Category - Academics

I’ve been MIA these past few weeks due to a second round of midterm exams—I apologize for that! But I am back, better than ever! My midterms these past few weeks were definitely stressful, to say the least, but I want...

There are certain things you can’t prepare for prior to studying abroad. Being in the near-direct path of a super typhoon is one of them. It’s roughly 9:30am on Wednesday, Sept. 12, and I’m sitting in the back row of my...

Based on the title of this blog, you probably know how I feel about eight-week classes. You might even be thinking “Why read anymore? This guy just gave away a major spoiler here.” Well, sorry for the...

This is the second part in a five part series on working on developing an academic mindset to get you through the college years. The goal of such a mindset is to give you principles with which you can take on any kind...

Fall at Illinois: a time when campus doesn’t look any better than when blanketed with ombre orange leaves. Colder weather means sweater weather. The smell of pumpkin flavored coffee diffuses through the air, and...

So here’s the deal: I worked my butt off in school to get where I am today. I spent hours on end studying and took AP classes when I could. I put in a lot of effort to excel academically. Truth be told, school was...

This is the first part in a roughly five-part series on developing an academic mindset that can get you on a fast-track path to success in whatever major you’re in. While I wish I did all of these things all four...

They are big, bad, and scary; they are loud and all-knowing and ready for battle. They are middle-schoolers. About three weeks ago, I began my early field experience as a student teacher, and boy has it been wild. I was...

After my first class of the day, ten minutes separated me from a front row seat to my first chemistry lecture. Because students usually arrive at least fifteen minutes early, I was already late and out of luck...

I did it. I did the thing. I studied in a different country for an entire semester and lived to tell the tale. I also drank a lot of tea through it all. I’m not going to lie, it was pretty scary. But it was also...

As May rolls around, college students and high schoolers alike are feeling the stress of exams. Preparing for final exams is half the battle to success, so today I wanted to provide a few tools that have really helped...

I’m trying to think back to group projects I had in high school. I’m pretty sure it felt like more of a luxury than a standard operating procedure for my classes. For example, I’d get into a group to review the math or...

In the College of Education, James Scholars are required to complete a research project each semester. Two semesters of traditional research are required in which students choose from courses and ongoing research...

One of the scariest and most exciting moments as an incoming freshman at the University of Illinois was class registration. I remember being herded into a large computer lab with 30 other students, expected to know what...

In college, you may find yourself in the occasional dilemma of where to study. Some might suggest that you study wherever your friends are studying. Some will say they have the perfect location that they will never...

Diving into academics at a world-class institution like Illinois can be pretty intimidating. Don’t be scared; it’s part of the fun! The best way to get the most out of your time as a student at Illinois is to start...

Back at the beginning of this semester, I said that I planned to write a series of blogs about my experience taking RST 335. At the outset of week eight of the semester, I have already taken two exams, completed seven...

In your time of college visits and endless applications, you have probably started to take note of what you believe makes up a good college. It might be one that has good weather. It could be the college that houses the...