Tuesday, October 1, 2013

Preparing Yourself For College Exams

When in college, everyone wants to graduate with the highest distinction in class. Here are a few tips that will help you prepare well for your college exams:

Start preparing from day one:
Many students tend to take their studies very lightly and assume that they have ample time for their studies. This, however, is not the right approach. If you really want to succeed in college, it is necessary that you start preparing right after the first lecture. Waiting till the last moment is never going to help you understand or learn anything. Almost all universities give the actual assessment dates months earlier so that you can start preparing accordingly.

Note-taking during lectures: It is important that you take proper notes during your lectures. Highlight all important points emphasized by your tutor. When taking notes, also make sure you properly organize or else you will waste all your time looking for relevant notes.

Review your material weekly: Even if you go through your notes after each lecture, make sure you review the complete weekly activity at the end of the week. This will help you get a better understanding of the course you are studying. Also in case you don’t understand anything, you can easily ask for guidance from your tutor.

Group study: Studying in groups greatly helps you improve the understanding of a subject. This is also one of the best ways to get full command over a subject.

Use visual aid: If you are having problems memorizing a few points, make use of visual cards, flashcards, etc. A very successful way of memorizing is to associate the subject with a song you like. If you try it, you will be surprised with how quickly you memorized the topic.

Ask for friends and family help: Ask your family members or friends to ask you different questions relating to the subject that you are studying.

Tuesday, September 3, 2013

How to React When Turned Down For A Salary Raise!

If you were expecting a salary raise and found out that everyone around you just got it except yourself, you run the risk of being completely adverse. What you need to realize is that this is the time when you need to control your adversity and raise yourself above the bar. No one likes rejection or to be not considered for a raise, especially when they think they have given their 100%. If you come across such a situation, the best thing to do is realize that your 100% was not what was actually required by the company. So instead of trying to convince every other colleague you meet that you were worthy of the raise, go to your manager and simply ask where did you go wrong. You need to focus on giving your 100% in the direction set by your manager, start doing things their way, and understand their perspective of the job and how it needs to be done. At times the shortcut to a destination is just not the right route, you are better off with another path, ask your manager what path you need to pick!

If you think that you are worthy of a raise, it means you are a true professional. If you are a true professional then you should really start acting like one. Following are a few tips that will help you face a pay raise rejection:

Do not react: It is natural to be infuriated in such a situation; however stay calm. Getting heated on your manager or beginning to show a sudden disinterest in your work is not going to do you any good.

Ask Questions: The best thing to do is to ask your manager for all your wrong areas during the job. This will also clear any doubts that you have. There might be a possibility that your manager must have planned something for you in the next appraisal and what you to do certain tasks. After all, if you don’t know where to improve, you will never improve!

Move on: If you are going to spend your time lamenting that you didn’t get any raise, you are only wasting your time. Therefore, stop dwelling on the past and concentrate on the future. Target a raise in the next appraisal, but this time make sure you follow the footsteps of your manager all the time!

Saturday, August 17, 2013

Degrees That Promise A Return On Investment

The cost of education is skyrocketing, whereas the return on investment is proportionally declining. There’s no getting around it, in today’s economy education is becoming extremely expensive. A four-year degree at a publically funded organization can easily go up to £35,000 and up to £100,000 in a private university. The thought that a good degree can win you a good job is literally becoming just a thought. It is therefore necessary that you carefully choose your degree in order to make a rewarding investment. According to research, following are some degrees that promise good return on investment:

Mathematics: 
If you like playing with numbers and solving difficult maths problems, then you have a brilliant career as a mathematician. A major in maths promises excellent return on investment. Salaries for mathematicians range from £65,000 to £135,000 per annum.

Information Technology: A career path that is promising for the next few coming years is an IT specialist. With technology progressing day by day IT is one sector that is always in need of skilled and experienced individuals. The salary scale ranges from £80,000 to £105,000 per annum.

Human Resources: A major that has paid off in the past and is still going strong is human resources. HR Managers are termed to be the gatekeeper for any organization. They are the one’s responsible to bring in valuable human resource to the company and are highly valued by companies. The salary ranges from £80,000 to 90,000 per annum.

Economics: Economists can do very well both in professional jobs and in academia. The average salary ranges from 100,000 to 130,000 per annum.

Biology:
If nature fascinates you, then biology is the field for you through which you can live your passion as well as earn good money. The median salary range is from £65,000-£80,000 per annum.

Engineering:
Have you always enjoyed taking every electronic gadget apart and putting it back? If you have the spark to build things, come up with construction solutions, then engineering is the field for you. The median salary range for engineers is from £70,000 - £90,000 per annum.

Thursday, August 15, 2013

3 Time Management Tools for College Students

College students have busy schedules that require proper planning. Quizzes, exams, labs and essay writing assignments can become overwhelming to some students, while others students enjoy the challenges of busy study schedules, homework, tests, research papers and more. Building time management skills can help students become more organized, disciplined and more productive in the classroom.

Procrastination
Dealing with procrastination is important for college students to stay on top of their studies. Most students are active on social media networks or participate in social events that waste their precious study time. Therefore, overcoming procrastination helps students succeed.

Time Robbers
Identifying time robbers is the key to manage your time. Students should find out what distractions take the most time out of the day. Spending too much time in fun activities after class, watching TV, washing dishes and more are a few distracting activities that take time away from studies.

Plan and Prioritize Your Tasks
Creating a to-do list is an effective time management strategy that helps students study effectively. Proper planning can help students prioritize their tasks and execute important ones. An effective part of prioritizing is to carefully think how long it takes to complete the task. This will help you complete your homework, writing assignments and prepare notes on time.

Considering the above cited time management tools can help students complete all their tasks and succeed in college.

Wednesday, July 10, 2013

Tips for Writing an Academic Conference Paper

Writing an academic conference paper might be a difficult undertaking, especially if you are a fresh graduate student, undergraduate or a scholar. Follow the tips mentioned below and writing an academic conference paper will become an easier process.

It is important to search some call-for-papers (CFPs) as abstract submissions are usually due a year before than a conference. Submit ideas for different conferences and try not to submit the same CFPs to more than one conference. Submitting different versions of an article to different conferences is a very common practice. If you are just starting out, do not bind yourself only to the prestigious gatherings, broad your search. Regional conferences provide a great way for graduates to improve their resume.

Keep the abstract concise and make your claims but don’t try to completely develop an argument. Keep this section is for your paper. Make sure to focus on the areas that make your project innovative rather than just explaining your topic.

Submit your abstracts early. Most graduates wait until the due date to submit the paper ideas. You can come up with the better paper if you start planning your paper ahead.

Keep your paper short, clear and concise. People usually impressed with a simple statement of an intricate idea than of a long, tedious exercise in erudition. Make and describe your arguments but keep the information of the claims to a minimum. Conferences are a great place to share and get a response to thoughts, not usually to argue details. You can always include more facts and details in the question and answer section, but overloading your paper with quotations, extra details and statistics will lose the interest of your audience.

Use handouts as they help you during your argument, and leave something impressive for other intellectuals to memorize you. Practice more, no matter, if it is your discipline’s conference which usually involves simply reading a paper out loud. It is important to know how to express yourself verbally to greatly improve the quality of your work.

Use your academic paper as a chance to network people. Even a small piece of your work can be a good option to ask reputable scholars for advice.