 |
 |
03/12/10 06:52:00 AM
by Clyde
So,
it’s time to discuss one of my favorite topics – FOOD! In just a few months, if
you’re moving away from home, you’re not going to get to take advantage of those
home-cooked meals anymore – at least not on a daily basis. And since the
likelihood of your throwing together a meal in the kitchen of your residence
hall isn’t likely (unless you’re in culinary school, that is), you’ll probably
be spending a lot of time hanging around your dining hall. Now’s the time to
check out meal plans. Mmmmm, my mouth is
watering already…
The
first step? Find out what kind of plans your college offers, and in some instances requires, and
think about your own eating habits to pick the one that’s right for you. Sound
easy? It can be, as long as you are honest about how (and how MUCH) and when
you really eat. Some plans offer a set number of meals per semester, which
means you show up for breakfast, lunch and dinner every day and eat as much as
you want. Sounds good, right? But are you really going to get up every morning
to eat before class, or would you be just as content with a PopTart you can
store in your room?
And
what is your class schedule like? Do you have a 4-hour studio class in the
middle of the day that would prevent you from making it over to the dining hall
for lunch? Be realistic so you don’t wind up at the end of the semester with a
lot of paid for, but uneaten, food. If
there’s one thing worse than wasted food, it’s wasted MONEY spent on food.
See
if your school allows roll-over dining dollars—some places do. Other plans
offer an option in which you pay for each meal on a pre-paid debit card until
your balance has run out. Again, think about how much you REALLY eat and whether
or not your balance will last until the end of the semester.
Secondly,
know the dates the plans start and end AND research the hours of your dining
hall and other dining venues. Getting to school a week early to move in and
meet your roommate? What are you gonna do when your meal plan doesn’t start for
another seven days?
Plan
on eating breakfast when you wake up every morning (ahem, every noon hour) to get to your afternoon
classes? The dining staff just might turn that waffle iron off before you get
there, buddy. It’s not like home where you can pop down to your kitchen in the
middle of the night for slice of cold pizza or a bowl of ice cream (although
some campuses do offer 24-hour coffee and snack bars).
Thirdly,
find out what’s on the menu! Do you have a food allergy or other type of dietary
restriction? Find out if dining services offers options and substitutions.
Can’t bear the thought of eating in the cafeteria every day? See if your plans include meals from other on-campus
joints that can offer everything from burgers and pizza to sushi and smoothies.
Lastly,
prepare for the unexpected. What happens if you run up the balance on your meal
card two months into the semester? What if your living arrangements change
mid-semester and you wind up in an apartment where you decide to buy your own
groceries, or you move into a fraternity house that has its own meal plan? Find out if you are bound
to the meal plan you paid for, or if there is any penalty for canceling it.
Better
go think about my own options – all-u-can-ear buffet? My nose knows where to
find it.
Woof,
Clyde
03/09/10 12:47:01 PM
by Clyde
Pointers
from the pros can be a big help. Check out Making It Count’s college visit
checklist. They
also have a big list of tough questions to ask on campus visits.
And,
believe it or not, colleges have a vested interest in you landing at a place
that is a good match for you. They want satisfied students. Here is my friend Ashley Frohock
Assistant Director
of Admission at 
telling me why a campus visit is important: (To view the video you will need the latest Flash plug-in. Download it for free here.)
http://media.monster.com/ads/trak/makingitcount/videos/MIC-clyde030910/
Next
time she is going to share some campus visit no-nos with me and I’ll pass them
on to you.
Woof,
Clyde
03/05/10 01:18:37 PM
by Clyde
For those of you graduating
in the spring, March can be an exciting, exhausting, and exasperating month.
Aside from the fact you’re getting closer and closer to graduation and all the
celebration and hooplah that brings, you’re starting to hear back from the
colleges you’ve applied to. And when that acceptance letter arrives, the next
BIG question surfaces: WHO ARE YOU GOING TO ROOM WITH???
That’s right – as you
consider the classes you’ll register for, the organizations you’ll join, the
major you’ll eventually declare, you need to determine just where you will call
home and who you’ll be sharing all of these experiences with. Or you might even
ponder the possibility of flying solo in your living space.
While the answer MIGHT seem
easily apparent (of course I’ll room with my best friend), take some time to
weigh your options before jumping to what you think is the obvious choice.
While sharing a 10x10 space with your nearest and dearest high school friend may
seem fun at first, think about your lifestyle – and think about your friend’s
lifestyle. Is your early-to-bed, early-to-rise routine really compatible with
your potential roommate’s pattern snoring the afternoons away and staying up
until 3 a.m. to study?
Maybe you’re considering the
potluck route. (I’m partial to potluck meals, but an evening meal is waaay
different than a 24/7, entire school year roommate.) While rooming with someone
from a completely different background, whose hometown is on the other end of
the country (or even the opposite side of the globe), may initially seem
daunting, the guys in the residence hall department really know what they’re
doing. They spend a lot of time matching up people with similar behaviors,
schedules and interests.
And while the person you’re assigned
as a roommate may not turn out to be the one you
share your deepest and darkest secrets with, wouldn’t it be nice to know you
won’t have to argue over the remote because you’re both religious viewers of
“The Office” every Thursday night? Or that you’ll never have to worry about a 6
a.m. alarm, because neither of you would ever THINK about scheduling a class
before noon? On a 24/7 basis, little things may matter far more than you think.
And then there’s the option
of choosing to NOT have a roommate. You may think you’d do better to have a
room all to yourself so you can do your own thing on your own time. My friends
have advised me of the following: when you’re a freshman (i.e. at the bottom of
the totem pole) in a brand new world where you may be only one of 50,000 faces
crossing the quad every day, it helps to have a buddy to help you feel not so
quite alone. It can help to come back to a familiar face after class,
especially when you’re just getting acclimated to campus. And who knows? This person
may turn out to be a lifelong friend.
Bottom line: think about
your habits, behaviors and schedule. How adaptable and flexible are you? Would
you go ballistic if you opened the door to find three-day old pizza boxes on
the floor and an unidentified smell coming from your roommate’s laundry hamper?
Do you have to have the TV on to fall asleep? Do you have to leave the light on to fall asleep?
Before I go on and on, never
ever – I mean NEVER EVER – let your parents fill out your roommate questionnaire
for you. It could be ugly, I mean reallllly ugly.
I better go work on my own
list of preferences and sniff out my options.
Then I can get to the really serious stuff – meal plans!
Woof,
Clyde
03/02/10 11:44:00 AM
by Clyde
Talk to everyone
you can on campus, not just the tour guides. Ask questions in the library. Are
people helpful? Ask students who
aren’t tour guides why they picked this school, what they
like/dislike about it, and if they would choose this school if they had to do
it all over again.
Ask about the worst
and best things about campus life. What is the warmest/coldest/rainiest it gets
here? My counselor recently visited a campus where it had been RAINY. Passing a
group of enrolled students, one of the guys yelled: “Don’t come to school here –
it rains every day!” Realize that students can be frustrated with the weather.
Cold and rain get old. Heat and humidity do, too.
Make sure to get a
realistic view of campus life. It’s easy to get that fenced in feeling, like my
friend Dublin, or even, like Molly, feel like
you are completely surrounded by snow if you aren’t accustomed to living in the
tundra! By the way, life generally keeps right on
going – classes and all – if you attend a school that regularly has snow! 
Talking to everyone
means seeking out info from the adults on campus who are resources to you:
admissions, financial aid/scholarships, residence life, career planning and
placement (while learning is what you go to college for, you do have to get out and get a job one day -- that is also a major reason you’re going to college,
after all).
Visit the student
center – read the bulletin boards. What is going on?
Ask students what
life is like on campus on the weekends.
If you are a senior
returning for a visit, it is possible that you are on campus for an admitted
student day. Check out all those students who really could be in class with you
next year – what kind of vibes are you getting?
Remember the
Get your parents to tell you when
you can make a visit and then YOU, yes YOU, make all the
arrangements for the visit with the admissions office. The
more practice you get taking care of these things, the better. Your parents aren’t
going to be there next year to contest a grade for you or to speak with your
R.A. about roommate issues.
Woof,
Clyde
02/26/10 07:54:00 AM
by Clyde
OK, this is a shopping experience.
Really! This is all about finding a place to study that, in and out of the
classroom, fits your needs. Keep in mind that there are plenty of
schools to choose from; the hard part is ending up with one choice. Go from a
big list to a small list – that will help.
When you are on campus or doing your research, be a first-class
detective. You are going to live there 24/7. Don’t just aimlessly wander around
campus “oohing” and “aahing” at the pretty buildings.
Whenever possible, visit when classes
are in session. I’m not saying you can never go during a college break time,
but realize that the feel of campus is very different when students are not
present. Summer visits can be screening visits, providing ways to determine if
you might like to come back to this campus when classes are in session.
Plan ahead! Colleges want notice that
you are coming. They want your visit to be good.
Go to class. In fact, go to several
classes, if possible. This allows you to size up the professors and the
students and see how you feel about working with both groups. (I like art, so
visiting this class was a natural for me.)
Eat the food in the dining hall.
Investigate meal plan options. Mom isn’t going to be there to cook for you.
While you will indeed eat out now and then – pizza is, after all, a requirement
for many college diets – eating out costs money and money is hard to come by
for most college students. There are tons of places to spend it and never
enough of it to go around.
If the college permits it, spend the
night in the residence hall. Leave the hotels to the parental types. Lifestyles
in residence halls can vary dramatically from college to college. When you
check out the options for housing, remember to ask to see a typical first-year
room, not the not-a-thing-out-of-place model unit that many colleges have.
Seeing where real students who are currently enrolled live is the best option –
you see how rooms are arranged and how real students use the space assigned to
them. Remember that residence hall options can arrange from the palatial
why-would-anyone-ever-want-to-leave places to that variety that has you asking:
isn’t this a broom closet?
Check out the laundry facilities. Yep, you’ll
have to do your own laundry in most cases. If you aren’t sure why, you better
ask someone at home why you don’t wash everything in hot water and why you
don’t wash the navy blues with the stark white items!
All this talk about laundry makes me
tired. I need a nap in a nice comfy chair! TTYL8R,
Clyde
02/25/10 08:06:26 AM
by Clyde
First
of all, to answer the question of inquiring minds, it did in fact SNOW ON THE
BEACH! It was just a flurry, mind you, and it only lasted about five minutes.
In fact, by the time I got my camera out to document this momentous occasion,
it had turned into a nasty sleet and I had to run for shelter as my furry coat
was getting soaked!
But
now, after too many weeks of cold and dreary weather down in my neck of the
woods, it is beginning to feel like SPRING! The sun is out, the daffodils are
blooming, and my
foster brothers and sisters are eagerly kicking off their boots and sliding on
the flip-flops that had been gathering dust in their closets. Yes, the first
hint of warm weather brings Frisbee games, driving with the windows rolled
down, and SPRING FEVER!
Spring
Fever – you know, when you walk outside to embrace the smell of green grass and
clover and the sun is shining so bright it makes everything beneath it just
glow and it makes you so happy you forget all of your worries -- like the paper
due tomorrow, the test you have on Friday, and second semester exams!
All
of your obligations seem to disappear as you trade your schoolwork in for a
walk on the beach or a late-night excursion with your buddies because it’s been
ages since you could open the sunroof and touch the stars. And who could
possibly blame you for setting aside Madame
Bovary to catch up on Lady Gaga as you soak up the latest tabloid news on
your front porch swing? After all, where I live, it seems like SPRING!
Heed
this warning, however: Don’t get BURNED or BLINDED by the sunshine! What do I
mean? It’s fine to enjoy the warmer temperatures, but don’t get so absorbed in
the carefree mood the weather brings that you completely neglect your
schoolwork, deadlines and other obligations. You know they call them beach BUMS for a reason.
There CAN be too
much of a good thing. Take a minute to tiptoe through the tulips, but take your
books with you to absorb the best of both worlds. Those tests and papers don’t
just magically float away like dandelion fluff.
Better
go stock up on my sunscreen…and grab my backpack on the way. I have to get back
to work and give you some more information about college visits.
Woof,
Clyde
02/16/10 07:40:00 AM
by Clyde
And
roll, and roll! The parades have been rolling
down here where I live for three weeks now in preparation for the Big Event: MARDI GRAS!!!!
Yep,
me and thousands of other revelers have
been crowding the streets, barking a
“Throw me something, Mister!” for MoonPies, doubloons, peanuts, cups, toys and,
of course, BEADS!
My
friends and I look forward to the Mardi Gras, or Fat Tuesday, season every
year, when the indulgence of the holiday season culminates in a few glorious,
colorful, mystical days of parades,
balls, and FOOD! And when the final bead is thrown and the last, lingering
slice of king cake is consumed, the Lenten season begins.
This
year’s Mardi Gras is especially eventful as we celebrate BOTH the holiday AND
the Super Bowl! As I told you earlier, I live smack dab in the middle of
Saints’ Territory and we are so stoked to see them come marching in with that beautiful trophy.
This
will be my only entry this week, but when the celebrating is over, I’ll be back
to focusing on the college visit process. For now, it’s time for fun.
Gotta
go. It’s time to get my zydeco on.
Woof,
Clyde
02/12/10 07:52:07 AM
by Clyde
Newsflash:
Colleges care if
you are interested in them. Don’t believe me? NACAC’s (the National Association for College
Admission Counseling) 2009 State of College Admission report noted that
demonstrated interest as a factor in admissions, for the colleges reporting
information, went from 7% in 2003 (the first year it was reported as a factor)
to 21% in 2009. That is a big jump!
My
counselor would be the first to tell you those are dog scrap numbers
compared to the influence of an applicant’s GPA, rigor of courses taken, etc. But she’d also tell you that showing interest in a school has skyrocketed as an
admissions factor. Now before your paws fall off from fretting, while the
admissions impact of demonstrated interest has sky rocketed, lots of other
factors still play a far larger role -- things like GPA, rigor of the high school
program, and, in some cases, standardized tests. (Also remember that www.fairtest.org
has a list of more than 800 colleges that no longer require standardized tests
as part of the admissions process.)
My
counselor would also tell you there are tons of ways to show interest without
jetting to campus and zipping around like Sherlock Holmes while you are there.
Here are some other ways to show a college it is
on your radar screen:
- Write
for information–the old-fashioned way with a stamp or use e-mail
- Go to a
college fair and talk with the rep
- Fill
out an information card from a poster at your school
- Attend
an area, state, or regional presentation by a college or group of colleges
- Have an
interview with an alum in your area that the college has designated for such
purposes
- Talk to
an admissions representative when they visit your school
Visiting
colleges should be fun -- if it isn’t you’re doing something WRONG! But it
is also work if you do it correctly. Here’s what my counselor tells me:
Never, ever -- not one single time -- has she had to “teach” a prospective college
student or a currently enrolled student how to have fun on a college campus.
However, learning how to study when you are in charge of yourself 24/7,
scheduling your time wisely, budgeting your money -- that’s a different story.
These tasks take effort, discipline, and real paw pressure! Frankly -- hmmm makes me think of hot dogs...makes me think of eating. Visiting a college takes discipline. If
you’re going to spend the money to make the visit, get all you can out of the
trip. More
on that later.
Weather bulletin newsflash. We have snow in the
forecast! Anybody know if they make ice skates for dogs? Do you remember where
I live? Let me remind you.
Sun, sand,
water? Back with you later with more visit tips–gotta go cover up the azaleas!
Clyde
02/11/10 12:45:00 PM
by Clyde
Spring
definitely hasn’t sprung where I live. It was twenty-five degrees colder
here this morning than it was yesterday morning! Oh, well, at least I’m not pawing around in the snow and ice
like so many of my friends. Take Lilly and Molly -- right now Hawaii and Florida are looking better and better
as possible places for them to go to college.☺ My friend
Dublin hates the winter weather–gives her so many bad hair days.
However, I
know you can’t just consider the climate and weather when you select options
for education after high school. I am thinking about taking a trip to check out
some more schools. I want to make sure I have really good options and good
information. Not every individual can hound around on campuses. If you can’t go
in person, remember to go virtually -- the Internet makes most everything
available at the click of your mouse. Ask your counselor for information. Talk
to former students from your school. Talk to college alums in your area. I mean D I G for all the information you can get.
While I was
thinking about my situation, I realized juniors will soon be heading out for
college visits. Some of my foster siblings at school who are juniors have
already been on college visits and lots of them have talked to our counselor
about plans for after high school. If you are a junior, what are you waiting
for? Get into your counselor’s/adviser’s office for a barking good
conversation about your future!
For
seniors, there could be interview visits at colleges for scholarship programs, second trips to reassess
possible college matches, and the highly popular accepted students sessions
that are cropping up all over. Those are visits at colleges where students who
have been accepted are invited to a scheduled get-together to do a final
run-through at a given college. The plus to these sessions is that you can be
on campus with students who, unlike the traveling packs of students and parents
on traditional college visits, actually might be in class with you in the fall following your senior year.
So, for a few of our chats to come, I’m going to talk about college visits. But,
I’m also gonna woof about some fun things cause I’m about to go on
winter break. I live in the land of Mardi Gras (and, I’m technically in Who
Dat Nation territory).
Before I
head out, I need to pack.
Do you
think dogs have to pay extra for checked baggage?
Woof,
Clyde
02/05/10 11:10:00 AM
by Clyde
So,
you’ve sat down with your parents and worked out an estimated budget for next
year. They’ve told you how much they can send you every month, you know about
how much you’ll be getting in scholarship and grant money, but you look at the
bottom line -- and you’re STILL in the red! What are your options? Well, you can consider
student loans, but don’t forget, you
eventually have to pay those back. Newsflash—if you leave school early without
graduating, you don’t get to wait until you would have graduated to begin
repaying the loans! Can you say UGLY?
What else can you do? Consider the unthinkable: GET A JOB.
A
job? In college? Aren’t you going to have enough on your plate just going to
class, writing papers and studying, not to mention adjusting to a whole new
environment, trying to make friends and establish some sort of social life for
yourself, and exploring clubs and other organizations to feel like a part of
your college community? Of course! But -- let
me share with you a few things my buddies in college have told me about the
benefits of having a job in college (aside
from the paycheck).
First
let’s talk work study. What is this? If you qualify for it, work study is a
form of financial aid that offers you a job through on campus to offset some of
your tuition and expenses. The benefits of work study are numerous. First of
all, you will have the opportunity to set your work schedule around your class
schedule. Additionally, if you are able to get a position in the department of
your major, you will have the chance to become more immersed in your own career
path. As an added bonus, you will have a greater chance of rubbing shoulders
with the very professors you maybe in the classroom with later on, which can
always help you down the road.
As
for a job off campus? The benefits are tremendous here, as well. First off, if
you’ve never had a job until this point, there’s no time like the present to
start BUILDING WORK EXPERIENCE. Take the opportunity to beef up that resume!
Worried about the time commitment? This is a good point to consider, however,
for some for my friends, the added responsibility of a job made them more adept
at time management. A job enabled them to stay more focused during their time
spent studying and their final grades were a positive refection of this. Some
other pluses? If you take a position at a restaurant or retail store close to
campus, chances are you’ll not only be working with other students, but you’ll
in a constant environment of other students and, there could be free food or a
discount associated with these types of jobs. I like free food! What a great way
to meet new people! Furthermore, it says a lot about a person who is working to
help fund his or her own education. It
shows you understand that it is important to invest in yourself! Not only
is this another excellent resume builder, but the boss you have in college is a
prime candidate to provide you with a glowing letter of recommendation down the
road when you’re applying for that job you’re going to class for.
A
final word about student loans. For some, they’re an inevitable resource; and
don’t forget: a degree you have to borrow
money to pay for is better than no degree at all. A word to the wise,
however: DON’T BORROW MORE THAN YOU
REALLY NEED. Case in point, my buddy Roscoe accepted the full amount he was
eligible for every semester, even though he only needed about half to cover his
expenses. What did he do with the residual cash? He equipped his apartment with
a brand new entertainment center and furniture. Don’t get me wrong, I think his
roommates got a lot of mileage out of Guitar Hero and the satellite service
with 800 channels. And I know Roscoe enjoyed brushing up on his Chem. homework
in that La-Z-Boy, but do you know how much that stuff costs with a 6.8% (or more) APR over 20 years. Well,
Roscoe graduated last year and as he now adjusts to life in the REAL WORLD, he’s just beginning to find
out. Lucky for Roscoe, he hung on to that recliner, because right now he’s
feeling a little…trapped.
Woof,
Clyde
|
 |
|
 |