Don’t get me wrong, Christmas at home is wonderful. The big bed, the stocked fridge, the friends from high school you haven’t seen…it’s all amazing.

But then comes the fateful day. The day. When all of your immediate and extended family gather ’round and gang up on you, their little college student, and bombard you with questions you never, ever want to answer.

From experience, most dinners tend to play out the same way with the same questions getting thrown around for almost anyone who considers themselves an undergrad, so let College Candy help out this year with a few questions you may be asked (with the answers included)!

1) So, how’d you do this semester?

The old grades question. Here’s the deal: if you didn’t spice up the week with Wednesday night study sessions at the local pub, and therefore have good news to report, then you’re in the clear!

Not so lucky this time? Deny. Deny. Deny. Obviously, you’re not denying the fact that this semester happened, but make sure your parents know you’re looking for your grades, they’re just not available yet. Blame the computer, blame your campus’s network, blame crappy professors. Anything to hold off reporting that C- you got in Bio.

Because nothing ruins Christmas faster than pissed off parents. Read More »

The end of August is rapidly approaching. Your room is filled with overflowing boxes, you’re hugging your friends goodbye and you finally feel as if you’re fully prepared to launch into collegiate life, especially after reading Solmaaz’s wisdom on What Not to Do in College.

If you plan on attending a college anywhere besides New York City, Sol’s tips should be read like the Bible.

For those of us who have been granted the opportunity to spend our four years of academic growth (ha!) in the greatest city in the world, things must be done just a little bit differently.

Things you must do in order to survive in one of the toughest cities in the world:

1. Spend your money buying a good, solid wardrobe before you head off to school (because God knows you can’t afford anything at Bergdorf Goodman).

On a regular college campus, you would be able to sport a pair of sweatpants or even (gasp!) pajamas on a typical day. In New York, your 8:30 class will be chock full of girls in full make-up and carefully calculated outfits. Even the majority of male students will appear as if they have stepped away from a runway show for an hour and a half to attend your Level I Spanish class.

Don’t be that schlumpy girl hiding in the last row. Buy the basics and add trendy accessories when you arrive at school. Read More »

As we all well know, summer is ending. No more long days at the beach and long nights at the bar. Instead, it is time to head back to school where you will spend long days on the couch and long nights at the bar.

Oh, and you will probably be studying too.

Anyways, don’t head back just yet; there are still plenty of things that you must do before packing up your Yaffa blocks and moving back to the dorms.

Since I will not be returning to school this Fall (though grad school is starting to look mighty tempting), I have compiled a list of 5 Must-Do’s before its time to crack those books:

1. The Summer Fling - Three months have gone by and still you haven’t had some good ole commitment-free summer fun? Forget those standards; just get out there and get some. With only a few weeks until you move away again, “commitment” won’t even come up in conversation. But wild nights of romping will definitely be had.

2. Treat Yourself - If you have spent your summer working some crappy job/internship, it is time to give yourself a little treat. Maybe a facial or a massage. Or those oh-so-fabulous jeans you see in every magazine. Or maybe, if you are really feeling frisky, one of these bad boys. Read More »

As I feel the final month of summer inching towards me, I have been forced into cramming everything I wish I did all summer into one last month.

While this makes for lots of late nights and some memorable moments with my favorite girls from home, I often find myself missing my friends from college. If this were last summer, my longing wouldn’t be much of an issue.

Unfortunately, my friends and I are approaching our junior year of college, a year plagued by the ever-so-popular study abroad program.

Whether it be Italy, Nicaragua, China, or South Africa, a semester abroad is a semester of discovery and growth. Some countries have limited access to computers and telephones, making communication difficult. Read More »

The prestigious summer internship. Or just any internship at all. Nowadays, it’s basically necessary to gain some sort of “professional” experience during your college years in order to make yourself a viable candidate for a job post-graduation.

Having lived in NYC the past two summers and spent my days happily as a lowly intern, I know what it’s like to be unpaid, exhausted, and basically melting in a non-air conditioned housing situation. But, I have noticed one recent trend lately that I think could be really damaging for an intern’s future. And that is “complaint blogging” or posting your misery all over the internet. Employers do notice these things and it really can come back to bite your ass in the future. Read More »

I used to think Teen Vogue was the best shit on the stands. All that high-class style and gossip for two bucks a pop? I signed up for a five – year subscription. I found the haughty content amusingly hilarious and would crave my monthly society updates on things like Bunny Von Hartzelcarter – Markstein’s cotillion and the eating habits and bedroom – decorating abilities of obscure young porcelain actresses.

Unlike its mother, the almighty Vogue, Teen Vogue featured fashions that were young, cool and almost affordable. A girl can dream, and I’d rather dream about a $300 Philip Lim denim trapeze dress than a $4000 quilted leather jacket by Alexander McQueen.

But this month’s issue is a little ridiculous. Plaguing the cover are the perpetual interns, LC of the OC and her sidekick, Whitey. I mean Whitney. It’s Whitney! Seriously, though, when are their internships going to end? Read More »

Today I woke up at home, in my childhood bed, after two consecutive all-nighters, a killer three – hour essay exam, and being told I had to move from my apartment building with one week’s notice to find two emails in my inbox:

1. I had been rejected from Random House’s Summer Internship program, and 2. I had been rejected for a summer fellowship from the New York Historical Society. There was also an email from jcrew.com, which I would usually delete, but today I found myself reading about argyle sock sales just to take the edge off the two other stingers.

I don’t get it — I’m a perfectly desirable candidate. I look great on paper. So where’s the summer love (in the form of a paid internship in my desired field)?

Last February I decided that I had to move to NYC for the summer and work somewhere awesome. So, I applied to about sixty places, no joke. I only heard back from five, and was flat – out rejected from two. So who are these bionic college students that must be my hidden competition? Read More »