Are you interested in being a Campus Rep for The Dream is Now? Get your resume and cover letter in before 5pm on Thursday!
Story Up!
The Story To College year-round, by students for students blog
The Common App-enstein
We LOVE this story by Erica DeMichiel! What do you think of this common app monster? Can you tell us a story about completing a huge project that felt out of your control?
Is 'Where's Waldo' Worth Asking?
A thought-provoking Op-Ed from the LA Times.
Wake Forest asks students to “think of things that fascinated you when you were 10 years old — what has endured?” Come on, the students were 10. Back then I wanted to be a garbage man (because I wanted to drive the big trucks) and was obsessed with reading about the Black Plague. Does either interest scream college material?
January is FAFSA month! Here’s a helpful infographic explaining the financial aid process from the U.S. Department of Education.
Useful info!
Scholarship of the Week: Humanist Essay Contest
The first Story To College Scholarship of the week of 2013 is the Humanist Essay Contest from Humanist Magazine. If you are interested in pursuing the humanities and enjoy writing analytical papers, you should take a look at this scholarship. All high school students in the US or Canada are eligible. The contest requires you to write a 1,500-2,500 on a humanist topic; for ideas, ask for a free copy of the magazine. The winner receives $1,000 and a chance to present the winning paper at the American Humanist Association.
Intrigued? Get writing!
Live Blogging the College Admissions Process: 12 Clichés To Avoid When Beginning Your Story
Here are some of the most common openings I see, as they’re almost always a rejection:
- Waking Up: Avoid the first moments of the day, especially if your character is being snapped out of a dream.
- School Showcase: A character introducing the requisite best…
(Source: writersdigest.com)
The Story To College Person of the Week is Jeremy Johnson, an education entrepreneur and founder of 2U, an online platform that offers rigorous graduate and undergraduate programs to students around the world. Jeremy founded his first company, an online marketplace for virtual currency, when he was fifteen years old. During his undergraduate years at Princeton, he founded a social network for the college admissions process that was eventually acquired by Zinch. When he was twenty-four, he collaborated with Princeton Review founder John Katzman to create 2stor, an online venture intended to help launch higher education into “the final frontier.” 2stor evolved into 2U which offers for-credit degrees at institutions like Washington University in St. Louis School of Law and Georgetown University School of Health and Nursing Services. 2U is developing Semester Online, a virtual undergraduate consortium that will include Duke, Northwestern, and Vanderbilt. Jeremy Johnson was recently named one of Forbes’s 30 under 30 in education.
Writing Prompt: Tell a story about an innovative idea that you tried to make a reality. Did it work?
Story To College Scholarship of the Week: Richie Spirit Foundation Award
The Story To College Scholarship of the Week is the Richie’s Spirit Foundation Award. The scholarship commemorates high school senior Richie Herskowitz who died of cystic fibrosis in 2007. All high school seniors are eligible to apply for the scholarship. There are two essay questions on the application: 1. Briefly describe a significant challenge you have faced in your life and 2. Describe how you overcame this challenge. Tell us how it has shaped you as an individual. The Foundation will award $1,000 to the winning essay. The deadline is February 15, 2013 so get writing!
Deferred, But Not Defeated
“The wait until April to hear a final decision, and to even know whether or not you are into college, can seem like an eternity…. [T]o anyone feeling a little disheartened by a deferral, there are many successful and integral members of the Yale community (including current admission staffers!) who were initially deferred.”
- student blogger Emily Hong ‘14, on being deferred, but not defeated.
Remember: you may be down, but you are NOT out!
(via yaleuniversity)
When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, “Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.” To this day, especially in times of “disaster,” I remember my mother’s words and I am always comforted by realizing that there are still so many helpers – so many caring people in this world.
Mr. Rogers
(via offwithurhead)
