For many students, graduation is a rite of passage. It is an experience akin to prom, or getting married— something you’re supposed to do. But there’s another subset of this population. That is the one that focuses on creating generational change. That is to say, first generation graduates. This expression refers to individuals that are the first in their families to graduate. Whether it be from high school or college, there is something meaningful about changing what had come in the past. There is something beautiful about this change. What are the statistical differences? Some say once you get in, you’re set. But that is not entirely true. For first generation college students, there are statistics that suggest getting to the point of graduation is the hardest part! A 2016 study found that about 60% of college students 6 years after entering college did not obtain their secondary degree. The same study found that students who are first generation tend to use necessary offered resources like financial aid more, however resources that focused on well being, like counseling, were used less. This indicates that first gen students may not be clued into the opportunities to support a healthy lifestyle with coping mechanisms in college. Beautiful positive facts First generation students may experience unique challenges that are difficult to hear about. However, the experience is poignant for that fact alone. Some key points to remember for first generation college students includes increasing support for this demographic. 73% of colleges and universities have a formal definition of this cohort. This means institutional recognition of the unique struggles for first generation students. This results in experiences such as experience-based cohorts that share resources through shared identity. Further, this leaves space for programmatic efforts that tackle the same issues as mentioned above— mental and social health. Overall, the percentage, some ⅓- ½ of all college students today are first generation, and their experiences increasingly significant and recognized.
There are a few things that we feel absolutely every high school student in America should cross off of their bucket list before graduation. While we recognize that there are different strokes for different folks, these five items are universally beneficial. Regardless of whether the post-high school plan consists of college, trade school or full-time employment, this list will definitely help. 1. Take an advanced level course. Enrolling in rigorous coursework can seem daunting, or even risky. There are fears of failing or of getting lost in the curriculum. However, overcoming these fears and taking a higher level course can bring numerous benefits. For example, AP courses mimic college courses in their structure, rigor and assessments. Taking just one AP course might provide useful insight into whether or not college is a good fit. Also, Honors or Gifted level courses can open up opportunities that would not be available otherwise. Many Honors course utilize field trips, research grants and extracurricular experiences to supplement the coursework. Why not take on a challenge that could guarantee growth? 2. Introduce yourself to your academic counselors and advisors. Many public high schools in the U.S. have a high ratio of students per counselor. Often, students never cultivate a direct relationship with their advisors and counselors, beyond college planning and course scheduling. States nationwide require high school counselors to stay informed about relevant scholarships, vocational opportunities and learning resources. Even if college is not a future goal, high school counselors can provide crucial information and tips for other post-graduation paths like trade school, military enlistment, nonprofit programs and more. It all starts with, “hello.” 3. Join an extracurricular activity. It is common for high schools across the country to offer sports, clubs, volunteering and technological opportunities to their student body. Participating in an extracurricular activity serves as a great method for making friends and furthering interests in a variety of areas. Not to mention, making a commitment to an extracurricular activity requires time management. Developing a strong sense of punctuality and scheduling will prove essential to adulthood. Why not start now? 4. Complete a class on public speaking. The number of occasions in life where one speaks publicly is unlimited. Wedding toasts, graduation speeches, eulogies, presentations for work and school–the list goes on! Knowing how to confidently and clearly communicate can be the deciding factor in job interview situations or financial opportunities. Get a head start on building confidence in public speaking ASAP. 5. Learn money management. No matter what path high schoolers follow once they graduate, money will be a constant presence. Understanding the basic mechanisms of taxes, interest, and savings is important. But the buck does not stop there. Having confidence making long-term investments, understanding how to assess the better buy from a slew of products or even learning the common trappings of hidden fees can be instrumental. Some schools offer formal money management classes or economics classes. Having a low-stress part-time job can also be a great way to build these skills.
A music streaming gift subscription. Pandora Radio and Spotify offer one-year subscriptions of their ad-free streaming services, which means 365 days of virtually unlimited tunes! Every time your graduate turns on their sound system, they’ll have you to thank. A Movie Pass. This service allows users to view one movie per day in theaters. It’s a $9.99 monthly fee, for endless cinematic bliss. With summer on thehorizon, make their post-grad lives kick off with moviegoing bliss. Amazon Prime. Think about it: graduating from school means embarking on adulthood. Recent grads will head across globe to jobs, internships, fellowships and service missions. Having free shipping on Amazon’s entire inventory is the gift that will keep on giving. A Lyft gift card. Most of us cannot gift a car for graduation. But a Lyft gift card might be the next best thing. Purchasing a ride-sharegift card increases mobility for recent grads, relieving high school grads of the need to beg for parental carpools and eliminating the risks of drunk-driving with older grads. You won’t miss the mark with this one! Portable Smartphone Battery. It is no secret that millennials love their gadgets. Spare them the horror of a dead phone battery by gifting them a portable phone battery. No matter if their post-grad plans take them abroad, to the beach or to the office, knowing they have a battery backup brings ample peace of mind. Nice headphones or earphones. With the omniscient presence of technology in most recent graduates’ lives, having access to quality headphones is a no-brainer. The best part is that with bluetooth headphones, wireless sets and the classic earphones, the options are plentiful, yet equally valuable.
The New SAT made its debut in March 2016 and impacts the students in the class of 2017 or younger. In 2005, the SAT changed and a score of 2400 or higher became the magic number to get. Before that the magic number was 1600. This year the SAT test is changing again and the magic number is reverting back to 1600. You may be asking yourself what is the new SAT test and why has it changed? Let’s dig a little deeper and learn more about the history of the SAT. The SAT was founded in 1926 and was an adaptation of the Army Alpha, an IQ test which had been used to check the intelligence of recruits to the US Army. This eventually developed into the SAT as we know it. In 2005, an update was done to the test where analogies was eliminated from the test. It was determined that they did not really reflect today’s high school curriculum. They als0 felt that the analogies encouraged memorization of vocabulary rather than reasoning skills. The math section was expanded to embrace concepts covered by most high school “Algebra II” courses. Again, the change represents an attempt to keep the SAT in step with the modern high school curriculum. They also wanted to emphasize the skills that are most desired by top colleges and universities. The newest changes to the SAT test in 2016 have students pretty excited. Lets look at some of these changes. 1. No Obscure Vocabulary. The new version of the SAT will be easier because there will no longer be obscure vocabulary to trip you up. So you may be more familiar with some of the vocabulary that is tested, but you will need to know multiple definitions of those words. The College Board made the decision to focus on vocabulary words that you will encounter on a regular basis in college and in future jobs. 2. Fewer Answer Choices. The new format will have only 4 choices to each question instead of 5. This will help save you time when taking the test because you will have 1 less answer choice to read through. This will also give you a 25% chance of getting the answer correct instead of only a 20% chance. 3. More Time. One of the biggest complaints that students had with the SAT test is that they didn’t have enough time to take the test. The good news is that there will be more time per section on the new version, and you will even have double the amount of time to write your essay. Another cool thing about it is the new 1600 version of the test will have 16 fewer questions than the old version. 4. No Penalty for Guessing. On the previous version of the SAT, students were penalized for guessing the wrong answer by losing a point on their score. The new system doesn’t penalize you for choosing the wrong answer. 5. Optional Essay. The essay, which the SAT added in 2005, will now be optional. SAT essays have faced criticism over the years from educators who said they focused too much on what test takers wrote, not whether their statements were true, or their arguments reasonable. Essays will be scored separately from the rest of the test, and the prompt will remain basically the same in every test. It will ask you to consider a passage and write an essay that analyzes how the author made an argument, used evidence and styled ideas. The redesigned test will take about three hours, with an additional 50 minutes for the essay, and will be administered by print and computer; the current test is available on paper only. These are so many needed changes to the SAT. The new SAT will have no bearing on students scheduled to graduate in 2016. However, for students planning to graduate in 2017 or any year after, the new SAT exam will be the exam they have to take (assuming they would prefer to take the exam no sooner than spring of 2016).
