I entered college in the fall of 2019, with all the hopes and dreams of a young girl from a small town entering a dream school in a big city. I entered college in the fall of 2019, with all the hopes and dreams of a young girl from a small town entering a dream school in a big city. I made incredible friends, explored new places, tried new foods, and found time to study somewhere in between. Until March of 2020 hit, and well… you know. The idyllic glass castle of freshman year shattered. Fast forward to today. I’ll be graduating in December of 2022 and will have earned my degree without ever having had a full year of being in-person on my college campus. My freshman year was cut off in March of 2020. My sophomore year was entirely online. The fall of my junior year was in-person, but we had two weeks of remote work at the outset of the spring semester. I’ll be finishing college in December. And that’s it. 3.5 years, and almost half of it done from the desk of my childhood room, two-thousand five hundred and seventy-three miles away from campus. People pity the class of 2022 and 2023, saying that we never had the “full college experience,” as if we’ll be missing some vital part of our young adult lives. And perhaps there’s a part of that statement that might be true. However, I also believe it’s granted myself and my classmates a unique skill set that will last a lifetime—and be incredibly useful in today's ever-changing work environment and economy. Here are a few of those skills: We know how to pivot quickly and adapt to new situations and circumstances. This past fall—while being completely in-person and on-campus–came with many ups and downs. Covid cases weren’t nonexistent on campus, and there were some weeks when class would be canceled 20 minutes before it began. But there’d be no chaos or panicking. Instead of walking 10 minutes to my classroom, I’d walk 10 minutes to the library or the student coffee shop, pop open my laptop, and class would resume as if nothing changed. Covid testing is now required twice a week? Of course! New mask policies set in place? Sure thing. The dining halls are closed for a week and robots will be delivering our meals? Sounds great! Every curveball that is thrown at us, we’ve learned to take it in stride, adapt quickly, and let it not actively disrupt our purpose and goals for each day. We are able to efficiently execute quality work across all in-person and remote platforms. I and my fellow classmates learned Zoom, Microsoft Teams, Google Meet, and our school’s academic platform, Brightspace, in the blink of an eye, moving on to even assist our professors and advisors on how to best utilize the platforms for their and our advantage. We’re fluent in classroom learning on these technological platforms, but we’re also fluent in classroom learning in-person as well. I know how to effectively collaborate with a group on term-long projects in study rooms, Zoom breakout rooms, and a combination of both. We’ve learned how to measure tasks and decide which ones would be more valuable to work on in-person, or which ones would best be discussed while sharing a screen on a video call. We’ve learned how to create our own hybridized systems of learning and working to maximize our efficiency on campus, which will surely translate into any future careers we may also have. We’ve built up incredible emotional resilience. When my school announced that we’d have two weeks of remote classes in the spring of 2022, I remember feeling heartbroken and scared. Would these two weeks of remote learning be eternally extended, like in March of 2020? Thankfully, it was not, but the possibility of closure would always be there. Through it all, I remember thinking in the back of my mind, We’ve done that before. We can do it again. We know what it’s like to have the rug pulled from under us, our routines disrupted. We now know how to plan accordingly, quickly develop and find new routines, and shape our days in the small spaces of our rooms or dorms. We know how to pay attention in meetings and classes that feel like they’ll never end. I’m not naive enough to say that we’ve seen it all, but we sure have seen and felt a LOT these past two years, Instead of dwelling on and grieving what we cannot do, we focus on what we can do. This applies to college and beyond. This is what’s going to shine on our resumes and job applications post-graduation. This is what makes the classes of 2022 and 2023 unique, strong, and resilient. WRITTEN BY Gwyneth Bechunas Loyola Marymount University Gwyneth Bechunas is a rising senior at Loyola Marymount University, graduating in December of 2022 with a major in screenwriting and a minor in business administration. She is very excited to turn a lifelong love for reading into a career in the publishing industry and is always eager to talk books with anyone and everyone. Gwyneth is currently an intern with the Macmillan Trade Field Sales division in the Independent Bookstore Channel.     ... View more

I like to consider myself something of a modern day Da Vinci. I like to consider myself something of a modern day Da Vinci. I don’t mean this in a ‘genius inventor-artist-architect-who-knows-what-else’ sense. I mean it in the ‘took so long to decide on what to major in that I’ve changed minors five times’ sense. And while the man himself might have been one of those crazy geniuses who ends up with 5 PhD’s by thirty (in my humble opinion, Bruce Banner really needed a hobby that wasn’t academia), I like to think he would have empathized with my struggle of being around the academic block.  In my time doing random minors I found interesting, work-study, research-assisting, and most recently, interning, I’ve discovered that a lot of what can go on a resume are the skills and experiences I’ve gained while being in uni. I’m not about to kill myself doing ten thousand things. Instead I’ve gotten very good at selling what hobbies and experience I do have. So, if you’re just starting college and don’t have work experience, or are focused on your academics, or have a thousand hobbies but no clue how to make someone see the value in them, here’s my secret: Sell them like they’re the most valuable part of you.    Project Management  Have you ever considered that everyone in college constantly practices project management? Each class is a huge project. You likely have several you need to balance, in addition to having a life. Those projects need to be broken down into sub-projects, like homework or reading. They all have due dates and varying priority levels. A small forum post does not have the same weight on your grade as a midterm or paper. This, too, needs to be considered. To make matters worse, some of those bigger sub-projects need to be divided further! You have to research for a paper. You have to write a first draft. Oh no, there’s a bibliography too? And then you have to edit it. And if your teacher really wants to hear students crying, there might even be a presentation attached to the end. You have two options, really. You can emu-stick your head into the ground and weep or you can emu-win the war with Australia. And that requires solid project management skills. So, how do you do it? Planners? Calendars? Ten-thousand to-do lists? If you ever get asked, “Give us an example of project management”, you will be more than ready.  (Yes, I know. It’s popular culture ostriches who stick their head in the ground. They don’t do it in real life and neither do emus. It’s a metaphor. I’m trying to be funny here.)   Knowing to Reach Out For Help Knowing when you need help, and seeking out others when you need help and not being ashamed to do so, are more valuable skills than you think. (And if you are ashamed, please don’t be. Office hours, career services, peer tutoring, and all the like are there for a reason).   Critical Thinking Classes teach you how to think in certain ways. This applies to future STEM scientists, but also researchers (psychologists approach research differently than anthropologists, for example), and members of the humanities as well (How to analyze a text. How to summarize it. How to communicate ideas clearly and concisely.)   Conflict Management If you’re a freshman with rose-tinted glasses, hate to tell you, but you will probably dislike someone over your time in uni. A classmate, a teacher, maybe even your roommate. Navigating these instances is a valuable skill to have. Specifically: navigate them by not making a public mess of it, unless unavoidable or your safety is in danger. As always, context matters! But usually you want to talk to the person in private, maybe with a mediator present to iron out your differences. Conversely: How to be friendly! No one wants to work with a jerk. Even if you and your team aren’t best friends, you still want a good working rapport. Trust me, work culture matters for a reason. (And if you blank about what questions to ask interviewers, work culture is always a good go-to).   Networking I know, what a slimy word. But it’s as simple as going to office hours and asking your teacher questions, and thus making a good impression. It’s even as simple as finding a good club you enjoy and making friends. In other words: not simple at all, but may come naturally as a result of being in university.   I’m blanking on more, but I’m sure you, dear reader, are having college experiences I’ve never had. Maybe you can out-debate anyone. Maybe you can name a hundred mineral types. Maybe you’ve won competitions, gotten awards, sailed across the Pacific in nothing but a tiny boat. When looking for a job, internship, or position, you are your biggest advocate. Are you that loser who spent six months doing nothing but fishing or the awesome person who overcame insurmountable odds through skill, dedication, and tenacity, and is also now a pretty good fisher? You’re human, so the answer is both. But there’s only one that you should view yourself as, and that’s the one you need to sell. WRITTEN BY Melissa Marcus University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Melissa Marcus is a crazy cat lady moonlighting as a rising senior citizen at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Over the summer she’s been the Humanities Media Editorial Intern for Macmillan Learning. The rest of the year she studies Anthropology by day time and reads, writes, paints, plays games by night time. Her dream for the near future is to learn Japanese and get better at German, so she doesn’t stutter through hello and fail every other conversation beat.   ... View more

“10…9…8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3…2…1!” “10…9…8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3…2…1!” The last bell of senior year goes off, followed by a chorus of cheers and whoops from the class of 2019. It’s a mess of tears, laughter, and breathless cries of “we did it!” as the familiar tune of the Sweet Caroline anthem plays us out of four long, exhausting high school years. I look around one last time at the people I have grown up with for the past seven years. It’s not hitting me quite yet that life is about to change so drastically for every single one of us. It didn’t hit when I saw last year’s graduating class go through this same ritual, nor did it the year before that, or even before that. I always imagined it would be now, in this moment, that the collective realization would strike us speechless. But it doesn’t feel like that. I suppose it won’t yet, not until I’m looking back at these memories four summers from now, reminiscing over old friendships and the walls I used to call home. And this moment. I’ll never forget this singular, loud, excruciating moment. ______________________________________________________________________ As we slowly resurface on the other side of the COVID-19 pandemic and the almost two-year “time freeze” it imposed on society, there seem to be a lot of buzzwords floating around like “return to normal” or “back to how things used to be.” We’re now beginning to see the implications of such a return and uncover some of the complications that we may not have foreseen. I don’t remember hearing of a graduating class before mine that didn’t participate in that jovial, last day ritual. Every year that I got to witness it, there were differences and modifications, but the end result was always the same: the graduating class gathered in their beloved lounge on the last day of classes, counting down the last ten seconds until the final bell rang. True to tradition, our own class followed suit, as we expected every class after us to do. We never saw an alternative. Herricks High School’s class of 2020 did not get the opportunity to carry out this beloved tradition; nor did the class of 2021. My sister, three years younger than I was, can still recall as a freshman watching my class count down to that last bell in 2019. When June of 2022 rolled around, I waited at home on her last day, expecting to hear about her own version of this bittersweet milestone. But her version never happened. As she tells it, her grade simply did not do it. Maybe half of the grade hadn’t even seen the tradition play out three years ago. Maybe those who did forgot of its existence. Whatever the reason, listening to my sister talk made me wonder somberly: was this tradition lost forever? After all, as most traditions work, we learned from those before us. But with nothing to observe, would the next graduating class even know about this tradition, let alone others? Would they realize all the things that they never would experience because they never learned of them? It doesn’t stop at high school. As a twenty-one-year-old just dipping her toes in the sea of corporate life, I find myself wondering: What workplace traditions may I be missing out on? What workplace nuances got left behind when everyone packed up their offices in a frenzy in March of 2020? What is it like to physically visit your boss’ desk for two minutes? What exchanged glances across the office or inside jokes will I never get to “watch and learn?” How does happy hour even work with your colleagues? And with an odd mishmash of employees who are cautiously beginning to return to in-person work and employees who have permanently set up camp in the comfort of their homes, how can I – or anyone else in this up-and-coming generation of the workforce – reasonably expect to learn all the ins, outs, and in betweens of the office? Do we even want to? Because all this talk of drifting away from the old brings in a whole other topic of discussion: drifting towards the new. Will we, as the new generation of employees, seek to dig deeper into office roots to uncover the subtle traditions and conventions of years past? Or will we abandon these ideas altogether and brainstorm new and innovative traditions of our own? And if we choose the latter – leaving old rituals to gather dust in the bottom drawers of our supply closets – do we risk resentment from long standing employees who crave, as we hear in the midst of the buzz, a return to their idea of normal? WRITTEN BY Vineeta Abraham Stony Brook University Vineeta Abraham is a rising senior at Stony Brook majoring in Psychology with a minor in Creative Writing. She is also a lover of music, sunsets, food, dogs, and meeting new people whenever possible. Vineeta is an intern in the Human Resources department at Macmillan.     ... View more

You’ve had a long day at work or school. You woke up early, headed off to work, got chewed out by your boss despite doing your best, and went home. Most people in this situation might reach for the wine bottle. The cultural trope is the hard-working father coming home to drink a few beers or the tired business woman pouring herself a “well-deserved” glass of red wine.  Drinking has become a social event, with bottles of wine appearing at weddings, social gatherings, and nearly every big holiday. Maybe it’s part of your coping mechanism. Maybe you simply enjoy it. Regardless, most everyone will view alcohol in moderate quantities as a harmless substance that can take the edge off when life knocks you astray. For the most part, this is true. One glass a week isn’t going to send you to the emergency room. But alcohol abuse can lead to a host of brain issues, starting with cognitive decline. And wait – there’s more! The problem becomes much more severe as we age. Because when we’re older, our bodies are different, which means our brains are different, which means the way our brains deal with alcohol is – different. We can now take a closer look at some of the biggest ways alcohol affects the brain, more specifically, the aging brain.  Our brains don’t quite “bounce back” as quickly from something serious, and it takes more time and cellular energy for older people’s brains to perform as efficiently as their younger counterparts. When you add heavy drinking on top of that, the situation starts to get  sticky. This very well-cited study found decreased white matter tracts in older chronic alcoholics.  Let me break that down for you.  After looking at brains of 49 veterans who consumed a lot of alcohol daily, the researchers found that, compared to healthy control participants, the alcoholic group had significantly fewer brain cell connections. This means that different parts of their brains weren’t talking to each other as much. And that’s the most crucial step to getting anything done.  Surprise! Communication is key, even inside our bodies.  These same researchers also found higher cortical cerebrospinal fluid and diminished cortical gray matter in the veterans group. In other words, this group had more fluid in their brains, and less of their brain cavity (the space in their heads) was actual neural tissue. Basically, the alcoholics had more water and less brain in their heads. What about other parts of the brain? Glad you asked!  There’s a small but incredibly important area responsible for memory called the hippocampus. This little seahorse-shaped bundle of tissue is responsible for anything from remembering how your mother used to read bedtime stories to you to learning how to drive. Unfortunately, it’s hurt by age and alcohol speeds up that effect. Some researchers from Stanford used a technique called MRI, which is basically a giant magnet that lets scientists see the inside of someone’s brain, and found less hippocampal volume in alcoholics, a correlation which intensified with age. Heavy drinking can also affect long-term memory, causing something known as alcohol-related dementia (ARD). This is similar to the dementia or cognitive decline generally associated with aging, but on a much deeper level. ARD is scarier because the effects are continuous, meaning all the symptoms will keep happening even after someone has sobered up.  People with ARD can also develop something called Marchiafava-Bignami Disease (MBD), which is pretty much one of the “big bad bosses” of alcohol disorders. MBD causes short or long-term coma in its patients (simply put, a long and dangerous nap), as well as changes in memory, personality, perception, and attention. Like the veteran study, MBD patients have a decreased white matter – the connections in the brain that allow one part of the brain to “talk” to another.  In MBD, the lack of communication is much worse because patients lose their corpus callosum, a huge bundle of fibers that connects the two halves of the brain. Without this, whatever your brain is doing on the left side can’t translate to whatever your brain does on the right side. Consider the example of Country A and Country B. Country A makes ingredients, Country B makes pies, and the only way to get from Country A to B is a huge bridge. It would be a real disaster for all the pie-lovers of the world if that bridge were severed. That’s exactly what it’s like for MBD patients. Even without MBD and the erosion of the hypothetical “bridge”, extreme alcohol intake can slowly destroy the connections in your brain, which is why it’s important to be careful with over drinking.  WRITTEN BY Allie Yuxin Lin Columbia University Allie Yuxin Lin is a senior at Columbia University in New York studying psychology and neuroscience. As an East Coast native, she is very confused about the lack of cold weather in LA (but hey, no complaints!). If she isn’t writing something up or researching the newest neuroscience discovery, she’s probably running around the streets with her Australian Shepherd, Jasper.   ... View more

It was my first week as a Macmillan intern and I was so excited to have finally landed the job that would begin my career in publishing. I nervously introduced myself to my team and met everyone I would be working with, but when I began sitting in on meetings and going through orientation resources, I realized I only understood a portion of the things I was hearing. I struggled to catch and juggle acronyms and words like “CBT,” “frontlist,” and “attrition,” and found myself fumbling with these unfamiliar phrases. My meetings with my manager would be filled with me going through my list of questions as I began to build a personal dictionary.  So, if you’ve ever been stumped by a word someone has used or felt like there was just so much you didn’t understand, know you’re not alone. Publishing, like any industry, uses a lot of field-specific jargon and no one expects you to know it all. But, my hope is that this short list of common publishing phrases might be of use to you. Know it’s not exhaustive, and I’m sure there are specific phrases that will be used with your team but no one will ever think less of you for asking them to clarify what they mean. Good luck on your publishing journey, and take comfort that we’re all in this together! I’d also like to take a moment to thank Molly Pyles, Lizette Faraji, and Caitlin O'Beirne for their contributions to this list and for just being wonderful.    Acquisition - A term used when a publisher buys the rights to a book from an author. Advance - The money an author is paid upfront when they sign a contract with a publisher. Advanced Readers Copies/Galley (ARCs) - A pre-published book given to librarians, educators, influencers, bloggers, etc. by a publisher to facilitate buzz around the book before its official release. Agent - A liaison between a writer and editor or publisher who advocates for his or her client (writer). Agents usually take a 10-15% commission from the advance and royalties. Attrition - Term that basically means lost business. Someone, who was once publishing with us, is no longer. Auction - Publishers sometimes bid for the acquisition of a book manuscript that has excellent sales prospects. The bids are for the amount of the author's advance, advertising and promotional expenses, royalty percentages, and more. Auctions are conducted by agents. Backlist - A publisher's list of its books that were not published during the current season, but that are still in print. Blurb - The short quote or paragraph on the back cover of a book that allows the reader to get an idea of what it’s about. Bound galleys - Prepublication edition of book or final galley proofs, also known as "bound proofs." Canonical Fragment Identifier (CFIs) - Links within an ebook for specific parts like sections and chapters. Comp - Comparable or competitive titles—usually included in a book proposal. Imprint - Name applied to a publisher's specific line of books. International Standard Book Number (ISBN) - The specific number given to a particular book. Foreign rights - Translation or reprint rights to be sold in other countries and territories. Frontlist - A publisher's list of books that are new to the current season. Also known as “new titles.” Jira - A project management tool used for planning, tracking, and supporting software projects. Mass market - Non-specialized books of wide appeal directed toward a large audience. Metadata - Backend information for ebooks that include their title, edition, ISBN, etc. that works as an id used to create/define connections between versions or other resources. If there is a new version added to an ebook, it could change the metadata and thus mess up connections already established using the link to the old version. Middle Grade (MG) - Genre that targets the 8 to 12 year-old age group. Narrative nonfiction - A narrative presentation of actual events. Also called creative nonfiction. POD - Print on demand. Publisher’s Weekly - An American weekly trade news source. https://www.publishersweekly.com/ Serial rights - The right for a newspaper or publication to publish sections of a manuscript. Subsidiary rights - All rights other than book publishing rights included in a book publishing contract, such as paperback rights, book club rights, movie rights, and more. Translation rights - Subsidiary rights for books to be translated and sold in another language. Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) - Guidelines that are a part of a series of web accessibility guidelines published by the Web Accessibility Initiative of the World Wide Web Consortium – a.k.a. the main international standards organization for the Internet. https://www.w3.org/standards/webdesign/ Young Adult (YA) - Genre that targets any age from 12-18, but nearly half of its readers are older than this. WRITTEN BY Grace Bartel University of Delaware A Media Editorial Intern at Macmillan Learning, Grace is an English graduate student at the University of Delaware. More interestingly, she’s an avid dog mom, reader, writer, hiker, and video game lover who spends the majority of her free time willingly lost in fantastical stories.     ... View more

At that time it seemed like a good decision to dive straight into my undergraduate degree two months after moving halfway across the world, but one semester into my college experience, I realized I had not given myself enough time to prepare myself for true American college.  At that time it seemed like a good decision to dive straight into my undergraduate degree two months after moving halfway across the world, but one semester into my college experience, I realized I had not given myself enough time to prepare myself for true American college.  As someone who immigrated from Pakistan and landed straight in the heart of the American midwest, I thought I knew enough about the lives and interactions of college students here to be able to smoothly adapt to this new way of life. However, no amount of dark academia novels set in prestigious liberal arts colleges or reality shows featuring kids my age could prepare me for real American college.  If my sophomore self could ever draw up a list of cultural/social differences I was faced with (things that both shocked, or pleasantly surprised me)—to help my freshman self navigate through college easily—these four items would definitely make it to the list: 1. Conversations in America flow easier As someone who knows many foreigners, immigrants, or people living in the US who were raised in another country, one thing that always shocks all of these groups is the lack of a formal language. Now this one might be something that is brought up far more by my foreign-raised peers belonging to an Asian culture, but the lack of an entirely different set of words reserved to talk to people who are either older than you or more experienced than you (in whatever field you belong to) makes conversation difficult rather than easier for us. In a college setting, talking to your professor the same way you’d talk to your fellow classmates can make navigating through casual conversations harder, at least it did for me.  While this part of American culture/language was something I was already familiar with, I found it extremely difficult to have to use just a formal tone rather than a formal language in my classes. 2. Individualism has its pros and cons One thing I was most excited about when I started college was how people focused on themselves, and it wasn’t even frowned upon! Back home, the sense of community is so strong that every decision you make and every path you chose had to be discussed with or approved by the members of your community (be it your extended family, friends, or even your neighbors). Now don’t get me wrong, I absolutely love this aspect of my culture. Every member of the community has strong bonds with each other and they’re always ready to support you in whatever decision you make. But to live on your own, making mistakes of your own, and having to deal with the consequences on your own seemed like a great proposition. It was, for the first four months. After those four months, I realized I was craving the very thing I thought was going to suffocate me. Suddenly, friends who had chosen to move to another country (to study or work or find themselves) coming home every chance they could, started making a lot more sense. With time, you get used to it and begin feeling exceedingly grateful for the chance to grow on your own. I would never admit it to anyone but I feel like my past self deserves to know that  finding yourself in college often means coming home and eating alone out of a styrofoam box and feeling the loneliest you’ve ever been.  3. You’re already halfway into your career as a college student I don’t blame freshman me for being too overwhelmed with the entire move from Pakistan to the US, but if I could go back and tell her to do one thing differently, it would be to use all the opportunities and support provided by my university that would be useful after graduation. Attend networking events, learn more about approaching potential employers/mentors and explore more. College back home was more about academics rather than experience so I–like many other international students/new immigrant students—wasn’t expecting anything more than four years of only writing essays or giving presentations.  4. Like most things in media, college too is romanticized As someone whose perception of college was based entirely on whatever the American movies/TV shows put out there, it shouldn’t have been shocking that college was not all about brunch with friends, parties, and spring breaks in South America.  As someone moving to a place they’d never been before, it did come as a shock when college in America was still about finals and due dates and messed-up sleep schedules. Sure, American college is different from college back home, but it still is college.  WRITTEN BY Samia Saeed University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee Samia Saeed is a current Marketing and Journalism student at the University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee. On the weekends, you’ll find her holed up in her room, either watching her comfort Ghibli film or reading her favorite immigrant-fiction book.       ... View more

Living with others for the first time? No problem! I remember back when I was a student first leaving the nest and moving out on their own for the first time. I was so overjoyed at the opportunity to express myself in a new space. I’d binged cute apartment and dorm tour videos for weeks. I dreamed of my perfect trendy boho blush pink comforter and pillow combo. I hoped for a roommate I could “click with” and a fun dorm environment. I knew that things wouldn't be perfect, but I had hoped that I would be able to keep the peace and get by. Soon, I discovered that I needed something to hold on to. When I actually started to live my life as a college student, I was feeling lost, hurt, and bothered by my roommates.  Healthy confrontation skills were something that I lacked before I moved out. I didn't know that it could be practiced in a measured, compassionate way. I came from a low-income household and school district. Violence and anger were things that I conflated with conflict and I did my best to not care or involve myself. But even the most people-pleasing person (like myself) could get annoyed. There is a limit to how much anyone can take. That being said, here are 3 things I keep in mind when I find myself at odds with my roommates.  Assume the best intent Remember, your roommates are human too. They are also flawed and make mistakes. Try to see the situation from their perspective. When I found myself in need of practicing this, I would also remind myself to never attribute to malice what can be attributed to ignorance. This helped me ease the tightness in my heart and let go of my initial anger. A lot of what made me so hurt or bothered at first was my knee-jerk assumption of “they tried to hurt/bother me on purpose.” Once I could let that go, I found it easier to try and see the situation from their point of view.  You deserve to be happy I said it. As long as you haven't tried to take it from someone else, you absolutely deserve your chances at being happy. I have learned that to achieve this, it is important to verbalize my needs. I was worried that I would be seen as selfish, but after years of not ever expressing my needs, I felt unworthy and neglected. Then, I heard the words of John Ortberg, and they really struck a chord with me: "you are only able to live in a way that really helps others when your soul feels its worth." It is not a selfish act to express your needs, it is a compassionate one. When you avoid resentment by facing issues with your roommate, you make life better for yourself and for those around you. You may need to take into account the time and place, but don’t skip a chance to respectfully express to your roommate how you feel. Be honest with your feelings and learn when to let go There was a time I didn’t really know how to express my feelings neutrally. I would accuse my roommate of “You never wash the dishes when it’s your turn, I’ve had to do it!” or “You didn’t take the trash out like you said you would!” Usually, when I did this, it was the 2nd or 3rd time my roommate had done this and I felt targeted and ignored. They of course felt attacked and returned my energy in kind. These confrontations never ended well and had lasting effects on the roommate dynamic. I realized I had a hard time being vulnerable and didn’t take any time to define my feelings to myself. I didn’t think before I spoke and it hurt others even when they didn’t deserve it. To let yourself be vulnerable to a new person, a roommate who you may not even be friends yet is terrifying. I found this especially hard because I wanted to be a good person, but I kept reading so far into what my roommates did that I would work myself up and be inconsolable. Then I heard the phrase, “speak to how you feel about what actually happened, not what you think happened.” Instead of thinking,“I’m so mad, she’s just leaving all the work to me, does she think I’m going to be her mom?!” I would instead think, “I’m mad she left this here, but she probably forgot to take care of it. I’ll remind her, and find out how she feels about it.”  After thinking about these three elements I now work up the courage to speak to my roommate. I recognize that the goal is not to be the better person for the sake of getting to say that I was the better person; the goal is to address the conflict. I remind myself that people may have learned different ways of dealing with conflict and may need to take some time to cool down or take care of something before talking. I start off by being clear about what I need from them and listening to them and their situation.  Sometimes, I have faced people who don't take kindly to any kind of confrontation and push with hostility against my boundaries. In those cases, having a friend, community, or mentor to affirm and support me helped so much in standing firm.  College is so hectic, and you deserve a peaceful space after class. Delving further into conflict resolution skills has helped me so much in making friends with roommates that I had initially not gotten along with. College is a time to express yourself, and your needs and boundaries should be included in that too! WRITTEN BY Lesley Ramirez University of North Texas Armed with coffee and a clicky keyboard, Lesley is completing her BS in Business Computer Information Systems. She is Texas-born and raised and you can generally find her online enjoying cute parrot videos, pursuing creative narrative projects, or thinking up new gamer set-up themes for her workspace all while jamming out to synthwave!   ... View more

$$$$ Budget: the buzzword of every conversation around becoming an independent individual. Many people think a budget is just a list of numbers that pertains to the amount of money that you are required to spend on bills. In truth, a budget is a promise and accountability to yourself and your bank account. Many people want to find new and effective ways to budget but there is no “right” way to do it.  The first thing that comes in any budget though, is collecting all your receipts for about a month (past receipts count) and figuring out where you spend the most money. After figuring out where most of your money is going and where you feel you can cut spending, move on to one of these tools. The Binder Method This method is pretty labor-intensive. When using the binder method, the individual needs to have a 3” binder, a lot of ziplock bags or those little pencil pouches that clip into binders, and cash. With this method, the user would write different budget portions onto separate bags (for example: bills, health care, gas, etc). The cash would then be separated by the amounts that must or can be spent that month. This is where that tracking of receipts comes in handy. Apps  There is an app for everything of course. There are many apps for budgeting of course. I personally use the app Mint by Intuit. These apps track how much you spend by linking to your bank accounts as well as allow you to add any bills that you may owe. This is definitely the more hands-off version of budgeting because all the leg work is done for you and notifications help keep you on track.  Calendars Calendars are a more old-school method of budgeting, but they often are very trusty. First, you need to write down all the dates your bills are due and the amounts that they cost. Next, you would want to write down the days you get paid and the amount that corresponds with that day. Afterward, you would plan out your day-to-day spending between checks and bills (pull out those receipts again). This will help because if you know you often go out every second Friday, you will always plan for how much money that you will spend that day. The big key to this is to USE CASH. Every week, pull out the amount of cash that you need for the week. Leave your cards at home if you can and only take what you know you can spend. WRITTEN BY Aubre Thomas Central Michigan University I am the epitome of a personality that is way bigger than my size. I come from Detroit, MI and I am a proud student at Central Michigan University. I am the co-owner of a start-up clothing brand XonIT. ... View more

Make the most out of your education. I graduated from Grinnell College in 2021, but that graduation felt like a year-long process. I returned home prematurely from my study abroad semester in March of 2020 because of COVID, but I never really “returned” to campus. I lived in the town of my college and took online classes. So, many aspects of my college experience didn’t return, like the opportunity to try new things.  In other words, my year-long descent into graduation was a reflection on regret. Here are five things I’ve learned, or things I am trying to learn, as an alumni in the wake of 2020. Comment below if you have more advice! 1. Clubs Don’t End After Graduation Clubs are easier to find in college. They’re often advertised at some kind of fair or through numerous posters. But, there are clubs outside of college, and they’re often just as easy to find. You can search local Facebook groups, Google, or word of mouth to find others interested in the activities you wish you had tried in college. Or, you can start your own! 2. Learning Doesn’t Stop With the Classroom You might regret never taking a specific class or exploring an entire discipline, but there are always ways to dig into new topics. Books, podcasts, documentaries, and other resources are great ways to continue learning outside of a structured classroom. 3. Making Your Own Assignments Maybe this is just me, but I loved assignments in college, especially creative ones. Deadlines gave me the push to finish projects I ended up really enjoying.  You can still give yourself projects after college--from writing a lyrical essay to making an art assignment to crafting a website. I’ve missed the structured environment of the classroom to help me stick with projects, but giving myself deadlines has helped me continue to still create final versions of my creative work. 4. Reach out to Alumni for Advice Alumni have gone through this same process of regret and emotional reflection, unless they had the perfect college experience (which I don’t think exists). They’re more than likely happy to answer your questions!  Whether you’re curious about a career or regional housing or personal growth, reaching out to a career center, LinkedIn, or other connections to find alumni in your area can help your college experience continue to grow. After all, college is not just a place, but also a community. 5. FOMO is real--But It Doesn’t Have to Be! Recognizing that you have regret or sadness about college can be a difficult process, but not addressing these regrets can be even worse. I completed my online classes at an institution while wishing I had done aspects of my first three years of college differently. I don’t treat regret as a negative experience though (or at least, I’m working through it). Dealing with regret is a process, and one that has no “right” destination besides the one you’re at right now. WRITTEN BY Allison Cottrell Grinnell College Allison graduated from Grinnell College in 2021 with majors in English and Math, and she’s now a Marketing Intern with Macmillan Learning. She currently lives in the Twin Cities where she’s probably on a run right now, smiling at passing dogs, or writing poetry while listening to Lady Gaga on repeat. ... View more

Invest in yourself! Is college too early to start investing? Should students wait until they graduate to think about investing? What, even, is investing? Imagine putting out your money to gain money back over-time. If you keep your money in your piggy bank, it won't grow! Investing is the perfect fix!  Absolutely not! College is the perfect time to begin your journey with investing. Young investors have a tremendous advantage on their side -- time. Starting early can allow you to develop a positive attitude towards financial literacy because it teaches important lessons such as budgeting and saving.  I know it can be hard to come up with extra money in college to do the things you need to, let alone to have excess spending money. But it doesn’t take much to begin! With time and discipline, you can begin by investing just $10 and watch your income expand! Let’s talk about 3 easy tips on how you can begin investing while in college. Invest in what you know Deciding where to invest your money can be complicated without knowing the proper information. Start by investing in the things you know. If you regularly shop at a store, you can estimate their profitability based on how stylish their clothes are, how many people regularly shop there, etc.  Eliminate high-interest debts Be sure to pay off debts before you start investing. This can be tough- but every dollar counts. Start off by paying off debt as early as you can. You do not want to worsen your financial condition by trying to invest while having high-interest loans!  Create a brokerage account Through brokerage accounts, you have access to a range of investments such as stocks and bonds. There are two main options that most investors choose as account providers: online brokerage accounts and Robo-advisors. It takes no time to begin setting up a brokerage account. You can typically complete an online account in less than 15 minutes. Not only is college the perfect time to have fun, but it is also the perfect time to begin developing your financial portfolio. By using your free time in college learning to invest, you are less likely to develop poor financial habits such as overspending. The earlier you begin, the greater your potential return on investment, and the more money in your pocket!  WRITTEN BY Audrey James Howard University Audrey James, a junior psychology major from Chicago IL, is studying at Howard University in Washington DC. In her free time, she makes magic happen! Whether catching a bite to eat at a fun restaurant or going on a spontaneous adventure, you can always depend on Audrey to plan a load of exciting events! ... View more

Class has come to order! I honestly cannot pinpoint an exact time in which I told myself that I was going to try going to law school. It was not a gradual process for me; more so, it was always lingering in the back of my head because my father attended law school. I have always had a passion for reading, writing in particular, and a general interest in public speaking and communication. Because of this, law school was always an option for me. At the beginning of the fall semester of my Junior year of college, I started seriously thinking about the possibility of going to law school. I knew that my grade point average (GPA) was fairly high and my transcript was in solid shape, so I needed to tackle the other aspects of the application process. I was planning on studying abroad in Sydney, Australia during the spring term, so I decided that I was going to start studying for the Law School Admissions Test (LSAT). Studying for the LSAT Study strategies in regards to the LSAT vary greatly from person to person, but I can give my recommendations based on my personal experience with the beast that is the LSAT. I know that I would not have been able to succeed without the help of a study service. In my particular case, private tutors were very pricey so I opted for a group course. Most test prep companies offer similar quality services, so the specific company is less important than the type of course. For example, law school test prep companies have accelerated review courses for those who may have already taken the LSAT. Since it was my first time taking the LSAT, I desired a semester-long course that taught me all of the different question types from a beginner’s level. This way, I would be prepared for my first time taking the exam in a comprehensive manner. Some people prefer to take the LSAT first to gauge where they stand and then, depending on the score, sign up with a tutor or a learning course. In my opinion, taking the LSAT with some knowledge was a better choice because law schools may be able to see all of the scores if they require complete score disclosure. In addition to the LSAT, letters of recommendation are an important part of the law school application process. Choosing who Writes Recommendation Letters While I was deciding what professors I wanted to write my letters of recommendation, I first considered how many letters I wanted to submit. From my experience applying to law schools, the average number of recommended letters ranges from one to four depending on the school. Due to this, I decided to request three letters of recommendation from my English professors. I would advise that it is more beneficial to request letters from professors that know you inside and outside of the classroom, regardless of the department in which they work. Locating your Desirable Setting Lastly, I would highly recommend considering the locations of the schools in which you choose to apply. This may seem less important than track specializations and course offerings, but I really believe that location should play a major role in a person’s final decision of where to attend law school. For me, I prefer the warm weather because my mental health is significantly better when I can sit outside in the sun. I would highly encourage each and every person applying to law school to heavily weigh the location of the school as a contributing final deciding factor. With all of these different facets, the law school application process is a daunting one, but it can be done with time, patience, and perseverance. WRITTEN BY Hannah Lamberg University of Miami School of Law Hannah Lamberg is a recent graduate from the University of Florida where she pursued a Bachelor of Arts in English and a Bachelor of Science in Psychology on a Pre-law track. She was very involved on her campus as a U Matter We Care Ambassador and Public Relations Coordinator within the Dean of Students’ Office, as well as involved on the leadership boards of the English Society and Relay for Life at UF. She is now a student at the University of Miami School of Law. You can most likely find her talking to new people or writing poetry in her free time. ... View more

Discover your passions in an unconventional classroom! As we near the start of our professional careers, it’s easy to feel both limitless and limited at the same time. Should you work in a big firm in a city, start a small business in your hometown, or is the right pathway for you actually laid somewhere in between? Do you even have all of the options available for you to decide? Really, it’s difficult to foresee where or how you’ll find your niche. When things look empirically nebulous, it’s important to make a priority of finding and getting to know ourselves before moving ahead. What are your interests, your passions – your real passions? A gap year is a perfect time to find out. Go Abroad An excellent way to find yourself is through adventure. Going abroad lets you experience perspectives and cultures you may not have discovered otherwise, and there are so many ways to go about it! Read about some of our picks here! Explore Hobbies More than once, I’ve stared at my homework and wished I could be working on a story or sharpening my Photoshop skills instead. Getting a degree is time-consuming, but taking a break during or after it allows you to focus on the activities that interest you instead. If you have a passion for hiking, throwing pottery, woodworking; anything, this is the time to explore these hobbies as deeply as you wish. Work or Intern Perhaps you’re not ready to commit to a long-term, full-time job, but you’d still like to work and gain professional experience. If so, a great use of your gap year can be interning or doing some other type of temporary work. This lets you gain some professional experience, learn more about a particular field, and potentially save up for future ventures. Make Magic In Spring 2018, I took a gap semester and did the Disney College Program. For four months, I worked at Walt Disney World Resort as a Disney cast member and it was an incredibly memorable experience. I made so many friends and connections from all around the world, whom I’d have never met otherwise, and I’m so grateful that I have. If you’re looking for a magical experience for your gap year, I’d definitely recommend checking out the DCP to you! Volunteer Volunteering is a great way to learn, work, and discover more about yourself. Whether it takes you halfway across the world or to your local community center, there are infinite ways to make a difference and change the world. Learn more about how to get started here. Take Part-Time Courses Even though you’re taking a break from your studies, enrolling in a part-time course can be incredibly gratifying. The course doesn’t have to relate to your major, nor does it have to run through your university; local community centers, art studios, language schools, and other institutes also offer valuable options that will broaden your horizons and teach you new skills. This summer, I started taking Korean language lessons at a private school and it’s one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. Although I absolutely love my college and major, this experience feels like the first time I’m studying something -in its entirety- because I’m choosing to, rather than because it’s a major or general education requirement, and I still come to every class excited to learn more. A gap year is definitely what you make of it. It’s a time for adventure, trying new things, and most importantly learning about yourself. No matter what you choose, the possibilities are truly limitless. WRITTEN BY Addie Joseph Baruch College in Manhattan After earning her ears at Disney, Addie moved on to study Journalism, Creative Writing, and Photography at Baruch College in Manhattan. She is interning for Macmillan Learning as a Student Ambassador, but in her spare time, you can find her tucked away in a café, crafting stories or editing photos and videos, with earbuds fixed firmly in her ears. Don’t be afraid to interrupt and say hello; she always enjoys meeting new friends (and perhaps indulging them with music recommendations too)! ... View more

Learn outside the classroom! For many college students, including myself, internships are one of the most sought after experiences. While there is a big emphasis on getting an internship as a resume booster or something to talk about in a future interview, there are so many other equally important things that an internship can provide. My first internship taught me more than I could have ever anticipated as I packed my bags and traveled from Texas up to Washington DC this past summer. Whether you’re gearing up for your first internship, or just wondering what the experience is like, here are the top three things I learned throughout my summer internship: Get to know as many people as you can One of the best aspects of my internship was getting to meet so many people with enormously diverse backgrounds. Some of my co-workers had been Fulbright scholars, hiked Mt. Kilimanjaro, and lived in several different countries around the world. It seemed like every day I was learning something new and exciting about someone in the office! Additionally, there were several people that had similar majors as I do now and I loved hearing about the path that got them into their career. My internship provided me not just with work experience, but with a plethora of employees that had a wealth of knowledge on both the workforce and life in general. Another highlight of my summer was getting to know other interns. It was fun hearing stories from their own college experiences and I truly enjoyed getting to work alongside them in the office. Even a whole semester later, I still keep in contact with the interns I met, whether it be to get college advice or just catch up with each other. Getting to know others around the office not only allowed me to make friends (and role models!) throughout the summer but also provided great networking opportunities. The people I met have helped me in a variety of ways, including offering letters of recommendation and putting me in contact with even more individuals who were able to help me expand my future career. Step out of your comfort zone Starting an internship program in a brand new city and with complete strangers can be overwhelming and even a little bit scary. Even small things like having to talk in front of my entire team during meetings made me nervous at first. However, one of the best things about internships is how they allow you to branch out and do things you may have been hesitant to try initially. While interning, I had the task of staying in contact with world-class researchers through phone meetings and emails. This scared me at first and I was terrified of doing or saying something wrong while planning events and projects with individuals that were at the top of their field. However, as the summer progressed, it was easy to see how much my professional communication skills had grown and an email or phone call began to feel like a breeze. While I was initially nervous about sending a singular email, by the end of my internship, I had developed the confidence to lead a conversation or meeting with ease. It was amazing to look back over my summer and realize how much I had grown as an intern through all of the new things I was exposed to. It’s going to take some time to adjust I still remember logging onto my desktop for the first time on the first day of my internship, only to be bombarded by 20+ unread messages from an email account I didn’t even know I had. The first week of most internships focuses on onboarding meaning there’s probably going to be a lot of paperwork to do, training to participate in, and meetings to get you caught up on everything going on in the office. I was completely overwhelmed at first by the vast amount of information I was receiving, but that is completely normal! Adjusting to an entirely new environment and immersing yourself in a new company takes some time. However, there is no need to worry because I promise that by the end of the summer you’ll feel like a pro in everything you do! While it’s always nice to have an internship that adds a few lines to your LinkedIn profile, interning is an experience that holds so much more value. From developing new capabilities to forming connections with industry professionals, my first internship taught me a variety of skills that I know I will carry with me throughout college and my career. WRITTEN BY Sonya Pfitzenmaier University of Texas Sonya is a current sophomore at the University of Texas studying chemical engineering. She is best known for starting spontaneous dance parties in her apartment and unconditionally cheering on the Texas longhorns. Outside of school, Sonya enjoys scouring the internet for new recipes to try and exploring the city of Austin, one hike at a time. ... View more

Best of luck! During my sophomore year of college, I felt utterly lost because I could not commit to a major and received mostly Bs. Needless to say, I had a significant breakdown and began to think about a gap semester. It was the toughest decision I had to make in college. Compared to most of my peers, I started college quite late (at the age of 20) because my family had recently moved to the US. I was scared to fall behind, graduate late, and waste my time. I spent my summer after my sophomore year learning about myself and eventually knew that a gap semester was crucial to my career. If you are in my shoes, here are my tips for a fulfilling gap semester/gap year. Talk to your support groups My parents were not very happy with my decision to take a gap semester. They worked 12-hour shifts every day to make sure that I could focus solely on studying and developing my career. I was always grateful for their hardships but knew that college was not about figuring out who I was and what I wanted. I needed more time to determine my career. However, I didn’t want to burden my parents financially when I went home for my gap semester. I asked for advice from many professors, friends, and colleagues. My friend’s father had told me: “Your career will be 20 or 30 years of your life. Spending one year to try out new things is not a waste. At the end of the day, it will be only one short period, compared to 60 years of your life.” It was then I decided to take a gap semester. Khanh’s advice: Do not afraid of change. If the thought of taking a gap semester ever slips through your mind, it is always good to share that with your family and friends. People need to take time off from school for all sorts of reasons (mental health, careers, family issues, etc.) You are not the only one, and we are all in this together. Make a bucket list My worst fear about gap year was that I wouldn’t find anything to do with my time. I was a workaholic and enjoyed being surrounded by people. Taking a gap year would mean that I had to live very far away from my college friends and stay home for the majority of the time. I was terrified. One day, I decided to make a bucket list of what I wanted to do with my time. I had never actually put enough time into figuring out about my hobbies before because I was always hanging out with my friends in my free time. I finally tried new things that I never had the time to enjoy while in school. I traveled to different states to explore hiking, food, and sightseeing. I also made a plan to visit Vietnam with my partner for more than a month and took some swimming classes. I learned to reflect after every new experience and appreciate my alone time more. None of these things would be possible if I was at school and took classes only. Khanh’s advice: A gap year may be one of the very few times you can try out and enjoy new things. You will not have that much time to enjoy yourself if you are at school or have a full-time job after college. Learning to enjoy yourself is a skill, and you can only get further in your life when you have genuinely immersed yourself in your gap year. Get a part-time job I did not have the luxury of having my family support me financially during my gap year. I spent four months applying to different companies for co-ops and internships to prepare for my gap year. I received at least 70 rejection letters and began to doubt my abilities. Unfortunately, my current college did not have the resources to support students during their gap year, so I was pretty much alone in this process. I decided to challenge myself with any part-time job I could search for on LinkedIn or at local coffee shops. At the end of my summer, I got a call back from Vertex Pharmaceuticals for a co-op position. Khanh’s advice: If you are first-gen and from an immigrant family, I understand your struggles. It is never an easy task to leave school temporarily and contribute nothing to your family’s finances. Don’t be afraid to work part-time in a local Starbucks, Dunkin Donuts, or Whole Foods. Working can alleviate your stress about finances. More importantly, it can fund any travel trips or classes you decide to take during your gap year. Be open; let yourself have time to be vulnerable and love yourself more every day. You are not the only one on this journey. WRITTEN BY Khanh Pham Boston College Khanh is a junior studying Econometrics and Biology at Boston College. She also works for Macmillan Learning as a student ambassador. When not studying, you can most likely find her somewhere in Downtown Boston trying out new bubble tea flavor and eating Pho noodles. ... View more

“I have wandered all my life, and I have traveled; the difference between the two being this, that we wander for distraction, but we travel for fulfillment.” ― Hilaire Belloc It’s a common misconception that traveling is a distraction from the degree or career you’re pursuing… Here are some travel ideas that challenge that notion: Volunteer Volunteering abroad lets you give back while exploring other areas of the world. You can pick up new skills, make a difference in various causes, and fully immerse yourself in another culture. Read more about volunteer opportunities here! Teach English in Another Country Teaching English is a great way to earn an income while getting immersed in a new culture. There are many companies that offer programs ranging from months to years abroad teaching. Getting started is as easy as getting TEFL-certified, or completing an equivalent course. Get Creative In a world of schedules and due dates, it’s easy to fall into a rut. Inspiration can run dry when we’re inundated by monotony, but traveling is a great way to break free and start working on something truly meaningful to you. You can paint the gardens of Versailles, document rolling landscapes in New Zealand on photo or video, start a blog on your backpacking experiences throughout South America, or find inspiration in any of these ventures to pen the bestseller you’ve always wanted to create. No matter the medium, the world is your canvas. Intern Abroad As technologies and economies advance on a global scale, it becomes even more important for us, as students, to understand them. By interning abroad, you can study these developments through the lens of another country or culture, while gaining professional work experience – which is all sure to stand out on a resumé. Become an Au Pair If you enjoy taking care of children and want to brush up on your language skills, this could be the right fit for you! An Au Pair is someone who lives with a family in a foreign country for a limited period and helps take care of its children. Host families cover a lot of the living expenses for au pairs, such as residency and meals, and also provide pocket money for additional support. Learn more about being an Au Pair here. Study Abroad Last, but certainly not least, studying abroad lets you stay on track with your coursework as you see the world. Study abroad programs range from periods of weeks to months and there is a perfect fit for every student. Visit your campus’s office of international programs today to learn more about the programs your school offers. No matter where your wanderlust takes you, you can always make it a meaningful and educational experience. Start planning your next adventure today! Source “Hilaire Belloc quotes” Quotes of famous people, https://quotepark.com/authors/hilaire-belloc/. Accessed 3 Oct. 2019 WRITTEN BY Addie Joseph Baruch College in Manhattan After earning her ears at Disney, Addie moved on to study Journalism, Creative Writing, and Photography at Baruch College in Manhattan. She is interning for Macmillan Learning as a Student Ambassador, but in her spare time, you can find her tucked away in a café, crafting stories or editing photos and videos, with earbuds fixed firmly in her ears. Don’t be afraid to interrupt and say hello; she always enjoys meeting new friends (and perhaps indulging them with music recommendations too)! ... View more