Social Media is no new term for the present generation who loves to stay hooked onto the Internet in relation to both personal and professional coupled with academic pursuits. With distance education advancing to the stage of online learning, the learning approach witnessed a modern twist in the form of social learning. From webinars to web training sessions and other educational seminars, Social Media and its implication on educational pursuits is on the news throughout. Be it Facebook, Twitter, You Tube or other social networking tools – the dominance is omnipresent in the world of online education.

Exploring Social Media

Prior to analysing the benefits and advantages of Social Media in the world of distance education, it is important to develop a clear view about the entire concept of Social Media. The word ‘social’ in the term refers to the interactions between individual and the word ‘media’ refers to web-based technologies that focus on storing and transferring data or information. The particular term refers to enhanced user interaction and information sharing platform.

Social Media, developing through years have reached a stage where the component social swiftly differentiates it from the traditional media technologies. Social Media holds the power of bridging the connecting and communication gaps among individuals. With the help of Social Media, creating, sharing, publishing, and reviewing content gets easier elevating its rank in the distance education domain. Content sharing and user interaction reaches a new level socially.

Tools of Social Media – The Types

At present, a number of tools of Social Media dominate the generation and the user interaction and communicating experience. Here is a look at some of the specific tools that help distance learning and learners on the fold -

• Social Networking – Facebook, Myspace, LinkedIn
• Social Bookmarking – Diggo and Delicious
• Multimedia Sharing – YouTube, Flicker
• Micro-blogging/blogging – Blog sites, Twitter, WordPress
• Mutual Authoring – Google Docs, Zoho Office Suite

Social Media and its Features

Social Media features a number of elements that help in better connectivity and enhanced user interaction, as the domain is user-oriented than being content –oriented. It allows –

• Enhanced participation and user contribution
• Improved participation in online activities
• Easy information sharing along with modification benefit of other contents
• Encouraged feedback opportunity
• Two-way communication with users

Social Media and Implications on Learning

Social Media when appropriately incorporated in distance learning or in online helps in multiple ways that include –

• Innovative and better learning experience
• Improved learner engagement
• Designing creative activities for online learning
• Better collaboration among students for team projects

Incorporating Social Media in the world of distance education allows learners from different corners of the world build an effective knowledge-sharing platform where communication and connection is just a mouse click away. Blogging helps learners and academicians publish research about a particular subject or a research in a relevant discipline. Be it for research students or undergraduate and postgraduate students – Social Media certainly helps the distance learner in their educational pursuit.

Everyone wants to climb the ladder and obtain success. This is the ultimate destination of every job seeker. To be successful in life, you will need to have some level of qualities. You need to be flexible. When you are walking down the path of your career, you may face obstacle and you will. When this occurs, you will have to sit back and think how to surpass the adversity and work on your goal. Sometimes, the obstacles seem to be bigger than the solution and there simply comes to view no other way out. You will have to have the courage in this situation to change your path, plan again and start walking towards your goal.

Apart from this, you will have to have the honesty. You need to be gutsy enough to stare straight into the eyes of the others, regardless of the position and money, and blurt out the truth. You will also have to have the courage to stick to your goal. People will tell you things, they will tell you that you won’t be able to succeed, yet you need have faith in yourself to stand by your decision.

For this you may need someone to hear you out. You may feel the importance of a person who will listen to you and unleash the hidden potentiality. You may appreciate the help of an experienced executive mentor. This coaching session will help you become more productive and also churn your urge to take risk which you would not have taken before.

Six helpful tips to guide you through the complex FAFSA process

If you’re anticipating college next year, but need some extra help covering tuition, room and board, and some cheap textbooks and school supplies, you might consider financial aid. Although, financial aid can be a complex and intimidating process for a first year college or university student, you have nothing to fear. In fact, financial aid can be rather simple to secure if you know what to expect. That’s why I’ve put together the following handy words of wisdom to help you ease through the financial aid process, and get the financial help that you need for your higher education.

1. Don’t just assume you don’t qualify for financial aid

The mistake that many students make is to just assume they earn too much to qualify for financial aid. Pretty much any student has financial aid options. Find out what they are by filling out the FAFSA to see if you are eligible for even a small amount. After all, FAFSA qualification is determined on more than just financial need—academic standing, ethnicity, and athletic, music and art prowess are all considered.

2. Apply early

Most students who applied for financial aid—some successful, some not successful—said they should have got the ball rolling sooner. If you’ve already graduated high-school or are about to graduate, you’ll want to have your Free Application for Federal Student Aid (or FAFSA) submission completed and ready to send off in early January. This way, you’ll nab a place in federal, state, and school financial aid queues. On the other hand, if you wait too long, you might be out of luck as the amount of financial aid is limited and awarded on a first-come, first-served basis.

3. Don’t put it off until you’ve filed your taxes

Many students assume they have to wait to apply for FAFSA until they fill their tax returns. That’s not necessarily that case. You can estimate the required tax information on your FAFSA, and file an amendment if the tax numbers differ that drastically. By submitting your FAFSA online directly to the Department of Education before you file taxes, you will start the process early and have a better shot at the financial aid you need.

4. Fill out FAFSA forms completely

Be careful to fill out your FAFSA forms completely. Unfortunately, many students miss out on early submission because they left out pertinent information on the forms and they were sent back and had to be resubmitted. A correction or incomplete form can set back your submission by weeks.

5. Don’t be afraid to ask for help

You’re not an accountant of a loan officer so you’re not expected to know everything about the FAFSA process. Ask questions when you’re unsure—it’s better than filling out an incomplete form (see above). Instead, call an Education Finance Advisor who will help answer your questions about financial aid, filling out the financial aid forms, scholarships and other student loan options.

6. Personal savings

Students are expected to contribute 20% of their savings towards college costs (in addition to 5.6% of family earnings). Obviously, the less you have saved; the less you will have to contribute to college. However, using the savings you earn from a summer job is better than taking out yet another private student loan in the long-run.

7. Seek out free money

Don’t put all of your eggs in one basket when it comes to paying for college. On top of applying for FAFSA, apply for scholarships, fellowships, grants, and work-study programs that are completely free to apply for and don’t need to be repaid after you graduate. It’s literally free money!

Bio: Brenda Ortega works as both a substitute teacher and freelance writer. She loves delving into the research side of writing, which mostly focuses on educational issues. She has written for a variety of material, giving tips for students on cutting university costs; to parents on saving money for your child’s education; and even hopes to help educate others with her learning enhancement-based topics.

From pen and paper to electronic mails, from trolleys for shopping in departmental stores to online carts for internet shopping, everything has undergone transformation. Then how can the academic sector lag behind. Isn’t it? The most important thing is to enhance the literacy rate around the globe in recent times. Educated individuals lead to an educated world. This is what has ultimately led to the huge transformation in the educational arrangement available nowadays. In earlier times, the students knew very well that if they desire to study, the only way is to attend regular campus classes. But with online education, the accessibility of the quality education has increased to a great extent.

The journey from mere a traditional learning arrangement to a global web education was not an easy one. The distance learning form of education had to go through so many difficult phases during its initial stage of development. After tolerating several pangs during this journey and patiently handling the criticisms ad improving accordingly, the online degree education has ultimately attained the position it always thought of. Well advancement though online education can involve several aspects, but the best perspective off this means of imparting education is the career development prospects that it offers the career-oriented individuals.

Some of the aspects that will ultimately clear the advancements through online education are as follows:

• Unlike traditional mode of education, there is no age bar in case of the contemporary form of obtaining education. Whether you are 15 or 50, there is no barrier between you and your education. In case of campus classrooms, if someone aged enters as a student, he becomes a matter of joke in front of all. But such incidences are never observed in case of the online degree education. Thus, if you still have a desire to pursue your education, online mode can help you do so without any hurdle.

• While undergoing their education, if the students are caught in an accident and fall on bed due to their physical disability, they lose their chance to build up their career. This is because the campus classrooms do not allow such students to continue their education. With the help of online education, however, there is no such discrimination made. This makes this mode of learning get appreciated by the career-oriented individuals and also by the critics.

• Advancements through online education seem to be incomplete until the benefit of this mode of education for the working professionals is mentioned clearly. For the self-supporting students who aim at pursuing a higher degree course, while continuing their jobs, this platform for effective learning is of great help. Where the fresh candidates acquire fresh knowledge through standard online education, the professionals get a chance to upgrade their job skills, thereby letting themselves added to the good books of their bosses.

The uncertain economic status all across the world has led an increasing number of career-oriented individuals to evaluate their choices, especially in education and job retaining aspects. With knowledge being the ultimate source of power, empowering your educational background and sharpening your skills undeniably stand as the most valuable asset offering you the edge in this competitive world. Though, education stands as a priority, not everyone in this world is blessed with the facility to pursue a traditional course, especially the working executives or learners bind by personal commitments. Well, distance learning courses stand as the smartest alternative and a universal answer for all learners amid time crunched schedule.

Technological advancements within the last decade have welcomed a massive change in the educational sector offering a turn in the conventional road of learning via distance. The learning mode that until a decade back relied upon postal services for delivering knowledge and sharing information has now reached greater heights of flexibility and convenience transpiring into the digital sphere. The concept is just to bring real world education into the virtual sphere allowing learners to schedule learning according to their own convenience. Classes are usually scheduled online where you get to connect with your peers and teachers over advanced information and communication tools.

You can have a detailed look at the Wikipedia page on Distance Education for gaining a better and comprehensive view about distance learning and its advancement over the years.

The role of distance education in today’s modern world has been all pervading. It has brought distant and remote countries of the world in the global map of education building a virtual connection among all. Be it the developed or the developing countries, distance learning has touched its magical wand upon all. Jamaica is one such country that witnessed a ray of hope in the educational prospects with the introduction of distance learning courses. If personal and/or professional commitments have been hitting your dream of pursuing a college degree hard then, why not offer your dream a new perspective through distance learning.

As it is said, it is never too late start again; you can well consider pursuing an online course amid all your responsibilities. The introduction of net-based learning offered the career-oriented individuals the smartest alternative of pursuing a degree or diploma course to enhance their professional prospects. Learning in today’s modern world is just a mouse click away that has enabled students and learners pursue a course, even from the distant lands like Jamaica. From regular academic courses to vocational studies, an increasing number of disciplines are made available in the country through the pursuit of distance learning courses.

A number of colleges and universities, in Jamaica, especially those based in the capital city Kingston are known to offer top ranked courses like, MBA, information technology, architecture, arts, commerce, and many more. All these courses provide either a degree or a diploma certification are are delivered via advanced Internet technologies that includes video conference, presentations, e-manuals, and other leaning software. Usually, the courses are set in the highest global academic standards are supported by valid accreditation.

Distance learning in today’s modern world plays the role of offering the support to today’s career oriented individuals in achieving their worth. Distance learning courses facilitating the students with a flexible and convenient approach of study allows the learners to enhance their resume marketability while increasing the saleable quotient of their profile.

Online education is growing at an amazing pace, and rightfully so. It’s easy, packed with resources and extremely flexible, from time schedules to programs that are catered exactly to the participants needs. In the US alone there are hundreds of thousands of applicants for online degree programs each year, and the trend is only going upwards. The faith and trust other conventional universities , and employers alike, have bestowed upon online education is also higher year after year, as this novel form of education is getting more popular. How new is online education though?

Well, the first virtual learning program or environment is from 1778, as attested by a Boston Gazette advertisement from Caleb Phillipps, “Teacher of the New Method of Short Hand,” advising that any “Persons in the Country desirous to Learn this Art, may by having the several Lessons sent weekly to them, be as perfectly instructed as those that live in Boston.

Since then all kinds of learning material have been developed for people to instruct and attain new skills. The next step was the audio and video recording of courses and seminars, which would then be sent to participants, to supplement the written material and transcripts. It wasn’t long before universities began to award degrees based on so called long distance programs which enabled people who couldn’t attend university of various reasons.

his trend grew many colleges developed programs that allowed students to use distance education. This also worked with correspondence schooling. Many were able to work from home but send their materials in to be graded via mail. The University of Phoenix became the first online college to offer correspondence classes.

Then the internet came out, and the online education boom started, continuing to ferociously grow at an alarming rate to this date. Nowadays, top corporations are capitalizing on the online education bandwagon as well, not just universities. It’s a great medium to train employees fast and effectively, and employers have recognized this.  Later on, the first life experience degree programs started to appear, as well, providing another revolutionizing education technique. Life experience degrees are awarded, like the name implies, based on one’s proven work experience, so those 10 years working as an IT technician, might very well be enough to get yourself awarded a bachelor in computer science and so on. It’s truly an amazing opportunity and there are a slew of life experience degree universities to choose from.

Don’t be fooled though. Online education is known to be just as hard as receiving a traditional degree. However, it allows students a chance to make their own schedule while they live their normal lives.

Taking tests is one of the most dreaded things that students have to do. Many wish that tests didn’t even exist. I know that when I was younger, I hated tests. It didn’t help that I wasn’t the best when it came to taking tests. I would study as hard as I could―and I would never do too well. It was hard. I then started to look at my tests (after I took them) and I began to find that I would make a lot of silly mistakes. Mistakes add up when you are taking a test. Especially when you are preparing for a graduate test like the GRE or the GMAT. Here are the 6 most common mistakes that test takers make. I’ll tell you that I have made some of these mistakes at least twice!

1) Not putting a name on work
Yes, even though the teacher may tell students countless times, students still forget to put their names on their tests.
If this happens to you, when the teacher reminds you, write your name on the test. Better yet, make sure that it is the first thing that you write when you get your test.
2) Leaving an answer blank
This is a very common thing that people do. It is very easy to skip over an answer and want to come back to it. Sometimes, people forget that they do―and end up missing the question entirely!
If you want to avoid this, make sure that you develop a system that will allow you to remember which answers you skipped. Circle the question, put stars around it, do anything you can do that you won’t forget to answer the question.
3) Circling wrong answer
This can happen if you are taking multiple choice test. You can get so excited that you might actually circle the wrong answer.
To make sure that this doesn’t happen to you―make sure that you are going through the test in a timely manner. Make sure that you don’t take the test too fast, you don’t want to make simple mistakes.
4) Not following directions
This can be one of the most detrimental. I had a professor that gave us a huge test. He told us many times to read over the directions. One the directions, he told us to read the test, sign our names and turn the test in. There were many people that didn’t read those directions and ended up spending hours on the test―when all we had to do was sign our name!
Make sure that you read the directions throughly. It may save you a lot of time!
5) Over analyzing
Make sure that you are not reading into the question too much.
If you like to change your mind because you are always second guessing yourself―think about it. If you know that you always change your mind―weigh your options. Don’t over analyze questions and end up scoring poorly because you do.
6) Not paying attention to time
When you are taking tests, make sure that you are watching the time. Work according to the time. This will help you pace yourself.
Carry around a watch to help you keep track of time. You could even ask the professor or teacher to give you a 5 minute warning when you are nearing the end of the test.

Taking tests can be stressful. Now that you know these 6 common mistakes that students make, you can avoid these mistakes. Good luck on your tests!

About the Author Neltje Maynez is a freelance writer for MyCollegesandCareers.com. My Colleges and Careers is one of the most useful sites to help people choose online schools that are right for them.

So you are considering entering the world of culinary arts to pursue your passion for food and cooking. That’s great because there is always a variety of opportunities to work your culinary magic once you graduate. Even better is that you can get world class training right here in one of the outstanding Culinary Schools in Chicago.

One of your first considerations should be Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts located at Chestnut and North Orleans. This organization has an incredible history dating back to the 1800s and the school in France has long been the aspiration of many would-be chefs. Over the last decade or so, Le Cordon Bleu has truly become an international presence, opening campuses in Europe, Asia, Canada and the USA.

What most good culinary schools provide are a balance between food theory, sanitation, health and dietary sciences and practical fundamentals including sauces, meats and vegetables, pasta and starches all mixed with a wide range of international influences. However, keep in mind that most culinary training is an extension of classical French cooking and the teachings of Georges Auguste Escoffier. A good way to know if this career is for you is to read and practice some of that type of cooking at home.

The best thing about culinary schools in Chicago, compared to other vocations you may be considering is that you really get hands-on experience – usually from the very first week you start. Cooking, and culinary arts requires dexterity, energy, and an artistic eye because you are really producing creations that need to be love-inspired. The best culinary institutes help nurture that passion inside you.

And don’t be thinking that “class” means another boring hour of notes. Not even close, because most schools actually run their own restaurant. For instance Kendall College runs The Dinning Room at their campus located in the heart of Chicago along the Chicago River at Goose Island. So popular is the Dinning Room that it is actually recommended in the prestigious Michelin Guide for Chicago 2011. Each student also gets their rotation of running the kitchen as well designing menus and specials. If you can meet those standards, finding work in the hospitality will never be a challenge.

The Illinois Institute of Art also has their own restaurant called the Backstage Bistro which models off of a lot of very successful upscale bistros in the Chicago area. The school also has a fast track culinary program and is located in the heart of “The Loop” just a short walk away from the newly revived theater district, so it’s an exciting, artistic area to learn in as well.

If your long term goal is to run a large operation, perhaps such as executive chef at a major hotel, then you might want to look into Robert Morris University also located in Chicago’s Loop district, this University offers degrees in Advanced Culinary Management and Hospitality Management. They work closely with local hotels and restaurants where students participate in on-the-job training as well as in the university’s state of the art kitchen. You can also take part in their 10 week training stint in Italy! Very exciting!

The best thing to make your choice for Culinary Schools in Chicago is to narrow down your search and then go visit 3 or 4 of them. While there, make sure to talk to some of the students as well.

Kellen Holmes is a problogger who writes many articles about cooking classes in Chicago on http://www.cookingclasseschicagolocal.com/. To learn more about this subject, feel free to click the previous highlighted link, Thanks for reading!

Enrolling at an online course for excelling in life is a trend that is followed by students and professionals in today’s age at large. However, before you consider advancing your skills via online courses, always make sure that it is being the right choice. Well, professional success is an elusive concept that leaves an employee asking for more but in this present age of competition upgrading skills for making a mark in the sector stands as an undeniable choice. In such a situation, Online Education – the key to flexible learning has come up as a feasible way of career advancement. This form of learning that has been around for long witnessed an exponential growth with the the evolution of technological innovations.

Attending a college or university for higher academic credential is always considered an essential step in life. However, often professional and personals reasons restrict individuals from pursuing their needs through regular classroom courses. Turning round to 21st century, attending high school, college, or university is accomplished through a new road paved over the virtual setting of online learning. With the increase in student enrollment for distance learning programs, the choices of online schools and colleges are also on a rise. Often students are seen to depend a bit more on international university degrees and preferably UK universities when it comes to career advancement.

You can check out the BBC report Young Open University student numbers increase, if the revelation comes as a surprise to you.

Since, Online Education is specially designed keeping in mind the needs of working executives; career advancement and professional development are its sole concern. Well, now dreaming over professional success would certainly not help you reap the benefits of the courses. You should hold a proper grasp over the tricks of ensuring success academically and carving a niche professionally. Easy accessibility and flexibility of learning drives the acceptability of these programs worldwide. However, you need to keep in mind that reaping benefits of successful online learning is not everyone’s cup of tea.

Motivation, self-discipline, and concentration are the driving force that ensures success through online courses. Anybody, not going by the rule is certain to experience the pitfalls of this learning mode, which usually seems to be easier and lighter. Not logging onto classes, missing online lectures, videoconferencing, and missing assignments, especially for the standardized UK university distance programs never ensures professional success. After all, you need to implement what you have learned to make the way for career advancement.

Online Education replicates a virtual classroom-setting equivalent to the traditional set-up. To enjoy professional success through a degree earned via online courses, you need to adapt to the learning technique well. Knowing the course site well and understanding the usage of tech-tools in implementation stands as a priority. Scheduling a specific time –frame and environment can help you concentrate better. Avoid mixing up your leisure and study time rather; make logging onto classes at least once a day regularly a habit. The task is certainly a challenge but what life is and where the joy of achievement lies without accomplishing challenges.

For better insight into online learning and gaining success through the courses, you can refer to the BBC report What will universities of the future be like.

When going for any job, you will need to give serious consideration to your CV as it is the first real point of contact between you and a prospective employer. Given that this employer may have to sift through scores or even hundreds of these CVs, you will need to be sure that yours stands out in the best possible way.

Construction jobs are no different, with many people often searching for just a few vacancies. However, by tailoring your CV, you can be sure you have a good advantage over many of the others applying for the same role.

Firstly, you will need to give consideration to the formatting. Leading with the strongest attribute is always the best way to go; selling yourself well straight off the bat. To do this, it’s worth looking at the job description and seeing which of your skills or experience is best suited to the role.

If, for example, you have relevant training and qualifications, lead with these; elevating them as high up the CV as possible. If, on the other hand, you have on-the-job experience that is similar to the new role, put that above the education part.

Tailoring your CV to fit the job specification should not end there, however.

Whilst it may seem like a rather long-winded and onerous task on the surface, tweaking your CV to fit the job role is a key part to getting your CV noticed. Yes, it may be easier to make one CV and fire it off to 30 or 40 employers, but doing this will probably yield little in the way of results.

Instead, in looking more in-depth at a role, then tinkering your CV to fit should give better results. Whilst doing this may mean you can’t fit in the time to fill out as many applications, you can be more certain that the ones you do give out will be a lot more relevant to the role and much more likely to offer results.

Applying for jobs is no easy task and can really take it out of you, but by giving your CV the consideration it needs, you can be sure that you’ve done it as well as you possibly can.