Even if just a furry friend sounds good enough.   It’s nearing finals week, and the end-of-semester stress is starting to build up. Short on time, it may seem like there isn't any opportunity to rest and prioritize your mental health. However, did you know that there is one activity that is scientifically proven to decrease stress levels and improve your mood within just a few minutes? Animal visitation programs (AVPs) are being implemented at a rising number of college campuses across the United States. These most commonly take the form of therapy dog sessions, where students can pet and play with dogs specially trained for the task. How do Therapy Dogs Affect Mood and Stress? Plenty of dog-lovers would say that playing with their dog makes them happier. This applies to therapy dog programs too! In a therapy dog session, students are invited to interact with the canines in small groups. Studies have shown that students self-report an immediate increase in happiness and energy levels after taking part in therapy dog sessions. Students also report a perceived decrease in mental stress even 10 hours after their therapy dog session. Why do These Mood Changes Occur? These mood changes are not just a mental perception; they are related to changes in hormone levels that occur when interacting with animals. An increase in oxytocin levels, which is shown to occur within many people when they pet or play with dogs, helps with decreasing stress. Studies show that AVPs can lead to a significant decrease in cortisol levels in just 10 minutes. Cortisol is directly tied to the main stress pathway in the human body, called the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. When someone is stressed, the HPA axis increases activity, and secretes greater amounts of cortisol. Therefore, a decrease in cortisol means there has been a physiological decrease in stress. How Can This Help? Stress has many effects, both physically and mentally. It can affect your sleep, your ability to focus, your appetite, and your mood. College can be an extremely stressful time for many. Stress and academic performance are often a negative feedback loop; when you experience academic stress, it can sometimes lead to performing more poorly, which in turn can lead to a greater increase in mental stress. Therefore, as a college student it is incredibly important to monitor your stress levels closely and take care of your mental health. Check and see if your own college offers therapy dog sessions! Just a few short minutes can make a huge difference for your mental and physical health. WRITTEN BY Gretchen Maune University of Virginia Gretchen Maune is currently a Junior at the University of Virginia. She is double majoring in Biology and English, with a concentration in ‘Science Literature and Global Bioethics’. She is looking forward to a career in the journalism industry, specifically dealing with science writing and creative nonfiction. Gretchen was a summer Editorial Intern for Macmillan Learning’s Life Sciences division. ... View more

To help you get that first (or next) job! Congratulations! You found a job you want to apply to. But how do you present yourself as the best candidate? Here are a few tips for writing cover letters that will make you stand out. 1. Make a list of keywords. Go through the job description and note everything they’re asking for: Skills Responsibilities Past experiences Identify which of those items come up again and again. Maybe they ask about managing budgets in a couple different ways, or maybe they’re really keen for someone who can schedule meetings. Once you identify the two or three main responsibilities, you’ll know what your cover letter should focus on. (Bonus points: use this same list of keywords to strengthen your resume.) 2. Freewrite to generate ideas. Think about the list you just made. How do your experiences relate to what the job description is asking for? Set a timer for 1 to 5 minutes and brainstorm. See how many list items you can reasonably apply to each of your past experiences. Allow yourself to write without worrying about spelling or coherency. If you don’t know what to write, just write, “I don’t know what to write,” and keep going. When you’re done, you should have a good idea of which one or two experiences to focus on in your cover letter. 3. Go deep, not broad. You might be tempted to try and expand on every single one of the qualifications that make you such an amazing candidate. But resist that urge in your cover letter. Your resume is where you can share the breadth of your past experiences. Your cover letter, on the other hand, is a chance to plunge into one or two of those experiences and how they make you a great fit for the position. Whereas resumes are surface level on many things, your cover letter should be in depth on a couple things. 4. Focus more on what they need than what you want. Obviously, you wouldn’t apply to a job if you wouldn’t get anything out of it. But a recruiter will be far more interested in what you can offer them, rather than what they can offer you. Focus on the value you would bring to the organization. Show how lucky they would be to have you on their team. As best you can, limit “I” statements, and really place the focus on them. 5. Be obvious! The person reading your cover letter knows you are applying for a job. You know you are applying for a job. You don’t have to dance around the fact that you think you would make a good fit. Clearly lay out how your past experiences map onto this new position. If you think you’re being too obvious, you’re probably doing it right. After all, the person reading your cover letter is likely reviewing many other applications. Make it easy for them, and be very direct in linking your past experience(s) to this new opportunity. Be confident and enthusiastic. You’ve got this. WRITTEN BY Casey Wells Northwestern University Casey Wells is a graduate of Northwestern University, where he studied creative writing, playwriting, and French. He lives in Chicago where he takes improv classes, runs 10Ks, and guards a prodigious hoard of books.   ... View more

And scientists may be our most important storytellers. As you navigate college, your career, and your future, it is important to keep in mind the fact that you are responsible for telling your story, the stories of those around you, and perhaps even part of the story of the world. Typically, folks in the humanities are considered society’s storytellers, but scientists, engineers, and just about anyone else are also storytellers. In fact, I think scientists are some of our most important storytellers. They study the universe, its nature, how it works. Then, they take their knowledge and share it with us so that we can learn the story of the universe. Being able to take something as complex as neuroscience or astrophysics and paring it down to something for the masses to discover? That takes talent and it is invaluable. Where would we be without those people who can look at the complexity of the world and find a cohesive story in it? I am studying psychology and statistics, and my goal (and the goal of all psychologists) is to figure out how humans work. What makes us tick. I want to help tell the story of humanity. But psychologists can’t tell this story alone. Our information is incomplete. We need the stories from biologists, historians, physicists, archaeologists, and neuroscientists (to name a few) to paint a complete picture of the past, present, and future of humanity and human nature. The elements needed to craft a compelling work of fiction are the same elements needed to discover and share the nature of our world: context/setting, motivation, characters, conflict, etc. This is why I believe the best scientists are also able to communicate their findings in a compelling, creative, and engaging way. As someone working toward a Master’s of Science, I can’t tell you how many times I’ve read a dry, boring, mundane article. Sure, they were informative and told a part of humanity’s story, but they were not engaging. If you want folks to read the story you tell, you need to make sure you communicate it in a compelling way. It’s the same with fiction, too. Fiction should be compelling, entertaining, and thought-provoking. The stories we tell through fiction also give insight to human nature and the human experience. Music, sculpture, art, dance, poetry, literature? Those are all media humans use to tell their stories. The fields of history, social science, and psychology have a long history with creative works and the insights they share, and it baffles me how little our creatives are valued in many societies. Aside from the joy and entertainment they bring, creatives are our unofficial historians in a sense – capturing the world as they experience it and sharing it with others. An objective retelling of history that professional historians (should) strive for is not complete without us being able to also learn the subjective feelings of the parties involved. Emotion is what brings history to life. I can tell you honestly that I would not remember as much history as I do without class lessons being supplemented with music, film, art, poetry, and photography. Our world’s storytellers are some of our most critical people and we must cherish and nurture them. Support your local artists. Rally for the funding and sharing of scientific research. And, please, consume the stories that these people have made for us. WRITTEN BY Kris Shiflet Currently pursuing a co-terminal BS Psychology, minor in Stats, and MS in IO Psychology –basically a big old nerd. While HR is my work passion, I also love creative writing and I have way too many unfinished stories in my drive. I write to music, but a chaotic mix of heavy metal, jazz, classical, punk, and pop. Hey, whatever works, right?   ... 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

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

Whether you have ADHD, you’re a chronic procrastinator, or you just can’t seem to focus, here are some tips that can help you survive and thrive in college. During my first year in university, I was diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). For me, ADHD made studying, staying focused, and managing my time one-hundred times more difficult. But through trial-and-error, I found a routine that helped me survive (and thrive) in college. While I know ADHD is different for everyone, here are a few tips that helped me succeed in university.  Stay Busy Okay, I know this sounds counterintuitive. If you find it difficult to manage your time without the added stress of extracurriculars, how is staying busy supposed to help you better organize your time? The answer is simple: staying busy ensures you have a set routine and schedule. If you’re anything like me, keeping track of time is beyond difficult, and if I don’t have anything planned for the day, I don’t feel any sense of urgency to study or do anything productive.  Keeping yourself busy, however, forces you to keep track of time. Maybe you can join a club with weekly meetings, get a part-time job, or volunteer at your local nonprofit. Whatever it is, consistently having something to do helps you keep track of and manage your time more effectively. For me, I joined my student newspaper, worked and interned part-time, and volunteered at a student resource center. Having something to do nearly every day of the week (even if it was just for a few hours) instilled in me a sense of urgency and helped me realize that time was a precious, limited resource.  Plan Your Time: Prioritize. Prioritize. Prioritize. Here’s a scenario I often experienced as a college student (and perhaps you can relate): Finals week is quickly approaching. There’s twenty hours worth of lecture material to review, fifteen hours of assignments, a ten-page essay to write, and two finals to study for. There’s so much to do – maybe you don’t even know how to start studying. Maybe you get so overwhelmed that you just freeze and take a stress nap instead.  In times like these, it is essential you know how to effectively prioritize your assignments and plan your time accordingly. For me this process was an uphill battle, but through trial-and-error, I eventually found a method that made conquering this mountain of work seem doable. The method goes a little something like this: Take a sheet of paper. Separate it into 8 sections: 1 section for each day of the week and 1 section for miscellaneous notes. Think about what you have planned for the week (extracurricular activities, work schedule, etc.) and write those down. Make a mental list of all your assignments. Assign an amount of time you would like to spend on each one. From there, break the assignments up into smaller – more manageable – chunks of time.  Based on the assignments’ due dates, write each one down under the specific day you would like to work on them – along with the amount of time you would like to spend doing each one. Assigning a specific amount of time to spend on each assignment is essential for this technique; it ensures you don’t spend too much time on one task and not enough time on another.  Separate your assignments into “TO DO” tasks (what you must complete for the day) and “OPTIONAL” tasks (what you can do for the day, if time permits). Optional: Color code for aesthetic value and ease of reading.  I call this the Micromanaging Technique. For an example, see below: This technique might seem excessive, but I (and all of my friends who also use it) swear by it. Writing everything down ensures that nothing is forgotten, and assigning a specific amount of time to each task helps you plan and prioritize your time. Plus, it’s super satisfying to tick off the boxes once you complete each task!  Don’t Be Afraid to Ask for Help Finally, if you ever feel completely stressed and overwhelmed, don’t be afraid to reach out to friends and family for support. It’s important to have and maintain a strong support system in college, especially in times of need.  Also, your college’s mental health counseling and disability services are there to help you. Almost all colleges offer disability services and accommodations for students with disabilities (including students with ADHD). If you feel that ADHD hinders your ability to study and complete schoolwork, go to your college’s disability services office or website, and see how they can help. WRITTEN BY Lindsay Ito University of California, Los Angeles Lindsay Ito graduated in Spring 2022 with a BA in Psychology from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). Born and raised in Los Angeles and Orange County, Lindsay’s life has been uniquely shaped by her Southern Californian upbringing: she’s worked as a Jungle Cruise Skipper at Disneyland, loves the beach on a sunny day, and (embarrassingly) cannot drive in the rain. In her free time, Lindsay enjoys reading a good horror story, cuddling with her cat, and rewatching old episodes of Buffy the Vampire Slayer.   ... View more

Being a college student is all about learning to live on your own for the first time, and finding a new community away from home. Balance is the name of the game in college, and there’s no better way to find it than using an organization system that will keep you on the right path. Here are three steps incoming and returning college students alike can use to have it all in college. 1. Identifying Your Priorities Whether you’re an incoming or returning student, you probably don’t have your whole plan figured out–and that’s totally normal! Even having an outline for what kind of classes you plan to take and what type of internships you want to pursue is a great starting point; a beacon you can return to if you ever feel lost or confused. Identifying your goals will help you make a plan for joining extracurriculars and applying for jobs and internships. 2. Choosing Extracurricular Activities and Jobs Wisely Your college likely has a list of every extracurricular organization on your campus. It’s a great idea to check this list before you go to the club fair and commit to joining a group. The rule of thumb is different for everyone, but my recommendation is to join one social, philanthropic, or cultural extracurricular, and one career related extracurricular. Joining two extracurriculars in addition to a job/work-study/internship you may have is a great option that should provide balance. The important thing to remember is that you can always drop an extracurricular if you’re overwhelmed, or add one if you’re bored. The purpose of extracurriculars should be for community or career building! 3. Utilizing a planner Once you have your classes and combination of extracurricular activities and jobs all figured out, you should use some form of planner to keep track of all of your obligations. A planner can be the free sticky notes app on your laptop, the free calendar service attached to your email account, a more in-depth free desktop app like Notion, or a physical journal planner–I personally utilize all of the above! The best way to remember all of your upcoming events, both social and academic, is to write them down in multiple places. If your digital calendar gives you a reminder for an event and you have the details of that event written on a digital sticky note, you’re a lot less likely to forget it! But physical planners never go out of style, and if they’re what keep you motivated, they’re always a great option. The most important thing is to use the planner that actually works for YOU.   Finding which activities and classes will point you towards your career and life goals will help you feel like you’re making the most of your college experience. But don’t forget to leave some space in your planner for fun with friends and relaxation! At the end of the day, everyone’s college experience is different–but we are all hoping to graduate feeling like we made the most of every aspect of college, and that includes having fun. W RITTEN BY Gabi Jonikas Emerson College Gabi Jonikas is a Subsidiary Rights Intern for MCPG. She is a senior and graduate student at Emerson College studying publishing–her main passion in addition to organization and teaching herself Japanese.   ... View more

You can choose your friends, but you can't choose your classmates. So you’re a week into a group assignment, and things aren’t going as smoothly as you’d like. Maybe some group members are MIA, or others are scatterbrained. It happens to everyone. Despite following all the right preventative measures (staying organized, using a group chat, etc), you’re still running into issues. Now what? Whether your group members are lagging behind, there’s miscommunication, or something else, here are some possible solutions that just might save your grade.   Create Detailed Structure Sometimes, going beyond just your teacher’s recommended timelines and deadlines is needed to keep your group on a steady pace towards the finish line. Take charge of the situation and create a list of self-imposed “mini” deadlines to keep everyone on track. (Hint: This is a great way to begin establishing yourself as a student leader!). For instance, two days to create a rough outline, five days after that for a complete draft, three days later showing a full draft to your professor, etc. Make sure you cultivate a dynamic in which people are comfortable communicating any issues they encounter as well, so you know ahead of time if they’re struggling (and not the day before it’s due). Oftentimes it’s easy to squander time one way or another, so set clear expectations and roles on Day 1.  Hold Others Accountable Even with all the structure and planning in the world, some people still miss the mark on getting their pieces of a project done on time. But how do you bring this up without causing hurt feelings? Be sure to keep the conversation clear but compassionate. Hold them accountable to the deadlines you all agreed upon by first talking it over calmly in private. Sometimes it’s just an honest mistake, but be cautious going forward. If it happens again, mention the issue to your professor to keep them in the loop. If the project turns out less than stellar, your professor might give you some leeway grade-wise if you inform them of the issues you’ve encountered ahead of time.  Get it Done Early for Revisions Nothing is worse than finishing an assignment the day of, then noticing a litany of small mistakes that you have no time to fix. Prevent this by doing everything you can to finish the assignment a few days before the real due date, and review everyone’s work with a fine-tooth comb. Your professor will not only thank you, but reward you with a better grade!  With all these tips in mind, you’ll be able to overcome the problems associated with a not-so-fantastic group, and get a decent grade once it’s all said and done!  WRITTEN BY Brianna DiGeronimo The College of New Jersey Brianna is a rising senior at The College of New Jersey (TCNJ) studying English, with minors in Communications and Marketing. She loves playing video games and the kalimba (albeit badly). She is currently an intern at Macmillan Learning (BFW Publishing) in the Marketing department. ... View more

Plan Ahead! College students are expected to seamlessly juggle classes, coursework, jobs, clubs, volunteering, bills, debts, AND keeping up with an active social life. Students can fall into the pattern of instant meals, binge drinking, and procrastination as a way to put off their responsibilities. However, there is an easier way to deal with the stress of a chaotic college schedule: planning. There is a little bit more work upfront, but implementing a planner, an online calendar, and a to-do list can lead to less stress, more free time, and a better grip on all facets of college. A physical planner with a place to note monthly, weekly, and daily obligations and due dates, is the key to knowing how much time you have to truly complete tasks with your best effort. I use a planner from Target however, a bullet journal can also be equally as effective. Ryder Carroll’s “The Bullet Journal Method: Track the Past, Order the Present, Design the Future” is a great resource to get started with bullet journaling. For the monthly pages, I note blocks of time I work, have interviews or important meetings that I need to prepare for when large projects or due, and (very important) vacations and fun events. For the weekly page, I will rewrite the big due dates from the monthly page in order to break it down to just the week at hand (to avoid being overwhelmed). This is where smaller due dates and errands can be added to the list as well. To-do lists: To make the most out of your study time, be it a block between classes or a whole evening, a to-do list can provide clarity and increase productivity. Making a short list for each day of the week will decrease the overwhelming nature of an all-encompassing to-do list. Color coding your to-dos based on class or importance is an easy (and cute) way to sort a lengthy to-do list. Making sure to note the priority of the task is important because it can be easy to accomplish the more fun or easy tasks before the more challenging ones that may be due sooner. Finally, I use Google Calendar as an online calendar to set up my semester. This tool is free, user-friendly, and links up to any Google account. During enrollment season, I will enter in my upcoming classes using the recurring event function. This way I can easily know my availability for work and social things. Planning can be overwhelming but there are infinite benefits to even implementing some of these tactics. Productivity has been linked to increased happiness, higher quality of work, and less stress. Check out Matt D’Avella or Nathaniel Drew on YouTube for more productivity inspiration. Happy Planning! WRITTEN BY Katherine McGaughey University of Kansas Katie is a senior who is double-majoring in exercise science and psychology at the University of Kansas. Originally from Wichita, she loves exploring new cities and has traveled to eight of the top twenty most influential cities in the world so far. She loves cooking and finding the best vegan eats. You can usually find her in planning her next adventure, enjoying a concert with friends, or late-night studying at the library. ... View more

Get yourself on the right track! In college, you are bound to encounter stress on more than a few occasions, especially if you are involved in an organization or have a job. You may at some point question if you are even cut out for college or your major because so many assignments and exams jumble up at the same time as one another. I am here to tell you that this stress is manageable if you follow these key steps. Mental health services are available for students -- take advantage of them if you feel like college is too much There are plenty of resources for stress management at your university. There is therapy for individual stress, group therapy if your stress extends within your friend group, and there may be relaxation rooms to help you take a step back and cool down mentally. In addition to trying therapy and other mental services, there may also be on-campus psychologists or psychiatrists who could give you their recommendations for relieving stress as well as being other people you could be comfortable talking to about your stress. If your psychiatrist evaluates you and sees that prescribing medication, such as an SSRI, is a possibility to relieve stress, be open to it because these medications are helpful with balancing your mood. This medication may or may not work for you as everyone’s body reacts differently to each medication, but it is better to try to feel better than not at all. There are plenty of SSRIs available if one does not work for you, and the benefits outweigh the costs of taking the medication as a prescription. You understand your body best, so speak to your doctor if the prescribed medication does not work for you. Taking the medication should also not be the end all be all to relieve your stress, and the other steps below are available to alleviate that as well. Use aromatherapy Aromatherapy is a natural way for you to use your senses in order to help you calm down. Aromatherapy costs a little bit to use, but the cost is very little considering the benefit of being able to relax can be priceless. You can purchase aromatherapy devices or lotions from companies such as Air Wick, Glade, and Bath and Body Works. Give yourself a break You do not have to tackle all your work at once; if you do, your final product could be sloppy. It is better to space assignments out because your brain needs time to relax. Your breaks should not be too long, though. You need to still tackle ackle your assignments in a timely manner. It's all about balance! Positive self-talk. You are your biggest critic. Don’t overthink or doubt yourself if you get a poor grade. If you get a bad grade, you get a bad grade. You can bring your grades up but shouldn’t feel as though you’re obligated to get straight As in college. Your future boss will still hire you if you get a B or a C in a class. You are only human, and as long you did your best, you shouldn’t be critical of yourself. Being critical of yourself adds to your stress level. Give yourself a break. All in all, stress is natural in college and you shouldn’t be afraid to face it during your journey. Sometimes classes will hit you like a truck, but all you can do is pick yourself back off the ground and keep on trudging. There is light at the end of the tunnel and the light is your future degree. WRITTEN BY Jacob Concolino University of Kentucky I am currently pursuing a BS in Chemical Engineering at the University of Kentucky. I am also pursuing a minor in German and have been to the country twice. I can speak some German, and I listen to every genre of music from German to country to rap to pop. ... View more

You can have it all! Are you planning to go into college with a major that will require difficult courses as well as getting involved with many organizations? Are you stressed that you will not have the ability to juggle all of this while also having a social life? Well don’t you worry, I was in your shoes, and if you follow my advice you’ll surely be able to survive college while also excelling emotionally, academically, and socially. Put everything you have planned into a calendar Staying organized is key to being successful. When you have everything in a calendar, it will allow you to plan out your day with schoolwork and maybe squeeze in time with your friends. Never plan all of your assignments at the last minute. Spacing it out will lower your stress and allow you to be more flexible for possible activities that were not planned, such as a trip to the gym or playing volleyball outside a dorm or a short trip to a fast-food restaurant like Cook-Out to grab yourself a milkshake or a quick bite to eat. Give yourself short breaks Never try to do everything at once. That is stressful and difficult to achieve. Give yourself breaks to eat a little snack, eat a meal, watch some YouTube, or whatever else may be helpful for you to destress. Try to limit each break to about 30 minutes so that you can get back to work. The number of short breaks will depend on the amount of work that is supposed to be completed. Just be wary of how long you are not working on your homework. Give yourself enough sleep, but not too much sleep Sleep is essential to allowing your body to relax and recover from the day. That being said, sleeping too much is usually unhealthy because it can be a sign of exhaustion or stress-related. Lacking sleep and sleeping too much will be detrimental to your long-term health. Try to get a nice 8-10 hours of sleep per night. Never skip meals Eating food is very essential for the human body to receive energy. Skipping meals can lead to a lack of focus as well as obvious health issues. Always try to eat three meals a day with a snack between lunch and dinner and another snack before dinner. Never eat a snack less than two hours before you go to sleep as your body has less time to digest the nutrients, which could lead to heartburn or weight gain. Don’t be hard on yourself if you miss an assignment You are only human. Learn from these mistakes rather than dwell on them. Dwelling is a slippery slope, so the best is to learn and move on. College doesn’t magically stop for you; you need to know that the world will move on without you. However, you can always bounce back from a poor grade. If you did the best you can on assignment, then you shouldn’t be hard on yourself about the outcome. All in all, college may appear to be stressful for students, especially those with a rigorous course load, but the work is worth all the effort. Sometimes days will feel harder than others, but you just have to get back up on your feet and keep working the best you can. You are your biggest critic. WRITTEN BY Jacob Concolino University of Kentucky I am currently pursuing a BS in Chemical Engineering at the University of Kentucky. I am also pursuing a minor in German and have been to the country twice. I can speak some German, and I listen to every genre of music from German to country to rap to pop. ... View more

Choosing a field of study doesn't have to be scary!   Picking a major is vastly different for every college student. Some students arrive at college and already have an idea of what they want to study. Alternatively, other students arrive and have no idea what they want to study. No matter where you fall on this spectrum, it is OK. Major selection is one of the most difficult decisions in college and every school has a unique process. At some schools, incoming freshmen declare their major upfront whereas at other schools students wait until their sophomore year to declare their major. No matter which way your school sets up the process to decide your major, you’ll need to make this decision at some point in your college career. Here are some strategies that may help you. Be true to yourself One of the most important parts of this process is self-reflection. Students must reflect on both their current studies as well as where they want those studies to take them after they graduate. When selecting a major, it is crucial to think about your strengths and weaknesses and how those factors contribute to who you are as a student. That being said, if you know your academic interests do not align with your career interests, that is fine. The courses you choose do not determine your career path! Engineering, for example, is one of the few careers that it is crucial to major in as it teaches you concrete skills in order to prepare you for that career. However, many careers are different from engineering in the sense that you do not need to learn a trade to do it; rather, you need to cultivate and develop sets of skills that inherently exist in everyone. Drown out the noise Parents, teachers, and friends will tell you what you should do and which major is best suited to your interests. I would urge you to listen to what those people have to say, but make sure you follow your own passions. This is your journey; you should shape it yourself in order to take full agency over the process. Focus on what you want to learn not what you think will make you money This is a very common misconception among college students. People sometimes focus on the dollars they envision at the end of the process, rather than enjoying the process intrinsically. This can impact your success as a student; you may be less engaged or less interested in what you are learning in the classroom. This can have an opposite effect than the one initially intended. The less successful you are in school, the harder it will be to find something to do after -- and you don’t want to commit to a career that you might not enjoy! All in all, the major selection is a process that calls for careful thought as life becomes far more difficult if you are doing something you do not enjoy. Most importantly, it is perfectly fine to know what you are interested in studying, but not know what you want to do for a career. College is not just memorizing and regurgitating historical facts and math equations. Every semester that you complete will give you foresight into the future about what you may want to do; therefore, do not worry if you don’t know exactly what career path you want to take because chances are it will become clear as time passes! WRITTEN BY Noah Skelskie Emory University My name is Noah Skelskie and I am an intern in the Macmillan marketing department. I am a rising junior at Emory University and was born and raised in New York City. I enjoy watching any and all sports but most of all, my New York Mets (unfortunately). ... View more

How do you choose your classes? For all those indecisive intellectual magpies out there, this article provides some tips for choosing the elective course that will brighten your day without overburdening your semester. Try Something New It’s one of the oldest tricks in the book, but it’s sometimes surprisingly hard to follow. If you can overcome the fear of crossing academic lines, you’ll likely find that cross-disciplinary study holds numerous benefits, as it can open your mind to practices that might later impact your area(s) of study. For example, I took a popular course on child development and media in my sophomore year and ended up using one of the theorists from that course in my English senior thesis two years later. You never know what will prove beneficial in the future. Choose by Professor, not Subject This was one of my favorite pieces of advice I got when entering college. As counterintuitive as it may sound, sometimes it’s more worthwhile to choose a course by its professor than by its subject matter. Professors can be the difference between months of half-hearted work or a semester of rich exploration. Ask your upperclassmen friends or check sites like ratemyprofessors.com before choosing a course with a professor whose teaching style you may not enjoy. You can always get the textbook or read up on the subject later if you are still interested! Class Size = Class Vibes It’s fairly self-explanatory, but you can often judge a class by its class size. Larger lectures tend to cover lots of material with less chance for personalized learning, while smaller courses generally review less material more thoroughly with more chance for discussion with peers and professors. Choose the course with the best learning environment for you. Weigh the Relative Gains While that class on video game programming might seem cool, if you already have a busy semester, choosing an elective course that entails lots of course work or long hours may not be the best idea for your overall academic and mental health. Even though intellectual curiosity is a great gift, sometimes you need to weigh the relative gains of learning a new skill against the relative costs of coursework and class time, exams, etc. If you are really struggling to keep up after the first couple of weeks, there’s no shame in dropping a course! You can almost always retake it another time when your workload is lighter or during the summer. Buy Yourself More Time If you really (really) can’t decide between two courses, sign up for both! It’s far easier to drop a course after the first couple of weeks than it is to pick up an extra course later. You never really know until you step into a classroom whether that course you’ve been panting after all semester will be plain terrific or terrifically plain. Hopefully, these suggestions will help you feel more confident and empowered the next time course selection rolls around! Visit College Quest to discover other useful tips on handling the wonders and woes of college life. WRITTEN BY Emma Hodgdon Tufts University Emma is a recent grad from Tufts University with a BA in English who loves playing the cello and reading all things Gothic. She spends her free time experimenting with calligraphy, learning to speak Chinese beyond the names of dim sum dishes, and desperately trying not to kill her poor succulents, Verotchka and Geraldine. ... View more

Professors are people too.  Professors are human beings with thoughts and emotions just like you and I. Students can give themselves a huge advantage if they have strong professional relationships with their professors. There are many ways to do this, but here are my five fail-safe methods to win over the hearts and minds of your professors. Go to office hours. Office hours are a forum that exists for students to meet with professors and ask any and all of their questions. It is important to go to office hours early in the semester to introduce yourself to the professor so they can put a name to the face, especially in larger classes. Office hours allow students and professors to develop relationships that go beyond the typical roles in the classroom. Students who go to office hours can get the opportunity to receive academic advising, mentorship, and obviously help with their class. Ask questions and participate in class. Even if a professor’s lecturing makes you want to pull your hair out, it is crucial to answer the professor’s questions and ask those of your own. Although it may seem futile in bigger classes, participation is incredibly important in showing the professor that you are engaged in the class and taking it seriously. Put your technology away! Having spoken to many professors about this topic, it seems widely accepted that technology is the biggest distraction students face in the classroom today. Whether it is your iPhone or your laptop, it is crucial not to let your devices take away from your academic success. Don't miss class. In larger classes, especially those that do not take attendance, it is counterproductive to miss class even if you are able to stay up on the work. The experiences and insights you gain when going to class are unparalleled and can not be replicated by simply doing the readings and homework. Even if you are able to do well in the class without going, professors oftentimes notice the absence of students whether it is occasional or consistent across an entire semester. Ask what they are teaching next semester. Professors have dedicated their lives to the subjects that they teach and often times are pleased when a student expresses interest in their work. Therefore, before it is time for course registration, it is a good idea to reach out to your professors about what courses they are teaching in the coming semester. This demonstrates to the professor that you enjoy their teaching style and class. WRITTEN BY Noah Skelskie Emory University My name is Noah Skelskie and I am an intern in the Macmillan Marketing Department. I am a rising junior at Emory University and was born and raised in New York City. I enjoy watching any and all sports but most of all, my New York Mets (unfortunately). ... View more

How to actually be productive in the library. For college students, the library is the hub for printing and copying papers, looking for scholarly sources, and, of course, doing homework. Being productive in the library, however, can be challenging: distraction, procrastination, and exhaustion are usually associated with the library. Even the most dedicated lib-goers (library-goers) sometimes struggle with finishing all of the work that they had set out to do when they arrived at the library in the first place. Being a frequent lib-goer over the course of my undergraduate career, I have compiled a shortlist of what to do -- and what not to do -- in order to make the most of your time in the library. Do... Be organized. Before starting your journey to the library, decide what you want to work on and what you want to accomplish. What homework is due the soonest? When is that test I have to study for or the due date for that paper I have to write? Asking yourself these sort of questions will help you prioritize your work. Prioritizing, along with figuring out how much time you have to spend in the library, will help you determine what to work on as well as what books and notes you’ll need to bring. Take care of yourself. The library is normally associated with stressful cramming and long nights of studying or writing. There are many ways to ease your stress and boost your morale. Listening to music, taking periodic breaks, and eating snacks are quick fixes to stay focused and get as much work done as you can. Utilize the café. If your library has a café, be sure to take advantage of it. The lib-caf at my school is my favorite place on campus because of the social yet productive atmosphere. The café is a great place to work on group projects because, unlike the rest of the library, talking at normal volume is encouraged. If you work best with background noise, no other on-campus space beats the lib-caf! Work with friends. Going to the library with friends is a great way to keep yourself motivated. Your friends make sure you’re staying on task and won’t be afraid to call you out if you keep procrastinating or talking too much. It’s also comforting to have friends with you while you work to remind yourself that you’re not alone. Doing homework is stressful, but knowing that your friends are in the same boat as you may ease your stress and provide an outlet for talking about the workload. Don't... Overwhelm yourself. Thinking about all the homework you have to do is stressful. Instead of thinking big picture, try breaking down your homework by class, time commitment, or due date. Which class do I have the most homework for? How long do I think it will it take? When is it due? These questions are essential for prioritizing your work and avoiding getting overwhelmed. While it is good to try to get as much done in one sitting as possible, you also have to think realistically about how much can actually be done. Over-caffeinate or under-sleep. While it might sound tempting, drinking too much coffee or losing sleep in order to finish all of your work won’t pay off in the long run. Neither practice is healthy for you, and oftentimes, you end up producing poorer quality work when you overdose on coffee or underdose on sleep. Aim for 1-3 cups of coffee and 8 hours of sleep per day in order to maximize productivity. Talk too loud. Despite serving a wide variety of purposes, the library is still a library. Whether you choose to sit in the café or elsewhere, you must respect others around you. Being surrounded by other stressed-out college students makes it difficult at times to remember the library’s rules, but always keep this one in mind to avoid being asked to quiet down by a librarian or fellow student. Get too distracted. Between music, breaks, snacks, and friends, staying on task at the library is difficult. If you find yourself procrastinating too much, try recalling what needs to be done in order to refocus your attention on your homework. Setting specific time limits on your breaks -- as well as how often you get to take them -- can help you focus as well. As for music, jazz and classical are common genres that students listen to when they need to remain motivated in order to meet the homework goals they set for themselves. The library is a popular study area for much of a college’s student body. By staying on task, keeping organized, and using your support system of friends, success at the library is entirely possible! WRITTEN BY Kelly Vena The College of New Jersey Kelly Vena is a senior at The College of New Jersey, where she is finishing up her English major and Communication Studies and French minors. She has worked as a marketing intern at Bedford, Freeman & Worth Publishers, the high school textbook branch of Macmillan Learning, since the start of the 2018-2019 school year. Kelly has been a writer since her senior year of high school, and her poetry has appeared in two publications as well as multiple editions of TCNJ's literary magazine. ... View more