different ranking systems. In the United States, the U.S. News and World Report ranking system is very popular. In other parts of the world, schemas like THE – QS (Times Higher Education – Quacquarelli Symonds), the Academic Ranking of World Universities (the Shanghai Jiao Tong University system), and the Global University System are more common.

So what’s the difference, and which should you look at it? Well, to answer the first question, the difference between the rankings is primarily in how they are calculated. All ranking systems are at least slightly subjective, so it’s good to understand what kinds of things each system values. The Shanghai ratings, for example, heavily favor the natural sciences, so schools with strong natural science programs will rank pretty high. In contrast, the Webometrics system ranks pretty strongly on how many articles the college publishes on the internet (which can be misleading). It’s good to understand the criteria of the list that you’re looking at if you’re going to use it to judge any colleges.

Which ranking you should use comes down to what your priorities are. If you’re looking for a school with a strong biology program, the Shanghai rankings are a good way to go. If you’re not as concerned with that, and want a more balanced approach, Newsweek might be better. The truth is, you can probably find a ranking system that will rank the school that you’re looking at pretty high. Because of the subjective nature of the ratings, you may see a great deal of variation in the rankings across different systems. And because of this, the rankings actually are pretty limited in their usefulness. You can use them to get a general idea of which schools are going to be really difficult to get into, and which have a very strong reputation around the world. Other than that, I recommend talking to a number of different schools to find out what their strengths are. Many schools that aren’t ranked very high have fantastic specific programs, even if their overall academic reputation isn’t stellar.

In short, I recommend against using college rankings to judge different schools. Use them to get a general idea, and then start going to specific schools. This way, you can get a starting point and work out, getting a much clearer picture of your college choices. Don’t put too much stock in these ratings. Choosing a college goes beyond just academics. To get a better overall picture of what the school is like from the students’ perspective, check out stuvu.com.

That’s all well and good, but you’re probably wondering, “How do I go about getting an internship?” Good question. If you don’t have some help (or at least an idea of where to start looking), it can be pretty difficult. So I’ll provide a few ideas to get you started.

Getting an internship is really about networking. You’ll probably hear that word a lot in college. What is networking? What it comes down to is knowing a lot of people in a lot of places. But don’t worry—no one expects you to have set up a solid professional network when you’re looking for an internship. That’s why your college will help you out.

One of the best places to begin your search for internships is through your professors. They are likely to know a lot of people in the field that you’re interested in, and being able to get a personal recommendation from a professor will go a long way in getting you the position. Your academic advisor is a great resource for this same reason.

Another way to go is through your college’s career development center. Many companies ask colleges to send them students as interns, and this is where they would go to make that request. The career development center (or whatever its equivalent at your school is called) keeps track of all kinds of job opportunities, and has a wealth of resources that you can use in your search.

Once you’ve found an internship that you’re interested in, apply for it! Apply for several, in fact. Competition for internships is pretty tough, so you’ll have to look (and write) your best to make a good first impression. Having stellar recommendation letters from your professors is worth a lot, as you probably don’t have much relevant job experience. (If you did, why would you need the internship?) So approach professors that you have a good relationship with and ask if they’d be willing to write letters for you.

Colleges have a very large amount of information on internships and jobs on their Web sites and in their career counseling centers. Take advantage of it, and start early!