At 44 years old, with minimal technological ability, I was going back to school after an 18 year hiatus. One of my first classes was an online class – Technical Writing and I was not confident. I would not only be expected to master the subject matter of the course but the online learning system, Blackboard. How does it work? Who would answer my questions?
Everything You Need To Succeed
I discovered I was unnecessarily worried. The first thing I did was open Blackboard on my SUNY Ulster Student Portal. I explored every clickable item so I knew where to find things. Thank goodness they have a Blackboard Tutorial! After completing the tutorial I felt much more confident about using the online tools available.
However, I still didn’t understand how it would all work. Enter my amazing professor, Kimberly Wozencraft. First, she reached out by email and explained in detail how she ran her class. She explained her expectations, assignment submissions, and discussion forums. She then outlined her calendar for the class which included readings, discussions, assignments, and due dates. Each assignment submission contained a detailed description of what was required for the assignment and how to submit it.
Supportive Faculty
Any time I had a question or was unsure how to manipulate any facet of Blackboard I simply sent Professor Wozencraft a message through Blackboard Messaging. She always responded quickly with a detailed explanation. One of the main technical issues I experienced was opening Blackboard in Internet Explorer. I had some problems with functionality. Professor Wozencraft informed me that Chrome would work better. I followed her advice and had no problems after that.
In addition, we used a Discussion Forum to share thoughts, ideas, and research topics and findings. It was very helpful because the whole class was giving each other feedback on assignments and participating in real world discussions. Professor Wozencraft participated in our discussions and made her presence known in every aspect of the class.
I was amazed at the thoroughness of the lectures and the prompt grading of assignments. Each assignment was returned with a personal breakdown of the strengths and weaknesses, as well as a kind word on participation and progress. I finished the class with an “A” and did not hesitate to register for another online class this semester. All of the staff and faculty at SUNY Ulster want us to succeed. Never hesitate to reach out!
Stay Focused
At the start of the class I realized I was new to time management. It was easy to forget to log into my class. When life is busy, you have to stay focused and make time. Just as we get up each day and go to campus, we have to set aside time each day to do our online classes. I set aside a set time for each class and found a quiet nook to do the work. On the bright side, you can do it all in your pajamas at 2 am if that’s what will make you successful!
When you take good notes in class, you have a study tool that’s sure to help you get better grades. The way you take those notes can also determine your likelihood to sink or swim in a class. As it turns out, the old-fashioned method, using a pen and pad, is superior in terms of the learner retaining more information. So to shorten that up: paper notes are good and laptop or phone notes are not so good, and I’ll tell you why.
Benefits of Good Paper Notes
It seems a little obsolete to bring a notebook to class in this world of readily available technology that we live in. When we’re talking about being a successful student, however, paper the best resource available! One of the reasons for that is that laptops and phones tend to be too distracting. A student is far too tempted to play a game or take a gander at social media from any computer device; whereas with paper, you’re forced to stay on track.
On top of that, more mental processing takes place with the information when you’re taking hand-written notes. That’s one great reason to put your laptops away, but let’s break that down a bit.
When students take notes on devices such as laptops, they try to take down every word and detail, verbatim. When students hand-write their notes as opposed to typing them, they’re forced to find keywords and summarize the lecture. This means that they had to think about what was said, process it and write it down in a way that they understand. Doing that leads to the subject being better remembered by the writer. We write a lot slower than we can type, so we end up taking fewer notes but they’re more effectively learned.
Mental processing power booster aside, benefits of of hand-written notes go even further in helping you as a student. Pen and paper notes can keep you more alert and engaged during class. It helps to emphasize and organize specific information, and of course creates a more condensed version of the lecture to study.
There are different methods of taking notes for everyone. You might already have a way that works for you and that’s great. If you need some ideas on how to better your note taking, I’ve got some suggestions.
First of all, most instructors have no problem with you recording the audio of their lecture. This IS NOT me advising you to substitute this for taking notes, but merely a suggestion of a supplement to your notes that might come in handy later. Just ask your teacher or professor, they might be surprised by your initiative (bonus!).
A Few Methods to Try
The three major note taking methods are widely used and taught among college students. The first is a system of outlining all the material by identifying the main topic. Then make a list of details about it under the topic. This can be good if the lecture is staying with one topic and not jumping around a lot. If you are working on retaining a lot of information, you may want to try another method.
A different method to try is called mind-mapping, this is something you’ve probably seen before as it’s pretty common in high schools. The idea is to write the overall main topic in the middle of a page in a circle and branch ideas off of the middle circle. For example you might write “water cycle” in the middle and branch off of it with subtopics like “condensation”, “evaporation”, or “water tables”. This can be good for keeping up with a fast lecture but lots of details can fall through the cracks.
Finally, the last well-known method of note taking I have for you is called the Cornell system. This is where you start of the lecture by dividing your page into three sections with lines. Make it so there are extra small spaces on the sides or top and bottom. You take notes as you normally would in the middle, but the extra sections are there to get you a little more involved. After the lecture you are supposed to write keywords or questions in one of the smaller sections. In the other small section, you should write a summary of the whole lecture while it’s still fresh in your mind.
Good grades and teacher satisfaction is always a good method of measuring your success in a class. However, knowing if you’ve taken good notes or not can be difficult until the test comes. If you think you got all the important stuff written down then you’re finished, right? Wrong, you need those notes for the purpose of studying and ultimately passing the class with good grades. If your notes can’t help you with that, you might need to consider the five tips below from Dartmouth college’s website.
5 Essential Steps for Mastering Your Notes:
Record the information
Reduce the ideas to a key word or phrase in the left-hand margin
Recite it without looking at it, and if you can’t, you don’t know it
Review to get a complete picture of the ideas that were recited
Reflect by speculating on the implications of the facts and concepts
Starting a business is a goal that lots of students share while they are getting their degree. Some have the fire and motivation to make their dream business a reality. Students who complete college to continue onto the path of entrepreneurship are bold path blazers, at least they have to be to make it out there.
After trials and tribulations, the excitement of learning, the stress of exams, and the enrichment of social exploration, your studies will inevitably come to an end (as all good things do). For many, this stage of life is intimidating, if not terrifying. The familiar foundation disappears from beneath your feet, and you drop into uncharted waters — unsure where to go.
Still, it isn’t a time for fear or despair. It’s a time for exploration! Everything prior to that point is preparation intended to build your mind and spirit. Making you into someone with the strength and character to earn the kind of life you want. You’ve already shown you have what it takes to get ahead when you finish your studies.
Your future is for you to decide, so consider all of the available options. Maybe you want a comfortable position, or there’s a company you want to work with. Then set a goal and start moving toward it as soon as possible, maybe now.
Or perhaps you’re like many people today and want to work for yourself; being able to set your own schedule, profit fully from your hard work, and never have to deal with a boss. If so, you’re in luck, because it’s never been easier to start your own business. Read on for some tips on doing just that.
Come Up With A Workable Business Concept
This step is far easier said than done; so much so that plenty of people will never get past it. You need to think of a product or service that you can offer – and profit from selling. You can sell almost anything at a loss, so don’t assume an idea is solid because there’s demand for it. If there’s no potential for profit, it’s pointless to begin going down that path.
A good starting point when selling products is to push two existing concepts together to see what results. For instance, someone at some point had the idea of combining “the internet” and “refrigerators” to get smart fridges. Think about technologies and products already available in your chosen field, and look for gaps between them. You could easily fill those gaps and open up a new mini market.
If you want to offer a service (consulting, perhaps), then you need to pick out a unique selling point (USP) of some sort. What will make people want to work with you specifically? Your level of quality, your affordable rates, or your turnaround time? As you would when choosing products, try to choose a USP that fills a gap in the market.
Investigate Comparable Businesses
Next, you must conduct some market research to see what relevant types of businesses are already in operation. You’ll need to narrow things down, of course; think about what your studies have primed you to do (and what you want to do). See which brands are succeeding, or failing, doing similar things. Once you’ve picked out some brands, you can use a competitor analysis tool (like this one from Brandwatch) to learn about your ideal audience.
You can start with some simple Google searching. Type in the kind of product or service you’re planning to offer, and run through the top results. Note that your searches will likely be affected by your location, and if you plan to operate locally in another area, add the name of that location to your search. What impresses you about the results? How good or bad are the websites? What about the prices?
A good option here is to survey your target audience on the brands they like and dislike. You can use something like the online sample service from Qualtrics: define your niche, and get an appropriate sample of survey respondents. If you truly don’t feel that you can compete with existing businesses, and you don’t see enough room in the niche for everyone, then rethink your concept. Remember the GIGO principle — garbage in, garbage out. If your concept isn’t viable, then any effort to build a business around it will be an exercise in futility.
Base Your Business Online
Even freelancers used to need conventional offices to appear credible in the eyes of many prospective clients. Full businesses needed large offices, with their reputations often being heavily affected by the quality of their premises. This meant that setting up a business could be extremely expensive, to the point of most being unable to achieve it.
Today, you don’t need an office to run a business, because you can run it completely online. This is particularly true if you want to operate as a freelancer. You can set up a business website and promote your services purely through the internet, then work remotely. If you want to sell products, then it’s easy to move into the ecommerce world. You will admittedly still need to invest in sourcing, storing and shipping the products, admittedly — though there are options in the form of dropshipping and warehousing that can even make that easy.
This doesn’t mean that you have to be online-exclusive, though. Instead, you can view it as a launching pad: if you set up an online retail store that becomes hugely popular, you’ll always have the option of setting up a brick-and-mortar store to expand it. It’s actually fairly convenient at this point: for instance, Shopify has a POS hardware package that can provide the full range of tools needed to run a physical store that shares a back-end with an online store.
Alternatively, if you start making enough money through offering services, you can invest in an office to start building a team around you — or even just hire remote workers and save the office money, because that can work extremely economically when done well.
Promote Through Your Established Business Contacts
Simply getting your business up and running is just the start. If you want it to succeed, you need to promote it — and since you’re coming off your studies, why not take advantage of the contacts you made throughout that time in education? Whether it’s the friends you made in classes or the teachers who helped you, you have access to smart people with the ability to offer invaluable feedback (and possibly connections of their own). Use LinkedIn to help you piece things together since you’re unlikely to remember everyone.
You might worry about being accused of cronyism, but you’re not manipulating your way into a position of power: you’re just leaning on people who already know and trust you, and there’s nothing wrong with that. In the end, getting opportunities won’t make you a success: if your business can’t deliver results, then no number of connections will help it thrive.
After reading through this piece, do you think you’d want to run your own business? It’s very freeing, but just as stressful, and not for anyone who wants an easy life. If so, follow these suggestions to get started — you just might carve out your career path.
Sharon Wasko of Rosendale has taken off as a local web and graphic designer thanks to her time at SUNY Ulster learning web design skills. Recently the Blue Stone Press published an article about her success within the community. One of her professors published the print piece on his blog, you can read it here. Some of the classes she took include Graphic Design (Intro through III), Commercial Photography, and Web Design. She thanks her Web Design professor Dina Pearlman; for giving her the knowledge that has been instrumental in the launching of her website and career. Curious what this website looks like? Then give it a click!
Logo from SharonWasko.com showcasing her love of teal and vintage ideas
It’s an online portfolio of her skills. Including but not limited to graphic & web design, photography, media layout, brand development and logo creation. In the Spring of 2018, she established her company Sharon Wasko Graphic Design, and created this site of her own. Now she has helped a few local companies to do the same. Since then, she’s gained a variety of colorful clients, mostly artists who have a professional passion that mirrors her own.
What’s She Up To Now?
While attending classes, Sharon holds a student aide position in the SUNY Ulster Marketing and Community Relations office. There she helps the webmaster to maintain, update, and add to the school’s main site, sunyulster.edu. She is also currently collaborating on an interactive site to display the school’s renovations. Capital projects, improvements to the school’s physical structures, have been followed and documented with photos. She is helping to create a site where all those improvements are fun and easy to view for all.
All those projects are just a side gig to her own thriving business as a freelance graphic designer. Her responsibilities and skills are ever-changing and evolving, as is natural with web based careers. Her already impressive portfolio is always growing.
A logo created by Sharon from her website
An Arts Education That Led To Web Design
Sharon has gotten her education in her own style. As a part of that she received her BFA before coming to our community college. Resulting in a degree from the College of New Jersey, formerly Trenton State College, with a concentration in painting and a minor in women’s and gender studies. She expressed that her time there differed greatly compared to a two year college. “It was a totally different experience, going to a residential 4-year school, but now there’s a more diverse group of students in my classes” said Sharon. SUNY Ulster’s community atmosphere provided her more freedom within her life. She has still managed to raise two young girls as she begins her business and continues to make it grow.
Another Student Success For The Books!
Among other students who have gone far with their time at SUNY Ulster. Sharon Wasko is now on the list. If you are interested in taking some of these courses, there is a degree program of classes. You can begin you associates degree in the field or just take a course or two, it’s up to you. Click here to learn more about this field and the classes offered.
Those clubs you see posters for all around campus could really help you boost your own success!
Get to Know Your Fellow Students
Meeting new people during your studies could lead to success-promoting network connections later on in life. Plus, everyone needs study buddies! Clubs are quite an effective way to make new friends, making the jump to college an easier one. A club meeting typically has a fun atmosphere where people are happy to chat about upcoming events or club motivations.
SUNY Ulster Vet Tech Club members represent their club at a college activities fair.
You could find out about a life changing experience to take part in by merely mentioning your interests to the right person or being vigilant about posters for meetings and events. Almost all colleges have a long list of special programs that you should explore. Clubs also tend to work with the community outside the college a little more than your classes will. Meet everyone you can, and make the most out of your college experience. The more people you know the merrier, especially for students intending to become successful entrepreneurs. The importance of networking is undeniable in most career fields. Joining clubs in college is a lot like getting a head-start on building those business connections.
Your Ticket to Less Stress
You won’t need that spa day this semester! Another reason that clubs will boost your overall success is that they can be a major stress reliever. While course work can cause you to feel pressure or tension, going to a club meeting after class is like a getaway, a place to talk to people in the same situation (and maybe even classes) as you. No pressure of academia to be found, just friends willing to get involved in projects based on something you both care about.
Gold for Your Resume
The more impressive material you have to present to someone you want to work for, the better. Volunteering and having extracurricular commitments are always a pleasant surprise for a potential employer. This may be one of the easiest opportunities you have to boost your resume.
Remember while you’re busy with all your class work that volunteering and campus involvement are great factors for a resume. Clubs are a prime opportunity to get involved in those activities. You’re unlikely to regret making new friends or becoming part of something greater than yourself. One of the most important things to do when attending college is to enjoy yourself and the experience along the way as much as you can. Do yourself a favor and join a club or start your own, and let me know, I might want to join!
As a college student, the temptation and accessibility of energy drinks and fast food can be plentiful. We have put together this post with the best brain foods in mind! Scientific research has produced some pretty interesting data about what the diet of a college student should include.
Remember: Food is Fuel!
Most of these foods totally portable and can be kept in your backpack! These snacks can help keep your mind in tip-top study shape!
Caffeinated coffee in small dosages can aid in concentration. A “small” serving is about an 8-ounce cup (smaller doses help to avoid the caffeine jitters). So pick up some coffee or even a cup of green tea to fuel up and focus!
Chocolate specifically speaking dark chocolate helps to “increase blood flow to your brain.” The Cocoa density in dark chocolate “is where you are getting the nutrition and the brainpower” explained Web MD. Now you’ll never need an excuse to eat chocolate again!
Remember When Your Mom Told You To Eat Your Vegetables?
Turns out Mom was right when she told you to “eat your greens”! Green vegetables such as spinach, asparagus, broccoli, and brussels sprouts just to name a few all provide your body with Folate- this is an essential vitamin that helps your brain function. Mixing up your greens can provide you with a powerful mix of mineral and nutrients!
Can bread make you smarter? (Well kinda). Whole Grains (yes-even in bread form), pasta, wraps, oatmeal, and even popcorn are all helpful whole grains! Whole grains contain fiber, vitamins, minerals, protein, and antioxidants which are all helpful in your overall mental and physical health.
Blueberries (berries and fruits as a whole) can really pack a punch in supporting your immune system and overall health. Blueberries, in particular, are considered “–One of nature’s perfect foods, blueberries are packed with nutrientsthat give them their deep-blue color. One study links blueberries to improved learning and memory.” They are the perfect powerful portable snack- great in yogurt or on their own!
We’ve compiled a small group of free resources that can help to make your time in and outside of class that much more productive! Whether it be studying, staying organized, writing tools, or additional resources for parents we have a little bit of everything included here!
Studying:
Sometimes when you’ve been studying certain materials for an extended period of time you can begin to feel like you aren’t retaining information at a level you are satisfied with. Enter studying resources like SparkNotes.com, Quizlet.com, and Unstuck.com. These study assist websites are designed to help you develop study techniques, provide insights, and take practice quizzes. You can also take advantage of the MacDonald Dewitt Libraryfor some on-campus peace and quiet.
Staying Organized:
Just like you don’t want to have to hunt through your backpack for important papers the same goes for your digital documents. Much of what you work that will be done in your classes will need to be saved and often submitted digitally. Digital saver resources include Google Drive, the free version of Dropbox.com, as well a project tracking resources such as Any.do.
Writing Tools:
If there is one thing you are going to be doing a lot of while in college it is writing. Exceptional writing resources are EnhanceMyVocabulary.com designed by college professors to help students advance their personal vocabularies. Grammarly is an app extension that can be added to your Google Chrome that “-automatically detects grammar, spelling, punctuation, word choice, and style mistakes in your writing.” Easybib.com is another online resource that can assist in creating bibliographic references as well as formatting in the proper citation writing style such as APA, MLA, or Chicago style. Don’t forget you can also visit theSUNY Ulster Writing Center for some 1-1 writing assistance.
Additional Resources For Parents and Students of Incoming Students:
Go College! Now has multiple resources for both entering students and parents! From preparing, paying, finding a mentor and beyond this site has the answers to many questions.
If you’ve been accepted to SUNY Ulster and are now enrolled, you may be thinking “Whats next?”By now you have probably received your checklist of things the college requires from you before you start classes. As the first day of the semester approaches you probably have a lot more questions about what you need to fill out, submit, and when you should do so. That’s where Campus Connect comes in!
What is Campus Connect?
Campus Connect is an opportunity for students to meet our faculty and soon-to-be classmates, learn more about your major, pick up your class schedule, and explore our beautiful campus! The purpose of this event is to help answer students’ questions, give them insight about campus life, and allow students to establish themselves for academic success! As a mandatory event, Campus Connect holds great importance in launching your college career.
What Kind of Opportunities are at Camps Connect?
Campus Connect is the perfect opportunity for you as a student to get a guided tour of your campus, take part in an in-person orientation, as well as a chance for you to learn more in-depth about internships, academic travel, the potential of your major, and how advisement will help YOU succeed.
Who Will You Meet?
This event allows you to meet and mingle with other students, student leaders, and faculty. The connections you may make during this event may even lead to internships, employment opportunities, and valuable mentorships. College is a lot of learning, and expanding your social circle, and forming lifelong friendships!
If you’re about to graduate from high school, you probably have a lot of questions about what the future holds. Many graduates find that heading to college immediately after high school is a great option when life and finances allow. Even if you haven’t decided for sure what you want to do after graduation, it doesn’t hurt to apply to SUNY Ulster! There are a number of reasons to go ahead and apply, and to consider getting a degree from Ulster after you graduate high school rather than waiting until later in life.
You Can Make the Transition Easier
Many students find it difficult to go from high school work to entering the workforce, then going to college later in life. Not only does going into college after high school keep you in the academic mindset, it also increases the likelihood that you will be able to graduate in a 2-4 year time frame. By waiting, you may find that you have other commitments that make attending college more difficult, such as a family or a full-time job. Going to a community college like Ulster makes it all the easier when you start at any stage of life, as you can stay in your community and save money while navigating college life.
You Can Start Your Dream Career Sooner
Don’t know what that is yet? Don’t worry! College will help you figure it out (and teach you valuable skills that can be applied to your career, regardless of major). By earning your degree early on, you can build skills and get started making money doing what you love all the sooner. Additionally, if you’re in a career path that typically requires moving up the ranks to better positions, starting earlier can get you through the more grueling work while you’re younger, leaving more of your later life to do what you enjoy and potentially have more quality time at work and at home with loved ones.
College Can Open New Doors
Most people think going to college is just about getting a degree and entering the workforce. In reality, though, it’s much more than that. You can find a career you never would have thought of before, sure, but you can also meet friends and professors that will stick with you for years to come. You can develop skills that will help you in all aspects of life as you navigate your 20s and beyond. You can find new passions, hobbies, and interests that bring you joy and fulfillment. Most of all, college will push you to be a better version of yourself, and you can find new ways of thinking about yourself and the world by experiencing different classes and expanding your skills, confidence, and abilities.
Try SUNY Ulster!
SUNY Ulster can help you start your adult life with all of the above! You can try college and find the right path for you here, for less money and closer to home. We offer the Excelsior scholarship, as well as many other forms of financial aid. If you qualify, you can go to Ulster tuition-free and save thousands. Check out http://www.sunyulster.edu/admissions/ to learn more about the SUNY Ulster experience of Starting Here and Going Far!
The launch of this web page for the college is highly anticipated and includes the official SUNY Ulster statement on diversity that in part reads: “Our mission is to encourage diversity, equity, and inclusion through on-campus programs and activities, and to welcome a variety of voices, viewpoints, and backgrounds on campus.”
Diversity Video Series.
Featured on the diversity web page are SUNY Ulster students’ own stories and experiences of diversity on campus in our “Voices on Diversity” videos series. We are proud to have SUNY Ulster students of various backgrounds speaking about the importance of culture on the college campus. Everyone has a story to tell, and you will surely be inspired by the stories of the individuals who you pass by in the hall and sit next to in class everyday!
You can share your SUNY Ulster Pride on Facebook by using our specially designed “We Are One. SUNY Ulster” Facebook page overlay!
Join us in adding this frame to your Facebook profile picture as we learn and grow together as one campus community.
Official Campus Resources:
Chief Diversity Officer: Lorraine Lopez-Janove at lopezjal@sunyulster.edu or 845-687-5131, VAN 212.
Affirmative Action Coordinator: Jennifer Mullan at mullanj@sunyulster.edu or 845-687-5101, CLI 213.
Student Portal. I explored every clickable item so I knew where to find things. Thank goodness they have a Blackboard Tutorial! After completing the tutorial I felt much more confident about using the online tools available.
First, she reached out by email and explained in detail how she ran her class. She explained her expectations, assignment submissions, and discussion forums. She then outlined her calendar for the class which included readings, discussions, assignments, and due dates. Each assignment submission contained a detailed description of what was required for the assignment and how to submit it.
Join us in adding this frame to your Facebook profile picture as we learn and grow together as one campus community.