Instead of explaining all the red tape, I am going to give you some advice for the journey itself. This part of the process may seem like the easy part, but it can sometimes be completely demoralizing. The better you prepare yourself, the more fun you will have and the more you will learn.

If you are going to an English speaking country, feel free to ignore the foreign language section.

(When you …

I was only in my college’s dorms for one year, but during that time I was both the target and mastermind of a multitude of sneaky pranks. A prank here and there is a good break from the rigors of an academic atmosphere. If anybody ever messes with you, here’s how to get them back.

*DISCLAIMER*
You know your university and how strict it may be.

Also, be sure to check out

Holding an office in student government looks good on any application whether it be for college, work, or otherwise. The catch is that your leadership skills are not going to get you elected.

Much like every other system which requires the votes of fickle teenagers, winning is a popularity contest. If you have few friends, it is still possible to win by planning ahead and being careful how you present yourself.

I am going to approach this from the standpoint of somebody who is already in college, but most of the information will apply to high …

Everybody always has the same things to say about the benefits of learning a foreign language. They always discuss how much your cultural perception, awareness, bologna sandwich, whatever will be enhanced. I’m willing to take the risk of stepping a bit outside the box of this broken record player.

Certain pieces of information tend to be omitted, and I am going to discuss them. Research tends to laud only those raised in …

I think it is stupid that students have to work and go to college at the same time, but that’s the way it is. Here are some ways you can make your life a little easier.

Don’t work weekends. Save the weekends for yourself and your friends. Too many students think that it is better to work less during the week and recuperate the money loss on the weekend. In fact, it is better to stay focused during the week and allow yourself to …

Some of these may require a bit of work and charisma on your part, but you will save big. I have assigned a 1-5 difficulty rating system with 5 being the most difficult.

(When finished reading, be sure to learn how to make a college budget, as featured on MSN MoneyCenter.)

Live off campus.

Dorms are too expensive and too small. Even with the deposit required for an apartment, you can expect to save 50-75% off of …

Half the time you don’t give a crap about the subject material, but you still find yourself mechanically writing down whatever your professor says.

“National debt of Antarctica: 0…Population of the Moon: 0……”

This is pointless.

Taking notes is useless if you do not find out what it is that your professor is really trying to tell you and why it matters. Come on, are you a student or are you learning to be a human dictation machine? That’s what I thought. Let’s rewire your thinking.

Work your usual classroom magic.

In order to improve on something, it …

College is expensive. With tuition becoming more expensive each year, it is vital that you do all that you can to get as many scholarships as possible.

Here are a few tips:

- Apply, apply, apply! Beginning with the first day of your senior year of high school, apply for one new scholarship every day. The more often you apply the more likely you are to win.

- Never pay. Avoid scholarships that have an application fee, unless you are feeling lucky.

- Plagiarize yourself. Save any “essays” you are required to write. Most of these can be reworded or copied exactly.

- …

For the sake of brevity, I am going to refer to a Fraternity/Sorority collectively as a “frat”. You need to ask yourself the following questions:

• Do I like people?
• Do I want to learn to like people?
• Do I have extra cash to fork over for dues and frequent social gatherings?

If you answered no to these questions, then you do not need to join a frat, unless they are offering you a scholarship. (If you’re …

Sharing textbooks for a couple bucks is something that has always made sense to me with my friends, but dealing with a company seems a little bit weird. Chegg.com offers a textbook rental service and apparently they plant a tree for every book you rent. I would like to try them out but I don’t currently have a need for any textbooks.

Have any of you ever tried them? They let you highlight the books but you can’t write in them. This kind of blows for certain classes, but I understand why. Let me know if you …