Got some college questions? Unsure of a decision? Debating nabbing a single or living with friends? Just wanna chat it up with some really awesome chics? We’ve got the girls for you. Hit them up in the comments or shoot them an email with the subject “College Q&A”! They’ve got all the answers you need, no matter who you are.

Question:
I really, reaaaaally want to study abroad in Spain next year. (I’ll be a Junior.) I’m just not sure if I should go for one semester or a whole year. Most students only go for one semester, but is there a reason they don’t do a whole year? Would you go for a whole year? I’m not sure if that’s an awesome idea (how else do you really experience the culture??) or if it’s a terrible idea (people are going to forget about me/I will miss out on a lot).

What would you do?

Party Girl:
Do the entire year. Trust me, by the end of the semester, you’ll be getting into your comfort zone, really picking up the language and connecting with new people every day. The only reason I would assume people don’t do the full year is because of money or that their graduation requirements won’t be filled in time. To truly experience your time abroad, you need the full year. I mean, would you rather have four months of drinking, partying, and flirting in another language, or nine months?? You are right about the culture – you’ll need as much time as possible for it to fully sink in. And no, nobody is going to forget about you (your friends aren’t goldfish, are they??). I can’t stress enough how epic an entire year in a foreign country is – get your butt over there and stay for as long as possible!!! Read More »

In the bedroom…

There’s something in the air in Madrid.

How to stress less.

WTF happened on the Lost finale!?

Clean those makeup brushes.

I’ll buy whatever Freida Pinto is sellin’.

I’ve studied abroad.  But not really.  If you are currently studying abroad, or plan to in the future, I can assure you that my overseas experience was a bit different.  I began my college experience in London, rather than waiting until Junior year to try the whole passport-and-a-long-ass-flight routine.  Whenever I say, “I spent a year in London,” (I transferred during sophomore year), people assume I studied abroad.  I did not.

At my school, Americans who were enrolled in degree programs were labelled “Degree Students,” while Americans who were specifically there for a semester or two were labelled “Study Abroads.”  So, while I was an American sewing my wild oats just like you might be, there were some major differences.  I moved to the UK when I was 18, fresh out of high school.  I’d never had a keg party experience, I’d never lived in a dry dorm, and I’d never been to a major college sporting event.  Though I wasn’t always on my best behavior, my best friends were from all over the world, and I could see through their eyes how Americans earned bad raps as being obnoxious, immature, and annoying.  Make the most of your experience. Don’t make these mistakes.

1.  Do Know That Your Accent Says It All.

Have you ever heard an English person swear? I don’t care how “sodding” pissed off they are, it sounds so much nicer than an American politely asking, “Whaat tye-am is etttt?”  Most natives of whatever country you’re in won’t be instantly appalled by your accent, but they will know approximately where you hail from.

2. Don’t Get Wasted and Yell Things That Would Be Funny at Home.

As I just stated, your accent gives you away.  Which can work to your advantage… or not.  Screaming your school’s sports chant– P-I-T-T Let’s Go Pitt!– is not only loud and obnoxious, but do you really think the residents of Queensland, Australia give a f*** about the University of Pittsburgh?  Singing bar songs (American or otherwise) will also make everyone, including fellow Americans, want to punch you in the face.

Read More »

On Monday’s episode of The City, Whitney took her friends Erin and Allie out to meet up with her old boss, Kelly Cutrone, who upsets everyone by calling Allie, who is a model, “too skinny.”

Wait… a model is being called too skinny? By someone who works in the fashion industry?

When I heard that I couldn’t help thinking: “Finally! Is the world of fashion finally getting some sense in them?”

Of course, all of us normal folk know that the runway models are too skinny. It’s been a subject of constant controversy for years and one that is especially important to discuss as we attempt to bring more attention to the tragic effects of eating disorders. Models’ stick-thin figures are unrealistic, unhealthy, and unattainable—yet girls everywhere accept them as the standard to which to compare themselves (only to fall short in comparison). Because of this, the fashion industry is often blamed for so many young women developing eating disorders. For too many years, we’ve become used to sickly-looking models walking the runways, and have come to accept it as the norm.

But now it appears that things are beginning to change. Slowly.

Back in 2006, Spain banned too-thin models from the catwalk at Madrid’s Fashion Week, turning away any model with a B.M.I. (or Body Mass Index, which takes into account both height and weight) of less than 18. Representatives for Madrid’s regional government stated that the fashion industry has a “responsibility to portray healthy body images,” especially since “many teenagers imitate what they see on the catwalk.” Read More »

Wimbledon 2008 kicked off today in Wimbledon, England (and I thought it was just a creative name!). In honor of this exciting event, we at CollegeCandy have put together a very handy little gallery of all the most important players at this year’s event. And by “most important players” we mean, “The hottest guys of Wimbledon.” God, we love our jobs.

 So, peruse; enjoy; tell us which one is your favorite.

And thank us later. Read More »

Shopping for me is a pain at best, and traumatizing at worst. Unflattering lighting, three-way mirrors, and those damn stick-figure mannequins that seems to be modeled after the Olsens. It’s one thing to be jealous of impossibly thin celebrities—it’s quite another to envy the figure of a plastic, headless doll.

Well, it seems that I’m not the only one who feels this way, at least about the mannequins. The entire country of Spain agrees. The Health Ministry of Spain and major retailers like Zara and Mango have come to the agreement that the skeletal mannequins must be banned. Read More »