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How to Write the Outline for a College Level Essay

July 24, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Writing a college level essay for the first time isn’t always easy for any college freshman. The main key to writing a great college level essay is by writing a strong outline. The outline is what’s going to help guide you through your essay.

Writing essays is important because they are a big part of your online Bachelors programs. Your outline is going to show the entire breakdown of the topic your essay is about.

Before you start writing choose the topic you wish to write about. Make sure the topic falls under one of your options given to you by your professor.

Stay Focused on the Topic

Think about the question you’re answering in your essay and focus on that only. Students will go off on a tangent pretty quickly and easily so it’s important to stay focus on the question you’re looking to answer.

Organize your Ideas

When writing your outline, write down all the ideas for the topic. Choose the ideas that are general and use those as your headlines. Once you’ve got the headlines write down specific ideas for each section of the paper.

The format will remain constant throughout the outline. If you start with capital letters then use capital letters throughout the outline.

Write your Thesis & Headlines

Your thesis statement is the hardest part to write so do that first. The thesis is at the beginning of your outline. The thesis explains your reasoning for the paper.

The headlines are a short sentence and will argue each point that you’re making in the paper.  Your subheads are going to fully support the arguments in each headline.

Filed Under: College Entrance Exams, Education, Online Resources Tagged With: , ,

The English Advantage: Degree Success

July 15, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Grammar is a loathsome subject — the stumbles of words and their meanings, the incomprehensible tenses. There is, you’re certain, no value to gain in mastering the English language. It’s a subject you hate: demanding time, effort and patience (a trait which you’ve never fully embraced). A degree therefore seems useless. You’d rather pursue other interests, taking only the necessary literature credits and then forgetting everything you’ve learned.

This is not wise, however — if only because online education degrees in English can generate success for other ventures.

Language isn’t simply a tribute to poetry and indecipherable prose. Instead it offers rewards (such as comprehension, analysis, creativity and more) that can be applied to other fields. Choosing to study English ensures that students gain the ability to read — and dissect — any form of text. And this is imperative for all careers… no matter how far removed from books they seem.

It’s estimated that over 50 percent of pre-law students select English as their secondary degrees. Those seeking medical fields choose literature over all other minors (with 60 percent using it for foundational courses). Such hard sciences seem incompatible with grammar; and yet they are perpetual favorites. The reason is obvious — because writing inspires dynamic thinking, offering ways to draft theses from unique perspectives and ensuring that students gain recognition. It allows for stronger technical perspectives, as well as helping complex ideas to be conquered: simply because students are given the tools to decipher prose.

English is not simply a degree for the poetic. It’s instead a cornerstone for all other elements and should be embraced.

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Tips for Writing Flawless School Papers

July 14, 2011 By Leave a Comment
Poster promoting reading by Charles Dickens in...

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These are two words students fear hearing most: writing assignment. The dreaded school paper. Unlike a multiple-choice test, a school paper doesn’t have one right answer. Instead, a student must clearly, and sometimes eloquently, present an argument with supportive details over the span of two to five pages, and sometimes more. And if that’s not hard enough, the paper must have proper punctuation and grammar, and no misspellings. However, the tips below will help make the next writing assignment — be it a one-pager for middles school or a 20-pager for online Bachelors programs — flawless.

Build an outline first

Before writing the first sentence map out the paper by outlining the introduction and conclusion as well as each main point that will be discussed in the body. Once the major topics are figured out, the rest of the details become easier to fill in. In contrast, writing blindly increases the chances of going off topic and writing run-on sentences.

Rewrite, rewrite, rewrite

Even the best writers in history — from Dickens to Hemingway — constantly revised their work. Going through several drafts of a school paper weeds out the weak areas, making the overall paper much stronger.

Find a writing spot

Writing takes a lot of concentration, as well as creativity. That’s why it’s important to find somewhere that is secluded but can get the creative juices flowing, either indoors or outdoors.

Undergo peer criticism

No one should proofread their own work. Instead, every writing assignment should be proofed by a classmate who can point out the flaws and make suggestions

Filed Under: Education, Online Resources, Writing Techniques Tagged With: , ,

Preparing For Your Degree

July 14, 2011 By Leave a Comment

If you have a specific career goal in mind, then one of the best things that you can do is make a plan to attend college. When you attend college and obtain a college degree, the result is often that your resume is taken more seriously and you are able to land the jobs that you seek more easily.

Preparing For Your Degree

Once you know what type of degree you are going to need to obtain in order to take on your chosen career path, the next step in the process for you is going to be to figure out how you need to get there. There are going to be specific courses that you will need to take in order to obtain your degree. There are also different types of degrees including offline and online education degrees, and they both offer a completely different experience so make sure that you consider both.

Once you know what courses are required of you, you can put together an education plan. Your education plan is going to tell you what to take and when, because once you have a plan you simply have to work through your course load until you have the grades you want to get your degree. Getting good grades is essential, because your GPA is going to look excellent on your resume when you are talking about the degree that you have obtained. Keep in mind that you are going to get out of college everything that you put in, so give it your all.

Filed Under: College Entrance Exams, Education, Online Resources Tagged With: , ,

Preparing for English and Writing Sections on the ACT, SAT and FCAT

July 12, 2011 By Leave a Comment

When students are faced with taking tests such as the ACT, SAt or FCAT, it takes a steady plan of studying and practice to prepare. This is especially true for the English and writing sections, which are challenging for some students.

These tests are often required to study for many traditional and online education degrees. Students should studying early, especially with texts that are geared specifically for each test. These books will include a pre-test, practice problems and actual practice tests to help the student prepare. The pre-test is especially useful for finding out what weak areas need to be focused on the most.

The student will need to build a strong vocabulary, which is important on the English section. It is also imperative that they review basic grammar concepts and learn how to efficiently edit their work to save time. This is important on the test as each section is timed. Students should practice writing from prompts, carefully reading directions for each section and make sure that their writing is neat. These small factors can have a big influence on their final score for that section.

When planning how to study, the student should set up a certain time each day to work. They should concentrate on weak areas in grammar and spelling, but also practice on areas they do well in. Giving enough time to both ensures that the student will be adequately prepared for challenge ahead. With careful preparation and concentrated study, these students will have the best chance for success.

Filed Under: College Entrance Exams, Education, Online Resources Tagged With: , ,

Preparing for the Vocabulary Section of the SATs

July 11, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Any high school student preparing for college knows, and dreads, the Scholastic Assessment Test (SAT). These scores are an important part in getting into college, even if you’re getting an online college degree. The exam, which lasts about three hours, will measure your skills in writing, math and verbal.

The vocabulary is where many people get a little nervous. Here are some tips for preparing for the vocabulary section of the SATs.

Practice Makes Perfect

Most schools will offer students the chance to take a practice test for the SATs. If your school doesn’t offer them there are several free websites that will let you take a practice test. The test will let you see where your strengths and weaknesses are.

Take a Prep Course

The SAT prep class is going to help prepare you for the SATs and even help give you a great score. The teacher will give you a large list of the most popular vocabulary words that will more than likely end up on the test.

Learn the Components

By memorizing all the prefixes, suffixes and roots will help increase your vocabulary score. This will be more beneficial on the multiple choice questions since it’s giving you another way of answering questions known as the ever popular process of elimination.

Make Study Aids

This might sound elementary, but flash cards have always been the best way to study a ton of vocabulary words. Once you’ve made them and studied a little, ask a friend or family member to test you. It’s the only real way to see if you’ve learned the vocabulary words.

Filed Under: Education, Online Resources Tagged With: , ,

Having a Degree Makes You More Appealing to Employers

July 10, 2011 By Leave a Comment

There are many aspects and considerations that go into applying for a job. From deciding whether the job is something you want to do for an extended period, to the compensation offered by the employer, there are many things to consider before deciding to apply. This fact is a reality on the other side of the spectrum as well; in that the employer has many things to consider before choosing to hire an applicant. Among some of the more common criteria are: experience, first impression and of course, education. While these elements are all important to an employer in determining whether an applicant is worth hiring, education is among one of the most important. Below are a couple of reasons why an educational background can make you more appealing to a potential employer.

Proves You Have Knowledge of a Subject

Aside from on the job experience, education proves that a potential employee has knowledge about the position that they are applying for. While not all degrees reinforce a particular job completely, they still prove that a person has an educational background. Unfortunately, many people neglect obtaining a degree and tend to wonder why they rarely get hired for positions with a lot of competition.

Shows You Are Reliable

A degree is a good sign to an employer that an applicant is reliable. They understand that going through online Bachelors programs, or on site programs is not an easy task, and by completing them it is proof that you are willing to follow a project through to completion.

Filed Under: College Entrance Exams, Education, Online Resources Tagged With: , ,

Tips for Writing an Essay

January 29, 2011 By Leave a Comment

High school students have to learn to write essays to effectively pass the ACT, SAT, or FCAT exams. There are many resources on the internet to give instruction on accomplishing this as well as giving sample essays. It is advisable to take the time and study these helpful sites to learn more about proper grammar, sentence structures, use of words, etc. for writing an essay. However, listed below you will find a basic overview of essay structure.

There are three parts to an essay; the introduction, supporting paragraphs, and the summary paragraph. The introduction is the first paragraph of your essay and will introduce your main idea. In this paragraph you want to capture the attention of your reader and get them interested while explaining your topic. Consider this paragraph carefully, as the remainder of your essay must relate directly to your introduction. You can use background information such as interesting facts, definitions that you will explain later in your essay, or even quotes.

The next section of your essay will include your supporting paragraphs. This will make up the body of your essay and will include all of the information that develops and supports the main idea of your essay. Begin by listing the main ideas of your essay. Each idea should be placed in its own paragraph. Develop each idea with details, facts, and/or examples. Use transition words to link your paragraphs together at the beginning and end of your paragraphs. Some examples of transition words could be “however,” “nevertheless,” “in addition to,” “therefore,” or “consequently.”

The last section of your essay is going to be your summary paragraph or your conclusion. This paragraph is intended to wrap up your thoughts and ideas presented throughout the essay. You reader should feel that your essay is complete. You will want to restate the strongest points that support your main idea. At the conclusion of your essay you need to restate your main idea but word it differently. Conclude with your personal opinion, suggestions, or plan for action.

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Turn your Love of Literature into a Career

January 21, 2011 By Leave a Comment
Noisy class during first day of Creative Writi...
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If you love literature, why not turn it into a career? Just imagine how much you would love your job if you could spend all day working as a writer, a proofreader, or a librarian. With a degree in creative writing or English, you could easily translate your skills into a new profession! If you think you could never find the time or money to pursue such a lofty goal, think again. Let’s take a look at how online degree programs can turn your dream into a very solid reality.

Keep Your Job While Earning a Degree

An online degree program means that you can earn your degree while you keep your full-time job, take care of your family, or satisfy any other responsibility you may have. You won’t be tied to a classroom or a set schedule! Instead, you can learn at your own pace when and where it’s convenient for you. Before you know it, you could have a degree in library management!

An Affordable Option

Online degree programs are also very affordable. If you are on a tight budget, the lower tuition rates are much easier to fit in with your other bills. This type of program also saves on your transportation costs because you’re attending class in the comfort and convenience of your own home!

Choose the Right Degree Program

When evaluating the many online degree programs, do yourself a favor and use elearners.com. This site has done most of the work for you by compiling a complete list of information about each program on a single site. Read through reviews, evaluate school statistics, and see what each program is like. To use your time and money efficiently, it’s critical to make the right decision the first time!

Don’t wait! Take steps today to turn your passion for literature into a full-time career!

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Submit Only Your Highest SAT Scores for Better Admissions

December 29, 2010 By Leave a Comment

From March 2009, it will no longer be necessary for students sitting the SAT exams to allow selected colleges to see test results. What is more, students can actually select which, if any, test results to forward to the college. This replaces the system that had been in place from 2002 to 2009, which had required all SAT results to get forward to the student’s chosen colleges.

Some colleges have objected to the changes, saying that it is unfair for students to choose only their best scores to send to admissions offices. As a result, many colleges are adamant they will not be accepting scores that are diluted to only show the highest test scores. They want to see all the scores; applications that have SAT results filtered through Score.

Score Choice works by allowing students to take the SAT test, and then block lower scores from being release to colleges. The college will only see the highest scores achieved and selected by the student, and will have no idea of the lower marks awarded in other subjects. This way, students can actually use the first round of SAT’s as a trial test for their weaker subjects, then re-sit the SAT exam in those subjects and submit the second score.

Students counter the colleges’ arguments by declaring that they are under enough stress when taking SAT or ACT college entrance exams, without the added pressure of having to submit scores in their weaker subjects. Therefore, a poor result caused by stressful conditions may give a false or misleading reflection of the student’s ability.

Colleges counter by saying they have incredible volumes of paperwork to get through as application deadlines draw near. Having all test results to hand, first time around, makes their selection process much easier. If a student takes the SAT test three times, for example, the admissions office will select the top scores from all three tests.

Filed Under: College Entrance Exams, Online Resources, Standardized Testing Tagged With: , ,
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