If you want to go to graduate school

Great. Now let’s say you do need to take it. Unlike the ACT/SAT, which a lot of people didn’t bother studying for back in the day, the GRE tests you on what Educational Testing Services think graduate students should know before grad school. This means you will actually have to study. Remember probability, slope-intercept form, and all those equations from math you thought you were done with years ago? Remember analogies and memorizing flash cards and five paragraph essays? You better hope so, because the GRE brings it all back with a vengeance.

There’s four sections on this bad boy:

1. Verbal – Vocab. Lots and lots of vocab. Go buy some flash cards right now – they will be your best friends soon.
2. Quantitative – Not calculus, thank gosh. But they’re talking all the way back to math you learned in middle school. This includes arithmetic, algebra, geometry, and quantitative comparison.
3. Analytical Writing – Haven’t taken a writing class since freshman year? You may want to refresh your writing skills because you’ll have to write two essays in one sitting: one argumentative and one issue.
4. Experimental (maybe) – This experimental section might show up on your GRE exam, but it won’t count toward your score. ETS wants to do research on future questions on you, and they unfortunately do not let you know. So basically, you might end up taking two Verbal sections and not knowing which was the random experimental part that didn’t count. I was devastated to hear that I would be wasting my time in this manner, but there’s really nothing we can do about it.

Deciding which study materials to use is entirely up to personal preference. I bought three books to study with because I hate math, I need a great score on verbal, and I didn’t want to shell out the extra cash for a Princeton Review or Kaplan prep course. The reviews on Amazon really helped me understand how effective a book would be or how boring it might be before buying it – some are definitely easier to read than others. If it’s not your learning style, you obviously won’t learn as much. Oh, and make sure you’re buying a NEW book if they promise access to free online practice tests, or else the codes might not work!

In terms of freebies, all Windows users out there can also take advantage of free PowerPrep software from ETS. You should start reading the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, or sign up for Merriam-Webster’s Word of the Day emails to help expand your vocabulary. You can always do prep classes if you want to spend more money and if you need a more structured study schedule, but with a calendar and some willpower you should be fine!

One of the most important things you should do is familiarize yourself with how the GRE works. It’s a Computer Adaptive Test, which means that the difficulty of the questions change as you answer questions correctly or incorrectly. To get a feel for the test, you should do as many electronic practice tests as you can! For example, you need to be more cautious at the beginning of the test because those early questions have greater weight in terms of your score.

In terms of scheduling, you should know a few important facts:

• Most test prep materials recommend 1-2 months to study a few hours everyday
• Remember that you can’t take the GRE more than once a month
• On average, it takes about 4-6 weeks for scores to get to the grad school of your choice
• Your GRE scores are valid for five years after taking the test

Once you’ve got the test scheduled and you’re prepared, here are some tips for actually taking the GRE:

• Arrive to the testing site early and bring a legit photo ID
• Know which schools you want to send your scores to (the first four schools are free!)
• Bring a snack – four hours is a long time to go without food when your brain is working that hard
• Be careful on the early questions!
• Pay attention to time
• Answer EVERY question – on the GRE, guessing is always better than nothing
• Use your scratch paper wisely

Most importantly, don’t stress – they’re testing how well you can take a GRE, not how smart you are or how successful you will be in a master’s program. Grad schools realize this, and typically take your GRE score into account along with your GPA, resume experience, and personal statement.

Hope this helps you get ready for the GRE! What’s helping you study?

You finished your last exam early and, after waiting for someone else to turn theirs in (you don’t want to be first!), ran down the steps of that lecture hall, slammed that baby on the desk and skipped your way to freedom. As you walk home you notice how great the air smells, how bright the sun is and how beautiful your campus is. School is out and you are feelin’ groovy.

After regaling your roommates with tales from your 90-minute essay exam (“I totally rocked that shiz!”), you head to your room to start the end-of-the-year cleaning session, beer in hand. You grab a garbage bag, sit down at your desk and start sifting through the piles of papers, books and notebooks that litter your desk.

In the back of your mind, you know that some of those notebooks will come in handy for next year’s classes. In the front of your mind, though, you know you will never look at them ever again. So, in a celebratory fashion, you toss one binder after another into the Hefty.

“Bye bye, Econ! See ya never, Psych 240!” The feeling is euphoric. All those syllibi, gone. All those Power Point slides, gone. Those damn course packs, gone. All those near-empty highlighters, gone.

Before you know it, you are left with nothing but a stack of books.

You gather the books, throw them into your backpack and head to the bookstore to sell them back. On your way, you start planning what you will do with all that extra money. A keg for the big end-of-the-year bash? A new bag?  The possibilities are endless. Even though you know the bookstores totally screw you with the buy-back, you have, like, 12 books this time! Giant, expensive textbooks and lots of novels. You’re sure there is some serious cash flow coming your way.

The bag is heavy and by the time you make it to the bookstore you are sweating. Naturally, the line is super long and filled with other students hoping to make it rain. You stand there, cocked to the side from that overflowing bag of books, and watch student after student happily free themselves of the semester. Only the looks on their faces as they leave isn’t one of big money – it is anger.

When it is finally your turn, you unload your books onto the counter. The cashier scans them one at a time, forming two piles.

“We can’t use these,” he says, pointing to the larger stack. “They’re going with the new edition next year.” He offers to let you take them home (so nice of him), or he can donate them to whatever organization it is that wants your used copy of Tom Jones. You consider taking them – you aren’t going to give those away for free! – but then you realize that you’d have to carry those all back home, not to mention pack them up and move them.

“Ugh. Just keep them,” you say.

You don’t think things can get any worse and then he hands you your money. A whole $26. For 5 books. That wasn’t even a quarter of the cost of one! You rip that money out of his hands and storm out of the store.

——

Yeah, we’ve all been there. Maybe if you combine your money with all of your friends, you’d have enough for that keg.

You climb into bed a good 3 hours earlier than you normally would, determined to get a full 8 hours before the big test. Then you lay there staring at the ceiling, mentally rehearsing your answers to the potential essay questions the professor hinted might be on the exam.

When your alarm(s) goes off in the morning, you jump out of bed. The exam is in 2 hours and you need ample time to review the notes one last time, suck down at least one cup of coffee and get some brain food (read: Lucky Charms) in your belly. On a normal day you’d still be sleeping, hitting the snooze button over and over. But not today. Exhausted, you wash the sleep from your face, throw your hair up into a ponytail, and put on your lucky t-shirt. Even after countless hours in the library you need all the help you can get.

You flip through your now-tattered note cards as you shovel cereal into your mouth. You’re feeling good. You know this stuff. You’re gonna rock this exam!

There’s still about 30 minutes until test time but you want to make sure you get a good seat so you pack up your bag. Pencils? Check. Pens? Check. Notebook/note cards/anything else you can possibly review one last time before the professor puts that Scantron on the desk in front of you? Check.

It’s time to rock and roll.

When you get to class, you find your perfect seat (not in the front – that’s too close to the prof; not in the back – that’s too far of a walk to turn that sucker in; not in the middle of a row – you don’t want to be climbing over those slow test-takers to get the hell out of there when you’re done). You unpack all your stuff and flip open your notebook to run through the information one final time. Only you’re sick of studying. You know everything you’re gonna know and you just want the test to start already. Where is everyone? Where’s the professor? Why can’t this all be over with already so you can grab your dirty laundry and head home for winter break!?

The room eventually fills in, the professor goes over the rules of the exam (sit two seats apart, no talking, remaining time will be up on the board, turn your exams in to the T.A. on your way out, blah blah blah, good luck) and it’s finally time to show that test who’s boss.

You breeze through the first few multiple choice questions. “I’m totally gonna ace this!” You think to yourself. A couple stump you, so you save those ones for later. You keep on trucking. You’re in the midst of deciding on an essay question when the squeaky sound of a dry erase marker startles you out of the zone. 1 hour left. Sh*t! Breaking out in a sweat, you settle on an essay and start writing. There’s no time for an outline, but you don’t need one anyway. You know this stuff, girl! Ignore the hand cramping. Forget about the fact that your handwriting is starting to resemble that of a 4th grade boy. You’ve got – oh no! Only 30 minutes left!! – to finish this essay, fill in the multiple choice you skipped and review the test one last time.

20 minutes left. Essay done. What? People are already leaving!?
15 minutes left. Someone in your row climbs over you and smacks you in the face with his jacket. Jerk.
10 minutes left. Still have no idea what number 17 and 25 are even talking about. Are you the only person left in the entire room?
5 minutes left. Just fill in an answer. You have a 1 in 4 chance of getting it right!

You scribble in the final bubble.

“Alright. Time’s up!” The professor puts down his magazine and sends the T.A.s to collect the exams from the 8 or so people still in the room. You pass over your exam and instantly feel lighter. Shaking your hand which is now nearly asleep, you put your stuff back in your bag, assess your feelings about your performance and breathe a sigh of relief. You’re done. It’s over. You did OK.

Now all you have to do is email that girl from your study group to go over every last question in detail, then wait 3 painstakingly long weeks for your grade.

—-

Yeah, we’ve all been there. The good news is, you won’t have to do it again for 4 glorious months.

Whether you’re buying yourself a post-exam present or looking to put something on your list for Santa (with exact color, size and style….you don’t want him to get it wrong, do you?) boots should be high on your list. Temperatures are dropping, the snow is starting to fall and your toes are starting to get cold. Really, boots are a present for your feet, and after a semester of torturing them in communal showers and dancing the night away in high heels, it’s really the least you can do.

If you don’t already have a pair of boots – or yours are long overdue for a replacement – you should look at investing in a pair this season. And yes, I said investing. These babies aren’t always cheap, but can you really put a price on having 10 fully functional toes? Well, as functional as toes really are….

There are boots for all purposes and whether you’re trekking through snow to get to class, looking for something a little warmer than flats for a night out, or some combination of the two, there’s a pair out there for you. They’re great to slip on with a pair of jeans for class (duh), they’re great with a pair of leg warmers for a little extra toastiness on a busy day, and they look HOT with everything from the skinniest jeans to the miniest of skirts (yes, even rain boots!).

Here are 15 pairs I’m totally digging right now to get you started on your shopping.

[Hey everybody! Sarabeth here with a new feature that, quite frankly, I'm stoked about. Each week I'll be bringing you an album that I feel is particularly awesome in the hopes of building iTunes libraries everywhere! It could be something new, old, hugely popular or fairly unknown, so keep checking back for our suggestions to awesome-ify your music collection.]

This semester is FINALLY starting to wrap up. Exciting? Yes, I can’t wait to finish this round of classes. Stressful? Hell yeah, mofo. The end of the semester means that every. single. thing. I’ve been working on is going to be due at the same time. And on top of that, I have to start studying for finals. Barf.

For those of you in the same situation, you need some music to get you through.

So where do I turn to in my moment (or 3 weeks) of need? My trusted pick-me-up album, Carnavas, of course.

About the Band
Silversun Pickups is an indie/alternative band from LA that has been around since 2002. It is made up of lead vocalist and guitarist Brian Aubert, vocalist and bassist Nikki Monninger, drummer Christopher Guanlao and keyboardist Joe Lester. If they sound familiar it’s probably because they’ve been featured in video games like Tony Hawk’s Proving Ground, Rock Band 1&2, and Guitar Hero World Tour.

Yeah, these guys are major.

Top 3 Tracks:

Lazy Eye

Well Thought Out Twinkles

Common Reactor

Why You Should Listen to It
This is a great album for pulling all-nighters. Or all-dayers.  And definitely all weekenders. The songs have an upbeat feel to them to provide just the motivation you need to keep pushing through that seemingly insurmountable pile of homework and projects, but they are also pretty low key so they don’t distract you.  The album is also pretty darn great for dancing in the kitchen while you cook dinner, spoon-microphone in hand, but I’m pretty sure I’m the only person who does that…

[Meet Margaret, a freshman at Yale. We've been checking in with her every week to see what she's doing, who she's meeting and what new college surprises she's tackling (or freaking out about) as she embarks on the journey we call college. Or as I like to call it, the best thing since Trader Joe's Honey Greek Yogurt. That is, until midterms season hits, of course.]

So I’m new at this whole midterms thing. The idea that I’ve been more or less lounging around for the past 6 weeks and then – wham! – I’m hit with a test that’s worth 40% of my grade…that’s kind of crazy.

Needless to say, this past week has been an acne-inducing, sleep-lacking, chocolate-eating cram week. But, terrible as it was for my complexion and caloric intake, I have to say that this week has definitely taught me some things about studying.

First, it’s much easier to not stress about midterms if you actually know what’s going on in class. I’ve been going to class, but this was definitely problematic for a lot of my classmates. In a lecture of 400 people about something as non-stimulating as econ, it’s easy to doze off. But unfortunately, while you are dreaming about your next Halloween costume, your professor is actually saying important things. Even though my professor puts his notes online, so many of his notes are things where you have to fill in graphs and equations that you learn about in class. Bottom line, try your best not to fall asleep in class and then have to teach yourself everything the week before the exam.

Second, if you’re like me, you need to switch up your study places. The library treats me nicely – it’s quiet and there are comfy chairs – but after a while, I start losing focus. I find myself stalking my friend’s older sister on Facebook rather than studying the marginal revenue of labor and that’s when I realize that it’s time for a location change. Colleges have tons of other places to study besides the library and your dorm — common rooms, unused classrooms (the dry erase board makes them perfect for group study sessions), cafes. Sometimes all I need to do is find a place where there is no risk of running into someone that I know.

Third, sleep is actually kind of important, as are pre-sleep rituals. So this only sort of has to do with studying, but you know how you always are able to concentrate better when you feel refreshed? Studying’s the same way. You can’t focus well if you’re not well rested and in the same line of thought… while it’s so tempting to crash without washing your face or brushing your teeth, you feel so gross when you wake up. Push yourself to go spend 10 minutes in the bathroom to get yourself ready for bed.

Fourth, exercise outside, or at least go submerge yourself in nature. After 5 hours holed up in a library staring at a computer screen and your notebook, you are lacking some serious fresh air. There’s even this thing called the “biophilia hypothesis” that speculates that humans need nature and greenery in order to be happy. So tear yourself away from the computer screen, go outside, and take a walk.

And lastly, do the practice tests, problems, essays that your professors give you. Pretend you’re in test taking mode, too. It’ll really show you what you need to study and what you already know. Then, look at your notes. If you look at your notes for too long, there’s a tendency to fall asleep. And then you’re not studying.

Midterm season is a stressful time for all of us, do you have any tips to relieve the suffering?

Fall is in full swing. The pumpkin spice lattes are a part of your daily ritual. You’ve broken in your new fall boots. You’ve given up that whole turning over a new leaf idea – you know, the one that involved getting your homework done on time. And hey, just in time for midterms too.

Mid semester exams are inevitable. And annoying. Just when you’ve started to think you could get away with not doing any of the reading for your classes and getting all of your notes online (from the comfort of your futon), midterms rear their ugly heads.

Essays?
Quotation identifications?

You are not prepared for this. Time for some serious studying, right? Not just yet, there are a few things you really need to do first….

10. Clean up. Wow your keyboard is really filthy. And your screen? How could you even see? This needs to be done now. Or you’ll never clean it. No time like the present, right? Where’s that Windex?

9. Did your phone just ring? Your BlackBerry just buzzed. That could be important. An e-mail from a professor? A question from a friend? You’re still waiting to hear back about that internship.  Just check… really quickly.

8. Check your Facebook. That text Sarah sent you said that McHottie hooked up with that girl from your bio class this weekend. But you’re not sure how reliable of a source she is. There have to be pictures if it happened right? Just scroll through the newsfeed. You won’t be able to concentrate until you know.

7. Make yourself a snack. You’re starving. You should probably eat something. Brain food. Like fish. No. But there’s a vending machine right down the hall. There’s bound to be something full of dark chocolate there. That’s good for you, isn’t it? And while we’re on the topic, wine’s a brain food these days too, right?

6. Visit your favorite websites. You just want to check your daily websites. College Candy. College Fashion. Texts From Last Night. The usual. It’s not your fault there’s so many awesome new articles up. It’s better you read them now before you really get into your work. Plus, you’ve been busy. You could use a break, really.

5. Oops! Forgot to check Twitter!

4. Watch your favorite show. Okay. So you can hear your roommate watching TV from the other room. You look at the clock. Yep. There’s a Kardashian marathon on. And, wait, is that the KHLOE AND LAMAR WEDDING?! What’s another hour (or 3)? It’s the wedding…and you’ve been PMSing…you could use a good cry. Let it all out, girlfriend.

3. Take up a new hobby. What’s that? Your boyfriend is watching baseball? Well, you’ve never really been a fan before, but these are the important games aren’t they? And it’s important to take an interest in things he enjoys. Maybe he could explain to you what’ going on as you watch…

2. Change your scenery. You know, with all these distractions, you really need to get out of the house. You’ll really get more done if you’re at the library. Just pack up your things and go…

1. Talk to a friend. Is that Melissa sitting over there by the computer? You haven’t seen her in days. It won’t hurt to say a quick hello. I mean, you don’t wanna be rude. It’s common courtesy, people. Just a little holler and then you’re on your way…

If you can find an empty table, that is.

What are your favorite ways to put off studying for midterms? Are you a professional procrastinator or do you get things done quickly?

….I think my preferred method is pretty obvious.

Got a special place in your heart for top 10 lists? We do and we’ve got some doozies.  Get ‘em all out right here.

Yes, it’s time to be ready for the school year. It’s time to start packing and gaining ultimate pre-college essentials to give you a chance for an easy ride through the first semester.  Alright CollegeCandy chickas, nurse those excited pangs of pain desire in your liver – we (with a little help from our college blogging friends) are going to get you ready for school!

* Before you even pack up the car, make sure that you don’t forget those necessary items that everyone always forgets to pack.

* Ok, I’m going to be the one to put it out there – I wasn’t much of a ‘laundry-pro’ going into college. I’m not kidding, can I say on here that I Googled ‘how to separate colors’ before doing my very first load? Yeah, embarrassing. Allow me to protect your Google history: here are some things you can think about in regards to doin’ the dirty laundry pile.

* Before I went off to college, shoved in between a thick pile of clothes and a dresser in my dad’s truck, I would have paid a fortune to have a 100+ list full of things to know in regards to college. Here’s the dream realized, free of charge.

* Come finals week, this list will be pasted to your forehead.

* Ok enough of this ‘super prepared for college talk.’ It’s time to talk ‘college drinking.’ Looking for some fabulous future drink mixers? Chasers? Or simply a healthy drink to accompany your future study sesh? Turn to these tasties.

* And to be able to afford all these tasties, check out the 45 weirdest scholarships that you can get.

* Since it’s almost time to start getting ready for classes, why not get in gear early?

* Craving a stress-free moving day more than a Lindsay Lohan US Weekly cover story? I thought so. Say it out loud, “stress free move in day, here I come!”

* I bet while college creeps closer and closer to your North Face backpack, your stress level begins to increase.  Margarita nights with your girlfriends will soon be replaced with lots of stressed out evenings thinking about what classes you need to start taking. Well, stress be gone.

* While you will be saying farewell to your very own bathroom at home, a cupboard dedicated to your favorite types of cereals (guilty), and lots of baggage, you will be saying ‘Hello’ to lots of ramen and never a moment to yourself. Take some of these college dorm tips with a grain of salt entire margarita on the rocks.

* Set up your very own Fashion First Aid kit for your dorm room.

* Oh and while you’re at it – set up a Walk of Shame Kit before you go, too.

Are you a college blog who wants to be included on this list? E-Mail us at editor@collegecandy.com with your back to school link.

So you’re going to be a freshman. Thanks to your advisor/mom/campus tour/Bed Bath and Beyond advertisements, you think you’re ready. You learned how to do laundry, you’ve purchased the Twin XL sheets, you measured your future dorm room (and cried when you realized you could touch all 4 walls from the middle of the room) and all those A.P. classes have prepared you for the workload that comes in college.

Congrats. You now know about 10% of what you need to know to survive freshman year.

The truth is, there is a lot that happens your first year of college that no advisor (and especially not your parental units) is going to know about. And that’s why we’re here – to get you from Welcome Week through final exams in one glorious piece. And to try and stop you from making the same mistakes we did. Again and again.

You wanna survive your first year of college? Avoid any and all of these freshman year faux pas:

1. 8am class.
Despite thinking that 8am really is not that early, there is no way you are actually getting up for this class once you begin to discover that there is potential to party every night of college.  Do yourself a favor and don’t even try. 99% of the time, this class will be offered at another time or another semester. If you have to re-work your entire schedule and eliminate time for lunch between classes, do it. I promise, it’s worth it.

2. Hooking up with an older frat boy…and thinking that he will automatically fall in love with you.
In reality, college boys have been waiting three years to finally be big men on campus and use this status to hit on freshman girls.  Have fun, just try not to get too attached.

3. Puking in Public.
You’re in college.  Great job! This means you have pretty much unlimited access to alcohol.  This does not mean that your tolerance has gone up since high school. While the people around you may be able to slam 10 beers in 10 minutes, it might not be the case for you. Don’t be stupid. And if you are, excuse yourself before you become “girl who puked in her hands.”

4. Skipping Class.
I get it: skipping lecture where there are 300 people and no one takes attendance is tempting. But don’t do it. Lecture notes are incredibly important to your academic success and oftentimes the professor will discuss things that are not in your assigned reading but are in your final exam. Getting to class isn’t hard, so suck it up, bring some snacks and get to it.

5. Showing up to a frat party with male friends.
The rule of frats is simple:  chicks are in, and guys are always going to have to wait.  Do yourself a favor and make your group at least a 2:1 ratio in favor of the female gender.

6. All Sweats, All The Time
Ah, sweatpants. Love ‘em. But despite the comfort they provide (especially after you #3 and you’ve got a #1), they don’t love you back. Between the drunk eating, nasty dorm food, and major beer calories, you will gain weight. And without the guide that only a non-elastic waistband can provide, you’ll never know it. Put on some jeans once in awhile.

7.  Overdressing in theme.
Theme parties are great, but remember that as a freshman, you will likely be party hopping (especially if you mess up on #4 and can’t get in to the party you dressed for).  Don’t go all out for a “CEO and Corporate Hoes” party unless you plan to stay there all night.  Otherwise you may end up wearing a bra and a pencil skirt at an ’80s party, and that’s just not cool.

8. Spending all of your time video chatting.
While your home friends are great, so are the people at college!  Branch out, and learn to put away your Skype for some real person time so that you actually make new friends.  While a little bit of homesickness is normal, a relationship with your computer is not.

9. Winging an Exam.
If you did fine in high school not studying, good job.  That’s not how it works here.  Even those of us who do study can’t always make the grades, so don’t hurt yourself before you even take the exam. This is what you’re here for, after all.

10. Drunk Dialing Your Parents
It’s funny at the moment, but no one’s laughing the next morning when your mom calls at 9am and gives you “the talk.”

College time is like dog years; the things you accomplish/see/learn/sleep through in one year would take seven in the real world. And by the time you graduate, you’ll have a whole lot to look back on. Between your academic accomplishments, your social accomplishments and just those little things you’ve learned about life (like doing your own laundry – HUGE milestone!), there’s a lot to be proud of. I know I’ll always look back on my four and a half years (yes, getting my parents to pay for one extra semester was a HUGE accomplishment) and feel proud about that time I didn’t die when Jell-o wrestling my roommate in my backyard.

Having done so much, it’s hard to pick out our greatest college accomplishments, but this week I asked the CollegeCandy writers (and all our Twitter/Facebook friends) to come up with theirs:

Kari – Florida State: My greatest accomplishment is an even tie between raising $300 for charity playing quarters and getting invited to a party thrown by a secret society. Equally awesome.

Hannah – University of Northern Colorado, Greeley: Never sleeping through my 9 am class that I HATED even though it would have been so much easier! [Submitted by a fabulous reader via Facebook.]

Rachael – University of Miami: Managing to earn myself a position in nearly every student organization I’m involved in, as well as placing in nationals with my debate teams two years in a row, all while maintaining a good enough GPA for Deans’ List or higher four out of six semesters. Balancing all of that is definitely my biggest achievement!

Hannah – Assumption College: My greatest college accomplishment to date has been graduating Summa Cum Laude,;it is something I have worked hard for throughout my four years.

Christie – NC State: My greatest college achievement is finally breaking out of my shell. I was super shy in high school.

Brittany – University of Saint Thomas: Greatest accomplishment? I shot gunned a beer once from a paint shooter… Does that count? Or getting on the Dean’s List. It’s a toss up.

@Msmiceli: My greatest college accomplishment is not putting massive amounts of Nair in my roommate’s shampoo. [Submitted via Twitter, duh.]

Ricki – University of Michigan: Managing to get the Comm department to give me money and save me from being poor this summer!

Kelly – University of Iowa: Being voted Best Cocktail Waitress by a group of regulars in the bar I work at.

Norah – Drake University: Making it through a rough junior year. Also that time I made the last cup in beer pong with my eyes closed.

@theurbanwhisk: Not passing out or throwing up while being part of the girls wing eating contest during Greek Week! [Another Tweeter!]

Brithny – Duke: Riding the mechanical bull for a whole two minutes at our local saloon. Oh, the South.

Emmy – Loyola University Chicago: Finding my ID, keys, wallet, AND coat after leaving them at the bar one crazy night.

Lauren – University of Michigan: Either the time I got an A on a presentation I gave while completely drunk (it was St. Patrick’s day), or winning the beer pong tournament that got me completely drunk before I had to give said presentation.

[Reader] Abby – Loyola University Chicago: Setting the curve on my accounting final!

Charlsie – Hollins University: My greatest college accomplishment, academically, was writing my Honors Thesis about the Evolution of Girls’ Literature from the 1800s until now. The project took me an entire school year to complete, but I ended up with sixty pages of writing that I feel proud of, despite many bumps along the way. Getting an A on this was probably the sweetest grade over the past four years

Alex – Lakehead University: My job at Lakehead! I work in Orientation and help plan every detail. I’m especially involved in the volunteer-aspect and just feel like I’ve really made a difference.

Celia – Texas A&M University, Corpus Christi: Switching majors to something I actually enjoyed versus something I knew would make money. It’s a lot easier to make it to that 9am when it’s something you absolutely love studying! [Another fabulous Facebook friend.]

What’s your greatest college accomplishment?