The college admissions process used to involve an elaborate set of steps including hand-written forms and a plethora of paperwork. Fortunately, the internet has completely transformed the experience. There are a number of resources available to students who may need to obtain transfer credits before applying or for those who simply want to do additional research prior to making their decision. The admissions process is also easier online. Prospective students can complete the bulk of their college admissions forms and requirements online, using a computer, keyboard, and about an hour or two of uninterrupted time.

1. Call the admissions office. Before you begin filling out your online applications, call the Admissions Office and speak with a counselor. During a complimentary interview, the admissions counselor will speak with you about your academic goals, as well as your background. The counselor will also go over the application process so you know what to expect. Lastly, the admissions staff can answer any questions you may have, and guide you in the right direction if their academic programs aren’t exactly what you are looking for.

2. Fill out the application. Once you have been given the green light from the Admissions Counselor, it’s time to fill out the online application. This involves a simple series of questions including:

Once your application is complete, you will hit the “Submit” button and it will be sent directly to our admissions office. It’s that simple!

3. Financial Aid. Many college students use some form of financial aid in order to decrease their college tuition, living, and/or school supply expenses. Even if you don’t need financial aid, it is a good idea to speak with a Financial Aid Counselor. You may qualify for grants and scholarships that can significantly reduce your out-of-pocket expenses. If you do require financial assistance, Financial Aid Counselors can walk you through the process and help you determine where to apply. There are two kinds of assistance:

It’s never too early to begin researching financial aid options as most financial aid programs have application deadlines.

4. Transcripts. At some point during the college admissions process, you will need to send your high school and college transcripts (if applicable). If you have a GED, you can contact your state government’s GED office to request a copy.

Once you have completed these five steps, you can sit back, relax, and wait for your notification of acceptance. Contact the Admissions Office at Bryant & Stratton College to begin your college admissions process today!

You’ve researched, read the directions, set yourself up with a coffee in a nice, quiet place. Time to create a paper. Nothing happens.

Your open Word document stares at you, smirking.  Now what? How do you beat writer’s block? Below are some strategies for doing just that.

Many people think they work better listening to music, and the temptation to check in on social media or respond to texts can be irresistible. Th is article has great insights about how inefficient multi-tasking is and how to be more focused: http://blog.strideapp.com/2014/05/how-to-have-laser-focus-without-caffeine/

Campus-based students have learning centers, and online students have access to the Smarthinking tutorial. This is an excellent way to get extra guidance. This does take time, so it’s great motivation to begin assignments early.

If you’re stuck on the introduction, skip it. Start with just a thesis then work on your main points. It may be easier to write the introduction last.  As an English instructor, I recommend beginning with sources, in-text citation and the reference page. This ensures that you do not forget, and can also help you see your support more clearly.

Maybe that’s not your thing. But when you get stuck, step away from the computer and do something else.

Exercise is great for the brain. 

Doing another activity allows your mind to work on what you’re stuck on while engaged in something else. Go for a walk, do some laundry, and try to work through what you are stuck on.

If possible, explain to a friend the assignment and what you are stuck on. Talk through what the assignment needs to accomplish (argue, explain, etc). This may help you identify what you are struggling with. Perhaps your research is not strong enough, or perhaps you need a better grasp of a course concept.

If it’s 11:30 on Saturday night, it will be too late to create a quality paper. Remember all of the end of session reflections when you said you would start projects earlier? How can you ensure that this happens?  If Saturday is a difficult day to get assignments done, aim to complete an assignment on Friday. This allows an extra cushion for final polishing and checking your work against the rubric. Beginning an assignment early in the week allows more time for asking instructor questions.

These strategies will not only help you finish assignments, they are great strategies for the workplace. Learning how to solve problems and seek guidance will help you succeed in any career.

The recipe for success in college athletics varies by team and sport. At the “junior college” level that recipe can be even more challenging when it comes to recruiting and retaining players. Nick Dimitrievski and Alex Grigorita seem to have found one way to stay ahead in the ever competitive United States Collegiate Athletic Association and that is through a strong presence in international recruiting.

Both head coaches recruit heavily in the greater Syracuse and New York regions but they also have a strong international presence on their teams. The Bobcats soccer teams have a combined 24 international players between the two rosters; including players from as far away as Gold Coast, Australia, nearly 10,000 miles from Bryant & Stratton College’s Syracuse campus.

“It’s all about networking and trying to find the best possible student athletes,” Dimitrievski said. “Now we’ve ventured into the international market. At the end of the day it’s about finding the best soccer player, wherever [they] come from.”

Dimitrievski’s squad boasts 14 total international players, two each from England, Germany and Serbia and one each from Australia, Chile, Spain, France, Scotland, Jamaica, St. Lucia and Costa Rica. The women’s team features 10 international players, five from Antigua and Barbuda, four from Trinidad and Tobago and another from Barbados.

Bryant & Stratton College’s international presence has been a long standing foundation of the program. This dates back to Grenadian stars Ricky Charles and Sharlie Joseph, the seven-time MLS All Star and 2009 MLS MVP Finalist. Joseph’s legendary MLS career began with the Bobcats as he played two years with Bryant & Stratton College before transferring to St. John’s University to complete his education.

“We’re looking for those types of guys [like Sharlie], that’s the reality,” Dimitrievski said. “A lot of kids what to be that type of player.”

Having one of the most iconic players in MLS history as an alumni makes for a nice recruiting pitch, but another decision may have been more impactful in attracting students to don Bryant & Stratton College blue; the conference move from the NJCAA to the USCAA.

The move opened the door for the Bobcats to offer more opportunities to more players. Eligibility rules in the NJCAA only allows student-athletes to play for a school for two years. Unlike the NJCAA, the USCAA allows student-athletes to play for four years as they pursue a bachelor’s degree. This is an added benefit for both the team and players as they have better options to complete their degree program.

That isn’t to say the option of playing two years for the Bobcats and transferring isn’t a popular choice. For example, Scott Robson’s impressive two-year career at BSC was parlayed into a transfer to Bellevue University where he’s already racked up three goals and 11 assists since moving on.

The ability to provide student-athletes the option of playing two or four years is a win-win situation in the eyes of the coaching staff. Every player, regardless of the degree they wish to pursue upon arrival, has the opportunity to turn their on-field exploits with the Bobcats into an offer from a Division I program just as they have the opportunity to spend four years at Bryant & Stratton College and earn a four-year degree. It’s a situation that benefits the program and athletes equally.

Following the footsteps of alums and fellow teammates becomes a pull for future recruits. The opportunity to earn a degree while playing the game they love attracts many international players to Bryant & Stratton College.

“Knowing [Scott] and watching him be able to find another opportunity is appealing to new players like myself,” said goalkeeper Harry Watson. “It gives us a goal to work for to work harder in class and work harder as a player.”

“Not only do players see this as an opportunity to further their education but to improve their soccer as well,” said Grigorita. “The alumni help because [new athletes] know what kind of soccer we play and the level of education they will get here.”

Grigorita has created a pipeline, of sorts, from the Caribbean to the Bryant & Stratton College Syracuse campus. He has had a great deal of success recruiting in areas such as Antigua and Trinidad; That includes leading goal scorers Kai Jacobs and Portia Davis, who both hail from Antigua and Barbuda.

Both Jacobs and Davis are mainstays on the Antigua and Barbuda women’s national team along with fellow Bobcat Kanika Buckley. The draw of Bryant & Stratton College came from the program’s track record and the Antiguan players who played for the program previously.

“Several girls had come in before me who have moved on to other schools,” said Jacobs. “Some are back home and working and are very successful. So that has given me more motivation to come in and have something to look forward to.”

Jacobs added that a previous teammate and fellow countrywoman was selected as a USCAA All-American during her time at Bryant & Stratton College and set the same goal for Jacobs to achieve. After a 12-goal and 11-assist season, Jacobs may just have the inside track on reaching that goal.

Grigorita’s pipeline has even enabled him to recruit three players from the same school in Trinidad and Tobago. Cherise Roberts, Njemile Charles and Jeanille Lawrence all come from the soccer program at Scarborough Secondary in Trinidad, a program that has unearthed a host of talent for the Bobcats. However, Grigorita is quick to point out that the program a student-athlete comes from is secondary for him.

He notes that when he goes to watch someone play, he’s there to watch the player regardless of the team they’re playing on. He contends that it’s more likely his recruiting will draw more players from the same programs as success with the Bobcats often draws more interest for players to come to Central New York for their collegiate soccer.

That trip is hardly a short one for Bryant & Stratton College’s international players. By comparison, the trip Jacobs, Buckley and Davis make from Antigua (roughly 1,984 miles) is a walk in the park compared to that of Josh Martin’s 9,522 miles from Gold Coast, Queensland in Australia or even the 5,302 miles Cristobal Rojas travels from Santiago, Chile.

Naturally, there’s also a difference in weather for many of the players who trek to a region famous for winter snow from otherwise sunny locales. While the weather surprised plenty of newcomers, particularly those who hail from the Caribbean, the welcoming arms of the Bryant & Stratton College community quickly counteract any nasty weather.

“Everyone is there for you everywhere you turn,” Jacobs said.

The feeling of family and community on campus is a key factor for ensuring the players don’t just feel comfortable in their new city, but they feel at home. As Dimitrievski points out, English is not the first language for many of Bryant & Stratton College’s international athletes. Providing the proper support system for help inside the classroom and beyond is a key aspect of what the coaching staff and academic departments focus on. This includes a new mentor program in which every student-athlete is paired with a mentor who not only checks up on schoolwork, but ensures the transition to life in Syracuse goes smoothly.

“Everyone here makes you feel like you’re family,” Njemile Charles said. “Here, the college is small and compact and not just on the soccer teams but everyone in the classroom and the faculty makes you feel comfortable.

“To be able to be here playing soccer and something I love gives me a sense of pride for both my country and my family. It’s a positive because I’m pursuing my education while doing something I love to do.”

That’s a sentiment echoed by nearly every player on both teams. It’s easy to find athletic teams that are tight knit on the field and in the locker room, but to have that sense of community carry over to the dormitories and classroom goes a long way in creating an enriching environment for every student athlete at Bryant & Stratton College.

It’s that sense of community which continues to play a major role in drawing elite talent to Bryant & Stratton College, keeping the Bobcats soccer teams in the top-10 of the USCAA rankings on an annual basis.

There has been quite a bit of early season success for the men’s and women’s soccer teams at Bryant & Stratton College. Both teams received top-10 preseason rankings from the USCAA with the men ranking second in the nation and the women ranking eighth.

Less than a week after the initial coach’s poll dropped the women’s soccer team has already climbed two spots to number six while the men have a firm grip on second in their poll. The men’s soccer team have a massive match against University of Maine-Fort Kent this coming weekend, a rematch of last year’s National Championship. They tuned up for the rematch with a solid run of play the last few weeks.

Meanwhile the women rebounded off a tough loss to ASA College with a trio of impressive victories which helped elevate them in the national polls.

Bryant & Stratton College’s cross country team is also up and running, performing well at the University of Rochester Yellow Jacket Invitational; a field made up of a number of strong NCAA programs.

Most people know and understand that the combination of education and work experience will likely help you earn a better salary. In fact, that is exactly the reason why many adults go back to school after they have been in the workforce.

But, does earning your degree while working guarantee you a raise? No, it does not. However, with the right timing and strategy you just might get a raise when you ask for it.

“Ideally, you should ask about the raise before you get the degree to set the expectations,” said Abby Kohut, award winning, human resource professional, contract recruiter and author.

One approach is to be straight-forward and ask whether earning a degree, will you in turn equate to a raise in pay. However, it’s advisable to take a more strategic approach.

“The best time to hold the conversation is during the normal performance review cycle,” Kohut said. “Begin the conversation by discussing your work performance and accomplishments on the job. Then, explain how the degree has given you additional information that will help you produce even more.”

If you have already earned your degree, share the good news at work.

“Alert your boss that you have recently gotten your degree and invite him or her to the graduation,” Kohut said. “And if you get ‘no’ for an answer when you ask for a raise, don’t be grumpy, disappointed or have a bad attitude on the job. Ask when he or she might be willing to consider it and tell them you will work hard to get it.”

You can ask for a raise at any time, but you will always have to justify why you are asking for it. So, take a deliberate approach where you make the connection between your past accomplishments at work, your recent educational attainment and your future contributions to the company’s goals. Kohut’s final tip:

“Never assume you will get an increase in pay. Get your degree because you want one and to help with your future employment not the current job.”

If you are registered for an online course this semester, you may still be acclimating to a learning experience that is much different from a traditional, in-person class. Perhaps the largest difference is that you likely have not met your professor in person, and the vast majority of your interaction throughout the semester will be solely online. Just because you are not meeting with your professor face-to-face on a frequent basis, however, does not mean that you cannot ask him or her questions. Here are five important questions that every student in an online course should ask his or her professor:

If you have not yet done so, you may wish to contact your professor to introduce yourself and to tell him or her why you are interested in this class. It is equally important to ask your professor how he or she became interested in the field. This may provide you with more insight into what will be emphasized in the course, and it can help you make a great impression on your professor.

It is also wise to ask your professor about his or her expectations during the course. You can ask how often you will receive assignments and take tests—this may also be outlined in the syllabus. You can likewise inquire about how often your professor expects you to communicate with him or her, as well as anything else that you may need to know to succeed in the class.

It is important to show your interest in success, as well as your commitment to working hard. Ask your professor about the typical characteristics of successful students in his or her course, and then try to emulate these characteristics.

At same point during the semester, you may find yourself struggling with the material. It is always smart to ask early on in the course what types of assistance are available, and to ensure that they will be sufficient for you. If the professor is not offering extra help, ask what additional resources he or she can recommend for success in the class.

Once the course is underway and you have turned in your initial assignments, it is a great idea to ask your professor what you can do to improve. If you are writing papers, for example, you can ask for suggestions about how to better develop your revision or research skills. Ask this question early so you can begin improving, but also continue to ask it throughout the class to build on your progress throughout the semester.

As with any other course, the key is to form a strong relationship with your professor. It is important to demonstrate to your instructor that you are committed to the course, interested in the subject, and willing to work hard in order to do well.

If there’s one person who can be considered the “hub” of an office, it’s the administrative assistant. These professionals are typically in charge of doing all the daily activities that keep an office running.

According to a survey by the International Association of Administrative Professionals, the biggest self-identified need in administrative assistant training is technology applications. That means, more than ever employers expect administrative assistants and executive secretaries to be tech savvy. The Office Management associate degree and Office Administration Assistant diploma program provides students with courses that focus on key technologies used in the field. Having a foundation in these technologies is important for improving employability skills. Check out the list below and see if you measure up to succeed as an administrative assistant or executive assistant.

Mobile devices – From smart phones to tablets, knowing how to operate a variety of mobile devices is important as an administrative assistant. Many executives rely on these devices to keep track of appointments, record ideas, communicate with their teams and basically run day-to-day operations so using one will become just as much part of your job.

Telephones – While the days of large, old school switchboards are long over telephone technology can still be complicated. Being comfortable answering, transferring and forwarding calls is still a big part of the job. You’ll likely receive on the job training for any phone system but being able to approach it with confidence of understanding a variety of technology will help you learn the new system quickly.

Microsoft Office – How familiar are you with Word®, PowerPoint®, Excel®, Outlook®, and Access®? You’ll likely use one of these programs, if not all of them daily, as an administrative assistant. Since the Microsoft Office Suite is critical to many business functions, consider getting a Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS) certification as a way to demonstrate your abilities to potential employers.

Cloud computing – Many companies are using cloud computing software so employees can access programs and applications over the internet. As an administrative assistant you’ll need to have a basic understanding of how these platforms work and the individual capabilities and features of the one your potential employer uses. Calendar software – Scheduling appointments for executives, managing shared calendars, and other calendar functions will likely be a big part of your job as an administrative assistant. To practice before you get a job or go back to school try creating a shared online calendar for your family and managing commitments like soccer games, parent-teacher conferences and diner with friends like you would manage meetings at a job.

Email – If your email skills are limited to your ability to forward funny photos of your sister’s cat, then you may need to upgrade before looking for a job. Email is a central function of any business. Understanding how to organize folders, set up automatic filters, build distribution lists and create tasks and reminders will help you do your job better.

Learn to code – If you want to go above and beyond in your quest to be more tech savvy, learning to code can really help. Managing and updating the company website can sometimes fall on the plate of an administrative assistant, especially at smaller companies and non-profits. Having a basic understanding of code could position you as a stronger candidate for jobs. There are plenty of places to learn code online such as, Codeacademy, courses on Udacity, or Code Racer.

Be a life long learner – While it’s not a technical skill, having the desire to be a life long learner is key to keeping up with technology. The technology you use today in your job will definitely change in a year, three years and ten years. Employers value employees who are adaptable and willing to take on new challenges. If you remain open to learning new technologies, or even suggesting new platforms, so a company can run more efficiently you will increase your job security significantly. Getting administrative assistant training by going back to school to earn a certification or college degree, can help you learn the basics of these technologies and demonstrate to employers you have the knowledge and skills to do the job. Younger job seekers who have grown up with this technology may be more naturally inclined to understand how to use it. But older professionals who have experience in an office plus are technically inclined may be able to develop an edge in the marketplace.

My husband is a self-professed, non-reader. He was never terribly fond of school, or writing or homework. But, he knew if he was going to advance in his career he had to earn a degree. His buddies convinced him that an online college would be easier. There would be less work, less reading, less writing, they claimed. And, no traffic to travel to class! They were right about the traffic. It seems there are a lot of misconceptions about online degree programs.

“People think it is going to be easier than traditional campus classes,” says Ricky Braun, Admissions Manager for Bryant & Stratton College Online Education. “But the curriculum is identical to our other 19 campuses.

“People may think they are going to come and glide through but that’s definitely not the case,” he says.

So, why the confusion? People make a lot of assumptions. Here are the facts for Online Education at Bryant & Stratton College

Tests: While they are often not proctored, and are open book, they are not easy. Generally, exams consist of essay questions, not multiple-choice questions.

Class participation: While there may not be any public speaking, students at online schools are often expected to participate in discussion forums. Students aren’t graded not just on how often they log in but also by the depth and understanding they demonstrate in their posts. At Bryant & Stratton College, student’s attendance in class is tracked through their activity and participation in the discussion board in their classes.

Lectures: Every instructor at Bryant & Stratton College will post a text-based lecture to their classroom. This means you don’t need to be in front of your computer at any specific time and there’s no worry about having to rewind to get proper notes written time and time again. Like with book reading, some additional assets and supplemental study materials may be video or audio assets, but that varies on a class-to-class and week-to-week basis, just like a traditional classroom.

Books: Bryant & Stratton College uses real, physical textbooks which are mailed to students for each semester. Often, supplemental reading will be provided via e-mail or other electronic means, giving students the information right at their fingertips through the online classroom.

Professor office hours: There are a number of ways to contact instructors at Bryant & Stratton College. Every instructor will provide students with an email address and each classroom also features a questions forum, which instructors monitor regularly and are required to reply to when questions are posted. Additional contact methods will vary by instructor but will include options such as Skype or other instant messaging services. Those methods typically are used for office hours each week. So, while there are differences in terms of traditional methods of communication, online classes at Bryant & Stratton College are very similar to attending class in a traditional class setting. But that doesn’t mean the program is without its perks.

Flexible class times: Most adult students work during the day or have responsibilities like caring for their family. Most traditional universities don’t offer the same variety of classes at night that daytime students enjoy. Online students go to school when they can, no matter what time the clock reads and have access to the same variety of subjects and classes. Each class at Bryant & Stratton College Online runs from Sunday to Saturday and students have 24/7 access to their courses. This means you can log in and access your classes at any point during the week.

Well-planned assignments: At Bryant & Stratton, students generally have a week to complete homework. Some work is assigned on the first day of the class week while others will come up in the middle of the week. However, students will have a course calendar that illustrates every assignment, reading, test and quiz that will make up the program. Still worried about the workload at an online college? Bryant & Stratton College administers placement tests to every student before they enroll in classes so they are not placed in a math or English class that is above their current level. The placement tests set students up to succeed in classes that allow them to progress. Additional support through our academic advising team and career services is available to all students, ensuring success in the classroom and beyond.

Student Services: New students are each assigned a personal academic Success Coach for their first semester to help reinforce positive academic practices for new students. After their first semester students will begin to work with a new academic advisor for the remainder of their degree.

Career help: Upon graduation, you don’t have to road trip back to your alma mater for help building career connections. Bryant & Stratton College’s career services help graduates fine tune their interview skills, resume, portfolio and cover letter, even for students in remote locations. For students like my husband, what this all means is that there is no easy road to earning a degree. For students at Bryant & Stratton, however, that road is a little less bumpy.

“A lot of our students are working full-time and have children. Gas prices are high. Once you put the kids to bed, it’s a great time to get class work done. That’s why online school is so popular,” Braun says. “It is so flexible.  We’ve eliminated the commute, the stress and the childcare.”

One of the challenges of rethinking our careers these days is how to most effectively position ourselves with a potential employer for maximum opportunity (okay, first to get hired, then for maximum opportunity!). In other words, you and your outstanding skills are the solution to the problem or challenge they face.

Whether you’re writing a cover letter, tailoring a resume, or preparing for a job interview, think about how to demonstrate and document your problem-solving track record. The problem or pain point could be as simple as “we need someone reliable who can learn our system quickly and replace the employee we just promoted.” Or it might be “we need someone who knows how to turn our print content into interactive media for our website.” Or perhaps it’s “we need someone who not only understands how healthcare clinics work but also speaks Spanish to help us effectively support the healthcare needs of our growing number of Latino patients.”

Your job is to learn, from the job posting and doing as much research on the organization as possible, what problem, challenge, or opportunity the organization is trying to address through the posted position, and then focus entirely on the value you bring that will help them successfully do so. Basically, your communications should showcase four things:

You have the skills, expertise, and track record necessary to fix the problem This can include education, credentials, work experience, and/or volunteer projects that relate to the challenge the company needs to address. Whether in your resume, cover letter, or interview, your communications need to be about the professional value you bring that lets you help the company resolve its “pain points.”

You deliver results:  Prospective employers pay attention when you can point to quantifiable results from work you did (solutions you provided). Being able to say that you increased customer retention by 15% or contributed to a project that came in 20% under budget or achieved some other measurable positive result means that you have a track record of delivering actual results. How to frame this? Companies generally focus on three bottom-line benefits: an increase in revenue, a decrease in costs, or an increase in satisfied customers. If you’re able to point to achievable results in any of those areas, make sure potential employers know it. And if you’re a student without any applicable job history to point to, then be ready to discuss how you would become their solution based on the knowledge and insights you’re gaining in your program.

You learn fast  Almost any new job is going to involve a learning curve where you’re trained on existing systems, processes, and practices. The faster you can master these and actually start producing value (that is, being the solution), the happier the company. So be sure to highlight any experiences that demonstrate how you quickly mastered new information and were able to apply that knowledge in previous situations. And if you’re a student, talk about what you’ve learned about how you learn in your classes that will enable you to “learn on demand.”

You’re easy to work with and will fit in with – rather than disrupt – their team  In terms of being that great solution, think “seamless transition.” Make it clear that your great people and team skills have helped drive successful solutions in the past, and will do so now as well. So, what problems do your skills and expertise solve?

Starting your online degree program on the right foot is important. Luckily, Bryant & Stratton College Online requires all new students to complete the First Year Experience Program. This program is designed to give you a support system that will help you succeed in your college years and beyond.

Here are more tips on how to succeed during your first year of college:

Know your college support team: Academic Advisors and Instructors
Academic advisors and instructors can be a big part of your support network at college, so get to know them well. New students at Bryant & Stratton College Online will work with a personal academic success coach throughout their first semester. This relationship is key for the first semester as new students have the opportunity to lean on their success coach for guidance when needed. After your first semester a student will continue to work with an academic advisor specific to the degree program they’re pursuing. Academic advisors can tell you which courses you need to take to graduate on time and may help you save both time and money. Instructors on the other hand are a great resource for individual class help. When you establish a good relationship with your instructor you’ll have an easier time asking questions and getting the help you need to excel in a class. Instructors can also serve as great references for job opportunities or networking opportunities.

Buckle down:
Just because you are taking classes online doesn’t mean that you can skate by without putting in the effort. Log into your classes, stay on top of discussions and create plans to complete class assignments. If you’re juggling a job or family responsibilities there may be a time when you need to ask for an extension, your instructor will be more likely to grant that request if your are a student in good standing.

Ask questions:
Don’t wait to ask for help if you find yourself falling behind or struggling with a course. Find classmates you trust to ask for help or reach out to your instructor. Bryant & Stratton College Online also offers tutoring services, online tutors and 24-hour access to our online library to help catch you up to speed.

Stay balanced:
It’s great to be focused on your academics, but you need to maintain a healthy, balanced lifestyle both in and out of school. Continue to do things in your life that make you happy, like exercising and spending time with your family and friends. Take care of all of yourself, not just your brain, in order to avoid overworking yourself and burning out.

Bryant & Stratton College Online is dedicated to helping students succeed in their first year of college and throughout their entire professional career. We’ve been preparing students for a lifetime of success for nearly 160 years. Call 1.888.447.3528 to speak with an admissions representative and get started today!

High school students or graduates may earn college credit in one or more courses alongside peers and undergraduates. UVM offers entry level courses both on campus and online year round in a variety of subject areas in our pre-college summer programs.

UVM’s Summer Academy is a two-week on campus, two-week online residential or commuter program, designed exclusively for 11th or 12th-grade high school students. Summer Academy gives students the opportunity to learn what college life is like, while getting a head start on their college career and earning valuable college credit.

A: A summer college program, also known as pre-college, gives high school juniors and seniors an early start by helping them experience the challenge of a college-level course while earning college credit.

High school students may explore career fields with professors who are leading experts, enroll in classes with other students, and earn transferable college credit.

A: There are so many ways a summer college or pre-college program can help prepare high school students for success. Here are some of the most compelling reasons:

Get a preview of campus life. Gain insight into campus culture, student life and the opportunity to interact with other college students.

Ease the transition to college life. Socialize, make new friends and be away from home for an extended period of time. This can also can serve as a stepping stone to the transition of going away to college.

Test the school out. Some students find it difficult to choose a college. Attending a pre-college program, especially on-campus for two weeks, gives high school students a sense of whether the school is a good fit.

Assess college readiness. Get a sense of what will be expected in a college course.

Make a positive impression on admissions officials. Successfully completing a college course is a way for students to signal to university officials that they are ready for college-level work.

Explore new material. Students can try out a new subject area, such as Adventures in Neuroscience or Storytelling with Words and Photographs, possibly discovering a career field they can be passionate about.

Cut college costs. High school students will receive a 50 percent reduction of in- and out-of-state academic year tuition during the summer.

Also, Vermont’s statewide dual enrollment program for high school juniors and seniors allows students to access two college courses with tuition fully reimbursed. For example, students save money by taking a credit bearing course and then transferring those credits to their four-year school, including UVM.

A: UVM’s summer pre-college program for high school students was established in 2004 and has attracted more than 3,700 students from Vermont, New England and beyond. UVM offers more than 100 online and on-campus courses for high school students in the summer and throughout the academic year.

We also offer Summer Academy, a four-week program where students are part of a learning community and participate in off-campus and on-campus activities. Summer Academy has both residential and commuter options, and includes an online component.

A: Burlington is absolutely one of the best places to spend the summer in New England. Locals and visitors alike enjoy shopping and dining on Church Street, biking the Island Line Trail, swimming in Lake Champlain, and attending a variety of events and cultural activities.

Burlington is a vibrant, engaging place with festivals, live music, bike paths, parks, and a thriving food scene. Burlington is located on the shores of Lake Champlain and is less than an hour from some of the best hiking and skiing in Vermont. The birthplace of Phish and Ben & Jerry’s, Burlington has been named the best college town in America by Travel + Leisure.

A: Here are the following dates:

Summer Academy: The application is currently open for Summer Academy, which starts in July.

Pre-College Summer Courses: Registration begins in late February or early March.

Want to make your business sustainable? In order to do so, I think you must practice strategic leadership. In my UVM seminar on strategic leadership, I propose 12 capabilities of the strategic leader. Here’s a glimpse at two that contribute to making an organization that lasts.

First, I think a strategic leader has to be a visionary. “There are a lot more people who can take a hill than there are people who can accurately predict which hill it would be best to take…It is more likely that your organization will be outmaneuvered strategically than that it will be out produced tactically. Most organizations do pretty well what they do today. It’s what they need to be doing tomorrow that’s the missing skill” (Lombardo and Eichinger, 2000).

The visionary leader takes the organization on a journey, an adventure in success. I think of two of the many great leaders I’ve had the privilege of working with as an executive coach or change management consultant.

One, a leading voice in public health, has crisscrossed the nation building both the infrastructure and support for a level of quality assurance in public health institutions hitherto undreamed of. She inspires people with her vision of “the hill it would be best to take” for public health excellence.

Another such leader could “predict the hill it would be best to take” as soon as he became CEO. He saw that in order for his company to be a leader in the field, he had to refashion internal capacity. Seeing too much under-used talent and alarming turnover among middle managers, he first uprooted several iron-fisted lieutenants. Then he hired several senior leaders with a talent for leading others. Soon, younger managers were leading innovative, scalable projects that extended the organization’s reach, raised its profile and enhanced its finances. The CEO could devote more of his focus to a strategic imperative of “scouting” for priorities that would further extend the company’s leadership.

Both these leaders were able to survey a complex environment, internally and externally, spot “the hill,” and then infuse their organizations with energy and passion that said, “We are going places; join me – together, we are going to make a difference.”

Now think about Steve Jobs, with his boundless energy and passion to change the world through high quality, easy-to-use, and aesthetically beautiful technologies. Jobs could certainly “predict the hill;” in fact, he created several. At the same time, Jobs lacked a second strategic leader sensibility that I believe is crucial to sustaining a business.

Jobs chewed through people like a paper shredder. He saw and attracted talent, but he drove people beyond their limits, squeezed them by micro managing, and mercilessly berated them (Isaacson, 2011).

Better strategic leaders know that they will “take the hill” by getting and keeping smart, self-aware, principled fellow adventurers with strong management skills. Strategic leaders “get the right people on the bus,” as Jim Collins (2001) put it, and then inspire, develop, and support their initiative.

In Lombardo’s and Eichinger’s military metaphor, you don’t want to have to build a whole new army to take each hill. It’s much more efficient, much less wasteful, much more compassionate – and therefore more sustainable – to hire great people, given them what they need to be effective, stay in touch with them, and then let them fly.

By Jeffrey R. Wakefield
Perhaps the most endearing of the fanciful organizations that mock-sponsor A Prairie Home Companion (think the Catchup Advisory Board and the American Duct Tape Council) is the Professional Organization of English Majors, or P.O.E.M. The joke – gentle as it is, given host Garrison Keillor’s clear affection for the species and card-carrying membership in the club – lies in putting the words “English major” and “professional” in the same sentence.

That knowing wink at the career prospects of English majors wouldn’t sit well with Susanmarie Harrington, professor of English and director of UVM’s Writing in the Disciplines program.

Harrington just finished teaching a one-credit online winter session course called “Careers and English: What Next?” that made clear to the nine English majors in her charge that their job prospects – given the right preparation – were just fine, thank you.

“What an English major teaches you is that words matter,” she says. “I can’t imagine a world in which those skills aren’t important, but it does mean we have to be creative in figuring out how to talk about those talents to other people.”

Harrington’s course was one of 22 offered between Dec. 26 and Jan. 10 through Continuing and Distance Education — covering majors from anthropology and computer science to areas of interest like public health, arts administration and the environment — that sought to help students marshal their academic interests and accomplishments in the service of determining an actual career direction and strategy.

When Jeff Goulette was growing up in Shelburne, like most kids he never dreamed of becoming an actuary. In fact, he didn’t even know what an actuary was until he was 25.

In a serendipitous turn of events, the word “actuary” started popping up in his life – and at the right time, when he needed a change. After graduating from the University of Vermont with a political science degree in 2006 and working a couple of low-level jobs, “I decided I would like a more permanent job,” he says.

One day, his mother mentioned that his uncle, a doctor, was working with an actuary. Around the same time, Jeff read John Hodgman’s satirical depiction of actuaries at lunch in an Omaha steakhouse, “all pleased and prosperous-seeming, all eating the prime rib special.”

Tired of working for low pay, Jeff Googled “actuary” and not only learned more about the profession – which uses statistics and theory to analyze the financial impact of risk in areas like insurance and pensions – but also discovered that national publications consistently rank the career as one of the best.

“In the USA Today top job list, it was in the top three,” he says. “I thought, ‘Maybe I should look into this.’ I was getting sick of lower-level jobs and job hunts. It was good to find something that actually had prospects. The actuarial profession was one of the few areas that were expanding, and everything else was contracting. It’s a funny niche career that people don’t think about.”

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, actuarial jobs are expected to increase 27 percent over the next few years. CNNMoney reports that the profession has practically zero-percent unemployment. Other benefits: It’s a low-stress, highly paid (averaging more than $87,000) career, requiring only an undergraduate degree. And although actuaries must take a series of professional exams, they can be hired full time after passing the first two or three. After that, companies normally pay for their remaining training and exams.

Jeff realized he needed to take a few more college courses and study for actuarial exams. He discovered UVM Continuing and Distance Education’s Actuarial Science Sequence. Over two semesters, he took four courses – two of which covered material on the first two actuarial exams. He passed the two exams, then interviewed at two major companies. He landed a job with one of the world’s top actuarial firms – Aon Hewitt – in its Waltham, Mass., office, where he values pensions and makes projections for large, global corporations.

He quickly discovered why a career as an actuary is so appealing.

“It’s great. It’s not too stressful. I’m working with a lot of good, smart, hard-working people. I get good benefits and good pay, and it’s often casual dress,” he says. “Right now, I’m the low man on the totem pole, mostly number-crunching. But you can move up to project manager and client lead and handle a lot more responsibility. They place a lot of stock in talent retention and development. You can get all sorts of training. I’ve been encouraged to move up. Even when I first interviewed, I was told there is a lot of potential for growth.”

Thinking about spending the summer in Burlington? We love Vermont in every season, but summer in the Green Mountains is hard to beat. Vermont is an ideal place to enjoy festivals, music, food, and the great outdoors. Whether you’re participating in a summer college program for high school students or taking classes in UVM’s Summer University program, there’s plenty of fun to be had this summer in Vermont.

Church Street is the epicenter of Burlington, and for good reason. Visitors flock to the city’s brick and cobblestone pedestrian marketplace to enjoy a variety of locally-owned restaurants, food cart vendors, and cafes in the summer – including Leunig’s, Hong’s Chinese Dumplings, and Uncommon Grounds. Trust us, after enduring a winter of sub-zero temperatures, ice storms, and negative wind chills, dining outdoors in the warm sunshine while sampling local cuisine is a pretty outstanding experience.

Vermont’s most distinctive and third highest mountain (4,083 feet) is the only one of Vermont’s high peaks to remain free from major human development. Start your ascent from Camel’s Hump State Park in Huntington and enjoy panoramic views at the summit of the Adirondacks, White Mountains, and Greens. The Long Trail, one of the oldest long distance hiking trails in the United States that was a model for the Appalachian Trail, runs along Camel’s Hump. Dust off those hiking boots and don’t forget your trail map.

Established in 1886 by William Seward and Lila Vanderbilt Webb as a model agricultural estate, Shelburne Farms is now a nonprofit environmental education center and working farm whose mission is to cultivate a conservation ethic. Open mid-May to October, the 1,400-acre Shelburne Farms offers walking trails, a children’s farmyard, wagon tours, a cheesemaking operation and lodging at the Inn at Shelburne Farms. If you love wide-open spaces, historic barns, tasty cheese, and lovely views, put Shelburne Farms on your must-see list.

Built in 1900 by the Rutland Railroad, the former rail bed is now a popular Vermont bike path. One of the best parts of the trail is the Colchester-South Hero Causeway, a narrow stretch that crosses Lake Champlain. While biking (or walking) the 2.5-mile Causeway, you’ll see panoramic views as well as people fishing, swimming, and snorkeling on both sides of the Causeway. Another reason to bike the Island Line Trail is a chance to ride the Bike Ferry, which transports passengers and their bikes across a 200-foot gap in the Causeway near the southern tip of South Hero in the Champlain Islands.

The opening of Route 108 through Smugglers’ Notch is a rite of spring in Vermont. This scenic road, also known as “The Notch,” winds through a narrow pass between Mount Mansfield, Spruce Peak and Sterling Mountain. Located near Vermont’s tallest peak, the route opens for the season once the snow is finally gone. The Notch has a unique feel with giant boulders, thousand-foot cliffs, and thick forests. In the spring, summer, and fall, thousands of visitors descend upon the Notch to hike, rock climb, and camp.

Known as the “sixth Great Lake,” Lake Champlain is 120 miles long, covering 435 square miles bordering Vermont, New York, and Quebec. The lake offers many access points for sailing, swimming, fishing, and kayaking. Visitors can also enjoy ferry rides, beach access, and lakeside resorts, including Basin Harbor Club and Tyler Family Resort. Lake Champlain is 400 feet deep in some places, which according to local legend, is deep enough to harbor our very own prehistoric monster, “Champ.”

Burlington hosts the outstanding Discover Jazz Festival, an annual, week-long celebration featuring local talent and jazz. Established in 1983, the festival showcases incredible local talent with jazz legends from every corner of the globe. Performances are held throughout the city at indoor and outdoor venues, including Church Street, the waterfront, and the Flynn Theatre. Hands down, Discover Jazz is one of the best summer festivals in Vermont