Websites to Help You Learn More

Planning which college to attend is one of the most important decisions you will make as a young adult, and there is so much to consider. It can feel overwhelming narrowing down the search and deciding on which colleges to visit. This guide will help alleviate some of that stress and answer all your burning questions.

It is impossible to visit every single school on your list, especially when geography is working against you. Start your search online by navigating around the school’s virtual tour, which can be found on most college websites. Ask yourself a few simple questions first: are you looking for a big or small school, what are you studying (liberal arts or trade/tech) and do you prefer state or private? Try visiting at least one of each type of school (big, small, far from home, close to home, etc.) if you are unsure.

Now it’s time to plan the visit! Make sure to plan far in advance especially if you are planning to go at a busy time of year. Browse the college website’s admissions page and schedule your tour ahead of time. Ensure the time you select will allow for dorm visits or perhaps the option to sit in on a class. Avoid school holidays when the campus is likely to be empty, and times when it might be particularly busy such as “move in” days.

On visit day, try and think of a few minor details they may not mention in the tour: how do people get around, are they riding bikes, taking the bus, or walking? Is there a sense of fun and positive school spirit or do people look stressed and exhausted? Are there safety measures put in place around campus? Also, take the time to check out the nearby neighborhoods and popular hangouts in order to get caught up on what is going on in the community surrounding the campus.

Treat your visit like a family vacation, have fun, ask questions, and don’t be afraid to explore!

For more tips on planning a college visit, check out the full article by our friends at Fix.com.

Almost all standardized tests, including the ACT and the SAT, feature two major sections: quant (or mathematics) and verbal/reading (reading, writing, vocab, sentence correction, and the like). The SAT has three sections, Math, Critical Reading, and Writing. The ACT has five: Math, Reading Comprehension, English, Science and Writing.

As part of an overall customized test preparation plan, you can and should incorporate skill building exercises that address these major areas into your everyday life, so that on any given day, you are doing something to build your skills naturally without even thinking about it. By reading intentionally for comprehension and practicing mental math, you can create short but powerful sessions of test prep that engage your mind quite frequently, and it turns out this approach is an effective, easy, and dare I say fun, way to prepare for these stressful tests.

Strategy #1 – read more (and more intentionally)

I tend to find that, paradoxically, the most stressed out students are those that are really struggling with the math section of the ACT or SAT. However, those that are truly lacking basic math skills can be the easiest students to help. Why?

It’s because the math section of the ACT or SAT can be broken down relatively clearly. You can document what concepts must be understood, facts and formulas to know, question types that are used, techniques to use to speed up calculations, etc., and methodically teach what needs to be taught. Progress can actually be made quite quickly, as long as the student lets go of any “I’m just not a math person” misconceptions that might be causing a mental block (see a discussion of this in this article I wrote on the “growth mindset.”

However, reading comprehension and sentence correction is a different animal. In a typical reading comprehension question, you must read a passage and then answer questions about it. The questions may ask you to point out the main theme of the passage, identify what types of statements the author might make based on what is written in the passage, re-write portions of the passage, or define words used in the passage.

Being good at reading comprehension requires a strong command of the English language and how to reason with it. MyGuru’s ACT and SAT tutors often describe the futility of trying to help someone build these types of skills in short amounts of time. They depend, in large part, on the amount, complexity, and nature of the reading and writing you’ve done since elementary school.

For example, consider this quote from one of MyGuru’s partners:

Many imagine that they can master grammar by memorizing some exhaustive collection of grammar rules, but of course, grammar cannot be learned purely in the form of quasi-mathematical rules. Part of good writing & rhetoric is the “feel,” a certain intuitive sense about what combinations of words work or don’t work. Some native English speakers may already have an “ear” for this, but others need to build this right-brain skill through reading sophisticated English writing.

Mike McGarry, Test Prep Expert from Magoosh. Mike has a BS in Physics and an MA in Religion, both from Harvard, and over 20 years of teaching experience specializing in math, science, and standardized exams.

I am not suggesting that you can’t learn and practice to improve your reading comprehension skills, but it takes longer, and it’s generally more difficult, than for the quantitative portion of standardized tests.

A huge part of the solution is simply to read more.

Become the type of person that is curious about at least one story in the newspaper every day. Begin reading one new blog article each week, and one new non-fiction, or even fiction, book each month. Just do it, and you’ll build the skills that will serve you well on the ACT and SAT. You’ll slowly but surely become increasingly familiar with the English language and your ability to comprehend increasingly complex pieces of written work will develop over time, naturally, without any explicit test prep.

This means more than just staring at the page, cursorily reading an article. It means reading with your full attention, constantly checking your own comprehension and coming up with your own opinion on the material. Every time you sit down to do some of that challenging reading, you should be in a mental conversation with the author. You’re not reading for information; you’re reading for mental stimulation. Think about why the author wrote each word and your own reactions to the implications behind the text. After each paragraph, identify the theme, deconstruct the argument, and challenge the assumptions. If you don’t recognize a word, look it up.

Of course, to be beneficial, this strategy also requires that you have at least several months before your exam to implement the strategy!

In our next article, we’ll cover our second everyday test prep strategy, which is to do more mental math.

To learn more about these strategies, as well as how to develop a highly customized test prep plan that methodically builds your skills over time, consider downloading the first chapter (for free) of our soon-to-be-released eBook Plan, Prepare, Perform: A Personalized Approach to Test Prep Fueled by Expert Tutor Feedback and Scientific Research on How We Learn.

About the Author

Mark Skoskiewicz founded MyGuru in 2009 to provide highly effective yet affordable 1-1 tutoring and test prep through a small team of expert independently contracted tutors in Chicago. Over time, MyGuru has become known not just for tutoring services, but also for providing research-based but practical advice for improving academic performance, as they’ve expanded to New York, Boston, and even Minneapolis.

Parents and Students, I encourage you to listen to Frank Bruni in this YOUTUBE essay. I just finished reading his book, Where You Go Is Not Who You'll Be, and there is much to think about when beginning the college application process. Also, we have this book in our school library!

http://www.youtube.com/attribution_link?a=mUE8YgUE924&u=/watch%3Fv%3DSgN20O3VYgQ%26feature%3Dem-share_video_user

The Arkansas Course Transfer System (ACTS) is a valuable website if you are starting your college career at a two-year institution. Here is the link to take you there: http://acts.adhe.edu/studenttransfer.aspx.

Using ACTS, students can review transferable courses by selecting the institution that you are transferring from and the institution that you are transferring to.

If the report lists a course, the course is guaranteed to transfer if the receiving institution has a comparable course.
If the report states “No Comparable Course,” the course is not guaranteed to transfer. Contact the transfer officer at the receiving institution for further information as it is possible that the course will transfer.
Transferability of courses taken prior to January 1, 2007, is at the discretion of the receiving institution.
Courses with a grade of "D" are not guaranteed to transfer. Institutional policies regarding the transfer of courses with a grade of "D" may vary.

The Arkansas Times has a great publication called the Nurses Guide. Here's the link for the latest version: http://www.arktimes2.com/guides/nurses/

This is a web site based on the book by the same name. I strongly encourage you to look at it and think about the information it offers. By the way, at this point, only one school in Arkansas is included, Hendrix College in Conway. The mission of CTCL: to educate students, families, counselors and the public about the actual accessibility of a quality post-secondary educational experience, and to help students find a college that develops a lifelong love of learning. Go to ctcl.org to read more.

Need Help Writing Your Essay? Here's a great website and blog post from The College Essay Guy:

http://collegeessayguy.tumblr.com/post/131465606639/tell-us-about-a-personal-quality-talent?utm_campaign=SharedPost&utm_medium=Email&utm_source=TumblriOS

His regular website link is below.

http://www.collegeessayguy.tumblr.com/

Essay Edge is a website that you pay for but it has some good examples of samples of good and then better essays. It helps to look at these!

https://www.essayedge.com/samples

CollegeData.com is a new website recommended to me by one of our seniors. I think it's very good. Be sure to create an account in order to personalize it for better use.

Help in Sorting Out Online Colleges

I recently received an email from Nina Millar at BestSchools.com. She shared with me the following explanation and websites about online schools. As more and more of us think about going to school online, I think she raises valid points, and in looking over her websites, I found good information there. Here is what she sent, along with links to the websites. Most colleges and universities in Arkansas are incorporating online degree programs, with 15 that offer at least one Bachelor’s degree online. Knowing that students and families are faced with trying to figure out the best option for them, we created and focused our site and its resources to provide an investigative review of the online education landscape and to critically evaluate the increasingly-popular online college rankings that are being touted on the internet.

Here are a few of the resources that I thought would be the most relevant and useful to you:

Ideally, we want students to be able to gain valuable insight into their education especially when it comes to online education, understanding tuition and financial aid options, as well as true cost vs. benefit.

Arkansas Career Watch- The 2017-2018 edition focuses on the HUMAN SERVICES careers. There is a lot of great information for you. You each are given a free issue, but also you can access it online at www.careerwatch.org.

ARKANSAS NEXT

Here's the link for Arkansas Next, a magazine full of great information. The information in it, plus more are found in this digital copy. ArkansasNext.com.

The Arkansas Times 2017 College Guide

Go to www.arktimes.com and look under the file titled "Guides". There are two specific articles I'd like to show you. In the Nurses Guide, AT explains how to become qualified, the educational options and career opportunities available in Arkansas. The second one is the College Guide. Published since 1987, the AT College Guide looks at 2- and 4- year colleges within the state.

STEMjobs.com is a new web site you should check out if you are even remotely interested in Science, Technology, Engineering, or Math related jobs. I have a few copies of the magazine, but there and online you'll find the top STEM approved colleges, top STEM jobs, and also an assessment to see what kind of STEM type you are. For juniors and younger, there is a very helpful article on choosing your high school classes that will benefit you in STEM careers.

From the O*Net, http://www.mynextmove.org/, this is a great web site to help you answer the question: What do I want to do for a living?

College Essay Guy- I LOVE this website! It also has a tumblr.com page to help you think about, brainstorm topics, and advise you on writing a great college or scholarship application essay. Go to: http://www.collegeessayguy.com/

The YUNiversity is another helpful website, also with a tumblr.com blog. Find it at http://www.theyuniversity.net/ Here's what it says to describe itself:

WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?

A loose translation is that we write, tweet, and post about grammar and vocabulary in a concise, fun, and simple manner. It means that you won't have to trudge through a 30-minute article to learn something that could have just as easily been explained in two minutes. It means that pedantry and formality will always take a back seat to humor and pop culture references, because let's face it: talking about music, comic books, K-pop idols, and anime is a lot more relaxing (and conducive to learning) than dusting off monocles and holding a séance for William Strunk, Jr. and E.B. White while sipping on brandy. (Hmm ... on second thought.) They also have a great Word of the Day to help you increase your vocabulary!

Thinking about Becoming an Accountant?

http://www.startheregoplaces.com/why-accounting/

This website is all about accounting as a profession. It includes such info as salary, job outlook, skillsets, and career options. Check it out!

Did you know the CIA has paid student internships, scholarship and co-op opportunities in several fields of study, from accounting and finance, to economics, engineering and information technology? For more info go to www.cia.gov.

Thinking about Becoming a Court Reporter?

Check it out below:

http://crtakenote.com/

Do you know what Othoptists do? These professionals specialize in treating children and adults with eye movement disorders. Learn more at www.orthoptics.org.

Thinking about Becoming a Pharmacist?

WWW.PHARMACYFORME.ORG This link, Pharmacy is Right for Me gives students the resources and information you need to consider a career in pharmacy.

Could Psychology be a career for you?

Explore psychology in action at www.psychscienceaction.org.

More Websites to help you learn:

www.actprofile.org

www.adhe.edu- The Arkansas Department of Higher Education

www.arkcollege101.com- College 101

www.arjoblink.com- Arkansas' Job Workforce Center

www.arworks.arkansas.gov- The Arkansas Works and Kuder Assessments

www.asla.info- Arkansas Student Loan Authority

www.careeronestop.org- Career One Stop, part of the American Job Network