What do you think of when you hear the word “posse”? I think of movies about the wild west. “Round up a posse and we’ll bring that varmint to justice!” Posses have a generally negative connotation. Check out these formal definitions:

I was just thinking about this while walking the other day. Just what, exactly, is college for, anyway?

I deal with many high schoolers who go on to college and maintain contact with some of them over the years. Of course, I have two children who went through the college experience, as did I (back, as I always say, when dinosaurs roamed the earth). In thinking about my question, I wondered if the true, idealistic purpose of “higher education” has ever completely realized among the majority of the millions who have passed through the ivy gates.

Well, as luck would have it (there are no coincidences, you know), I found a cool article by John M. Crisp, who teaches in the English Department at Del Mar College in Corpus Christi, Texas. He has answered my question, in some ways more completely than I could have answered it myself, even after an extra-long walk. Here’s his opinion of what college is all about: Read the rest of this entry »

If you are a high school student, let me ask you a question. Does your school have an honor code? If so, I’d like to know how well it works. Please drop our readers some information about that in the Comments section below.

If your school doesn’t have an honor code and you’re headed to college, perhaps it might help you to know what to expect when you go to a college that expects its students to follow one. Here’s some helpful information about the primary purpose of Codes: Read the rest of this entry »

Part of the appeal of being at college is being able to hop aboard super-fast computer networks. This, of course, opens multiple doors for creative minds that need little sleep. One of the more popular activities is file sharing–downloading songs, movies, and other copyrighted materials from the Web and then creating your own awesome archives to enjoy when you’re not watching reruns of The Office on TV while studying for that Bio mid-term.

Of course, file sharing can be risky business. You may have read about the RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America) suing 16 Cornell University students for copyright infringement. There are other examples of such litigation, so what’s an enterprising collegian to do? Well, here’s some very savvy advice: Read the rest of this entry »

The idyllic image of the college classroom shows a wise, old, gray-haired gentleman in a three-piece suit camped behind a rostrum, pontificating on his narrow field of expertise at great length and detail, while possibly hundreds of eager students note his every nuance and word.

Yep, that’s the image. Well, the reality may be something quite different from old Professor Kingsfield, above.  Let’s take a quick look at who you may encounter once you plop yourself down in those vaunted halls of ivy, mainly, the ubiquitous TA: Read the rest of this entry »

Some parents keep their eye on only college tuition costs when considering which schools might be affordable for their sons or daughters. The smart ones, though, look at what’s known as the “student budget.” The student budget includes not only annual tuition but also room and board, various fees, and estimates on miscellaneous expenses and even travel. Talk about running up the numbers!

Our friends at CampusGrotto.com have put together a list of the most expensive college dorms. At least my mind boggles when I see what it costs to live in some of these dorms for less than nine months, especially when I think of having to share living quarters with at least one other person, in most cases. Let’s do some math: Read the rest of this entry »

Remember that Seinfeld episode where Kramer hired a personal assistant to help him with all his idiotic schemes for Kramerica Industries?

Well, a forward thinking Georgetown University sophomore must be a Seinfeld fan (or at least a Kramer fan) because he’s advertising for his own personal assistant: Read the rest of this entry »

The issue of racism is a popular one in America today. It seems that every day or so we hear new charges about this or that high-profile individual being motivated to accomplish his or her personal goals through means that include being racist. It’s not a pleasant situation.

One news item and one opinion piece speak clearly about racism on campus. First, for the news item, we go to Hampton University in Virginia: Read the rest of this entry »

Some current commentators have issues with the modern state of higher education, specifically how “academic dishonesty” has diluted–or even “devalued”–the value of today’s college degrees.

One such commentator is Walter Williams, whose recent editorial points out, in his opinion, the reasons for this situation.  See if you agree: Read the rest of this entry »

One of my most often cited pieces of college research advice is “Ask a current student.” Another is “You gotta trod the sod,” which means “You have to visit the colleges to which you’re applying.” Now, thanks to the Internet, my first mantra has gotten a lot easier to realize.

In an interesting article on UPI.com, we learn about some students who are serving up real-world answers and lifting the haze about life on campus and in the classroom for prospective applicants. Here’s the scoop. Read the rest of this entry »