One of the most important things to your career and future after college is getting some experience in your field; the only problem is you are still a college student. Many companies will skim over your resume and probably throw it away.  If you are lucky you might get a call back from a company who is willing to give you a chance.  Most of the time it really comes down to who you know and not what you know.  If your dad is the VP at some company you will most likely get a job there because your dad pushed your application through.  You may also know someone who works in the specific field you are interested in and that could be your window of opportunity to getting a job, but more importantly getting some experience in your field.   What if you are the ladder?

What if you don’t know anyone in your field?  What if your dad isn’t the VP of some company that can give you a job tomorrow?  Then what?  Be prepared for a lot of frustration and rejection.  I hate to tell it like it is but it all comes down to who you know and not what you know.  If you don’t know anyone that can help you get your foot in the door then you’ll probably fight an uphill battle to get some experience in your field.  You can’t just sit back and wait for someone to find you, or something good to come along, you have to go out and make it happen yourself.  This will only strengthen your personal skills and your confidence as you will get a lot of practice meeting new people and talking about your skills and experiences.  You’ll also be able to identify your weaknesses and be able to make them better.

Most employers are looking for the perfect candidate to fit their position and their are probably a lot of people who will apply for the same job that you do, and may be more qualified then you.  So what do you do in this cut- throat process of finding experience in your field?  Stand out from the rest.  Find things that you have done in life that makes you better than the others.  Identify your biggest strengths and then emphasize them on your resume and during interviews. What makes you better than the rest?  If you can’t think of anything then find something to do in your free time which will make you stand out from the rest.

My example is simple:  I’ve always wanted to own and operate a website ever since I can remember so I decided to learn web design and development one summer break during college.  SMB College Life is what I have to show for my initiative.  I studied web design and development on my free time, observed a lot of other websites and finally came up with the perfect combination to present as my ‘final work.’  The best part is that employers love it.  Most people I talk to love the fact that I say I want to do something, and then learn the things that I need to in order to do it.  This is what makes me different from others.  While most people talk about they things that they want to do and identify the things that stand in their way but never take action I actually take the necessary actions and learn what I need to in order to do the things I want.  Great things come out of taking action and you’ll have a great experience to talk about which helps you to stand out from the rest at your next interview.  Good Luck!

We are finally pleased to announce that our new SMB College Life Planning Guide is complete. Our 26 page planning guide is loaded with information that will help students to plan for their college education. Included in our planning guide is all the content from the planning section of our website. We have also added new content to add more information to help students. There is also a savings section in our planning guide which offers savings on specific items that students will need going into their first year of college. This planning guide is perfect for high school juniors and seniors as it will help guide you along the right path of planning your college education so that you can save and succeed throughout your college life.

You can read more about our planning guide at www.smbcollegelife.com/Planning.php?info=planningguide. Here you will find all the specifics of our planning guide, the contents, and our overall goals with the release of this guide. You will also find that we offer special discounts to school advisers and counselors who plan to customize their order or place a large quantity order. This planning guide is a perfect value for any student who is looking to further their education through college. It is also perfect for schools who are looking to increase the number of students who attend college after graduation. School counselors are always out numbered by students and have to spend time throughout the year talking to each individual student about their future plans. Sometimes counselors just don’t have the time to talk to each and every student, so what options do those students have who never see the guidance counselor?? Our solution is simple;

Counselors and schools can offer the SMB College Life Planning Guide to all their juniors and seniors so that every student will have the knowledge they need to further their education. If questions arise the counselor can further guide students in the proper direction. This solution will eliminate the need for counselors to explain the entire planning process to ever student so that they can focus more on the specific needs of each individual student.

Other college planning guides are loaded with useless information and can cost $40 or more while our guide is simple, direct and efficient in delivering only the information that you need to succeed. Don’t waste time and money when you can turn to our guide to help you plan, save, and succeed in college. For a small investment you will be well on your way to a successful college future. Check it out! It’s really worth the price.

Summer is the perfect time to search for financial aid to pay for college. Graduating seniors, and soon-to-be seniors should spend a good amount of time this summer searching for scholarships, grants and other forms of financial aid to pay for college.  Utilizing the time off from school to search for financial aid can be very rewarding as you find the means to pay for some or all of your college expenses.  Be sure to visit the following pages at the website for more information beginning your searches this summer:

• Financial Aid
  www.smbcollegelife.com/Planning.php?info=financialaid
  
  
• Scholarships
  www.smbcollegelife.com/Planning.php?info=scholarships
• Grants
  www.smbcollegelife.com/Planning.php?info=grants

Review these pages and you will be well on your way to finding the funding you need for college. If you are a graduating senior and have completed the FAFSA from for 2008-2009 then you can expect to receive the results of your financial aid eligibility within the next few months if you have not already received them.  If you have not filled out the 2008-2009 FAFSA form then you will need to complete it before the June 30th deadline.

Be sure to also utilize our recommended resources on each of the above pages for additional information on the specific topic.  We’ve recommended these resources because we feel they will also help you to plan, save and succeed in your college life. We believe that having more resources is much better than having none and that more resources will make your college life easier than ours was.  With the right resources and proper planning, your college education can be inexpensive and fairly easy to obtain.

Picture from pro.corbis.com

Some students might be preparing this weekend for finals while others may have a few days or weeks before finals begin. Whatever you case may be you should remember a few important things while studying for this round of finals. The number one thing is to take care of yourself.

1. Students often tend to skip out on meals, or eat quick and unhealthy ones because they are swamped with studying. If you remember to eat right, and healthy you ensure that you are getting the proper nutrients to perform at your highest level when it comes to studying or taking the test.
2. Get some sleep! I see so many students hanging out in the library until all hours of the morning and not getting proper sleep. I’m guilty of this myself so this is why I see other’s doing it. Just remember that it is important to sleep in order to rejuvenate yourself, especially before the final. All nighters before the big test NEVER work! Get some sleep and you will do 100% better.
3. Limit your coffee intake. I’m the first one to ramp up my coffee intake in order to drive myself to study more. I’ve found over the years that this tends to distract me more as I’m always running to the bathroom, or for more coffee. Caffeine also gives me a slight case of ADD so I’m usually less productive with large amounts of coffee.
4. Stress a lot less! If you study what you need to first, then study what you want to you will be a lot more prepared for the final exam and can feel less stressed. Also, eating and sleeping right, combined with less caffeine and healthy food, will keep your stress levels to a minimum.

I hope this helps as you prepare for you exams this term! Good luck and thanks for using SMB College Life!

Coming soon the SMB College Life is the Reach Program. We have designed this program to bridge a gap between students and organizations trying to help students. This is just one more way to show or dedication to helping high school students prepare for college. We want students to know about their options and learn what services and organizations they can turn to for help. We understand that some organizations can provide more help than we can on very specific topics of college planning and saving and for this reason we have decided to build the bridge to connect students with additional professional help. Shawn Borelli, founder of SMB College Life, thought long and hard about how we could help more students and the SMB College Life Reach Program was the solution.

With the launch of our reach program in early June, we are hoping to partner with other businesses and organizations that share our same dedication to helping students. We’re expecting our Reach Program to provide even more help to students in need of advise, help, and special services than ever before. Shawn comments on the new Reach Program saying:

“I just want to help more students though SMB College Life; even if it’s one student at a time. I’m tired of the lack of caring when it comes to helping students get into college. I know what it feels like to walk out of a financial aid office even more confused than when I walked in. I know what it’s like to search for information on college planning because I’ve done it on my own. It wasn’t easy, or inexpensive for me go to college and I’m hoping that with SMB College Life, as well as our new Reach Program, we will be able to relieve some of the stress and ease the college planning process for more students.”

As we continue to grow and expand our services we would like to differentiate ourselves from the normal financial aid advisers and resources making a commitment to each and every student who uses SMB College Life. We won’t push you out the door or leave you questioning whether or not you can make it through college. We are here to help students in any way possible by providing the information and resources they need to succeed, even if this means focusing on one student at a time.