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  • College Plus: An Alternative to a University

    2012 - 08.03

    This article relates to people who want to go to college, doesn’t matter your age. It relates to parents planning for their children, middle aged people wanting a degree, or high school graduates researching college options. I am going to talk about something called College Plus.

    What is College Plus?

    College Plus is a program online that guides you by the hand on a two to three year path of earning your college degree. Instead of attending a regular university, this program sets you up with a career adviser and coach that helps to teach you how to study and test out of CLEP exams. CLEP exams are exams for college credit. There are 33 of these tests and they take up about a year of your path at College Plus, which tests you out of your first year and more of a degree plan. For more information about CLEP and other exams for credit visit http://www.collegehq.net/category/about-exams-for-credit-and-college-for-less/

    After the journey through CLEP, you go through degree consultation and several College Plus courses. Depending on what your degree consultation decides, the student will take a certain amount of courses online at online universities in order to get the courses required for their major. This program works at your own pace, but the student has the capability of earning their college degree within two to three years. Wow!

    What degrees are offered and how much is it?

    College Plus offers 29 degrees and the number is growing as they grow! These degrees range from science to music and business.
    The average cost for College Plus is 15,000 dollars. That sounds like a lot of money up front, but it really isn’t. When you really look at it, $15,000 is about the same as three or four full time college semesters. That doesn’t include living expenses, transportation, or books either so College Plus is a real deal in comparison.

    Hopefully, College Plus will be a viable option for many of you and it will help everyone feel capable of earning a college degree. It isn’t hopeless and it isn’t out of anyone’s reach.

    Why Take Criminal Justice Degree Online?

    2012 - 08.03

    It may sound strange but there are several universities offering online criminal justice degree training to students that are interested in the career matter. However before entering in the world of cyber network it best to check the college first before wasting your time and effort in a program that isn’t licensed by a university. This kind of problem will give the student a hard time being recognized by the company being applied to because the certificate is not legit. Being enrolled to a criminal justice degree online program that is accredited by a renowned school would not face any problems in the future. If you are not entirely sure whether the program is accredited, try doing a background research about the school to avoid difficulties.

    Most students prefer online criminal justice degree programs because they are cheaper compared to enrolling in an actual university. The kind of degree and learning experience is similar to a normal college life despite the fact that students are in their homes. This kind of scenario is popular in most countries because people find it more educational to be relaxed while learning the things that they need to know. Yes, going to an actual university is journey that everyone should encounter, but in the life that we have practicality should always be taken into consideration. Another advantage involved in criminal justice degree online program compared to offline is there is no need for extra expenses that can be hard in the cases of parents. However, computer forensics degree bodes great opportunities.

    Similar to normal schools the online program also give their students a chance to have assignments even though they are not in front of the computer. This will give the learners a chance to mold their minds even if they are not in a school setting. The skills acquired in online criminal justice degree training cannot be compared to other programs offered in a university because the student will have a chance select his own learning schedule. This kind of education is suitable for all ages and it can be a part-time training for people who have jobs during the day. They can conduct this training if they have nothing better to do at night.

    Some companies propose incentives to graduates of an online criminal justice degree program because they have seen the effort that students made just to complete the session. This is their way of acknowledging the patience and determination of students in getting a decent job.

    How to Choose the Right Nursing Schools Online

    2012 - 08.03

    We all know that Nursing is one of the most popular courses taken by students in college today. This is because of the growing demand for nurses and the great income opportunities. Aside from the traditional schools, more and more nursing schools online are now being established providing another education options for those who lack the time, budget, and ability to study on-campus education programs. However, before preferring this option, you have to make sure that you are enrolled in the right online nursing course and school. It is very important that you are enrolled in the right nursing school and you are taking the right online nursing course to avoid problems in terms of employment later on.

    To find the right nursing schools online, you should first decide what specific nursing course to take. Most traditional nursing degree programs and courses are now also being offered online. If you want a shorter route, you can take the vocational nursing programs or the associate degrees in nursing. If you want to become a licensed registered nurse or an RN, take the 4-year degree program or the BSN. There are also higher nursing degrees online for those who want to advance and specialize in specific nursing field like master’s or doctorate degree in nursing.

    After deciding what nursing degree to take, look for the nursing schools online that offer the type of degree you want. To find the right school, always look for the school with proper accreditation from the accrediting body in the national and state level. Remove those that are not accredited from your list of online nursing schools to narrow down your option.

    The next step is to inquire from these nursing schools online to determine if the online nursing degree program they offer matches your needs and preference. Most online nursing programs are patterned from the traditional nursing degree curriculum but there major differences are the class schedules and the freedom they provide to students in terms of study schedule and compliance of projects and assignments. If you want more flexibility, choose the online school that offers the sufficient flexibility you want.

    Even if you are taking an advanced online nursing degree program, there are still practical training and classes you need to physically take especially in medical facilities. Talk with your curriculum advisor and request for the practical training schedule that will match your needs. If you are already working like doing some registered nurse night jobs to increase work experience, choose the practical training and classes schedules on daytime or during your off-days to avoid conflicts. Learn more about nursing school and careers at workatnightjobs a site devoted to help you suceed.

    Improve Your Exam Scores With SAT Prep

    2012 - 07.04

    Private tutoring can greatly improve your test scores. According to research carried out by Eduventures Inc., about two million students take the test every year. Students are looking for an edge to get into high school and college. Statistics included in the Admission counselors report show SAT prep courses can help you get past the cutoff mark. Improving your math scores by 20 points and reading scores by 10 points increases the likelihood of admission. There is no doubt enrolling your child for SAT prep is the way to go. However, you must take into account the following considerations.

    Personalized Tutoring

    Each child is unique and standardized tutoring may not be the best option. While it is hard to escape group tutoring, one on one tutoring works better. Most children encounter difficulties in particular subjects. This may be math or science related subjects. If you can get individualized tutoring for these subjects, test scores will be higher. Make sure you involve your child in the conversation. You may be surprised to find the problem is not as dire as it seems.

    Feedback

    This is an important part of your child’s SAT preparation. It is the only way you will be able to gauge the efficacy of the SAT program. Most courses include assessments and evaluations. This feedback can motivate your child to put more effort into studies. Your child will pick up vital skills in answering exam questions. This includes how to handle essay questions, complex logic questions, and time allocation. Some private tutors include psycho-educational evaluations as part of the preparation. This enables the tutor to pinpoint problem areas and offer the appropriate remedial tutoring.

    Shop Around

    Take time to research several tutoring service before enrolling your child. There are two categories of private tutoring service providers. The first category is made up of large-scale educational service providers. These can be found in major towns and cities offering tutoring at learning centers. Private tutoring can be arranged on request. You will have to pay an additional fee for this privilege. The second category is made up of boutique tutoring companies. These have a small army of tutors who offer customized services. Your child is assessed on the strength of past and current grades. The tutoring is normally done at the student’s home. SAT prep Boise has great tutors that will prepare your student to be proficient and confident inside the exam room.

    Accredited Online Degree Programs

    2012 - 06.21

     

    As I have said before, Online universities make me nervous. I like to see a teacher in person and try to interact with them in order to understand them and what is important to them. Recently, I have been doing a lot more research into online universities and their degree programs. One of the biggest things you have to watch out for is whether the online degree program you’re looking at is accredited or not. If a degree or college isn’t accredited, it will be virtually useless.

    Why are online colleges becoming so popular then? Because people can work at their own pace and they can work on their degree from home. How nice does that sound? You can be working and instead of making your boss angry be changing your schedule every semester, you can work the hours you need and study the rest.

    The Big Three: The big three is widely known on Instant Cert Academy and many of the members there use it. The big three are three online universities that all accept transferring near 120 college credits into their programs. These colleges are Thomas Edison State College, Excelsior , and Charter Oak State College. These universities are accredited and built to help you succeed and earn your degree. They are directed toward adults, but it works for young adults as well. Each website has a handy tuition calculator you can use and apply to your specific plan. Remember, each college will have different types of exams for credit that it will accept, so if you look into one of these colleges be thinking of which one accepts the most test credits for your degree.

    The Cons: As I have researched online degrees, I have found that in recent years it is exploding in popularity with people, but not as quickly with hiring managers. People who are going to interview you and determine whether you have a job or not, are the ones that are still a little nervous about people with online degrees. The number of hiring managers that are becoming more willing to hire people with online degrees is growing and will continue to grow as online colleges flourish. About 60% of hiring managers are not biased, said an HR report several years ago. Who knows what that number is today in 2012. It could be that 80% are unbiased. However, there is still a bias.

    There you have it. The big three in all their glory as well as a word of warning against online degrees. They are so many great things about online degrees though. Studying at home, no commuting, classes working around your schedule, much more open to exams for credit and transferred credits, and generally a little cheaper than on-campus universities. I will tell you that people on instant cert academy have mastered their strategy with these schools. I know of one man who graduated with a degree from one of the online universities in six months because of all the exams for credit that he plowed through. That was 120 college credits in six months. What are you capable of? Decide for yourself what works best for you and your lifestyle! For more ideas for college visit College HQ

     

     

    What Degree Should You Get? Chart and Graphs

    2012 - 06.19

    Tips for How to Study in College

    2012 - 06.14

    I have been an “A” student my whole life. A few rough courses that were over my head here and there, but I have always had a 4.0. When I transferred from high school to a community college, I ran into some issues. This was not high school and I couldn’t study the same way.I needed to find some tips and tricks for how to study. Something became evident to me in the classes that I took. These teachers all had their own way of teaching and their own way of testing. They were unique individuals. Still, community college was pretty easy for me, not including my long distance course. For my long distance course, I was making “C” when I called my professor to meet. I drove all the way out there and showed him my work and my tests and he admitted to me that his long distance tests were written by the state, not by himself and that they were extremely difficult. However, through his kindness and mercy he gave me an “A” at the end of the course because my grades bounced up and he saw how hard I was working. Why am I saying all this? Because that is tip number one.

    Talk to your Professor!
    Yes they can be scary and you don’t like them, but they can be your greatest ally and the end decision maker of whether you make an “A” or not. Sometimes they won’t give you advice about how to study for their tests specifically, or not give you clear instruction. I had a philosophy teacher like that. However, if they see you asking those questions and trying to work hard in their class, most of them will reward you. If they are a good teacher, they will want you to succeed and reward you for your efforts in their class. I would take pity from a professor because I don’t understand their class over their wrath for not trying any day!

    Flashcards and Notes!
    Okay, so tip number one isn’t mind blowing but it is useful. I am a very visual person so I have to go to class a lot in order for me to retain the material properly. I have to see the teacher explain it and hear it from their own mouth for me to write good notes. Notes and flashcards are the next tip. You may be thinking, “Flashcards? Really? That’s so elementary.” Well it’s not! Flashcards are proven to help people retain information better. How are you going to make good flashcards? By going to class and taking notes off of the lecture. Teachers don’t test out of the book alone. A lot of the time they test off what they say in a lecture. Listen. Write. Memorize. Here’s a website that gives tips about how to write good notes: http://www.testtakingtips.com/note/index.htm

    Teach Others!
    My English teacher taught me something I would never forget. She told my class that a lot of people retain information by listening to a lecture. Even more people retain information by taking notes and making flashcards. However, the people that remembered and understood their material the most, were people who taught others. When class got out, they would go and teach someone what they had learned. Even if it was a plant that they talked to about class and what they learned, it still counted. The mind is powerful and talking about something after you have learned it helps seal it in your mind. It doesn’t matter who you talk to, it’s the action of telling someone or something that does the trick.

    Study Buddy!
    Working with people is awkward and making friends in a class may be unnatural for most people, but it can be vital. If you are not the best at taking notes or understanding the professor’s teaching method, then you could get lost in the class and left behind. What you need, is another point of view. A study buddy can provide that set of notes that you couldn’t take, or understand that theory that went over your head. No two people are the same, so when you put two together from the same class, you will get double the information and recall. You can teach other what the other has missed. Works out really well.

    Tutors!
    You pay for tutors as part of your college tuition, why not use them? They are there working for you and can help you recover your declining grades. I have been to tutors many times and they don’t help a lot every time, but it could be enough to get you a better letter grade in your next test. Isn’t that worth it? It is to me. They are there for you and you can ask all those dumb questions that your ashamed to ask your teacher. They are especially helpful if your teacher is intimidating or makes you feel dumb. I haven’t ever met a tutor that makes you feel that way.

    There are my study tips for college students. Take them or leave them but they have helped me maintain my 4.0 to this day and hopefully will to the day I graduate. As I said, I am a visual and tactile learner, so these methods worked fabulous for me. However, if you are a different kind of learner than they may not be quite as effective. Give them a shot though! For more tips and tricks about college check out more of my website http://www.collegehq.net/category/tips-and-tricks/

    Becoming a Dental Assistant

    2012 - 06.11

    Dental assisting is a rewarding job that focuses on helping people. In order to become a dental assistant, people need to go through school in order to get the training and education needed to start work.

    The process can be completed fairly quickly. Most programs involve a couple of years of study and practice, until the individual is ready to become an accredited professional and enter the field.

    In the technical school setting, the individual will be trained in everything that they need to know about the human mouth, as well as dental practices and working with other professionals. It is common for individuals to work with a core group of classmates, learning together during the time spent in school.

    The individuals will also be trained in how to use equipment and tools which are going to be needed around a clinical office, as well as with patient care and supplementing the work of others. Individuals will also likely encounter individuals who can be used to build bridges and establish connections.

    This time period is an important one, because it allows the individual to learn and make mistakes without actually impacting anyone through their efforts. Mistakes play a big role in development, so this time is a critical one as it pertains to learning and progression.

    In most cases, the education will be fairly evenly split between schooling and practice. The technical schools who offer these programs have special analogues which are used for individuals to practice on, so that they are able to get the most human experience possible with their efforts.

    Training will come not only from instructors, but from working professionals who are in the field at that moment. Getting practical experience and leaning from others about the best ways to progress are important to good development.

    Over the course of a couple of years, the individual will learn about everything needed in order to be in the field and make a positive difference. Some schools may also offer the opportunity to have internships of sorts with local offices, so that people can meet important contacts and get real world experience.

    Getting so much experience and learning from people who are currently in the field is vastly beneficial to those who are going through the program. The benefits will make for more competent and able professionals who will be able to do good work and help out those who they come into contact with at their job.

    Job placement is fairly high coming out of these programs. While nothing can be guaranteed, the contacts which are made and the training received should make it so that graduates are able to be very competitive in the field, and will be able to find work quickly.

    All of these benefits combine to show how going through dental assisting technical school is a process which is well worth it all in nature. When it all comes down to it, it is a rewarding career with the opportunity to see real improvements while making a difference in the lives of many people.

    Budget Tips College Students

    2012 - 06.06

    For all college students trying to get themselves through college, they face the same issue. How to pay for it. Where does the money come? How can they make more? In many, many cases, college students need to ask themselves, “Where is it all going?” Lets face it, young adults are known for spending money out of pocket! What you need, is a budget. Yep, I said it. A budget. Self-control is your friend not your enemy. Check it out. To find some great tips for making a budget and ways to think about money visit College Life.  Below I am going to talk about my tips to get you started. I am with you in this fight and still haven’t made for myself an official budget, but I am trying! I’m asking you to try with me.

     

    Unnecessary Spending:

    This may be hard to hear but I want you to think about how many times you have eaten out or bought something while you were out running errands that you didn’t need. Gatorade, tea, coffee, Taco Bell, Snickers, all of it that you can remember. How much of that did you really need and how much of that did you buy because you wanted it at the moment? Mean question I know. I can feel the guilt already. Spending isn’t wrong, but there is a limit to it. Excuses can only be made so often before you end up with a negative balance at the end of the month because you spent $50 on stuff you didn’t need. Ladies, you may not need that pair of shorts or that really cute shirt. Men, you don’t really need another X-box game or a shiny pair of stylish sunglasses. Control yourselves.

     

    A Simple Habit:

    Before you buy, think and ask yourself if you really need it. Most of the time, the answer will be no. That doesn’t mean you don’t ever buy anything for luxury. There is a balance. When you get your check, or income, stop before you put it in the bank. Calculate what ten to twenty percent of that amount would be and that would be your spending money. If you made $300 last week, your spending for the week would be $30-$60 dollars depending on how strict you want to be. Get that money as cash and keep it with you. When you want something, use that cash and not your credit or debit card. If you run out of that cash, that’s it! Do not spend anymore unless it’s an emergency.

     

    Saving to Spend:

    Now I know that there are things that cost quite a bit of money that you may want. The newest Gears of War for guys and new shopping spree for girls. Your spending money for the week will most likely not accumulate to that, so what you do is you plan ahead. If you know you want to go on a shopping spree or you know when that game is coming out, set aside a very small amount of money each week. Maybe it is five bucks, an amount that won’t break your account or your spending money for the week if you wanna use that and set it aside. Eventually, that money accumulates and you won’t feel bad spending it nor will your account be punished for it because you have been planning for it for a while. Be smart and plan ahead. Save for what you want and don’t spend frivolously. Self-Control is your ally. A mean, annoying, but necessary ally. For more tips and money talk for college students visit the Paying Your Way Through School category at my site

    A Bright Career in Emergency Response

    2012 - 06.06

    An Emergency Management Specialist (EMS) is the career of topic for the second bright career outlook. This career was very interesting to me because it isn’t a career most people would think about it. An EMS is someone who helps train and prepare communities for disasters as well as help on the scene when disasters hit. People with an EMS occupation help train people to respond to hurricanes, earthquakes, nuclear situations, etc. They are kept informed of anything that could help prevent a disaster or whether a potential disaster is underway. Sounds kind of fun huh? Coming to the rescue and being support to a community in need, creating shelters and coordinating a response team. Some people don’t like adventure and would never think about this job, but there are some people who are inclined to help others and dive head long into risky situations. This career is more for the latter, even though you aren’t in imminent danger every time. Nor are you necessarily at the scene of every emergency. Being an EMS also means that you manage teams from afar. For more information about the occupation check this link out Emergency Management Specialist

    What skills do you need to have?

    There are a list of character skills that people need for this particular occupation. One is you have to be a decision maker. You won’t always have a lot of time to examine every alternative and wait for an opportunity to present itself. You have lives on your hands and need to make decisions fast. The ability to have listening and reading comprehension for when you receive reports and such. Obviously, you need to have reasoning to help with your decision making to help you make the best decisions with what options you have. The last skill that I will list is the ability for public speaking because you are going to have to make public reports about the emergency and tell people what to do clearly and concisely. This is going to be a stable job, because you have routines for everything and those routines aren’t subject to change unless more efficient ways of response are discovered.

    The Outlook and Salary

    This degree has a bright outlook because reports show that this occupation is going to be more in demand through 2018. In this career, are many different variations. You can work specifically for organizations and companies, states, cities, etc. Obviously, depending on your level of employment your salary will differ. In general, people in this occupation make anywhere from $ 38,500 to $70,750 a year. There is always potential to earn more though. A bachelor degree is required for this occupation.

    So this is the occupation of an Emergency Management Specialist. Very interesting career in my mind. I hope I gave some people ideas and food for thought. More bright outlooks are to come! For more articles about college, visit my website College HQ