Developing Writing Skills, an Added Advantage for Introverts - Introvert Whisperer

Introvert Whisperer / Developing Writing Skills, an Added Advantage for Introverts - Introvert Whisperer Developing Writing Skills, an Added Advantage for Introverts Being introvert or shy need not be a roadblock in your career. There are so many ambitious introverts who are extremely successful in their life and career. Few important examples are Bill Gates, Abraham Lincoln, JK Rowling, Mahatma Gandhi, Albert Einstein, etc. Introverts have their own set of strength which when used correctly helps you climb the ladder of success. For any job, communication skill is an important asset. Writing is an important part of a communication skill. You must know here that many introverts are powerful writers. In a job starting from simple tweets to elaborate emails or reports needs writing skill. With flawless writing skill, there is definitely one extra door open to succeed in your career. Although you are a good writer, at times you may not be aware of the common writing errors that you commit. Simple examples are a confusion in homophones, the words that sound similar but can alter the meaning of a sentence. Few examples are quiet and quite, effect and affect, accept and except, your and you’re, etc. Also, there is a difference in UK English and USA English. The infographic explains the common writing errors that people make and how to correct them. This list will help you in honing your writing skills.

Which SAT Subject Tests Should I Take

Which SAT Subject Tests Should I Take SAT Subject Tests are exams offered by The College Board that further illustrate to potential colleges and universities what you bring to the table. With 20 tests in five different subject areas, its key to select the SAT Subject Tests that best reflect your strengths by examining criteria such as what courses you have taken or are currently enrolled in, knowing what your potential major might be, and identifying schools of interest. Choose SAT Subject Tests based on your course schedule Technically, you can take an SAT Subject Test at any point in your high school career. However, its key to be strategic about what tests you take and when you take them. For instance, if you are doing well in French 4 or Spanish 4, taking the corresponding subject test may be a great decision. On the other hand, it would likely be unwise to take Mathematics Level 2 as a freshman. [RELATED: How to Succeed on SAT Subject Tests] Examine what your schools of interest require when selecting SAT Subject Tests Have you started compiling a list of schools that youre interested in? If so, visit their websites and make note of any SAT Subject Test requirements. Some schools may require one or two exams, while others may not require them at all. Even if a college or university doesnt require SAT Subject Tests, a great score on them could help your application stand out. Its important to be aware of these requirements during the college application process so that you dont have to cram in any last-minute testing. [RELATED: Should I Take SAT Subject Tests?] Choose the right SAT Subject Tests by identifying your potential major If youre thinking about a particular major, it might be a great decision to take SAT Subject Tests that reflect that specific area. Chances are, if youre leaning toward a certain major, your strengths and interests lie in that subject area. Use this to your advantage, and take an exam in that niche. For example: Ifyoure interested in studying engineering in college, determine if Mathematics Level 1 or Mathematics Level 2 best shows your strengths. Ifyoure hoping to study biology in college, register for the Biology E/M Subject Test. [RELATED: What to Know About the Mathematics Level 1 SAT Subject Test] Since these tests allow you some freedom of choice, select wisely. The exams are a great opportunity for you to show schools what you are interested in and familiar with, and just how well you know the material. Examine your strengths, and identify which SAT Subject Tests will best support your application. Any topics you want to know more about? Let us know! The Varsity Tutors Blog editors love hearing your feedback and opinions. Feel free to email us at blog@varsitytutors.com.

Ask an Admissions Expert Deena Maerowitz

Ask an Admissions Expert Deena Maerowitz Varsity Tutors brings you insider tips and advice straight from nationally recognized admissions experts. Deena Maerowitz was previously the Associate Director of Admissions at the Columbia UniversityBusiness School. She holds a professional membership in the Independent Educational Consultants Association and is also a member of the Association of International Graduate Admissions Consultants. Deena currently works with students on their college applications with a personalized approach in guiding them through the college admissions process through her independent consulting firm. VT: How far ahead of time should a student begin working on his or her college application? Deena: I would say that it doesn't hurt to become familiar with the common app and the process for applying in the spring of junior year. I work with clients on applications and essays during the summer prior to senior year. Of course, its always great to try to visit campuses when they are in session, and if you can do this during your sophomore and junior year, youll be ahead of the game. VT: What are the best ways to go about selecting a terrific essay topic? Deena: Think about a time, a snapshot in your life, where you really learned something about yourself. Try to identify a time of growth, development, and a real interest in your life. The most important thing about the admissions essay is that its about an experience that only you have had. This doesnt mean you cant write about something that you do with a team, or that other kids participate in, but it means that the story you tell about your experience should be one that only you could tell. Focus on times when youve really challenged yourself to think differently about something, or how your views on an experience have impacted who you are now. VT: Are there any essay topics you get tired of seeing or would warn students to stay away from? Deena: I'd definitely say that applicants should stay away fromwriting about things that arent really about you, re: it focuses on someone else's experience and not about how that person or event impacted you. Some other things not to do? Dont write about how you dont want to write the essay, or become too abstract or rhetorical. Dont use the essay to rally against the admissions process. VT: What is the biggest mistake a student can make on a college application? Deena: Not knowing enough about the college and why it's a good fit. Not thinking through essays or application questions. Not making the effort to visit if you're close by is also a sign that youre not really taking this college seriously. Make sure that every step of the way, through your visits to campus, interviews, essays, etc., that youre conveying your knowledge of the college and why you want to be there. Conveying a lack of interest is a big mistake. VT: What is the typical process an admissions officer goes through to evaluate applications? Deena:I would read applications, take notes on the side, give my thoughts, and pass onto another member of the committee. Often, I would re-read essays and give myself some time to think about the applicant, what they would bring to the community, and how they would fit in with the academics of life on campus. Often, one admissions officer will advocate for a particular applicant once they form a relationship with that candidates application, and sometimes especially when theyve met them in person and are impressed with what theyve seen. VT: What do you think is the single most important thing a student should make sure they present in the best possible way on their application? Deena: What they will bring to the community, why that college is a fit for them, and how they know that about themselves. Applicants should take this process seriously. Applying to college is hard, but try to think about it as a step by step process. Its important not to rush through the process. Each step, research, visits, interviews, and essays are important, so if you have the opportunity and time to experience the college as much as you can before you apply, you should. VT: How should students go about determining the culture of a university, and whether they would be a good fit? Deena: Visit, research departments, Google professors and areas of interest, and see what turns up. Talk to students, get off the beaten path on campus visits. Taste the food, sit in on a class, see what is happening on weekends. Look at the dorms that they don't show you on the tour. Check out what people are doing in the library. There are so many ways to determine what life is like on campus. VT: Early-action, early-decision, binding/non-binding, regular decisions...With so many choices when applying, what do you recommend to students? Deena: It really depends. Early decision is great for applicants that absolutely know that a particular school is their first choice, and that they will not regret withdrawing applications from other schools if they're accepted. Many colleges accept Early Decision applicants at a higher rate than those from the regular decision pool. I also think that Early Action is a great way for students to find out sooner about admissions so that April and May dont feel so loaded. VT: How important are grades and standardized test scores when admissions decisions are being made? Deena: They are incredibly important, but of course, not at all the only thing! Colleges want to know what you will bring to the community, what your interests are, what type of thinker you are, and what you are like as a person. What sports do you enjoy? What clubs? How have you been a leader? Admissions committees will look for a link in a students experience. So, its more important to show commitment and focus in outside activities than to be scattered. Grades and scores count, but so do all of the other aspects of what you can convey about who you are and what youve achieved. VT: What tips do you have for students asking their teachers for letters of recommendation? Deena: I suggest they bring a resum to their teacher, to give them a more full understanding as to who they are outside the classroom. I also suggest students hold onto their best pieces of work from that class and are able to really articulate important issues they learned about or why that class was important to them. Do whatever you can to make the process easier for your teacher, and don't forget to waive your right to see the recommendation, and to thank your teacher for their help! For more information, visit UndergradAdmit.com. The views expressed in this article do not necessarily represent the views of Varsity Tutors.

How to Create an ACT Prep Plan

How to Create an ACT Prep Plan As youre beginning to think about the ACT, you may feel a bit overwhelmed. Theres certainly a lot to think about when to take the test, what areas need the most work, and how exactly youre going to get to where you need to be. The good news is, by thinking about your ACT prep plan now, youre already setting yourself up for success! As you begin, youll need to take an honest look at your strengths and weaknesses, your schedule, and the score you wish to receive. Be truthful as you complete this self-reflection to create an ACT prep plan that will work for you. Set your schedule As you begin establishing your schedule, it can be helpful to work backwards. When would you like to take the ACT? When do your prospective schools require that you submit your score? Registering for a test date is a great way to know how long youve got to study, which will help dictate your study plan. Once youre registered, you can begin planning based on how long youve got to perfect your score. Once you know how much time youve got, youll need to decide when to focus your energy. Later, you can decide exactly how much time goes toward what subject, but for now, simply decide how long each day or week you can dedicate to studying. Make a tentative schedule, even if it is relatively vague to start. Familiarize yourself with the test Before you get into subject-specific study, youll want to familiarize yourself with the overall structure of the exam. Look at subject breakdowns, timing, and additional requirements. Look at score requirements for different schools and think about different timelines that might work for you. Get familiar with the universal aspects of the ACT so you feel more comfortable with the process as you approach the more serious business of studying. [RELATED: What is an Average ACT Score?] Find out what areas need your time If youre a math whiz, you may need to spend less time preparing for this area. Similarly, prospective English majors may not need to boast extremely high scores in science. Figure out what areas your schools require you to excel in (or what areas you hope to score highly in), as these may become your top areas of focus. Youll also want to find out where you need extra help. To do this, think about your strong subjects in school and those you may have a more difficult time with. This should give you a pretty good idea of areas to focus on. You may also consider taking some ACT practice tests, which will provide insight into which areas you perform best or poorly on. Doing this a couple of times should be able to help you identify what areas require the most time. Form a study plan by subject Now that you know what youre going to study, youll want to establish a study plan that will help you meet your test prep goals. The most effective way to do this is to form study plans based upon the various subjects youll need to review. You may also want to divide each subject into more specific categories, allowing you to really focus your attention where its necessary for instance, if science is one of your weaker subjects, which specific scientific concepts give you the most trouble? Once youve got the list of your subjects, decide how much time you can allot toward their study. Find your learning style Because we all learn in different ways, it is important that you know what will empower you to succeed. By identifying what methods have best helped you study in the past, you can make an ACT prep plan that will be most effective for you. Once youre familiar with the way you learn best, you can take next steps record lectures, seek out podcasts, make visual maps, form study groups, download a prep book, etc. Remember that you can make almost any amount of study time work for you as you develop your ACT prep plan. Sure, a student with a year to study might have a plan that operates a little differently than a student with three months, but both can be mastered with the right approaches. By thinking about how youll prepare for the ACT ahead of time, your studying will undoubtedly be more productive. Any topics you want to know more about? Let us know! The Varsity Tutors Blog editors love hearing your feedback and opinions. Feel free to email us at blog@varsitytutors.com.

How Much Vocab Do you Really Need to Know for the GRE

How Much Vocab Do you Really Need to Know for the GRE GRE/MAT Graduate School Blog Do you remember studying a ton of vocabulary for your SAT back in high school? Well, you probably took SAT right before the ETS reconfigured the whole thing and removed the vocabulary section. That’s right, nowadays high school students don’t have to memorize a giant list of vocabulary to succeed on the standardized tests that get them into universities. Such a pleasure is reserved entirely for grown adults who want to get into the grad school. Why does the GRE have Text Completion questions? Remember that the GRE is supposed to act as a totally level playing field, that gives test takers across the country an equal shot regardless of the schools they went to, the areas they majored in, or, frankly, the time they spent in the library during undergrad. One gauge of how prepared someone is to succeed in grad school is how strong her vocabulary is, especially since academia revolves so much around writing and publishing research. Therefore, a strong performance on the GRE’s Verbal Reasoning section doesn’t just communicate that you can analyze text well, but that you can hold your own with your soon-to-be peers. That’s right, you need a strong vocabulary for the GRE. Okay, so how many words do I have to learn? Some resources list around 350, and the lists you find in test prep books can range in scope from 900 to 4,500. The best rule of thumb is to push yourself to study a lot of words but to keep it manageable. Try to keep it under 1,000 to give yourself a reasonable goal. Any amount much higher than that can just end up being overwhelming and potentially discourage you from taking up an impactful study routine. Keep in mind that the average adult English speaker knows upwards of 40,000 words, so making sure you have a firm grasp of an extra 600 to 1,000 especially impressive ones really isn’t that huge of a task. The real secret is to study your GRE vocab daily, even on weekends. Make flashcards for a new 50 to 100 words each week and study for as many minutes a day as you need to in order to feel confident with that set of vocabulary before you add new words for your pile next week. You can find lists of vocab like this one from GreenLight Test Prepwith some quick Googling, and there are services like Memorang that provide pre-made flashcards for the GRE as well. Any time you see a word you don’t recognize on a practice test or in drills in a test book, jot it down and add it to next week’s pile. Lastly, make sure to keep reviewing the old vocabulary, since you are not just trying to retain these words for test day, but for grad school. What do I do if I see a word I don’t know on the test? This is an inevitable situation. Come to peace with the fact that you won’t know every single word on the GRE now to save yourself a minor freakout when you’re actually taking the exam. The best way to deal with Text Completion questions is to use process of elimination. Let’s take a look at one: Perhaps you are looking at the answer choices for the first blank and don’t know what “maladroitness” means. You can still make a confident decision about whether the other choices do or don’t work. Based on the context, we know we want a word that suggests nature sets an example to follow. We can eliminate quirkiness because that has nothing to do with an example to follow, and keep preeminence. Does “preeminence” work in that blank? It absolutely does. If you have to choose between a good answer and one you didn’t understand, choose the good one. If nothing good remains, choose the one you don’t understand. If it’s a toss up, choose the one you don’t understand since that may just be the best one after all. Don’t avoid an answer choice simply because you don’t know the vocab. About the Author Mike S. is one of our most experienced test prep tutors. For more information on our GRE prep packages, click here.

What Motivates People - Private Tutoring

What Motivates People BobbiM Mar 31, 2014 Read this wonderful section from the book , You may not realize it but you are always motivated. No matter where you are or what you are doing, you are always motivated to do something even if its just sleeping. Focusing your motivation on learning, however, may be challenging sometimes. Its important to understand right from the beginning that you are responsible for your own motivation, even in courses that you dont like. Although an interesting instructor makes it easier for you do stay motivated, no one can directly motivate you to learn. But given that you are always motivated to do something and that you are primarily responsible for your motivation, there are some differences between students who are motivated to learn and students who are not. You may have heard the terms INTRINSIC and EXTRINSIC, especially as they relate to motivation. Intrinsic motivation occurs when the activity is its own reward. For example, some people read for the sheer enjoyment, others like to calculate numbers for the pleasure of it. Still others like to conduct experiments for the thrill of discovery. Think of intrinsic privation as being curious about something or doing something you choose to do. Extrinsic motivation, on the other hand, occurs when your incentive is a reward, such as grades or praise. Think of extrinsic motivation as trying to get it done rather than for the sake of learning. For example, you may be failing organic chemistry, but when the professor offers an extra credit assignment, you decide to do it even though you are not motivated to learn in the course. In this case, you are extrinsically motivated to earn extra credit points that can boost your course grade rather than by learning organic chemistry for the sheer pleasure of it. The more you are intrinsically motivated to learn, the easier learning will be for you. The key to becoming intrinsically motivated, even in classes you dont particularly like, is to find SOMETHING about the course that you find motivating and try to focus on the positives about the course rather than the negatives. It also helps to focus more in understanding the concepts to be learned rather than focusing solely on grades. Excerpt from  College Success Strategies  by Sherrie L. Nist and Jodi Patrick Holschuh.

I Want to Learn Another Language! A Guide for the Absolute Beginner

I Want to Learn Another Language! A Guide for the Absolute Beginner I Want to Learn Another Language! A Guide for the Absolute Beginner You can do it.And yes, Im talking to you.Whether you flunked out of high school German, were too embarrassed to even attempt a bonjour on your visit to Paris, or were only able  to stick with  your New Years resolution for three days,  youâ€"my dear, dear readerâ€"can learn another language!Im not going to pretend that its easy for everyone. Some geniuses  seem to soak up languages like sponges, whereas people with certain learning disabilities can face significant challenges.For the rest of us, language learning is somewhere in the middleâ€"it can be both immensely frustrating yet also  immensely rewarding, often both at the same time. It might take you months to handle a concept that someone else grasps instinctively in minutesâ€"and vice-versa.But whatever the outcome, the joy and benefits of communicating in another language are real and attainable. Even more importantly, the process of getting there is thrilling.This post will take apart both of these aspects for those who are t otally new to language learning, or for whom it has seemed like an insurmountable challenge in the past. I Want to Learn Another Language! A Guide for the Absolute BeginnerI come at this from my  perspective as a  former language teacher and  an experienced learner of languages, by the way,  with  my  own set of successes and major challenges when confronting a language. (For a book-long academic take on the same subject, and one that has informed my learning style and advice, check out  How Languages Are Learned.)Define Your Principal Motivation(s) for Learning the LanguageHaving a quality  reason for learning a language is central to everything that comes in the weeks, months, and, yes, years that you will later spend studying, speaking, enjoying and maintaining it.Lets look at some examples. What do you think about the following reasons for learning a language? Are they likely to lead to success?I want to have a second language on my CV.I want to seem like a more intellectual/e ducated/international sort of person.I want cute guys/girls to notice me in a bar when I answer my phone in another language.Sure,  there is no problem with folks wanting these  things out of life, and the last goal even has the benefit of being  specific. But language learning is a long, challenging journey, and what none of these motivations provides is a personal, compelling reason to focus on improving your communication.Compare the motivations above with these:I want to be able to flirt with the Russian girl in my yoga class.I want to place my order in good African  restaurants in French.I want to understand the lyrics of marabenta music.I want to be able to make sales to clients in Brazil.I want to hang out  and make meaningful friends at salsa events.Can you see how the latter motivations offer specific objectives for study that will keep you coming back to your grammar book with a sense of excitement rather than duty?Language learning is toughâ€"when youre on your thousandth Chinese character or trying to crack the mysteries of Russian cases, it can help enormously if your overall motivation is connected in some way to the detail that youre trying to learn that day.And if its not connected, guess what: Often you can skip it! Theres no reason, for example, to spend much time with the Arabic writing system if your ultimate driving motivation is a desire  to be able to chat with Lebanese relatives (whose oral language doesnt much resemble standard Arabic).I may always be looking to improve my vocabulary even in my mother tongue English, but I will probably never be fluent in baseball or physics jargon. I pick my battles in any language, based on what I like doing with it.Your motivation might even mean that fluency (whatever that is) is not necessary or desirable; theres immense joy and usefulness to be had with low-level, rudimentary and even silly communication in another language.Use Your Overarching Motivation  to Set Achievable Short-term Communicati ve GoalsThis overarching motivation above can then be broken down and used to set your week-to-week and lesson-to-lesson short term goals. Such goals should of course be specific, small, compelling and fun. The connection to your overall motivation then makes them personal to youâ€"something that you cant wait to dive into before and will really remember after.If my  motivation, for example, concerned sales to  Brazilian clients, goals that I might set for individual weeks would include, at various points in the long  process:I want to be able to answer the phone in Portuguese.I want to be able to exchange pleasantries.I want to properly use a formal, business registerâ€"and understand when its likely that I will switch to informal Portuguese with clients.I want to understand the culture of dealmaking in Brazil.I want to be able to describe our key products specs in Portuguese.All of these are great small goals that connect back to the overall motivation. For more on setting good an d  specific lesson goals, see the link at the top of this section.Tools for Language Learning That Are Linked to Your MotivationWeve covered a lot of the best tools for language learning, but a key point to make here is that your choice of tools will vary enormously according to the motivation that is driving your learning process.To give one example, I own a Serbian textbook that gives lots of history on old, literary Serbian that most modern speakers dont even know or use. As interesting as it all is, my principal motivation for learning is to be able to enjoy a  rakija when Im with friends in the Balkans and to complain together about life, so I focus rather on lessons about  sevdahlinka  songs (tragedy-tinged Bosnian laments), which give me the vocabulary that I enjoy and am more likely to actually use. Watching videos on the Internet and pausing to analyze, look up and make sentences from the new structures is thus a very  useful learning method for me.If your overarching motiv ation  involves listening, speaking or cultural elements, watching videos can be an important part of your learning process  too. FluentU provides the perfect integrated video-based tool for language learnersâ€"taking  real-world videos and transforming  them into personalized language lessons.For nearly all learners, some sort of textbook and language classes or online language exchange sessions will also be appropriate. But as much as possible, try to ensure that these are geared towards the reason that you are learning the language. Grammar, for most, is a means, not an end. You dont want to learn the literary past tense in French if you have no intention of ever writing a great French novel, for example, but you will definitely want to learn the spoken past tenses if you want to be able to hold a basic conversation in which you talk about things that youve done.For those interested in oral communication, the Teach Yourself  language books  tend to be very good for many languages ; but they  should often not be your choice if your goal is to read and write the academic version of a language.Staying Motivated as You LearnIf you have a good overarching motivation and your day-to-day goals are connected to it, your desire to learn at each lesson should be nearly automatic. That said, youll want to include a certain amount of variation as well as try  methods like these for integrating language learning into your life.Here are a few tips for creating a routine that you can stick with:Track your goals: Keep a notebook with the goals youve set for yourself; theres a lot of satisfaction  in being able to cross them off your list.Make it social: Interact with other learners, whether online or in conversation groups. And, of course, try to interact with native speakers as much as possible. Humans are social animals, so  doing this project with others will make it more compelling.Make it daily:  Ive found that even a small amount of time every day (like a half-hour) c an be far superior to setting aside a few hours once a week for a class or a study session. When a language is part of your daily life, you dont forget your lessons as easily, and you find yourself thinking about what youre learning and how you can use it at many points throughout the day.Integrate learning with your media consumption: Consuming the news, podcasts and entertainment  media in your target language rather than your own language provides incentives to learn and a richer experience with the language.Without giving any false hope for what is certainly an enormous undertaking, my wish is that you are leaving this post now with a more concrete and personally motivating desire to jump headlong into language learning.Your fling with a Russian girl/first sale in Portuguese/conversation with the Lebanese grandparents will be a great reward, sure, but with  whatever motivation you have in mind, the process itself will also hopefully be quite fun.Mose Hayward blogs about language s, including  the lack of smiling in  Russian flirting,  and why you thus might want to buy a  gas station.

ALOHA Parent Testimonial - Dublin, CA - ALOHA Mind Math

ALOHA Parent Testimonial - Dublin, CA Parent Testimonial Following is an ALOHA Parent Testimonial Spring 2014. We surveyed some of our students and their parents about the programs we offer at ALOHA and this is one of the testimonials we received. Abhiram Mokkapati Parents Sivaprasad Prapurna Mokkapati Dublin, California Aishwarya Koneru, owner We, the parents of Abhiram Mokkapati and Suhas Mokkapati, really appreciate ALOHA mind math program. It has improved our kids to learn math faster. We recommend that other kids join if possible. We attribute 100 % success to ALOHA. We liked the way ALOHA uses for the student to learn math and my kid loved doing it! Right from addition to fractions, ALOHA has been working with my kid. ALOHA helped our son Abhi to excel in school. He has been scoring 95%. If Abhi would not have joined ALOHA, he would have missed the joy of learning math in a different style. We highly recommend that any student join mind math. Even we learned something new from our kid doing math in a different style.