Pre-Registration Workshops!

As your peer advisors, we all can remember how daunting the registration process can be especially the first go around. Luckily, your academic advisors have set up pre-registration workshops to help you remember some key tips for when you begin the registration process. They are also MANDATORY in order to be cleared for registration so it is imperative that you sign up to attend one if you haven't already!

To see the schedule and sign up for a pre-registration workshop please click here

The pre-registration workshops will inform you about

• how to use the add/drop feature on the online registration
• reviewing the rules about waitlisting for courses
• adding classes for "general education" credit
• understanding the importance of pre-requisite courses
• reviewing guidelines for taking courses Pass/Fail

In order to be cleared to register for the Spring, you must attend one pre-registration workshop (it does not have to be with your assigned academic advisor) and then make an appointment with your academic advisor for sometime after the workshop. When you meet with your advisor, be prepared to bring a draft schedule to show them. Your schedule should include some back up classes in case you get wait listed or closed out of classes you had planned on taking. Your draft schedule should also make sense time wise; that is, don't have 2 classes that overlap during the same time slot unless one of them is a back up class.

Also remember that the college writing and math requirements must be completed within your first year. This means that if you have not already completed this requirements, they are mandatory for the spring semester and your other classes must fit around them. For any questions regarding your status on college writing, math or general education classes, you can email or meet with either you peer or academic advisor.

As always if you have questions or want to go over a draft schedule with a peer advisor feel free to email or make an appointment to meet! We are always here to help!

Ø  Review registration guidelines (such as dates and the waitlist process) here

Ø  Confirm your registration date here 

Ø  Review the online schedule of classes for Spring 2012 here

Student Skills Blog

One of the great things about utilizing the CAS Peer Advising program is that we are all current students! Therefore, we can advise based on our experience here at AU to give you the best advice and tips in order to succeed during your time here. The 4 peer advisors have put together a blog that discusses 4 main components of what it takes to be the best student you can be. We want you to be able to learn from our mistakes and from what we found to be most helpful. Hope you enjoy!

 1. Time Management by Shanice Harris
Do you ever feel like there is never enough of time in the day? Does 24 hours
just seem like 10 minutes? Has that feeling increased ever since you walked onto AU’s campus? If you answered yes to all of these questions, you are facing what I like to call “A Time Management Crisis.” Don’t worry though, many college students struggle with managing their academic and social life. Here are a few tips to help you be productive throughout your day and week:

REALIZE THAT TIME DOES NOT CHANGE: There will always be 24 hours in a day; that will not change. What can change is how well we use the time we do have. Time management starts with changing our behaviors, attitudes, and actions.

ASSESS HOW YOU SPEND YOUR TIME: For several days, write down & record how you spend your time. Look for time that can be used more productively & effectively. For instance, instead of lying on the quad talking to friends for two hours, bring some homework or reading along with you that you can complete.

PLAN EACH DAY OR WEEK: Write a to-do list and keep a schedule of all the activities you are involved with. This will help prevent last-minute rushes & procrastination.

TAKE A BREAK WHEN & IF NECESSARY: Take a break when you need one. Too much stress can cause anxiety and a whole lot of other problems. Go for a walk, read, or even take a power nap.
 

2. Note Taking by Meg Fischer

Note taking can get pretty frustrating depending on the class. Coming from the girl who decided it would be a good idea to write with her left hand to spice up a lecture, I know that taking notes can make difficult or boring material even more complicated to unpack (I would not suggest writing with your non-dominant hand!). Through my many classes at AU, I found my system. Overall, the cornerstone of note taking is a notebook. Having notes that you can remember writing is important. Actually writing the words helps you remember in another way too! Whichever system works best for you, use. It will be different than your friend’s which is totally fine—when it comes time to review, more ways of learning will help you remember. Also remember that some teachers don’t allow you to use laptops. I know that I would get distracted, so I stick to old fashioned pen and paper. There are lots of strategies you can use when taking notes too—If a teacher puts up PowerPoint slides, try printing them 3 slides per sheet and take notes right there! That way you can remember what they said as you review with your own added notes. Color can also be helpful (when reviewing too!) Use one color for material you know and another to mark that you need an extra review. There are tons of resources and other tips on note taking at the Academic Support Center’s website. Check it out here!

3. Organization by Sofie Friedman
One of the biggest ways to be successful academically is to stay organized. By staying organized, you are less likely to forget one of your many commitments and therefore do better in your classes.

• One of the best ways to stay organized are writing things down. Different people utilize different methods of organization which can range from writing in a planner to using Google calenders to utilizing iPhone reminders. It is important to try to learn which method works best for you which sometimes involves a bit of trial and error. Once you figure out how you keep organized best, make sure you try your best to stick with it!

• When you become involved on campus or in DC it makes it even more important to stay organized and manage your responsibilities. As you get more involved, more people will be demanding your time. In order to decide how much you can commit to, staying organized is key.

• Keeping your room clean can increase your organization, surprisingly enough! From past experiences, I have found that if I kept my room neat and organized, I was able to stay on top of my school work and other commitments. Surrounding yourself by an organized environment can have a vital impact on other aspects of your life so cleaning your room is a great place to start! (And your roommate will like you so much more for it too!)

4. Study Skills by Triana Tello Gerez

The best way to do well in future exams and write good papers is to stay on top of your work today. It is very hard to cram all course material into one or even two nights, but if you go to class, do the readings and finish your homework, studying for exams will be way easier. Study techniques change for all students, which is why it is important to try different study skills if you feel lost. 

 

Here is a list of ideas to help you this midterm season:

Note cards—they are a classic because they very much work

Study Guides—Go over the chapters and subtopics in the book and syllabus and make sure you understand them and can expand on them. Actually write them down! This is better than just thinking about them…

Draw and Make diagrams—you are in college now, so chances are, professors are not going to ask you to regurgitate the material. They will want to make sure you understand the issues backwards and forwards, so to make sure you do, try representing the information in a different way, like drawing concepts or making charts and diagrams.

Study Group—meet with classmates and explain the topics to each other and ask questions

These are just some ideas, but there are plenty more. If you feel like you need more help, reach out to your professor! Alternatively, you can contact the Academic Support Center for further study and time managements skills.

College Transitions: Moving Out and Moving Up!

So you just officially moved out of your parent’s home for maybe the first time ever. You moved onto campus and have been trying to get settled into your new life here at AU. It is completely normal to not feel entirely comfortable or settled in just yet. The transition of going to college can be a very stressful time for some with all of the changes that naturally occur. But have no fear your peer advisors are here with some helpful tips on how to get through this transition!

1. Get involved (on campus and in DC)
You now live in DC – an exciting and vibrant town full of many different types of people and countless activities to partake in. Even if none of the clubs or sports teams on campus fit your fancy, getting involved can be helpful even just to take your mind off of missing home and feeling out of place. Sometimes being surrounded by people who are going through the same emotional rollercoaster as you can be comforting.

2. Talk it out
The feelings that you may be experiencing now are completely normal and something that your peer advisors experienced when they came to AU. There is a variety of people on campus who would be more than willing to listen and try to give some advice on how to process the adjustment, including your advisors both peer or academic, professors, and AU’s counseling center.

3. Stay organized

Going through a transition like this one can seem even more overwhelming if you don’t stay organized. Utilizing planners, computer and phone calendars, or whichever method works best for you to stay up on all of your assignments and other commitments can be very helpful. Another important aspect of staying organized on campus is keeping an open line of communication with professors and other resources on campus. Going to professor’s office hours or events on campus designed to help you get acclimated can be very beneficial.

4. Be open and patient

Try to give yourself enough time to fully adjust to this big transition. Even if everyone around seems to be fully adjusted it may not be the case. Be open to the feelings you may experience and be willing to act on them to ask for help.Also be patient with yourself - if some of your classes are feeling like they're too much work or over your head try to be proactive and talk to your professors, visit the Writing Lab, or the Academic Support Center to manage the stress a bit better.

5. Take chances

This is the beginning of a great chapter in your life so this should be a very exciting time even amongst the stress or confusion. Try to experience new things and branch outside of your comfort zone. This can include joining clubs or sports you never thought to try, taking a class in a new discipline or speaking up a bit more in class.

Welcome from your 2012-2013 CAS Peer Advisors!

We’re all so excited to welcome you to American University for a new school year! 

My name is Sofie Friedman and I am one of your Peer Advisors this year! I am from Columbia, MD and am currently a Senior Psychology major. I am also currently working with kids with Autism which I absolutely love. I spent last semester studying abroad at Trinity College in Dublin, Ireland and had an amazing time. I am so excited to be starting my first year as a peer advisor and can’t wait to meet everyone!

This blog will be used to update everyone on upcoming events and provide some general advice on things that we, as peer advisors and AU students, think may be beneficial for you to know. We are open to suggestions on blog topics so if you have an idea about something you want us to cover feel free to email us! You should also follow our updates on our Facebook and Twitter pages to check out the latest things going on.

There are 3 other peer advisors who also will be meeting with students and getting to know you: Meg Fischer, Triana Tello Gerez, and Shanice Harris. As peer advisors we can provide you with a student’s perspective on how to survive your four years here at AU. We are all current students in CAS and can therefore advise based on our experiences that we’ve had. We can help you with anything from figuring out what you should major in, to advice on studying abroad, to trying to figure out what classes to take – and of course everything in between! Don’t be shy to come by and see us - we were each in your positions not too long ago and are here to help you. We can be contacted via email at caspeeradvisors@american.edu or in person during our office hours in Battelle 164. We look forward to getting to meet all of you and wish you luck as you start off your year!

Meg Fischer 

 Hi! My name is Meg Fischer and I am a senior studying Elementary Education and Psychology. When not peer advising or in the 5th grade, you can find me in the Wellness Center, The Dav, or in my Education Methods classes. I love coffee and the color coral. Can't wait to meet you!

Triana Tello Gerez 

Triana is a senior from Mexico City double majoring in Economics and Environmental Science. This is her second year working as a CAS Peer Advisor and loves meeting and helping out fellow students.  She studied abroad at the London School of Economics and she spent last summer interning in DC and working in a lab here at AU.

Shanice Harris 

 Hello American Eagles! My name is Shanice Harris and I am one of your 2012-2013 CAS Peer Advisors. I'm a sophomore in the Premedical Program. My current major is Biology, but I am in the process of switching it to Public Health. I grew up in West Orange, New Jersey which is 20-30 minutes away from New York City. I am looking forward to meeting and working with everyone this year!

Interdisciplinary Sophomore Seminars

The general education program gives students an opportunity to go outside their comfort zones and experience a diverse range of disciplines. Professors are designing new courses, called sophomore seminars, that offer an even more interdisciplinary flavor to the general education program. This year, the pilot sophomore seminar was called "The Two Cultures," and was co-taught by physics professor Nate Harshman and literature professor Richard Sha. This unique course investigates how science and the arts have both clashed and entertwined over the years. The class can be used to satisfy Areas 1, 3, or 5 of the general education program. Triana and Lindsay are both in the course this semester, and agree that it has been one of the most challenging (and rewarding) courses they have taken at AU. We asked professors Sha and Harshman about what made them interested in creating this course. Here are some excerpts from their responses:

Professor Sha:

When Nate Harshman and I were designing this course, we spent a lot of time talking about aesthetics.  Now, you might wonder why a physicist would care about the prettiness of his or her math.  Elegance speaks to simplicity, and simplicity implies that a phenomenon has been reduced to the most basic truth.  Moreover, symmetry makes the work of physics easier; by understanding one part of something larger, symmetry enables us to extrapolate efficiently to the whole.  Rather than using aesthetics to think about being of the world, literary critics, by contrast, consider how forms represent but do not stand in for reality.  Aesthetics in this view is a way of apprehending the forms of the world, and because we cannot have access to the things of this world outside of our perceptual apparatus, the only claims we can make about the world are in terms of its forms and appearances.  So from a humanist perspective, claims about the actual being of the world are off limits, and such claims always run the danger of mistaking a linguistic entity for a natural one.

Professor Harshman:

As I get older, I recognize that many pleasures (food, relationships, television, excercise) are complicated.  The things I like have upsides and downsides.  But learning new things, finding new perspectives, enjoying new subjects and fields, seems to only have an upside.  Exposing oneself to new things, especially things outside one's comfort zone, keeps the mind flexible and the heart playful.

We hope that you too will embrace the goals of the general education program by taking advantage of courses that challenge you to step outside your comfort zone. We encourage you to check out fall 2012's sophomore seminar, GNED-234 Global Digital Citizenship. As always, email us with any questions! CASPeerAdvisors@american.edu

Tips for Surviving an All-nighter

We've reached that point in the semester where it seems like there are just not enough hours in the day. Pulling an all-nighter is never fun, but there are ways to make your all-night homework session productive. Here is a compilation of several all-nighter tips from scientific research and college experience around the Internet. Enjoy!

Work with a Partner: Just like when running with a partner, having someone next to you can help improve your endurance and make you more motivated. Whatever the reason is, peer pressure or solidarity or moral support, study partners (even if working on unrelated projects) can help during an all-nighter. You can help each other out, read your papers, quiz each other, etc. Just make sure you are not fomenting each other’s procrastination or distracting each other. (http://blog.uloop.com/2011/11/late-night-study-tips/)

B-vitamins: These vitamins are crucial for cell metabolism and help you keep your energy up! You can find them in milk, yogurt, peanuts (and peanut butter), lentils, brown rice, chicken, fish, bananas, potatoes, whole grains and cheese. So enjoy a healthy b-vitamin-y snack! (http://blog.ecollegefinder.org/2010/03/10/9-essential-tips-for-college-students-pulling-all-nighters/)

Water: Drink it!

Lights: Make sure lights are on and the outdoors obscurity is not signaling your body that it is time for bed. (http://www.webmd.com/sleep-disorders/features/how-to-stay-awake-after-all-nighter)

Avoid Multitasking: Sleepless mode impairs your working memory, which means that you can’t keep track of as many things in your mind at once. So, focus on the things that you have to do, one at a time. If it is helpful, make a list so that you don’t forget and work on things separately, crossing them as you go. (http://www.webmd.com/sleep-disorders/features/how-to-stay-awake-after-all-nighter)

Move! Take a walk, have a dance jam session, exercise, jump, race up and down the stairs, or do whatever you can think of to get your blood flow moving (more). Exercise boosts your brain power and it is a refreshing activity after sitting for long hours. There is a feedback from your muscles to your brain to improve alertness, so this kind of break can be very helpful and productive. (http://www.webmd.com/sleep-disorders/features/how-to-stay-awake-after-all-nighter)

Shower: A brief shower will relax your nerves and make you feel fresh enough to power through the night. (http://www.webmd.com/sleep-disorders/features/how-to-stay-awake-after-all-nighter)

Caffeine + Nap Combo: Caffeine takes from 15 to 30 minutes to kick in, so a good strategy is to drink some coffee, take a 15 minute nap and wake up feeling refreshed and ready to start working. (http://www.webmd.com/sleep-disorders/features/how-to-stay-awake-after-all-nighter)

Overall, try as much as possible to avoid all-nighters, you NEED sleep, so don’t fool yourself into the whole, ‘I am more productive at 4 am’ and stop procrastinating. A good night sleep is better than a 3 hr unproductive Facebook session of looking at the same pictures over and over again.

-Triana Tello Gerez

Registering for Fall 2012 Courses

It's time to register for fall 2012 courses! Priority registration began March 26th. Registration is based on number of completed credits (meaning this semester’s credits don’t count). Check the registrar’s website to find out what date you register:

http://www.american.edu/provost/registrar/registration/registrationdates.cfm

As you plan your fall schedule, here are a few things to keep in mind:

• Check your DARS and the schedule of classes to determine which courses you need and when/if those classes are being offered next semester

• If you are not sure how to organize your schedule, we are here to help! Make an appointment with your peer advisor and we can help you put together a schedule that balances major requirements, general education courses, and extracurriculars

• Make sure you know all of the changes to academic regulations. The changes affect general education, freshman forgiveness, the waitlist process, and many more aspects relevant to fall registration. Visit this site to learn more:http://www.american.edu/provost/undergrad/undergrad-rules-and-regulations-toc.cfm If you have any questions about the changes or would like to talk about how they apply to you, don’t hesitate to make an appointment with one of us

• Just like last semester, you must be cleared by your academic advisor prior to registration. This means you must make an appointment with your advisor prior to your registration date, and you need to bring a draft of your schedule for next fall so that your advisor can approve your course selection

• Keep an eye out for upcoming peer advising events that can help with registration. On April 5th from 8:30 pm--10 pm we will hold walk-in hours in the Perch. We also have an event on April 4th called “Lights, Camera, Action! Finding Your Perfect Major.” The event is geared towards undecided students or students looking to add a CAS major or minor. The event is also movie-themed, so there will be plenty of popcorn and candy!

Sorry for the marathon email, but it’s important that you keep these things in mind for registration. Once again, feel free to email us at CASPeerAdvisors@american.edu or make an appointment at http://www.american.edu/cas/advising/undergraduate.cfm . Good luck with registration, and hopefully we’ll see you at one of our upcoming events!