I remember when I was attending both High School, as well as College.  One of the most challenging courses that I took was Math.  I absolutely hated the advanced courses and while I can act like I do now, I bet if I took a class, I’d probably still bomb!

We all know that classes like Algebra are more like a ladder system.  You’re going to have to know Chapter 1 to move onto Chapter 2.  If you don’t get Chapter 1, the whole course is history.

After doing some research online with colleges and courses, I have found that most students have the most challenges with Math class.  If you’re looking for a tutor of any kind, you can really use the same advice with any other subject.

Face to face is always best

Yes, there are online tutors that you can use, but you’re always going to find that face to face time is always going to work the best, as they can point things out in person.  While I’m not knocking online tutoring services, you will find that local students will be more familiar with your college and course.

Check with your college

The best way in my opinion is just to ask the professor themselves.  They know of the students that do well, as well as the students that are willing to tutor you.  When I was looking for a tutor, I followed this advice and found someone that was very good at a low, low price.

Referrals from a friend / student

Talk with students in your class or even ask other classmates online.  A great way to find a great tutor is to ask the smartest kid in the class.  Most of the time, you will be able to spot who this person is.  If you know of someone who knows their stuff, simply ask them if they can help.  Tell them you can pay them a few extra bucks here and there.

Try an online directory

Try legit online tutoring directories that can match you up with the right people.  You will want to make sure that these companies do background checks, as well as do education checks as well.  You don’t want some bum tutoring you and come to find out later that he/she doesn’t even know what they are doing themselves.

Again, there’s nothing wrong with working with tutors online.  I just find that the tutors in person are a lot easier to work with than those on the Internet.  Give the few tips above a shot and see what it can do for you.

Ah, the word that we all love to dread.  What you’re going to find out is that if you’re in High School, College, or even Graduate School, you’re never ever going to be able to get away with it.

Now, if you’re attending school right now and you’re finding that you’re having too much homework, you’re not the only one.  The National Education Association has recommend that students should have a total of ten minutes per grade per night?  Well, what if you’re in college?  A freshman in college would equal 13 and so forth.

Even though this is a recommendation, if you find that your homework time is a little more than these numbers, you may indeed have too much homework, but what can you honestly do about it?

Tips to help with too much homework…

Watch your extracurriculars: While it’s fun to be apart of 10 different clubs, this is going to take up a lot of your free time.  You may have to cut back and limit some of them.  By doing so, you’re going to free up a lot of your time.

Take advantage of breaks: During college, you’re going to find that you will have some big breaks in between classes.  Take advantage of these and do your homework at school.  This way, you don’t have to worry about bringing it home.

Create a schedule: Schedules will help you out so much.  By creating one, you will know when you can study, have some fun free time, as well as go to class.  When you’re organized, it’s going to help you out tremendously.

Watch your mindset: Having a negative mindset can really downplay your classes.  School isn’t going to last forever and just think about the nice careers you’re going to have after college.  You don’t want to work the rest of your life in retail, do you?

While you can’t do much about homework in college, some parents tend to think that they can do something about it in High School.  Yes, you don’t want to have hours on end of homework in 4th grade, but when you come to a college level, the professors know what they are doing (at least most) or they wouldn’t be teaching at this level.

This LiveScience article states that too much homework leads to lower test scores?  What do you think?  How much is too much homework?

Whether  you need a recommendation for work or maybe you need it for grad school, there are some steps that you’re going to need to take in order to get the best letter of recommendation possible.

Some people truly believe that a letter of recommendation really doesn’t matter, but it does.  If you can get some powerful people on your letter of recommendation, you’re going to find that you can influence a lot of people.

#1 Be formal about it

When you’re ready to ask for a letter of recommendation, you don’t want to e-mail someone.  Instead, meet with that person, or set up a time to chat.  For example, if you want to meet with a professor at a school, don’t ask before or after class, but rather set up an appointment.

#2 Ask the write way

“Do you think you can write me a letter?” sounds pretty lame.  Instead, ask something along the lines of, “Would you support my decision to go to XYZ school?  If so, would you mind writing me a letter of recommendation?”  Most people will politely agree is they agree with your decision.  Overall,l they don’t want to hurt their reputation if they recommend some bum.

#3 Be early with it

Don’t ask at the last second for a letter. “Hey, I need this letter by tomorrow” doesn’t sound right.  You will want to give a good 4-6 weeks heads up.  You will usually know well ahead of time.

#4 Give directions if possible

Do you know what you want?  If so, let them know exactly how you want the letter.  The graduate school or your may have some qualifications.  Not all of them are going to have this, but you will find that some do.

#5 Read the letter over

Just because you get a letter doesn’t mean that you should send it off right away.  You will always want to make sure that you read it over, because you may find that some people may not want to write you that letter, but they do it anyways.  Only send letters that make you sound like a legend.

Get someone powerful and never be afraid to ask for a recommendation.  People such as professors get asked the same question all the time.  This is only going to increase your chances of landing that job, or even getting into graduate school.

Graduate school can be an exciting time, but stressful at the same time.  What you’re going to find is that if you want to get into a good school, you’re going to need to go through a lot of loops just to get accepted to the school.

One of the things that you’re going to have to look out for is a letter of recommendation.  If you’re confused on the issue, you don’t have worry, because you will find many others that are in your same exact shoes.

I scoured the Internet and wanted to showcase some great samples that you can use when you want to get a letter of recommendation from someone.  What you’re going to find out is that requesting a letter shouldn’t be that hard.  Show the potential letter writer some examples they can use.  This way, you can get a letter that is really going to sell yourself.

Sample #1:   About.com

They have a great selection of letters that you can use.  Find something that you can use here.  Whether you want to get a letter example, or you just want some tips that can sell your recommendation letter, you will find that this resource can help you quite a bit.

Sample #2:  eduers.com

This is a great resource that you can use when you’re looking for free recommendation letters of just about anything.  The cool thing about this page is that you’re able to pinpoint particular topics to make it a lot easier for you.

Sample #3:  GradSchoolTips

This is a nice, little site that is jammed packed with a lot of great information.  Not only can you get information on about letters of recommendation, you can also get information on financing your education and more.

Sample #4:  Emurse

This is a great resource as they have a few laid out very nicely for you to view.   Get tips on how to ask for a letter of recommendation, as well as how to write on the right way.

Sample #5:  Accepted

This page really doesn’t offer an example per se, but it has a list of very great tips on how you can create a great letter.  Basically answer the questions and you should be able to form a fantastic letter that anyone would be proud of.

These are all great samples that you can use when you’re looking to get a letter of recommendation for grad school.  In fact, you can take the same concept for a lot of them and apply them toward jobs and more.

If you have any sites that you enjoy, be sure to leave them in the comments!

I generally don’t do that many reviews on books, but the other day I saw a book that peaked my interest.  Upon reading more into online, it seemed to have some great reviews on it.  If you really want to succeed in college, this book is golden and you can pick it up online for less than $15!

Reviewing Professors’ Guide to Getting Good Grades in College:

Upon first glance, the book seemed thick and it looked as if I was going to be reading it forever.  This wasn’t the case, as I soon found out that I couldn’t put this book down.

The book consists of some great insider secrets that you can use in order to get some great grades in class.  While I don’t want to give away the secret, as that would give away the book, I will tell you that they are tips that you more than likely haven’t heard about before.

The book is broken down in the 5 parts listed below…

• The start of college
• During the class
• Taking exams
• Doing papers
• The last month of class

From reading other user reviews online, I had found that there were professors that had read the book as well.  From what they have stated, they also said that a lot of these tips are good.  While we all know that there are no “insider” secrets, it’s going to take a lot of hard work and dedication, but there are things that you can do to improve your overall grades.

What you’re going to find out when you attend college is that you’re going to read into how to ace your ACT / SAT, how to get into your dream college, as well as what do for your dorm room, but when do you start learning about taking grades?  What many students find out is that they don’t get college until their sophomore or even their junior year.

Guides like this are a great resource when you want to have the competitive edge over other students.  You can learn on how other professors grade, as well as how you can strive for an A, rather than a B or C.  Your GPA matters in college and if it’s sub-par, you may be wasting thousands of dollars.

This book overall is a great read.  No, I didn’t get endorsed to read this book, but rather picked it up at my local bookstore based on the reviews online.  If you’re interested in reading, be sure to check it out here at Amazon.