Seeing that it is around that time where most students start thinking about applying for college; I am going to talk about my process and what I think worked and did not work for me.
The best way to make an impression on a school is through your SAT scores. Every school wants smart students and one of the few ways in which they can tell you apart from the thousands of other students is by your SAT scores. The only way to do good in the SAT is by studying. There is no secret code or secret memorization techniques for the test. There is one big tip that everyone should follow when taking the test. If you don’t answer a question then you don’t lose points. All our lives we have learned to fill in the whole test because maybe we might get lucky and get some bonus points. The way the SAT was designed is that there is no extra points. If you are not sure about a question and don’t have an educated guess then skip it. If you are good in one of the three subjects then don’t worry much about it and try to focus on the other two. You must balance out your score with at least scoring high (over 600) in one of them and average is usually around the (500s). These considerations of high, average and low defer from each school you apply to. If you are applying to Ivy League Schools then the average becomes 600 and anything beyond 650 would be considered high.
Depending on the school you are applying to, you might be required to take the SAT II or subject based tests. These are extremely hard and I would only suggest to take them if you really think you are good at that subject or it is a requirement. The Math I test of these is exactly how the regular SAT is but with more questions and less time to do the problems. If you are considering taking one these tests then go ahead, you really don’t lose anything and it will just make your profile stronger.
The day of the test make sure you ate something for breakfast because it is the longest test of your life. Try taking some snacks with you for when you have breaks. Maybe a bottle of water or some juice, soda, whatever you need to stay energized. Get plenty of sleep before the test because you do not want to fall asleep or be extra tired for the test. It is meant to drain you. As a matter a fact, many questions are similar to previous ones but you might get them wrong because of how tired you are and those are dummy points you lose. Remember to schedule your SAT test early so you have plenty of time to re-take it in case you think you need to or if that was your original plan. It is not a bad idea to take the test twice, it usually improves your score by at least 50 points since you already know what to expect and how to expect it.
Good Luck To Everyone,
Yasser
It’s another year gone by down the road. I recently finished my second year at R.I.T. and a great one it was. I took some great classes that not only applied to my major but also applied to my knowledge in general about society and life. One of my favorites was International Relations where I learned so much about how the international “government” roles work and how the United Nations is viewed and works. Because of this class I later on took a class called War And The State talking about the “Art of War” and the different meanings and views people take upon war.
As far as classes applied to my major, my favorite was Software Engineering. It was one of the classes that I was leased expecting to like but it was opposite of what I expected. The whole class went through the process of working in a team developing, from start to finish, a whole project. During the process we mostly learned about designing and working on your design to make your software flexible for any new features or changes that need to be added. It gave me a good view of how a project in the “real world” would work out.
Living off campus was a whole new experience that I do not regret. I saved lots of money and live a lot more comfortable. The fact that I could leave campus and forget about school for hours or days, kept me more relaxed. I am planning to live off campus next year too but at a different place. Housing on campus is still bad and expensive. It is an option but not my first by choice. I am actually pretty excite to see what next year will bring.
Two years already,
Yasser
The United State’s is known as the fattest country in the world. And it is slowly getting to be known as one of the most uneducated countries (statistics, not calling people stupid). I came from Dominican Republic where my mom would cook almost every day a decent food (by decent I mean not full of fat). Every now and then we would go out to eat pizza and once in a blue we would stop at a McDonald or Burger King, we would usually prefer Taco Bell. But now I’m in college where there is no time to cook and everything needs to be rushed. What matters the most is what is open the latest and could deliver. Because of this I would say I eat at least twice or three times a week junk food, usually a cheeseburger (or double) and probably some bacon with it too. It is my fault that I am lazy and not go to the gym as often as I should. But I’m not overweight or in health problems, this is just my case and how I ended up eating more junk food than usually.
In school there is a “wide” selection of what we could eat which is usually divided into Grill (burgers, grilled chicken, anything else fried or very unhealthy with fries) , Deli (sandwiches which are good but a bit overpriced sometimes) , Pizza and Pasta, Others (Sushi once in a blue, Chinese food, Salads, etc.) The funny part is that the cheapest one is the least healthy one. But this year they have made great changes to the vending machines adding nutritional packages and labeling them so we could identify it. In my case I say I would average 1 slice of pizza a week, 2 or 3 burgers, 2 orders of fries, 2 or 3 grilled chicken sandwiches, 2 salads (new to my menu). This is minimum and a quick estimate. I don’t drink soda unless it’s free or I go out to eat to a fast food place.
All of this thinking comes from me watching Super Size Me, the very well known documentary about fast food and it’s impact in health (mainly McDonald). One of the most surprising things to me was learning that the can of lemonade brings just as much calories as a can of soda would. I would of thought well it’s juice, can’t be that bad…but I was wrong. I always find it weird that people never consider the portions they eat. The popular way of thinking is what is going to fill me up and it’s not too expensive. Specially in college life where every dollar matters. I’ve been successful on giving up soda, drink it very rarely. I’ve also managed to stop eating fries except for when I go Wendy’s or some other burger place because it’s part of the combo and it’s just easier to order. But now my new goal will be to give up Burgers in general. This might be one of the hardest challenges I have given myself. But I’m positive I will accomplish it one way or another. The best thing to do is drink water, all the time. The more water you drink the better you will be. It is the best way to clean your system.
Yasser
I found this article that mentions 12 Web Applications to help college students be more successful or at least be more organized. A couple of them I already use like the # 1 which is Facebook. The only thing is that they don’t really say why it is useful. To me it’s useful to keep track of events that happen around campus and it’s also a great way to get to know better college students you meet and probably don’t see often. Another application that caught my eye from the list is BookFinder. I had never heard of it before. It finds all the prices from different websites for a certain book and that way you save some money. Check out the list, it is pretty useful information.
Yasser
Everyone seems to be very excited to go back home for thanksgiving break this year. It’s a break that seems to long for other and too short to the rest. I would prefer it to be shorter and our Christmas break to be longer, but I don’t make the rules. The second most exciting thing of Thanksgiving (besides the food) is Black Friday. This is the day where lots of stores go crazy with their sales. Things go on 60% discount or worse. The problem is that the better the offer, the less they have and the lower the chances of you getting it. If you want to get your hands on the best offers you will need to be at the store at least 1 hour before they open so you can get the best chance of getting what you want. I went last year but after I woke up and it was around 3pm already. I did see a lot of offers but nothing that would fit me since my size was already taken. This year I doubt I will wake up early to try and get something cheap. But I will wait to everything passes and hopefully get some good online deals during Black Friday. I did read a rumor that there is something called “Cyber Monday” which follows black friday with great deals, but I don’t know how true that is.
If you are interested in some of the crazy deals for Black Friday then google it or go to GottaDeal.com they seem to have a good list of whats going on for that day.
Because I love movies and always like to know more about them; I’m taking Film Arts where I’ve learned a lot more of how films are done. And I’ve written my first film analysis on Do The Right Thing by Spike Lee. The analysis is based on the colors used in this movie and the meaning behind these colors. I got a 88/100 which I think it’s a pretty good score. One of the reasons I didn’t get a higher grade is because I didn’t make it long enough. Now I’m writing one on Raging Bull which I will publish whenever I’m done and get my score back. For now you can read my paper on Do The Right Thing. Read more…
It’s that time of the year where girls can dress up like slutty because they’ve always wanted to be one but were afraid. For all the other people it’s just a pain in the but to know what to dress up like. Last year, me being a horror fan, decided to buy one of those nice masks that you glue to your face and bring blood and stuff. It was really nice but also very uncomfortable to wear and breath through. This year so far I don’t think I’m going to wear a costume or anything because of lack of interest and imagination. For all the people still looking for a good idea for a costume… My friend last year dressed up as a Nudist On Strike (get it?). For the slow people, you wear regular clothes and make a small sign that says that. He also had the idea of putting a garbage bag on and writing a T on it, meaning he was almost a T-bag. These are simple ideas that you could do. There is always the classic vampire which I almost was this year. I was just going to buy the teeth but I never got to it. And one of my friends this year is going to be a Chick Magnet, having a magnet with a bunch of baby chicks stuck to it. Girls usually have it easier, just wear shorts and a tank top and pretend you’re a boxer who left the gloves somewhere else. Or just be a guy.
I really don’t have many ideas for Halloween costumes but I will be making a list through out the years.
Yasser
I know I haven’t written anything lately but it’s because I’ve been extremely busy. I’m in my Sophomore (second) year in college and living off campus. I’m also the Social Coordinator for the Latin American Student Association (LASA) at RIT. Classes so far are good, not too hard but none too easy either. Being a sophomore is so much easier than being a freshmen, less things to worry about. You know where everything is and how it works. Even though I’m still discovering things and learning other things. But for now I have all the basics covered. I’m trying to get my drivers license and hopefully get a cheap car, just for college. Hopefully this will happen by Christmas or before 2008, but this is very uncertain right now. Lots of news have gone by like the new (ugly) iPods, the cool new iTouch and the price cut on the iPhone (sucks for people who bought one when it was more expensive). I don’t think I’ve seen any new movies except for old ones. I’m taking a Film Arts class which should make me a better critic on deeper aspects of the movie. I just hope it doesn’t ruin every other movie I see because of small details.
That’s it for now,
Yasser
One of the most talked about person recently, is the iPhone Hacker. His name is George Hotz and he goes to RIT. I just found out about this this afternoon. He is now a freshmen at my school who is getting a lot of publicity and buzz. I wonder if he will get special treatment from some teachers for being a short time “celeb”. Kudos to him and I hope he enjoys the long painful orientation week. I hope I get the chance to meet him around campus. He might be a future boss considering that there are rumors saying that he has a contract already to work for some company. You can read his blog Finding JTAG on the iPhone to learn how to unlock an iPhone. And welcome to RIT kid.
Yasser
It’s almost time to get back to college or start college for some of you. We all know that college is expensive and living on your own is even more expensive. I found this article on CollegeScholarships.org on 118 ways to save money for college. The great part about this article is that it is divided into sections. On what you want to save money and how to do it. One of the main things is managing your money which is something I talked a bit of for a while. The second topic is alcohol, almost everyone drinks in college and it is statistics that most college students spend more money in alcohol than any other thing. The simple suggestion for this one is: don’t drink. But we all know you won’t do that so buy cheap beer or cheap alcohol and if that doesn’t work then buy bulk. Always buy your books used they’ll save you at least 20-50 bucks. Then sell them if you won’t need them anymore. Food is the next subject but that depends if you are picky with your food, I know I am and don’t eat the damn ramen noodles. But find out where it’s cheaper to eat and think about healthy or you will always remember your freshmen 15. The rest aren’t as important but I suggest them to read it.
And even if you’re not a college student, maybe these tips could help you to save money on your average day to day.
Yasser
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