It is important to find the perfect college roommate because that person will share an important part of your life. Here are a few tips to find the perfect college roommate:

1) Don’t look for a friend. This is the most important thing you need to realize. When looking for a roommate, don’t look for people you like. Look for people you trust. This is a business agreement you are going to enter in. You should only do so with people who are trustworthy.

2) Get a roommate who goes to the same school as you. Always go with somebody who has the same kind of college schedule as you whenever possible. Nothing sucks more than having a roommate that is chilling at home while you are at school.

3) Go for the nerds. Always go for the quiet and studious types. That kind of roommate tends to be more reliable in terms of paying the rent and the bills on time.

4) Always sign a contract. Always sign a roommate agreement so that everything is out in the open. This way, there can be no backing out or sudden changes to the agreement. A hand shake is never as strong as a contract.

Good Luck!

College dating is not an easy thing in college or anywhere else. But just because college dating is hard doesn’t mean that it can’t be done. Here are a few proven and effective college dating techniques that you can use in order to get a date:

Date in College Tip#1

Don’t try to date. This might seem counter-intuitive but it is the first thing to do. Don’t try to find or get a date. People who try have an air of desperation about them that is actually unappealing. So be cool and act like you are not really interested. Nothing is more attractive that somebody that seems unattainable.

Date in College Tip#2

Get charismatic. Once you stop trying to date, you start to develop an attitude that screams coolness and that attracts attention without seeming to try. This little bit is called charisma. So walk like you are never in any hurry. Listen like you are really interested. Smile like you find things amusing.

Date in College Tip#3

Use silence as your friend. When talking to your potential date, don’t be afraid of silences. People tend to panic when there is silence in a conversation. Use those silences by acting like you are thinking of something but you don’t want to say it. That will actually push your potential date to break the silence giving you the upper hand.

Date in College Tip#4

Always talk about the other person. 90% of the conversation should be about the person you are interested in. Always act like their opinion is important to you. People respond very well to that attentive attitude. Basically college dating is about others, not yourself.

Date in College Tip#5

Know yourself. This might sound out of context but people who are good at dating tend to be people who know themselves very well. They know what they want, what they like and more importantly what they don’t like. This will allow you to send out the right vibes out there when you are talking to a potential date.

Date in College Tip#6

Do not fear failure. People often don’t do anything because they fear rejection. They do not see that dating rejection is not a failure but an opportunity in disguise. We always learn more from our dating failures than from our successes. So don’t be scared.

To illustrate this miracle of college life, I will tell you the story of Dan:

Dan is a Junior college student. He has a part-time job at the student bookstore, a demanding girlfriend and a lot of work for his classes.
He is taking 12 units this semester but he is having a tough time juggling all the priorities in his life. What can he do to make is life easier?

Online courses

He tries to find out if he can take any of his classes online. More and more colleges offer this easy alternative to real life classes. And the sweet part about it is that everything is online, even the exams. He enrolls in an online class, which leaves only 9 units of classes to go to on campus. That’s where the Credit/No Credit policy comes in.

Credit/No Credit policy

This is a policy that exists in every college and although there are some differences, most of them are pretty much the same: They allow you to take one or two classes without having to get a grade for it, just a Credit/No Credit. This is awesome because you only need a C to have a credit. It doesn’t even matter if you get an A, you will still get a Credit. So you only need to make the minimum necessary to get a C and you are golden. Now wouldn’t that be an easy college semester, Dan?

So here is Dan with only 6 units of actual class that he has to work for this semester. The rest is a manageable breeze.

Note: the sweet thing is when you can take two classes Credit/No Credit and an online class. My god, how much easier can a semester be?

So here you go, Students. An easy college semester on the house.

There will come a time where you will be faced with many student loan choices regarding financing your education. Maybe that time has come already. Here are some few helpful tips on how to choose a good student loan package:

1) The first thing you need to know is that there are three types of student loans available out there:

• Federal Student Loans made to students directly

These loans are available to college and university students and are used to supplement individual and family resources, and the financial aid package offered by your college. They may be subsidized by the U.S. Government, or may be unsubsidized depending on the student’s financial need. Subsidized and unsubsidized student loans are pretty similar in nature. The main difference is that for subsidized loans, the government pays the interest rates of the loan while the student is still in school. You can only borrow a certain amount of Federal Student Loans. In January 2006, it was $2,800 per year for freshman undergraduate students and increases each year up to $5,500 per year for junior and senior undergraduate students.

Student Advantage: No payments until 6 months after graduation.

• Federal Student Loans made to parents

They are called PLUS loans (Parent Loans for Undergraduate Students). Usually, parents are able to borrow much more than students. However, there is no grace period whatsoever. Payments start immediately.

Student Advantage: Your parents are responsible for the loan, not YOU.

• Private Student Loans made to students or parents

These are education loans made to students and parents by private finance companies: banks, specialized education financial lenders. They generally offer higher loan limits than government loans, ensuring the student is not left with a budget gap.

Student Advantage: No payments until 6 months after graduation, sometimes for as long as 12 months.

2) The next thing you need to consider is how much you can spend on your own. Only get a student loan if you have no other choice. It should always be your last resort, not your first one. It might seem cool to borrow now and pay later but it generally isn’t. So make sure you really need the student loan.

3) Now if you decide that you need that student loan, take only as much as you need and never borrow more than you need. It might only seem like a couple of hundred bucks right now but it will quickly rise to thousands of dollars in student loans in a few years.

4) Whatever you borrow, always make a point of paying back a little of it every month, especially when you are in school. Paying back your student loan while you have no interest running on will pay off in the future.

Now go get that Student Loan!

Getting a student credit card can allow you to build a good credit history and give you experience in budgeting your daily life. Here are a few tips to help you get a student credit card:

1) Start by researching what kind of companies offer student credit cards. You can use our search engine to do so. Look for sites that offer comparison of different types of student credit cards.

2) Always apply online. Most lenders offer instant approval and it will allow you to get your student credit card faster.

3) Never answer any student credit card offer you get in the mail no matter how good they look. If you do, you will start receiving even more junk mail in your mailbox.

4) A good rule of thumb when deciding which student credit card to choose is to answer YES at all of these following questions:
- Does this student credit card offer no annual fees?
- Does this student credit card offer a low interest rate?
- Does this student credit card offer online payments?
If the answer to all of these questions is yes, then it’s an acceptable offer for a student credit card..

5) Only apply to one student credit card at a time. If you apply to multiple lenders, this will negatively affect your credit history.

6) If you get declined, as a last resort you can request a secure credit card from your bank. This will require you to open and maintain a savings account as security for your line of credit. Your credit line will be a percentage of that deposit. It’s not as great but it will still help you achieve the same goals.

A good credit history is a vital tool for students who wants to:

- Get a student credit card

- Buy a student car

- Buy a house

- Get a department store card

- Get a cell phone plan (yes, good credit helps for that too)

Unfortunately most students don’t pay enough attention to building their credit, and who can blame them; it’s not like there is a high school course that teaches you how to do this.

So here are a few tips to help you out:

1) Start by getting a free credit report from all three credit agencies to know what health your student credit is in.
FREE Credit Report and Credit Score

2) If you are starting to build your student credit history, first thing you need to do is get a student credit card, preferably one with a low credit limit ($500 max.). Once you have that, you will use your student credit card to pay for your REGULAR expenses (groceries, gas, movies) and that’s it. It is very important that you use this student credit card for stuff that you would pay for anyway. This allows you to be able to fully pay off your student credit card at the end of each month.
So for example:
- Say you usually spend a $100 bucks a month on gas.
- Put that $100 on the side
- You use your student credit card to pay for gas.
- You pay back your student credit card in full with the money you put aside
It’s that simple! This will help you build the student credit history of a serious consumer who always pays back his debts.

3) Never use your first student credit card to pay for EXTRAORDINARY expenses. If you can’t afford it by yourself, then don’t buy it. This might sound harsh but it will pay off later on when you move into your dream house with a low monthly mortgage because you have a good credit score.

4) Once you have done this for about 9 months, apply for a department store credit card like a Best Buy card. And do the same thing as you did for your student credit card. This will help improve you student credit score even more.

5) Always try to pay your students credit card in full. Nothing beats a zero balance on your credit report to improve your credit history. If you are in bind and you can’t pay all your student credit cards off, try at least to pay 80% of the balance so that your credit score does not suffer.

6) Rinse and Repeat. Basically, if you keep this simple formula going on for a few years, by the time you graduate from college you will have a stellar credit score. And you will see your credit card providers increasing your limit on your student credit cards because you are making them sweat for their money.

Here are a few links that I compiled to help you out:

CreditReporting.com

FIND OUT what’s in your CREDIT REPORT TODAY – so it’s 100% ACCURATE TOMORROW. Order a 3-BUREAU REPORT from CreditReporting.com.

Order a 3-BUREAU CREDIT REPORT from CreditReporting.com for $34.90. SEE what’s in your report TODAY to insure 100% accuracy TOMORROW!

You have all heard of the Freshmen Ten, the Ten pounds you gain the first couple of months of college. This is an unavoidable side effect of going to college. Here are a few tips on how to lose that weight:

Go to the gym

It sounds simple but there is no other way. But this time, when you go, just focus on doing cardio. Sweat and get to a point where you are close to get out breath. If you want to lose that weight fast, go 45 mn to 1 hour every other day. This part sucks but this bit will help you raise your metabolism so your body processes energy more efficiently.

Hit the weights

Once you have spent at least 1 week doing cardio, it’s time to hit the weights. Weight training has the advantage of giving you bigger muscles that require more energy, hence boosting your metabolism even higher. You will look better and lose weight faster with weight training. It is beneficial to do 20 to 30 mn of intense weight training session in addition to your cardio. Try to do one muscle group per day. So Legs one day, Arms another day, chest another day. Variety will keep you muscles guessing and tell your body that it needs to burn more fat.

Stop doing Crunches

Wow, what a novel idea, right? People always tell you that doing crunches will bring you that six pack abs. That is a bunch of bull. Only two things will bring you that look: Serious cardio and a different diet. Doing crunches only tones the muscle but doesn’t reduce the fat in the belly. Just do the normal exercise routine and the abs will come on their own.

Change that Diet

Stop eating junk food. Not all together, but at least don’t make it a daily habit. Try to eat more fruit and veggies on a daily basis. A balanced meal is crucial to make your weight loss effective. Stop drinking sodas every time you have lunch. Try water or juice instead. Look at the labels of your food. If you see corn syrup as an ingredient, don’t buy it. Buy organic whenever you can.

Movies are very expensive to make. However, people still want to make films. And in order to make a movie, you need money. Getting money is hard, and when you are a student, you usually do not have much money to start with.
Typically, student films do not cost as much as bigger movies; this mostly comes from the fact that they use lower quality material.
There are different ways to finance a student film:

Your own money

As a general rule, it is better not to put up your own money for your student film if you can get money somewhere else. But let’s be honest, you will most likely have to put some of your own money if you want to make a good student film. If you do not have money to invest in your student film right this minute, think about saving some while you start developing your idea and getting everything ready. By the time you are ready to start you will have some money aside to start pre-production or production of your student film.

Parent’s money

If your parents are supportive of your career choice, you might want to think about asking them to help sponsor your student film. You shouldn’t ask them to give you the money, but you should put it to them as an investment for your student film. It is an investment for the start of your career. You should present it to them like you would present your plan to an investor.
And if you are lucky and your parents have money, you might even get enough money to make a pretty decent student film.

Family’s money

In addition to your parents, some of you might have some family who are ready to support you and invest in your student film. Again, present it to them as an investment and not as just giving you money.

Friends’ money

Most likely, your friends will not have much more money than you do, but they might be willing to help. Even if they do not have money, they can put their skills at your service during the production of your student film.

Sponsors

This is a great way to either get more money or free equipment or service.
You would be surprised at how easy it is to get people to give you money or give you services for free.
The best way for you to get those is if your student film touches some issues that people find important (ex: AIDS, WWII, etc.)
Then try to find an organization or association that supports this issue. Arrange a meeting with them. Be very professional, they have no reason to do you a favor, but you have to show them why they should. Go there prepared, have a kit with you with pictures and information about your student film (it is best if you already have a location where you will be shooting your film, some of the main crew, equipment needed, and anything relevant to the making of your student film.

Have a plan. Tell them what you plan to do with the film (festival, theatrical distribution, etc.) If you do your job well, you might get out of your meeting with some money in your pocket to finance your student film.

Getting services for free is also a great tool. For example, if you are shooting your film on 16mm or 35mm, film can be expensive as well as processing, but wouldn’t it be great if you could get all that for free or at least for a discounted price? You can.
Pretty much the same principles as for getting money apply here: present your project to the people in charge and hopefully they will be willing to help. (You might wonder why anybody would want to give services for free. Well, let’s just say that if you make it big, you are likely to go back to them, but this time with money. They are building their client list.)

Credit Card

You could always put some of your expenses on your credit card and pay them back once you get the money, but I wouldn’t recommend it. Getting into debt over a student film is not a great way to start your career.

Loan

As a very last resort you could always take out a loan. But I wouldn’t recommend it. Before you do that, you should try to lower your budget or find solutions to make your student film cheaper.

Donations

If your student film touches some social issues, you might be able to get some donations for it. Try to find some non-profit organization that might be willing to support your student film.

Now go out and make that film!