Tips for Taking Better Notes

College can prove to be a stressful environment and keeping on top of your studies is often more difficult than it seems. Students who take good notes do better on tests and retain more information than students who don’t. We wanted to put together a list of useful note taking tips that will help you with your exam results.

-Start each lecture on a new page. This will help separate out the information and keep everything in chronological order.

-Leave Blank Spaces. This allows you to add in questions or additional notes later on.

-Only use one side of the paper. When you review for an exam, this allows you to set out each note page in front of you for easy viewing.

-Understand your own abbreviations. Create shorthand for different words that are easy to recognize.

-Highlight/Bold important pieces of information. It makes it easy to come back to later on and helps your remember main points.

College Life in Austin, Texas

 Austin is known for extremely hot summers and mild, dry winters. If you like sunshine, this is the place to be. The city boasts the motto, “Keep Austin Weird” and they intend to live up to it. Originality and design are offered up full force through art and film festivals, a large number of theatres and one of the most influential music scenes in the country. They offer more music venue per capita than any other

U.S. city. Rock climbing, kayaking, swimming, and hiking are among the residents’ favorite activities.

Austin is home to the University of Texas at Austin, St. Edward’s University, Austin Community College, and more. The University of Texas at Austin hosts over 38,000 students and was ranked 45th among National Universities by The U.S. News and World Report.

College Life in Ann Arbor, Michigan

 Ann Arbor boasts a wide range of schools, including the University of Michigan, Concordia University, and Washtenaw Community College. It is a bright and vibrant town that houses a wide variety of restaurants, museums, shopping, and theatres. The town possesses a good compromise between city life and nature. The Huron River flows through the cityscape and there are over 200 parks, providing a bit of the outdoors in contrast with the skyscrapers.

Ann Arbor has four distinct seasons that include snowy winters and hot, humid summers. The town is famous for college sports and houses the University of Michigan football team. It houses Michigan Stadium, which is the largest American Football stadium in the world. Ann Arbor hosts annual art fairs and movie festivals, drawing in major crowds and embracing different cultures. Students are finding the atmosphere one that boosts creative ideas and highlights ingenuity. It is currently rated as one of the best cities for college due to its wide diversity.

How Global SPN Makes an Impact on Your Study Experience

Education for international students is more within your reach than you think. Global SPN has been helping place students in American schools for decades. We can help you with all aspects of the selection and application process. We can help assess what is important to you, your cultural preferences, and your future career goals. We help our clients with admission requirements, the application steps and the essay writing portion of the college application process. An education abroad can be a very exciting and nerve wracking experience. It is not only a cultural shock, but an adventure that can last a lifetime.

We will help set up college campus visits, transportation, and accommodations to make life a little easier. Our experienced advisors go over all the application requirements, as well as student visa application process. Global SPN is not only there in the early college planning and selection processes, but we are there with cultural acclimation support along the way. We can help make sure students have access to the resources they may need, such as medical care, testing information, and housing assistance. We can offer cultural guidance to our students who find the transition difficult. If you’re ready to start on a journey of international study, talk to our professionals and make the process an easy and enjoyable one.    

Study & See the Sights

Visiting the United States can be very exciting. There are so many activities to see and participate in, but there are some that are a must when visiting the U.S. So, we’ve compiled a list of great things to see across the nation. Here are some of our favorites.

If you’re attending school around the Big Apple, don’t forget to check out the wide variety of museums and galleries available, including the Museum of Natural History or the Museum of Modern Art. More tourist sites include the Statue of Liberty and Times Square.

If you’re settling in to study on the west coast, California boasts a huge number of exciting things to see. Northern California houses the Redwood Forest, with some of the tallest trees in the world. If you’re close

to Anaheim, Disneyland is one of the most popular destinations in the state. Walk the pier in San Francisco and take a visit to the Golden Gate Bridge. Don’t forget to take a weekend getaway to the vast wine country outside the city.

Seattle boasts the Pike Marketplace, where you can pick up all kinds of souvenirs. Chicago, or the Windy City offers the Navy Pier, a long stretch of theatres, family activities, and a massive Ferris Wheel. If you’re studying around Colorado, Utah, or Arizona, make sure to drop down and visit the Grand Canyon, a site you won’t ever forget.

The United States is large and expansive with a large variety of cities and sites. No matter where you study, a short distance away is something extraordinary.

Test Tips

Students often find that taking tests turns out to be the most challenging aspect of going to college. Whether they are prepping for their TOEFL, SAT, GMAT, LSAT, or even just their Organic Chemistry Test, a large portion of people find that they freeze when presented with testing materials. Here are some ways to avoid the brain block and keep your grades high.

-Before the test, create a one page summary sheet that encapsulates all the major materials that could potentially be on the test.

-Get enough sleep. Staying up and studying all night won’t help you on the exam; if anything it will hinder your abilities. Getting enough sleep is vital to doing well on tests.

-Ask the exam proctor for help if you don’t understand what the question is asking. You must be clear about what is being asked in order to get it right.

-Try not to panic. If you feel stressed out, put down your pencil, take a few deep breaths, and relax your mind. Keeping your anxiety down during an exam will help keep your brain clear and remain focused.

-Read through the whole exam before you begin. This allows you to start generating ideas from the start, rather than just thinking about one question at a time.

Steps to Study in the United States

So you want to study in the U.S.?  With it’s wide variety of schools and academic standards, it offers the best in education that the world has to offer.  Many people who are just making the decision to study abroad don’t quite know how to go about it.  These steps are a generic outline that can help guide you with your decision.

• Decide what you want to study and find universities that offer a good program.

• Work with your advisor to choose about 5 schools that meet your criteria and fill out the application forms and gather the admission documents.

• Complete any necessary testing.  (Example: if you are applying for graduate school, many schools require you to complete the GRE or GMAT or LSAT)

• Once you have been accepted by the universities you applied for, work with your advisor to select the one university that is the best match for you.  

• Apply for a U.S. Student Visa with the help from your advisor

• Work with your advisor for pre-departure information

The process takes dedication and a lot of patience.  Make sure to apply early.  Dr. Davis can assist you throughout the application process to make sure you have all the proper information needed to begin your life of study in the United States.