Earning my degree through distance gave me the tools to find success in working remotely and in working freelance. While the courses themselves did not relate, directly, to the type of work I am doing now, these courses did give me the skill set I needed to be able to cope with multiple projects and… Read more »
With the school year well underway, students are feeling the pressures of academic life. Depending on work and study load, family obligations, and present living circumstances, the road to a degree can seem impossible. However, arming ourselves with a clear stress management plan protects us from stress meltdowns. Soon we’ll see we can weather the… Read more »
When writing term papers, seek titles that sing, “Something catchy is coming.” Then tweak those titles until your thumbs stiffen. To craft catchy titles, first master the art of slogan-writing. Mario Pricken, author of Creative Advertising, shares tips for crafting slogans in bold below: Never snub creative ideas as the best ones need tweaking. At… Read more »
I have been informed that I am unpleasant to be around when I am sick. This comes as no surprise, as I find myself quite unpleasant to be around when I am sick and tend to wish I wasn’t around at all. It also tends to make me work slow and my brain is foggy,… Read more »
When I arrived at the Student Town Hall in Ottawa last week, I knew I was in the right place. In a room set up for fifty, each of the students already there were sitting as far apart from each other as possible. AU students, it seems, are so accustomed to their solitary studies that… Read more »
Electric blues guitarist and singer-songwriter Hamish Anderson calls himself a student of “the three kings:” blues royalty Albert King, B.B. King, and Freddie King, and in fact Anderson was the last act to open for B.B. King before the blues icon passed away. Having moved from his native Australia to Los Angeles to steep himself… Read more »
“Kids think with their brains cracked wide open; becoming an adult, I’ve decided, is only a slow sewing shut.” Jodi Picoult There is a place on the borderlands of our consciousness, where the great beasts of human inventiveness—human potential—frolic and prowl. It is the realm where art and science, left brain attention to detail and… Read more »
Being focused is great. Determination to find your way on a path, also great—and necessary. But it is important to keep an open mind as you work toward a goal—to allow yourself room to grow and to grant yourself permission to change that goal. This was something I did, for the first time, throughout my… Read more »
This week, our feature interview is with the Acting Associate Vice President for Research at AU, Dr. Pamela Hawranik. Scott Jacobsen talks to her about her background and about how AU might look at expanding research opportunities to undergraduate students. I also want to draw your attention to Tara Panrucker’s piece this week, as she… Read more »
From the moment that they sign up for a course, AU students know they are in a unique learning situation compared to other university students because of the self-directed learning format. Even if they weren’t familiar with it before, AU students discover that they alone are responsible for their learning—no falling asleep in the back… Read more »