?>?> 2011 February

Social Media Scholar to Discuss Using Twitter to Improve College Student Engagement and Grades

February 26, 2011 By

Twitter escultura de arena
Creative Commons License photo credit: Rosaura Ochoa

Dr. Rey Junco, a social media scholar and associate professor at Lock Haven University, will discuss how to use Twitter to improve college student engagement and grades during  #CollegeChat on Twitter on March 1,  2011 at 9 p.m. Eastern.

During #CollegeChat, Junco (http://twitter.com/reyjunco) will discuss findings from a recent study he co-authored “The effect of Twitter on college student engagement and grades” with attendees including:

  • Does Twitter encourage cooperation among students
  • Does  Twitter improve contact between students and faculty
  • Whether Twitter promotes active learning and why is this important
  • Can Twitter help build a strong learning community
  • How does using Twitter show a respect for diversity

Junco investigates the impact of emerging technologies on college students. His investigations concentrate on how social media affect student psychosocial development, engagement, and success. His research has focused on informing best practices in technology use with students in the areas of advising, student affairs, and teaching. Through research findings, Rey has shown that technology, especially social media like Facebook and Twitter, can be repurposed in order to improve educational outcomes. He is especially interested in examining the digital divide– differences in the ownership and use of technology by members of underrepresented groups.

About #CollegeChat

#CollegeChat is a live bi-monthly conversation intended for teens, college students, parents, and higher education experts on Twitter. #CollegeChat takes place on the first and third Tuesday of the month at 6 p.m. Pacific/ 9 p.m. Eastern. Questions for each #CollegeChat edition can be sent to Theresa Smith, the moderator of #CollegeChat via http://Twitter.com/collegechat , by entering questions online on the CollegeChat Facebook page at http://ht.ly/1XIqV , or by email. More detailed information about signing up for Twitter and participating in #Collegechat  can be found at  http://pathwaypr.com/how-to-participate-in-a-twitter-chat .CollegeChat can also be found on Twitter at http://Twitter.com/collegechat .

Filed Under: CollegeChat, Uncategorized Tagged With: , , ,

College-to-Career Expert to Discuss on #CollegeChat: How to Find and Get the Right Internships

February 10, 2011 By

Emily Bennington, Founder of Professional Studio 365 and author of  Effective Immediately: How to Fit In, Stand Out, and Move Up at Your First Real Job, will discuss what college students need to do to find the right internships and stand out during #CollegeChat on Twitter on February 15,  2011 at 9 p.m. Eastern.

During #CollegeChat, Bennington (http://twitter.com/emilybennington) will discuss with attendees:

  • How to land your dream internship
  • Are internships for college students only
  • How to identify target internships
  • What resources are available
  • How to tell if internship is “legitimate”
  • Should you take a paid or unpaid internship
  • How to outshine other applicants
  • How to stand out as an intern

Emily is a frequent speaker to students on the topic of career success and provides professionalism and onboard training to new grads and their employers.She has been featured on CNN and ABC News, and has been quoted in publications such as The Wall Street Journal, New York Post, US News and World Report, Yahoo Jobs, and the Washington Post Express. She is also a contributing writer for Monster.com and a featured blogger for The Huffington Post. Emily is dedicated to giving young professionals the resources needed to achieve their highest potential, and she is particularly passionate about volunteerism as a means of leadership development and advancing the skills of young women in the workplace.

About #CollegeChat

#CollegeChat is a live bi-monthly conversation intended for teens, college students, parents, and higher education experts on Twitter. #CollegeChat takes place on the first and third Tuesday of the month at 6 p.m. Pacific/ 9 p.m. Eastern. Questions for each #CollegeChat edition can be sent to Theresa Smith, the moderator of #CollegeChat via http://Twitter.com/collegechat , by entering questions online on the CollegeChat Facebook page at http://ht.ly/1XIqV , or by email. More detailed information about signing up for Twitter and participating in #Collegechat  can be found at  http://pathwaypr.com/how-to-participate-in-a-twitter-chat .CollegeChat can also be found on Twitter at http://Twitter.com/collegechat .

Filed Under: CollegeChat, How to, Uncategorized Tagged With: , , , , ,

The Social Breakup: Why Consumers Unsubscribe

February 8, 2011 By

The Kiss
Creative Commons License photo credit: WTL photos

How often should you be emailing your customers or potential customers? How many tweets can you send out each day? How many is too many? How much contact is too much on Facebook? In order to find out why consumers terminate their relationships with Brands through Email, Facebook, and Twitter, Exact Target, a global Software as a Service (SaaS) provider, surveyed more than 1500 consumers and came up with a number of key findings that they reported today in “The Social Break-Up”.

Email Key Findings:

  • 95% of US Online Consumers use email
  • 91% have unsubscribed to a company email
  • 18% never open email from companies
  • 17% of subscribers will delete or ignore email instead of unsubscribing or hitting the spam button
  • 49% unsubscribe because the content is boring or repetitive

Facebook Key Findings:

  • 73% of US online consumers have a Facebook profile
  • 65% of US online consumers are active on Facebook
  • 64% of Facebook users are “Fans” of a company
  • 51% of Facebook Fans of a company rarely or never visit a company’s page after liking them
  • 44% of Facebook Fans unlike a company because they post to frequently

Twitter Key Findings

  • 17% of US consumers have a Twitter account
  • 9% of US consumers who have created a Twitter account are active
  • 41% of consumers who have followed a company have stopped following them later
  • Twitter users are less likely to unfollow a brand compared to Facebook or email users (41% for Twitter, 55% for Facebook, and 91% for email)

The question is, why have you unsubscribed to a Brand?

Filed Under: FaceBook, marketing, social media, twitter, Uncategorized Tagged With: , , , ,

8 Things You Must Know to Maximize Your SAT and ACT Scores

February 4, 2011 By

Campanile in HDR

Creative Commons License photo credit: John-Morgan

While many colleges across the country are now becoming test-optional for entrance, nearly 1.6 million high school students took the SAT and the ACT in 2010. According to Akil Bello, a college and graduate test preparation expert and owner of Bell Curves, LLC , (http://www.bellcurves.com/),   with proper planning and practice students can greatly maximize their SAT and ACT scores.  Bello recommends students:

Plan ahead. Take your first SAT or ACT test no later than May of your junior year in high school. “I recommend that juniors take their first official test in either March or April. I like March for the SAT and April for the ACT because they are far from the AP tests and other year end pressures,” said Bello. “College counselors and parents need to work together to make sure juniors don’t finish the year without taking a test. Without a baseline score it is going to be difficult to create a target college list.”

Don’t guess. Take both the SAT and ACT practice tests late in sophomore year to help determine which test to focus on. Students can get official practice tests from the testing companies themselves. SAT practices tests are available at http://ow.ly/3GbCa and ACT practice tests are available at http://ow.ly/3GbDp . In order to figure out which test a student did better at compare both scores at http://professionals.collegeboard.com/data-reports-research/sat/sat-act.

Also, make sure to take the practice test in as realistic a setting as possible – without distractions and any multi- tasking. Start at the beginning of the practice test and work your way through without any interruptions. Compare your baseline practice results against the ACT or SAT results for incoming freshman at the colleges you are interested in attending.

Don’t take either test more than 3 times. Bello recommends that students make sure they carefully study and prepare for the test but take them no more than three times. The CollegeBoard reports that most students take the SAT twice. Bello reported in 2010 40% of students who took the SAT took it twice and 41% took it three times.

Make a study preparation plan and stick to it. According to Bello, the amount of time needed to prepare effectively depends heavily on each student. “The further a student is from their goal the more time that is needed. Test preparation is not magic. The SAT and the ACT require baseline knowledge that covers 3 to 5 years.”

Ideally, Bello recommends that high school juniors, who are planning on taking the March or April test, make a preparation plan in December and start studying for the test in January. Instead of studying for a targeted number of hours each week, Bello said students should construct their study preparation plan by setting weekly goals.

“The preparation plan is based on how you prepare. If you choose a course or work with a tutor the schedule is done for you. If not, and you are studying alone, you need to learn the topic and or question type on Monday. On Wednesday you need to practice what you have learned and on Saturday you need to take a timed section. And then repeat the following week.”

Get outside help if possible. “If you can’t afford a tutor, look into free or cheap options in your area for test preparation or look into applying for a discounted program at one of the big test preparation companies. If money is still an issue, invest in good SAT or ACT preparation books and make sure to take the tests,” said Bello.  “Also check out school teachers, churches and other community based organizations that might offer classes or tutoring.”

Check out online resources and applications. There are a multitude of online test preparation programs –both paid and free- but Bello warns students and parents to be cautious, “before using a free online site, you should look at real SAT and ACT questions and compare them to the site. If you can tell a difference, don’t use the site.”

Bello likes the idea of the SAT applications and other mobile and computer based aids that are now available but “remember the test is still paper based.” Bello recommends the following web sites for test preparation:

http://freerice.com/

http://flashcards.dictionary.com/

Don’t forget book resources. The two test preparation books Bello recommends are the “Real ACT Prep Guide” and “The Official SAT Study Guide”.

Stay Calm. One of the best things students can do for themselves is to learn their optimal pacing. You don’t need to answer all your questions to get a great score. And finally, try to stay calm. For almost all colleges, the score you received on either the SAT or ACT is just one piece of the information they assess when looking at you as a future freshman.

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