Tag: boarding school

The Waiting Game: College Acceptances

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waiting for college acceptances

You, on college acceptance day…

February can be a short, but cruel, month – followed by a long, excruciating March – while you are waiting to hear back from college admissions. Trying to envision your life after senior year is nail-biting: this is the rest of your (foreseeable) life we are talking about. Unfortunately, the struggle is real – there is no telling what your April inbox holds. So take a break from checking your mail obsessively or scrolling though the ivy-speckled Instagram account of that dream alma-matter, and channel your anxiety into these 10 ways to keep it cool instead.

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When Career Day Doesn’t Cut it

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June received her MBA from Harvard School of Business.
Joo is a hospital chaplain in NYC.
Dr. Katie Fuchs is an Orthopedic Surgery Resident in VT

Did ‘Career Day’ leave you uninspired? Are you currently considering a college major, profession, or career switch later in life? Catch up on Role Call, a blog feature where young professional women share their insights on achieving success (…and their advice to teens!) You can also visit our sister site, Major Crush, for a more comprehensive view of the possible college majors and career paths walked by inspiring women.

Now take a look back at the growing list of women career role models – and importantly, what they would advise young women on pursuing their dreams.

We are always looking for more diverse and unique professional young women to profile – contact petalandsass@gmail.com to recommend yourself or a friend, or leave a suggestion in the comments section below.

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The Graduate: Should I Study Business?

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should i go to business school

June received her MBA from Harvard Business School.

The Graduate is a new blog feature considering college majors, graduate school, and a look into career options beyond higher ed. Are you a college or graduate student who wants to be featured next? Tweet us @PetalAndSass or email petalandsass@gmail.com for more information!

Name: June Odongo

College & Major: University  of Massachusetts at Lowell, Computer Science

Graduate School & Program: Harvard University, Harvard Business School

Current Occupation: About to jump into entrepreneurship.

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Starting Over (In The Eyes Of College Admissions)

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getting better grades

Half of the academic marking period is over. You put your best foot forward (at least in September…and maybe a few days in October?) and now you are starting to wonder if perhaps you’ve crashed and burned with five more months of grades to go.

Your midterm grades weren’t spectacular, but you were pretty antsy and excited for the looming holiday season…pumpkin spice lattes… eggnog lattes…and now you’re just jazzed to reunite with your basic vanilla lattes again. Who can blame you with all of the legit distractions?

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The Next 4 Years: A Graduate Recap

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As early decision notices roll in this week for some, while others hit “submit”on their final applications, here is some great advice to incoming freshman from a few current college seniors. You can check out their full interviews via The Graduate. To view even more potential majors and career paths, visit our sister site MajorCrush.org.

Are you a young college or graduate student who wants to be featured next? Tweet us @PetalAndSass or email petalandsass@gmail.com for more information!

major in speech pathology

“If you get depressed, stressed out, or you’re just having some troubles with your roommate, go see a counselor. Your school likely provides counseling services for free. If you get so depressed you can’t function, it’s okay to take a break from school.  Many schools allow you to take a break for personal reasons without having to reapply when you’re ready to go back. 

Your college is likely full of specialized equipment and laboratories. After college, you can learn about art, philosophy, etc. in your spare time, but you’ll have a more difficult time teaching yourself chemistry. If you are interested in science, use the resources that you won’t have access to in just a few years and take a technical or scientific class. 

Grades are important but not at all critical. Pay attention in class, communicate with your professors, think critically about what you’re being taught, but don’t sacrifice your physical or mental health for a grade. 

If you are at a party, and it looks like someone might be trying to take advantage of a drunken person, do something about it. No “it’s not my problem” excuses. Furthermore, don’t take advantage of drunk people. Even Austin Powers knew that was wrong. 

If you live in the dorms, leave your door open! Future friends will wander in like lost puppies.”

-Lauren Graham ’16, Speech Pathology at Southern Illinois University

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Trolling & On Line Bullying

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trolling and online bullying

There is something about the internet that can often tap into a dark place. You are virtually connected to millions of people via social media at any given time you log on,  yet it’s easy to feel you are removed or anonymous as your eyes skim endless pages of images and data – you are on the outside, looking in. Often, the instances where we peruse the internet are the times we are alone; perhaps it is in the evening when time frees up; perhaps you are in a different state of mind as the stress of the day or feelings of fatigue or loneliness may creep in.

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Hooking Up: Are We Ready?

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Hooking Up

‘Hooking up’ is like a hurricane category 5 downgrade: not exactly full blown “sex,” but certainly anything and everything in its path that could be swept up along the way: lips, fingers, mouths, car seat upholstery, tongues, genitals, Netflix…

What we loosely define as ‘hooking up’ is a broad spectrum of sexual activities, and yet not all activities are treated, felt, or viewed equally – not on a personal or societal level. (If your grandfather ever found out about that pool house incident last summer he’d likely never look you in the eye again; your parents might start looking into military school; and your peers would probably assume you have a sex position emoji app.) So when is it ok to hook up? What are we to think when we hear that #SoAndSo hooked up Friday night after the party? Is everyone doing it? Should I be doing it? Is everyone comfortable doing it, or are they doing it just because they think everyone is doing it?

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The Art of Speaking in 5 Steps

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the art of speaking

So much depends upon what comes out of your mouth. Whether you are sitting in a sticky leather upholstered chair on a hot day being grilled by a chipper college admission counselor, or trying to impress the mom of your significant other with your knowledge of Phil Collins tunes, the way you turn a phrase – in one sentence or less – can send out all the right (or wrong) signals about who you are as a person and what your intentions are.

Fortunately, language is something you can work on, and everyone can improve somehow, whether it’s through diction, word choice, tone, or perhaps even more importantly – the ability to know when to stop talking and just listen.

Adjusting speech patterns, elocution and diction doesn’t happen overnight – but the more aware you are, the more likely you are to develop your speaking skills. Here are a few places to start.

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The Graduate: Should I Study Law?

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should i go to law school

The Graduate is a new blog feature considering college majors, graduate school, and a look into career options beyond higher ed.

For the past decade, teens have consistently rated becoming a lawyer as one of their top career aspirations (following careers in medicine, education, and STEM fields). Careers in law are often depicted as sexy, whirlwind, detective style who-done-it professions- and probably just a bit over glamorized – in popular media today (except for you, Amal Clooney: swoon. Looking at you, SVU and Suits.) but what is a career in law really like, and what does it take to get there?

Should I go to law school? Is pre-law an undergrad requirement to get there? Is being a lawyer actually worth it? We reconnected with corporate lawyer and Role Call interviewee Erika Payne, JD, for some hard nosed advice about a highly sought after field. Here are her points to consider:

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10 Ways To Improve Your Memory

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how to improve your memory

Does it seem like other people around you have a sharper memory? Chances are, you’re just forgetting how great your brain retention really is. Memory is critical to success – and it certainly might come in handy when you run into that girl from French class at a party or sit down for a US History exam. Photographic memory is a superpower – and since most of us are mere mortals, here are just a few tweaks you can make in your everyday life to strengthen your ability to retain information.

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