Assessing The Value of Your Education

We know there is a financial price on education, but have you ever considered the value of education beyond the cost? Whenever we do something in life, we should get into the habit of assessing what value it brings to our lives. 

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Did it make you happy? Did it progress your life? Did you learn something? 

There is a lot to consider. When it comes to your education, it’s not just the texts that can teach you. The value of the course isn’t always in the books we read, but rather is something that we carry with us in different ways. 

So here are some things that you might consider when you decide if your education, training, or other learning was of real value to you. 

Soft skills

When you go into a commercial kitchen course, you expect to come out with chef-based hard skills. Or, perhaps you took a business management degree and have learned everything you need to know about the admin. But do you have soft skills that can be applied to other areas of life? 

Soft skills can be the difference between your next steps and achieving your future goals. 

What are soft skills?

Soft skills are how you will fit in the workplace or interact with those around you. Here are a few examples:

• Communication - clear and polite

• Critical thinking 

• Leadership

• Teamwork

• Work ethic

Did your course enable you to strengthen soft skills and gain ones directly related to the field of study? 

Career Services

The further along in your course, the closer you are to looking for gainful employment. With all the learning in the world, you still might be light on the experience many companies require. 

Were you offered support from a careers counseling service or access the help you needed to enter the workplace after qualification?

If you are currently considering further education, there are some questions for mba students to ask as they assess the quality of the courses available. 

Were you prepared?

If it’s been a while since you left education, you can look back and ask yourself if you were truly prepared for the workplace. When you landed your first role, or during the interviews, did you feel like you had been armed with the correct information? 

Of course, there will always be a discrepancy between the education on a subject and the practical applications. But with hindsight, you can know for sure if the course you did had prepared you for the process of being higher and doing the work. 

Many people assume that it is better if your education was from a world-renowned establishment. However, the value of your education isn’t just about the name on the door. It comes down to what you came away with that could be applied to the rest of your life. 

The most important question is: do you feel like the years you spent in the study were worth the time, and what did you come away from the experience with beyond the fundamentals of the course?

If you are looking back on your time at college or are just about to leave, this post is for you: 5 Ways To Preserve Your College Memories

Why Studying Overseas Could Be Your Best Decision Ever

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It's no secret that many inspired minds seek further education in foreign lands. They feel it gives them opportunities to learn more about the world, immerse themselves in different cultures, and discover what life is like elsewhere.

Of course, it's a fantastic way to gain qualifications and can inspire them to even seek employment opportunities in the country where they study.

You're probably reading this because you're at a crossroads in your life, and you're wondering whether to continue your education in your home country or go abroad to study in the unknown.

The truth is, studying in a domestic educational facility isn't for everyone. With that in mind, take a look at the following reasons why studying overseas could be your best decision ever:

You'll Learn All Kinds Of New Things

Many overseas educational facilities exist where you can study towards a qualification relevant to your ideal future vocation.

For example, take a look at the American International University Kuwait reviews to see a snapshot of what previous students have studied and done in their lives since making such a decision.

Studying abroad is a fantastic opportunity to learn new skills.

But, it's also a way of learning all kinds of other things. For instance, you'll become proficient in a new language; you'll discover how people from different cultures lead their lives, and it'll inspire you to think about the things you'd like to do once you've completed your higher education.

You Want A Fresh New Challenge

One of the downsides to pursuing a higher education in your home country is you may not feel very challenged. You may think that the opportunities available might leave you feeling like you're going through the motions.

Studying in a foreign country is perhaps one of the biggest challenges you'll ever face in your life. That's because you aren't just studying towards a qualification, you're also learning a new way of life, and you're learning how to cope in a world without any familiar faces like your family and friends nearby.

You Want To Immerse Yourself In A New Culture

Traveling around the world and immersing yourself in new cultures is undoubtedly an excellent way to experience what life is like for other people. You'll come across different ways of doing things that may perhaps be an alien concept to you.

Plus, you'll discover how people in other countries view and treat topics like politics, religion, and, of course, education. If culture fascinates you and you'd love to see more of the world, studying in another country could be an excellent life choice.

You Want To Boost Your Career Opportunities

Last but not least, there's no denying that studying for a qualification will increase your career prospects. However, doing so in another country will make you a more interesting prospect to employers as it demonstrates you're happy to take on new challenges.

Moreover, the fact you'd studied in a foreign land means you're more likely to get considered for jobs in the country where you studied if you decide you'd like to make that place your permanent residence.

How To Stay Healthy and Successful as an Online Student

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There comes a time in every college student's career when the mid-semester jitters kick in. Struggling with a lack of focus and drive to accomplish any amount of work being thrown at them. Like anything in life, we require a certain amount of balance to function at our optimal performance. It’s not an “if” rather than a “when” as academic burnout affected 71% of students in 2021. Due to the pandemic, most students were forced to attend classes remotely through online lectures and assignments. Now more than ever, online learning student health matters and must be taken into account as we progress with this new way of being a remote student. 

Staying Focused

It’s no mystery that staring at a screen for hours on end can be less interactive than an in-person lecture. In addition, more likely than not, you will be attending your online classes from the comfort of your own home. This creates familiar distractions in the “classroom” as well as family members that may act as an additional hindrance. To avoid said distractions, give timely and adequate notices to everybody that may be in your house on what your upcoming schedule looks like. This will ensure that you have the necessary quiet and alone time during your classes. When your agenda is getting homework assignments done, try blocking off time for yourself. If you have a journal or planner, this can be a great place to write down your schedule. Set aside chunks of time throughout your day to take a deep dive into your assignments. Divide the time between homework and fun things that you enjoy doing. This helps give yourself the additional drive to push through the work because, at the end of your session, you have something fun that you look forward to doing. Setting yourself up for success during these trying times as a college student can be one of your best uses of effort.

Furthermore, transforming your workplace into a comfortable, stress-free environment can help secure maximum focus on your course load. Comfort is critical when you are a student. Operating in comfy conditions can be very favorable as an online student as they deter any negative notions, therefore enhancing your focus on the tasks at hand. Here are some things to try:

• Light a nice scented candle

• Clean your room/workspace 

• Grab one of your favorite snacks or drinks 

• Put on your most comfortable clothes

Staying Balanced

Focusing all of your time and attention on schoolwork can be a fast track to burnout. Creating a sustainable school/life balance for yourself can make certain that you enjoy your college years to the fullest. After getting into the college of your choice, you will find yourself taking on a handful of classes at the same time. This is seemingly overwhelming when you have multiple due dates stacking on top of each other. Having a plan to stay balanced will help you from going into a spiraling panic. 

For starters, try separating classwork into different days.  If you are taking four classes and all of them have assignments due Friday, tackle one class per day. This will isolate all of your focus on that class for the day, in return, giving you the best results. This way of working helps because you no longer have to worry about cramming four classes worth of work into a single day. You can go into your study session concentrated and balanced because your focus is only on one class at a time. 

Another alternative route you can take is switching up your study location. Getting out of the house and setting up shop at your local coffee shop or library can be the breath of fresh air you need. Bring your headphones so outside noise will not obstruct your focus. This can be a great option for you because you still get that “leaving the house and going to class” feel. It offers you the chance to still get out and enjoy the lifestyle environment while keeping up with your studies. As a bonus, grab yourself a tasty treat or drink when you leave as a reward for all your hard work.

Staying Healthy

Taking care of your health has a never-ending list of benefits. While many feel that diets are the most crucial aspect of your health to monitor, as a young and busy college student, it’s crucial to take care of everything from your eye wellness to your physical fitness. Long nights cramming in the library are almost always inevitable no matter what you're majoring in. Staring at a laptop screen or tablet for extended periods of time hinders your vision as it makes your eyes dry and feel tired. This is due to the decline of your blink rate caused by computer vision syndrome. According to the Vision Impact Institute, 3 out of 4 people wear some type of corrective lenses. If you fall into this category as a college student don't neglect your glasses during peak study sessions. If your prescription is out of date or you don’t own a pair, now might be a great time for an update. You can also order a new pair of eyeglasses online from the comfort of your own home. Wearing your glasses when studying guarantees that your eyes will perform just as well as you do. Your time to study is limited as it is with a busy schedule packed full of assignments. You don’t want your eyes holding you back when it's time to get to work.

Equally important is your physical health. Spending long hours studying means one thing. A lack of physical activity. Adding just 20 minutes of exercise every day you study can add a multiplicity of benefits to your online learning student health. Working out before a study session can improve your concentration levels as exercise causes cell growth from the increased blood flow to your brain. Some other exceptional added health benefits are better memory, improved mood, and energy. As an additional bonus, most gyms offer a student discount if your college doesn’t have a gym you can use.

How to Live Your Best Life at College

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Heading off to college is so exciting and feels like a fresh adventure. So, you may be looking forward to having the time of your life. Being a student is a fantastic experience and the start of a new chapter in your life, so making the most of this opportunity is essential. 

If your aim is to live your best life at college and get the most from this experience, then these tips will help you to make that possible:

Get to Know People

Starting college without knowing anyone can be a worry. You may be concerned that you won’t meet anyone for ages and that it will be tricky making friends. You can guarantee that you will make friends at college, and these are likely to be people that you stay close with throughout your life. College friendships are usually built to stand the test of time, and the bond you share will be special. The crucial thing to remember is to be yourself; if you do this, you will naturally gravitate toward people that you can connect with without needing to pretend to be someone you are not.

Meeting new people and starting a conversation can be challenging for some people, but the more you do it, the less scary it is. The chances are that many people will be in a similar situation and will feel the same way you do, so try not to worry.

Strike a Balance

The social side of being at college is amazing, and you will probably go out and have more fun now than at any other time in your life. But, it is crucial to strike a healthy balance between partying and studying. Students seem to get stuck with a bad reputation for partying too hard and too often. If you are constantly recovering from nights out, you are more likely to skip class and not study as hard as you could. No one wants to miss the fun of the student social life, but there is no doubt that too much partying can take its toll on your wellness and grades.

Wild behavior may seem like fun at the time, but less so if you wake up the following day looking for better criminal defense attorneys because you have gotten into trouble. Preventing any potentially career-damaging moments before you have even graduated is always a good idea. So, being mindful of your behavior when you are out having a great time is a wise choice. Finding a balance between having a good time and not letting your social life disrupt your studies is the best way to enjoy both sides of student life.

Get Involved

Getting involved in life on campus is an excellent way to meet like-minded students and the perfect opportunity to make new friends that you would not otherwise have met. If you have a hobby that you love, joining a society at college is an excellent way to follow your interests while away from home. 

Being part of clubs and societies that catch your interest will bring a whole new dimension to student life and will help you to gain more enjoyment from your time spent at college. When you join clubs and societies, you not only gain friends and have fun, you could also be developing attractive skills to add to your resumé. Developing your skills and knowledge by joining a club will give you plenty to talk about when you start applying for jobs and could give you the winning edge during your career. So, it is worth looking out for opportunities when you arrive at college for an activity that catches your interest.

Manage Your Time

Life at college will bring you more freedom than you have ever had in your life. If you have been desperate to spread your wings, having this newfound freedom is likely to be a welcome change. But, being entirely in charge of everything in your life at college can get pretty stressful. Managing your schedule to keep on top of your studies is vital to ensure that things don’t slide out of control. Creating a schedule for your studies may not sound that exciting, but the better you can plan your workload, the more time you will have to enjoy yourself. It’s important to keep up on all of the important deadlines each semester, especially important ones like ordering your cap and gown. Managing your time effectively will help you enjoy the best of both worlds, as you will be able to keep your grades high, keep your stress levels low, and enjoy your downtime to the full.

Episode #140: Season 5 Finale!

Welcome to another great episode of the podcast!

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We wrap up this season with a quick episode reflecting on the past year and looking ahead to what is to come next year.

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Episode #139: Supporting College Student Athletes with Dr. Matthew Raidbard

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Our guest for this week’s episode is Dr. Matthew Raidbard, college sports administrator, consultant, and author of Lead Like a Pro. Matthew shares his story and his point of view on the best leadership practices for coaches to create positive learning experiences for their college student athletes.

• Lead1

• Athletic Director U

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Advice On Pursuing A Teaching Career

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If you don’t feel that a desk job is for you, you may well have thought about a career in teaching. There are plenty of benefits to a teaching career, it’s an incredibly rewarding and creative profession. When you’re considering this path, the following advice will help you with some of the practical decisions ahead.

1 . Are you suited to a teaching career?

Before you make a decision it’s important to ensure that you are suited to a career in teaching. Teacher’s need to be calm under pressure, and adept at problem-solving. They need to be patient, and have great social skills, particularly with young people. Besides this, teaching requires great leadership skills, you’ll need the ability to improvise when things don’t go to plan. One of the most important attributes that teachers must possess is empathy. Pursuing any kind of career path involves careful consideration of your choice.

2 . Determining your talents & preferences

Next, you’ll need to spend a bit of time thinking about your talents and your teaching preferences. Do your talents lie in a particular subject, whether it’s drama, art maths or science? Perhaps you’re gifted with young children, or maybe teenagers are better suited to your teaching style? Establishing your interest and suitability will help you to pursue the right teaching career for you.

3. Get some experience

If you’re working toward this career, but you’ve never actually taught before, it’s well worth getting some experience. The best way to do this is to volunteer at a local school. Many schools are willing to take on volunteers for a short time period, on the condition that they have a background check. 

Experiencing a classroom environment will help you to practice your teaching methods and build your confidence. You’ll also be able to pinpoint any areas of teaching that you find particularly difficult. Volunteering in a school is a great opportunity to chat with teachers, and get advice, but it’s wise to do some research before you approach any institutions - you’ll want to volunteer at one that can offer the best experience, and ideally one with STEM accreditation so you get the most out of your time there.

4. Choosing the right program

There are several routes into teaching, some people choose to complete a bachelor’s degree in education. This route takes four years and allows you to go into teaching roles straight after. If you’ve completed a degree in another subject you can get into teaching using your degree and a teacher-training program. All teachers must also pass a licensure exam and obtain teacher certification.

You’ll need to conduct proper research before choosing a college and a teaching certification program. Take a look at the National Council On Teacher Quality, to find the rankings for different programs. Take your time choosing a teaching program, ensure that you clear up any queries about the course and requirements before you get started.

When you’re considering a certain career path it can be helpful to find resources of inspiration. To get started, take a look at the teaching career of Michael DeNobile. Reading success stories can help you to get the motivation you need.

BONUS Episode #138: The Importance of Dynamic Cybersecurity Education with Ingrid Toppelberg

Welcome to another great episode of the podcast!

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We have a merch shop! Go find tons of cool gear and support the show at our storefront.

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Our guest for this week’s bonus episode is Ingrid Toppelberg, Chief Product Officer at Cybint. Ingrid shares her journey, the importance of her work at Cybint, and delivering education in a relevant format for students.

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How to Get Into The College Of Your Choice

There’s a lot of big decisions that you have to make in your life. One of the biggest is which college you’ll go to. That, after all, will impact your life in so many ways; it’s at college where you’ll make some lifelong friends, pick a career, and, of course, set yourself up for success in that career. So since it’s such a big decision, it’s important that you get things right. 

However, while it’s one thing to choose the right college, it’s another to get accepted. Remember, they have to choose you, too. In this blog, we’re going to run through some key tips that’ll increase your chances of acceptance. 

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Work Hard At School

There’s a lot of extra things you can do to impress a college admittance office, but if your grades aren’t up to scratch, then you’ll have trouble. Or, to be in more accurate terms, you’ll likely have no hope whatsoever. Your grades will be the foundation for your application. So there’s no way to get around it -- you’ll need to work hard and make sure that you’re fulfilling your potential. It’s not about having a perfect GPA, but having the best that you can achieve.

Work With The Experts

You’re not going to know all that much about applying to a college. Why would you? This is likely your first time. Alas, you don’t have the option of just hoping that you nail it at the first time of asking. The stakes are too high. Instead, you should make sure that you have a watertight application, especially if you’re applying to one of the top schools in the country. In that instance, it’s recommended that you work with an ivy league admissions consultant. They’ll have the experience and crucial insights you need to ensure that your application is as good as it can be. 

Commitment To Improvement 

The admissions officer will look at your grades, but that’s not all they’re going to look at. They’ll also want to know something about your character and the steps you’ve taken to improve over the years. This will come across in your application essay. What do they need to know about you? What have you overcome to get to where you are today? You should also talk about your commitment to extracurricular activities, especially the ones that you’ve been doing for many years.

Prepare For The Interview 

If you get an interview for a position at the college, then it’s important that you prepare well. Even the best application can be rejected if the interview is a disaster. It’s all about taking it seriously. If you do that, then you’ll likely be on your way to college!

Be Authentic

Finally, be sure to be yourself. If you try to be someone you’re not, then the college admissions office will notice it. Plus, nobody wants to go to a college that they got into for false reasons, on the basis that you probably won’t like it if you can’t be yourself, anyway. 

5 Tips For Website And Ultimately Business Success

Markentive offers digital communication services and allows its clients to transform their website into a business development tool via inbound marketing. Often, we meet clients who are interested in our inbound marketing and lead generation approach, but very quickly we are faced with a major problem. Their website is aging or has just been redone and does not meet current standards! With good design and protection, you can make success, however. You may want to look at Ark server hosting with DoS protection.

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Corporate website: define your overall strategy 

What are your targets? What keywords do you want to appear on? Why would users come to your site? What interactions are you going to have with them? How will you promote your offer? Before having the answer to everything, ask yourself the right questions because having a website in order to have a website is not very useful. Make your website a useful tool to secure new business, to help your prospects find you and your partners to get to know you.

Company website: take care of the content of your website 

You have chosen your keywords, your tabs, your tree structure. Take care of your content, navigability, clarity and put yourself in the shoes of your visitors next. Consider optimizing your META tags (indications in the code of pages intended for search engine bots), your link anchors and anything that can help you boost your website audience as fresh and interesting content on a blog. For information, many users are now surfing on their smartphones or tablets, making sure that your website is compatible with all browsers and all screen sizes.

Link outside too

Your website is perfect but as soon as you leave your URL you no longer exist. To be well referenced in Google and gain traffic, you must provide links to your site in a relevant way. Think about social networks, exchange links with your partners on your respective sites, register your site in relevant directories. You will therefore gain in referencing and in traffic via referral sites like twitter, Instagram and more.

Corporate website: interact with your targets

Your visitors found you but didn't dare to contact you, maybe it's not the right time for them and you lose track of them. Try to get them to leave their contact details for you so that you can keep track of these qualified prospects! You can offer them to download a white paper, to subscribe to your newsletter, to try your product for free for a month. Don't forget to give them the opportunity to talk about you on social networks, via blog comments, sharing bulletins ... Have your imagination!

Let your personality speak

Now you have followed all the rules, all you need is that little extra that will make all the difference. Have a personality, a tone, a state of mind in line with the behavior of your targets and which will distinguish you, will encourage your visitors to forge links with you. Present yourself as the partner that your prospects are looking for and with whom they want to work.