Carrie Schmelkin
Web Editor, TMC
May 2012
You are browsing the archive for May 2012.
NCAA Football Coaches Red Flag Athletic Prospects' Use of Social Media
May 29, 2012We have heard about employers perusing Facebook, Twitter and any social media sites available to see if their seemingly perfect new employee really does not have any skeletons hidden in his/her closet and we have certainly heard college admissions experts warn high school juniors that colleges might frequent these sites as well to see what a “soon-to-be-admitted” college freshman does in his/her free time.
But little has been brought up about potential college athletes being watched and monitored over social media sites – until now. So, for all the Jeremy Lin and Stephen Strasburg wannabes out there, just know that in addition to coaches scouting you and following your every free throw and home run, they are also checking out your social media plays – particularly for you football players.
In fact, social media has quickly become the new way for coaches to communicate with potential recruits and almost every elite recruiter has a Facebook or Twitter account, or both, according to a recent blog post on AJC.
Teens Expelled for Twitter Posts That Reportedly Threatened Harm
May 23, 2012I’ll never forget one of the scariest moments as a seventh grader. Word spread like wild fire about a graffiti message scrawled on a student’s desk that announced the next day all kids and teachers in the school would die. For a building that housed both middle and high school students – and perhaps no more than 500 kids total – you can imagine how quickly word spread. And what was perhaps so shocking was that in a school in which everyone knew each other’s first, last and middle names, how could one want to hurt kids he/she had know since he/she was born?
Ravi Sentenced to 30 Days in Jail for Alleged Cyberbullying
May 21, 2012The defense and prosecution have given their statements, the evidence has been examined, the jury has made its conviction and now, the judge has laid his sentence: Dharun Ravi, the college student accused of reportedly using a web cam to spy on his roommate and then stream footage online, has been sentenced to 30 days in jail, 300 hours of community service and counseling, and restitution in the form of a $10,000 fine. He begins his sentence on May 31.
For those who have not been paying close attention to the trial of Ravi, here is a brief recap. In 2010, the world stood aghast as 18-year-old Tyler Clementi, a freshman at Rutgers University, jumped to his death after being the victim of online bullying.
Just How Valuable is that College Diploma?
May 17, 2012While this might come as a surprise, more than one quarter of the Top 20 “great jobs” you can nail without a college degree are in the tech sector; so why, then, are computer engineers, programmers and journalists slaving away in college labs and incurring astronomical debt?
In a new report produced by CarrerCast.com, positions ranging from a dental hygienist to an online advertising manager to a Web developer to an industrial machine repairer made the list of top 20 jobs you can nab sans diploma. And if it’s really true that you can earn $87,000 on average as an online advertising manger – without having to sit through stuffy college lectures about branding and keyword ad placement – then why fork over the almost $120,000 it costs to earn that advertising marketing degree when research is showing you have a great chance of landing that job anyways?
Because unless you are the Steve Jobs’s or Mark Zuckerberg’s of the world, you may have a hard time proving your worth with no education to back it.
Calling All College Students - Want a Tech Internship at TMC?
May 15, 2012For some of you, the sorrow has already sunk in. You are officially done with second semester at college; keg parties will be replaced with beach parties; and you can kiss goodbye your sweet four-bedroom, off campus apartment (with a full bed) for your childhood room at your parents house with, yes, that twin bed still full of stuffed animals. Then, the sorrow passes and anxiety and mild panic attacks begin as you are forced to come to terms with the fact that you were negligent in securing that summer internship or – even worse – applying to jobs. Hey, senior week is important!
Smartphones Quickly Becoming a Cheater's Best Friend
May 10, 2012When it comes to reminiscing about your college heyday, in addition to the stops down Memory Lane which include extracurricular activities, science recitation classes, frat parties and cramped living quarters, you might let out a chuckle or two when you think of how you helped your college roommate nail that thesis paper by rewriting (OK totally writing from scratch) a few of his paragraphs in exchange for being able to borrow his car to hit up the casino for the weekend. After all, it is college and we all do stupid things like stay out till 3 a.m. the night before a final, eat way too much pizza, and occasionally let our best buddy copy our paper for another class. Right?
14-Year-Old Student Sues Cyber Bullies for Libel
May 8, 2012It’s a lawsuit that no middle school student should ever have to file – a charge that her classmates’ excessive cyberbullying and jesting libeled her on Facebook. But for 14-year-old Alex Boston, that is exactly what the Georgia student had to do as she had reportedly been bullied on Facebook by two classmates. And, despite a direct plea to school officials and police to step in, the administration had done little to ameliorate the situation.
Earlier this month, Alex used an untraditional approach to stand up to her alleged tormentors; she handed them a libel lawsuit.
Step Away from Beer Pong and Charge Up the Laptop. Finals are Here!
May 3, 2012I may be far enough removed from college to know that the sight of a Class of 2012 T-shirt elicits the response “The Class of 2012, aww they are like babies!,” but I am certainly not that out of the loop to know exactly what all you college students are thinking these next few weeks: how do I fit in killer keg parties, one last run to my favorite campus diner and studying for finals in the few days I have left before the school year ends?
While I am certainly not here to give you advice on the first two (mostly because I know you will, without a doubt, make sure to play your last game of Flip Cup before summer), I will – as an older and wiser college graduate – shed some light on how to nail your finals.
The end of the school year is tough, no doubt. The weather is finally warming up, the prospect of seeing all your high school buddies is exhilarating and that feeling of “well I won’t see these people for three months” justifies all your actions those last few weeks.
Got a Bad Grade? Bring it up with the Computer
May 1, 2012You’ve certainly heard of the lazy student. You know that kid who pays his pal to write half his English essay, lifts his older sister’s college essay because, hey, she went to a different school, or types a bunch of key phrases into Google about “Romeo and Juliet” and comes up with a killer thesis statement? But the lazy teacher? Perhaps this is a new concept to you (unless you are a teacher and can think of that one less than stellar colleague).
