This week, South Sudan entered a state of unrest as the President accused his former Vice President of staging a coup d'etat, setting warring factions against each other. Back in the U.S., the American government is trying to mitigate the backlash that has resulted from the arrest of Indian official Deyvani Khobragade, who was arrested for allegedly underpaying her children's nanny. Russian President Vladimir Putin also made headlines this week by releasing long-imprisoned oil tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky, who has since flied to Berlin without showing any repentance for opposing Putin. Finally, the ceiling of London's Apollo Theatre collapsed Thursday night, injuring a few dozen theatergoers and prompting building inspections.

Welcome back to NEWSFLASH, giving you the week's biggest stories!

South Sudan Erupts In Civil Unrest

The world’s newest country plunged into disarray last week in a conflict now exacerbated by political, ethnic and economic concerns.

South Sudanese President Salva Kir accused his former Vice President Riek Machar of attempting a coup d’état, giving rise to factions of rebel troops that are wrestling control from the central government.

As the government attempts to solidify its hold over the capital, Juba, Machar has claimed the state of Unity near the Sudan-South Sudan border. Unity serves as South Sudan’s biggest oil producer, accounting for 95% of the country’s economy.

Gangs of Nuer and Dinka troops are also fighting one another, giving rise to a rivalry between two ethnic groups within South Sudan.

While the conflict has not yet been ruled a civil war, violence is quickly spreading across the country. Foreign troops have also been targeted, with two Indian peacekeepers killed in an airstrike and four U.S. soldiers injured as their aircraft was shot at during evacuation procedures.

U.S. And India At Odds Over Indian Diplomat’s Arrest

The arrest of an Indian consular official has momentarily darkened U.S.-India relations and shed a new light on the treatment of domestic workers everywhere.

Deyvani Khobragade, 39, was arrested in New York on fraud accusations that she attempted to circumvent “U.S. law designed to protect from exploitation the domestic employees of diplomats and consular officials.” Khobragade was taken into custody after dropping her daughters off at school.

According to U.S. officials, Khobragade falsified documents stating that she would pay her children’s nanny $4,500 per month. The nanny’s true salary, however, was only a mere $573 per month, almost $4,000 less than what official documents promised.

The Indian government is outraged at the police’s treatment of Khobragade, who was reportedly strip searched and held in a cell with common criminals.

Since then, Secretary of State John Kerry has stepped forward to smooth over the incident. But India has responded by banning cheap alcohol and food imports to the U.S. Embassy in the country.

Putin Releases Imprisoned Oil Tycoon

After a decade of imprisonment near the Russia-Finland border, former Russian oil tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky was released unconditionally by Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Khodorkovsky, 50, was arrested in October 2013 by Putin and convicted on charges of fraud. Russian and international citizens alike suspected that Khodorkovsky’s conviction served a political purpose, as the powerful businessman was a staunch critic of Putin.

The Russian President stated that “principles of humanity” influenced his decision to release Khodorkovsky. Khodorkovsky issued a plea on November 12 that asked for Putin’s pardon so that he could visit his ailing mother in Berlin.

However, no admission of guilt accompanied the request, indicating that Khodorkovsky believes that he has done no wrong in opposing Putin’s actions.

Experts have determined that Khodorkovsky’s release shows that Putin is confident in his control over Russia, as the President would most likely have kept the oil tycoon imprisoned if the latter could threaten Putin. Others have suspected that Putin set Khodorkovsky free to mitigate the backlash that has followed his banning of gay athletes’ in the Sochi Winter Olympics.

Apollo Theatre Ceiling Collapse Sends Dozens to Hospital

The roof of London’s Apollo Theatre caved in on Thursday night and injured dozens of spectators, many of whom were rushed to hospitals around Central London.

Up to 76 people were hurt during a performance of “The Curious Incident of the Dog During the Nighttime” when the famous theatre’s ceiling creaked and collapsed onto theatergoers, taking down parts of the balcony section.

Seven people have reportedly sustained serious injuries, though they are expected to recover soon.

By Saturday, the initial safety checks for the theater had been completed. Investigators have confirmed that the collapse did not spring from any criminal motive, though people have claimed that the theater suffered “years of neglect” that could have likely caused the roof to cave in.

Sick of eating cereal and ramen for lunch and dinner? Want to spend less money eating out and finally start cooking for yourself? Put down that frozen pizza, because HC’s Health Editor, Sammie Levin, is here to share her daily eats so you can get ideas for healthy, satisfying meals that are easy enough for any time-strapped collegiette to make. After you read Collegiette Eats, your taste buds, wallet and waistline will thank you.

Breakfast

For my last breakfast at school before heading home, I had waffles. I topped two Nature’s Path Flax Plus Frozen Waffles with a peanut butter yogurt spread. To make the spread, I stirred together 1/3 cup honey-flavored Chobani Greek yogurt with 1 tablespoon of natural butter and some cinnamon. After spreading it on the waffles, I sprinkled more cinnamon and drizzled honey on top.

Lunch

My flight was delayed, so I had some time to kill at the airport. I found a sit-down diner-eqsue restaurant where I could get lunch and do some reading (aka scroll my Facebook and Instagram news feeds). I ordered a turkey burger with caramelized onions. I ate it open face (sans the top half of the bun) and ordered a side salad. 

Dinner  

For my first home-cooked meal, I had a big bowl of my mom’s vegetable barley soup. She makes this soup every winter—it’s really thick and hearty, and it's the perfect meal or snack to warm you up on a cold day. It’s especially good when you’re not feeling well. I may even say its healing powers are on par with chicken noodle soup.

I had my mom give me the recipe so you can see for yourself. It takes about 10 minutes of active prep, and then you just let it sit on the stove for an hour and a half and it’s good to go! She said the recipe makes enough for about 10 bowls, so you can make it and have a week’s worth of food to keep in the fridge. I know I’ll be making a batch when I get back to school.

Vegetable Barley Soup

Ingredients 

• 2 qts. vegetable or chicken stock  
• 1 cup uncooked barley (rinse it first in a strainer)
• 1 tsp. olive oil (coat bottom of soup pot)
• 2 large carrots, chopped
• 2 celery ribs, chopped
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1 package fresh sliced mushrooms
• 1 15-oz. can garbanzo beans, drained
• 3 bay leaves (if you don’t have them that’s okay)
• 2-3 garlic cloves, chopped
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 tsp. dried parsley
• 1 tsp. Worcester sauce

Directions 

1. Roughly chop garlic, onions, carrots and celery in food processor. In soup pot, sauté vegetables in olive oil for about five minutes.
2. Add mushrooms, sauté for another 3+ minutes and stir around.
3. Add broth and remaining ingredients.
4. Bring to a boil. Reduce to simmer for 90 minutes, stirring occasionally.
5. Enjoy! 

Notes:

• The soup will be thick; you can adjust by adding more broth or less barley.
• Take out bay leaves (if you have used them) before serving.
• You can add a can of cannelli beans, which I do, just add two cups more liquid because the beans will thicken the soup.

In the wake of all their bad press, you wanted to read a student’s take on Harvard so you checked out The Working Definition of a Harvard Student (For the Media's Eyes Only).

You cringed (and related!) to The 15 Most Unfortunate Things That Happen In College.

Just because finals are over doesn’t mean you didn’t love The 12 Most Annoying Finals Week Facebook Statuses.

You took notes on major don’ts as you read 12 Questions You Should Never Ask In A Job Interview.

How to Dress Comfy & Cute for Winter Break helped you strike a perfect fashion balance.

Think back to some of your happiest memories: Maybe they include a trip to the beach with your best friends, spring break in Miami, or playing outside under the sun as a little kid. What's noticeably absent from this list? Wading knee-deep through snow or getting caught in the pouring rain without an umbrella. Obviously, dealing with dreary weather isn't fun – but for collegiettes who suffer from seasonal affective disorder (S.A.D.), the issue is more severe than you might think.
 
Her Campus talked to Dr. David M. Reiss, a clinical psychiatrist practicing for more than twenty-five years and the Interim Medical Director at Providence Behavioral Health Hospital in Holyoke, MA to learn about the disorder and discover how you can stay as positive as possible even as the temperatures drop.

Is seasonal affective disorder real?

Seasonal affective disorder is more than just feeling like you'd rather stay inside than head out when it's raining!
 
According to Reiss, the symptoms of S.A.D. can extend to any of the symptoms stemming from depression or anxiety: sadness, moodiness, lack of energy, insomnia or hypersomnia, change in appetite, social withdrawal, loss of libido, and in severe cases, even suicidal ideation. Reiss explains, “In my personal clinical practice, I have seen many people who have more mood fluctuations in the winter, but I cannot say I recall a single patient who had no affective symptoms at other times.” In other words, S.A.D. isn't just a burden you might carry through the winter; rather, you have tendencies towards the disorder year-round that are amplified by gloomy weather.
 
Reiss explains that while genetics and biochemistry are usually at play in someone with S.A.D., the disorder is worsened by psychological and situational factors. For example, warm weather means more opportunities for exposure to sunlight, exercise, vacation, relaxation, and recreation – all of which make us feel better. In the winter, all of those positive forces pretty much tend to disappear, unless you live in a perennially warm climate or are lucky enough fly south for a few days during winter break.
 
Like seasonal affective disorder, depression can't necessarily be pinned to one specific cause across all cases. Doctors are split over whether seasonal affective disorder is a “stand-alone” disorder or an offshoot of depression. Although the majority currently believes it is a separate issue, Reiss stresses the importance of treatment, calling the debate “more an issue of semantics than substance.”

Do collegiettes bear the brunt of S.A.D.?

According to the American Academy of Family Physicians, approximately four to six percent of Americans have diagnosable cases of the disorder, and an additional 10 to 20 percent may experience more mild cases. Furthermore, S.A.D. is more common in women than in men (depression as a whole is more common in women than men due to differences in hormones and social patterns), and most cases begin to appear in your early twenties – in other words, the disorder directly affects millions of college women every year.
 
Kathleen, a collegiette at James Madison University, deals with S.A.D. caused by the Virginia weather. “I recently moved from San Diego to Harrisonburg, Virginia, where it rains almost all the time,” she says. Although she's never talked to a doctor about the disorder, she's compared her symptoms with those of her friends who have been diagnosed and says she wouldn't be surprised if S.A.D. was getting her down. “I am willing to bet that [my depression] has to do with the consecutive rainy days.”
 
Madeline, a student at Mount Holyoke College, also has dealt with self-diagnosed winter blues.“From November to April, it's just awful [in Massachusetts]. It's gray, cold, and often sleeting or snowing. I get to the point where I don't want to leave my room, let alone my bed, because it's so miserable outside. I experience S.A.D. to some degree every year, and I've found that by February, I have a really hard time motivating myself, staying positive, or even getting out of bed in the morning.”
 

How can you get help?

If you're facing a mild case of S.A.D. - or even just your standard winter blues – the good news is that it's easy to keep in check. Reiss encourages plenty of exercise, a healthy diet, and a special effort to ensure you're just as social as you would be during any other season. You can also consult your doctor or a registered dietitian regarding supplements of vitamin D, which mimics the health benefits of sunshine, and omega-3, which helps combat depression.
 
If your S.A.D. is still keeping you, well, sad, you might benefit from light therapy. Sometimes referred to as “light boxes” or “blue lights,” this method is a common way of dealing with the disorder. This type of therapy is administered at home, by sitting near a box that emits light designed to mimic sunlight (minus the sun's harmful UV rays). Exposure to artificial sunlight boosts your mood, which works towards lessening the effects of S.A.D. after only about thirty minutes of use. You can buy them online at specialty stores or on Amazon, or in person at Target and Costco.
 
Some schools in dreary climates offer light therapy as a resource to students struggling with S.A.D. Cara, a Cornell grad, says her school sold light boxes to students on campus. Chloe, a student at University of Michigan who has been diagnosed with SAD, adds that University of Michigan has free light therapy available for student use whenever they'd like, in addition to programs regarding how to deal with the disorder.
 
There's a popular misconception that tanning can help negate the effects of S.A.D., but that's not necessarily true. “I know a lot of people who like to go tanning to warm themselves up and put themselves in a sunnier mindset, but that's not the healthiest resource,” surmises Kayla from the University of Maine. Reiss does not endorse tanning as a course of treatment. Most tanning beds emit UVA and UVB rays (the harmful types of light), while most light boxes emit a full spectrum of light except for UVA and UVB rays. Even if the psychological effects of tanning might cheer you up, there's literally zero physiological reason for it to improve your mood. If you can't kick your tanning habit, please remember that the only safe way to bake is to fake it – you don't want to increase your risk for skin cancer!

 
If symptoms continue in spite of exercising often, eating well, staying social, and light therapy, Reiss suggests turning to professional help and seeking therapy, which you can get access to through your school’s health center.

Perhaps the most irreplaceable artist in the industry, her majesty Beyoncé deserves a little extra love for the surprise release of her self-titled fifth album. We can't help but fall crazy in love with her, so here are the 14 times she proved that as Queen Bey, she really does run the world.

1. When she literally made "bootylicious" a word. 

2. When she married Jay-Z and started the United States's first royal family.

3. When she made Grammy history in 2010, winning six awards in one night.

4. When Sasha Fierce was born because Beyoncé had too much talent for one person to handle.

5. When she announced her pregnancy at the 2011 VMAs.

6. And brought us Princess Blue Ivy Carter.

7. When she sang at President Obama's second inauguration.

8. When she got the Baltimore Ravens and the San Francisco 49ers to open for her.

9. When she danced like this:

10. When she became her own backup dancers.

11. When her voice caused a blackout.

And Jay Z confirmed it. 

12. When she chopped her hair off and, if possible, looked even more fierce.

13. When she released a full-length secret album.

14. With 17 music videos.

So who runs the world? QUEEN BEY.

It’s kind of funny how our lives can change in a split second, in a seemingly innocuous moment. For me, that moment came when I was flipping channels on a rainy day in 2004 and decided to stop on a show I’d never seen before: Endurance.

I soon discovered that it’s a bit Survivor-like. Twenty kids ages 12-15 are taken to a remote location, paired up, and compete in challenges. Within minutes, I was hooked and hunkering down to watch the all-day marathon.

Here’s a quick breakdown of the game. The competitors are sent to a remote location where they immediately compete in a Right to Stay challenge, where three boys and three girls are eliminated. From there, teams are formed (one boy and one girl on each team) and compete against each other. The object of the game is to collect all thirteen Pyramid Pieces; some challenges win you a piece and the ability to handicap another team in the next challenge, and some win you the right to send two teams to compete to avoid elimination. Eliminations happen at the Temple of Fate, and the teams that are sent there play water, fire, wood (basically rock, paper, scissors). The team that wins two out of three returns to the game, while the losing team is eliminated. This continues until one team is left standing.

Fast-forward a few months. What had begun as a product of my boredom had exploded into a full-blown obsession. I was watching old episodes, chatting with other fans on message boards, buying clothes that were the color of my favorite team. One day – one fateful, fateful day – I was watching the latest episode to air, and one of the contestants who’d made it to the final four teams was complaining that she wanted to go home.

I was furious. Furious that there were deserving teams sent home before she was, and furious that thousands of kids were sitting at home and wishing they were in her position. And that’s when it hit me. Well, someone had to be on the show, right? Why not me? When I presented the idea to my parents, they shrugged and let me have at it.

My dream was born. I began researching how to audition and when the time came, I filmed an audition tape with nothing but my brother, a video camera, and some serious enthusiasm. I sent it off to California with high hopes but low expectations. I mean, what would they want with a skinny, soft-spoken girl with no previous TV experience?

A month and a half later, the phone rang. Caller ID logged it as an unknown number, so nobody answered. I’m watching TV in the basement as my mom sprints downstairs. “You need to listen to the message on the machine,” she said breathlessly. “Right now.”

It was a producer of the show telling me they liked my tape and wanted to see more of me. After slapping myself a couple of times to make sure I was awake, I returned the call, got some details, and filmed a second tape.

Unfortunately, that’s where it ended. I didn’t hear from them again and watched Endurance season four from my couch.

However, I was just turning 15; I had one season of eligibility left. I repeated the process the following year and, lo and behold, got another callback after my first tape. But this time, I was ready. I pulled out all the stops for tape number two, enlisting the help of my entire family and filming a masterpiece that culminated with a sprint up a giant staircase to the Rocky theme song. I sent in my tape feeling truly sorry for the kids I was up against.

My confidence was well founded; a month later, I got another callback. I was in the top 40, a 50/50 chance of making it onto the show. All I had to do was fill out some paperwork and wait.

And wait.

The next time an unknown number called my house, I answered.

“Hi Darci, this is Mark from 3Ball Productions. Congratulations, you’re on Endurance 5!”

I promptly burst out laughing.

I don’t remember the rest of that phone call at all. My mom was squealing, my hands were shaking, and as soon as I hung up, we screamed and hugged and jumped around the kitchen for a while. I had done it! Out of 10,000 applicants, I was one of the final 20!

This was at the beginning of May, and filming didn’t start until the last day of July. These few months were some of the most exciting, bizarre, and downright difficult of my life. I was constantly getting contracts to sign and informational emails, yet confidentiality agreements meant I couldn’t tell a soul (though I may have assigned special meaning to the sentence “I’m going on vacation this summer,” so some of my best friends had an inkling!). I went to sleep-away camp carrying the biggest secret of my life. My parents printed out the producers’ emails and mailed them to me with the show’s name blacked out in case anyone else got their hands on them. I felt like a secret agent!

When I came home, I had about a week before I was off to California! The twenty competitors (plus all the chaperones – we were underage, after all) were brought to a hotel in tiny Clovis, California for several days before filming began. Those days were spent having one-on-one meetings with the story producers, executive producers, and wardrobe department… and, of course, competitively eyeing every teenager I ran into!

On the first morning of filming, everyone gathered together for the first time in the lobby of the hotel. We technically weren’t allowed to speak to each other, since they wanted to catch our first interactions on camera, but that didn’t really stop us. Despite the fact that we were about to become bitter rivals, everyone was chatty and nice and eager to make friends. We were all loaded onto a bus to be taken up into the Sierra Nevada Mountains; the chaperones went to have a look at our future home (TREEHOUSES!) while we filmed some intro bits, hiking through the mountains.

It was a long, hot, rather grueling day, but it ended on a flat expanse of rock and an introduction from the host, JD Roth. He did his scripted speech for the cameras, and when that was finished, he gathered us all around him. “From now on,” he said, “your life will be broken up into ‘before Endurance’ and ‘after Endurance.’”

From here, it becomes incredibly difficult to describe my experience without doing a play-by-play. I learned very rapidly that the mountains get really freaking cold at night and, when I was voted by the 9 other girls to get a free pass through the Right to Stay Challenge, I learned that even the skinny, soft-spoken girl can come out on top sometimes. I was then partnered with a great guy and, wow, I couldn’t believe how well things were turning out! However, I also quickly learned that life could turn on a dime. My Endurance experience was far from the fairytale I’d always imagined it would be. Reality TV can be cruel, and after several brutal twists (including having my partner switched) and a healthy dose of backstabbing (by, interestingly enough, my first partner), my partner and I were sent home. Confused? Yeah, I was too. Still am, actually.

On one of my last days in the mountains, one of the producers came up to me; the parents were getting nightly briefings, and my mom was worried about whether or not I was handling the drama okay. I shrugged and told him, “I’m fine because I have to be.” And it was true. All I wanted to do every night was curl up in my sleeping bag and cry, but I taught myself how to slap a smile on my face and put the game behind me so I could enjoy myself, one day at a time.

Even though we didn’t win, nor did we come close to winning, what I came away with was far more rewarding than I could’ve hoped. How many kids ever get to spend an extended period of time living in treehouses with their peers? Or live in a dog-eat-dog environment while simultaneously genuinely liking the people trying to (metaphorically) rip your throat out? It’s a bizarre experience hanging out with, hugging, bonding and trading clothes with a girl who you know would eliminate you in a heartbeat. Even weirder was the fact that we had to put the game on hold when the weekend rolled around due to child labor laws. We swam in the lake, ate junk food, enjoyed the lack of mic packs burning our backs all day, and tried to ignore the fact that there was a (metaphorical) guillotine looming over one team the very next day. Alternate universe much? And THEN get to watch it all on TV a few months later! So. Weird.

Before Endurance, I was extremely trusting and naïve. My experience with reality TV (because, oh yes, it was ALL real; editing is a necessary evil on TV, but we kids were completely unscripted and left to our own devices) helped me grow up speedily, showed me just how tough and badass I can be, and gave me some serious trust issues. (I mean, seriously, if you can’t trust your teammate or your friends, who CAN you trust?) But interestingly enough, I also gained some lifelong friends in the process. I spent three weeks of the following summer visiting one of them; half the cast came to my sweet 16 party; and I even met up with one of them when we were both abroad in Europe last semester!

And even today, six years later, if the going gets tough, I take a breath and think, “you’re an Endurance kid. You can do this.” And I know I’m capable of anything.

Almost every university offers its students the opportunity to perform community service, but at some schools, philanthropic work is a cornerstone of every student’s education. From helping out in the community to contributing to the betterment of others abroad, some schools’ students go the extra mile to turn their attention from their studies to the world outside them.

Here are the 10 most charitable schools whose students go above and beyond to serve their communities.

10) STANFORD UNIVERSITY (Stanford, California)

Stanford students are not only smart, they use those smarts to help out their local community. Through the tutoring projectRavenswood Reads, Stanford students are able to provide a learning opportunity for underprivileged schools in the East Palo Alto area. The program connects Stanford students one-on-one with young children to help them develop language and literacy skills. In order to make the Stanford campus as socially active as possible, Stanford students organized thefirst annual Designathon at Stanford through Design for America this year to brainstorm ways to bring public service to the forefront of student life at their school.

9) UNIVERSITY OF CONNECTICUT (Storrs, Connecticut)
Social action has become more and more popular within the last few years at UConn, and with the help of theOffice of Community Outreach, students collectively dedicated themselves to1.4 million hours of service last year. UConn was recentlyone of five schools to receive a 2013 Presidential Award in the President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll from The Corporation for National and Community Service. Last year, in the wake of the tragic Newtown school shootings, UConn demonstrated their support for their local community by establishing theSandy Hook School Memorial Scholarship Fund to help support the college costs of accepted students who had lost a sibling or parent, students whose parents were physically wounded in the assault, and students currently enrolled at the school who are accepted to the university.

8) UNIVERSITY OF SAN DIEGO (San Diego, California)
At the University of San Diego, students are all about fighting for social justice. As one student on Students Review said, “the global focus [found at USD] is unique to find at a college.” TheCenter for Community Service-Learning encourages students, faculty, and alumni to become involved with social changes, and it helps them find local and national projects in which they can become involved. The university also offersabout40 classes each semester that incorporate community service-learning into the curriculum. For all their dedication to social justice, the University of San Diego has earned the recognition of being a “College with a Conscience” by The Princeton Review, as well as the title of an Ashoka U Changemaker Campus, which is given to leading universities in social innovation education.

7) FORDHAM UNIVERSITY (Bronx, New York)
Founded on the Jesuit tradition of St. Ignatius of Loyola, Fordham University strives to embody the Jesuit ideal of “men and women for others” through its dedication to service. Before students even begin their time at Fordham, they are given the opportunity to participate in a pre-orientation program calledUrban Plunge that allows new students to work together on community service projects benefiting local youth, the elderly, the homeless, and the environment. Fordham also offers the services of theDorothy Day Center for Service and Justice to help match students up with community service projects. To help students get involved in the local community, the business school even offers aservice-learning program that combines academic learning in the classroom with volunteer projects in New York City.

6) BOSTON COLLEGE (Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts)

As another Jesuit university, Boston College also works to instill the idea of social action in its students.The Boston College Volunteer Service Learning Center offers several service immersion trips and student service organizations that work on improving the Boston community, such as the popular service group 4Boston, which requires its participants to dedicate a minimum of four hours of service a week. This year, as part of their sesquicentennial celebration, BC organized a food-packaging project through Stop Hunger Now and Catholic Relief Services for families in Burkina Faso, with meals packed by BC students and alumni in eight different cities. After the tragic bombings during the Boston Marathon this past spring, BC also worked to raise funds for bombing victims, and even organized a walk to give those who couldn’t finish the race an opportunity to walk the last five miles. Says BC senior Morgan Gibbons, “‘Jesuit’ is not just another adjective to describe our school, but a way of life.” 

5) ST. LOUIS UNIVERSITY (St. Louis, Missouri)
Also a Jesuit university, SLU prides itself on its commitment to serving the community. Last year, on their annual Make a Difference Day, where SLU students volunteer at nonprofit agencies (such as packaging meals for Feed My Starving Children, as students did this past year), the amount of student participation made the event one of the largest days of collegiate service in the entire country. St. Louis recently started a new Community Service Federal Work-Study program where students eligible for work-study could earn money through helping out the local community. With all the hours SLU students dedicate to service, it’s no wonder they’ve made the President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll on more than one occasion.“St. Louis University believes in educating and contributing to the whole person because, as a whole person, you can contribute to the world,” says the founder of the HC Chapter at SLU, Christin Kobos.

4) UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, LOS ANGELES (Los Angeles, California)
For students at UCLA, volunteer work is a major part of their college experience. The UCLA Volunteer Day for incoming freshmen is the nation’s largest community participation event for new students, orienting every new student to UCLA life through community service. Volunteer work isn’t just for the freshmen, either; theUCLA Volunteer Center allows students to become involved in many local and national organizations. UCLA even nabbed the#1 spot on Washington Monthly’s Community Service Participation ranking in 2010, as well as the third overall spot on the contribution to the public good in the same year.

3) ST. MARY’S COLLEGE OF CALIFORNIA (Moraga, California)
Founded on Saint John Baptist de La Salle’s vision of a Lasallian education—which strives to enrich a student’s cultural, intellectual, physical, social, and spiritual development—St. Mary’s encourages all of its students to become involved in civic service. Many of its students are first-generation college students, and the university has established several programs supporting those first-generation students to help them achieve their education goals. Each year, students at St. Mary’s collectively provide more than 47,000 hours of community service in the U.S. and abroad, and St. Mary’s was even recognized as one of the top 20 colleges for community service by USA Today College in 2011. This year marked the seventh year in a row that St. Mary’s has been named to the President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll.  

2) RHODES COLLEGE (Memphis, Tennessee)

Rhodes is affiliated with the Presbyterian Church and has made certain to emphasize the importance of giving back to its students. With 80 percent of its students involved in community service, it’s no surprise that Rhodes earned the title of Newsweek’s #1 “Most Service-Oriented School” in both 2010 and 2011. Through Rhodes CARES, which is short for the Center for Academic Research and Education through Service, students are given hands-on learning opportunities in and around Memphis. The Kinney Program is also in place to partner students with more than 100 different service programs and agencies in Memphis.

1) GETTYSBURG COLLEGE (Gettysburg, Pennsylvania)

Gettysburg doesn’t just work outside the campus in the community – they help to welcome the community to their campus as well. Gettysburg runs their own campus-community hub for food justice on campus called thePainted Turtle Farm, where students work with low-income and immigrant families. Seventy-two percent of students are engaged in some form of community service at Gettysburg, due largely to the help of the Center for Public Service, which helps coordinate community service projects in Gettysburg. This year, Gettysburg was evenone of five colleges named a Presidential Awardee in the President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll.

Click here to see all of Her Campus's 2013 College Rankings!

You’ve probably been to some career fairs or networking functions at school. You put on your best button-down and blazer, printed out a million copies of your resume and plastered on a big smile as you shook hands with and pitched yourself torecruiter after recruiter. But by the time you reach your senior year, these events can become pretty tedious. Plus, there are so many students there that it may seem like your chances of landing a job or internship through one of these events seem pretty slim.

When you think of networking, you probably think of expanding your network by meeting new professionals. But have you ever thought about building on the network you already have? There are plenty of resources that have been right under your nose, but you may never have considered them as professional contacts. We’ve found some more unique ways for you to expand your network and land the job of your dreams.

1. Your Extended Family

Your family is probably the easiest networking source in your arsenal. You may be surrounded by family members who have had interesting experiences and made connections along the way—use them!

Lesley Mitler, founder of Priority Candidates, Inc., a career coaching service for college students, says that “these are often people who know you in a social context and can speak about your personality and interpersonal skills.” Your family members already know you on some level; even if you aren’t close, they can probably attest that you’re an overall good and employable person.

Mitler says that students can sometimes find reaching out to family uncomfortable and scary, so she says to “ask them for advice and see if that conversation leads to a discussion about possible networking introductions.”

Start with the family member you’re closest to; give him or her a call or send an email. Be careful not to jump right into career talk; be polite, ask how she is and make her feel appreciated. If she works in a field that interests you, ask her how she got there and what advice she has for breaking into the industry. If none of your close family works in an industry you’re interested in, ask a family member if he knows anyone he would feel comfortable putting you in touch with.

Casey, a sophomore at Saint Joseph’s University, is a marketing major, and her uncle works as a PR representative, so she reached out to him about his job. “He was able to give me a lot of insight into the different aspects of the industry, especially the business world overall,” Casey says.

Take advantage of the connections you were born with! Maybe your aunt’s college roommate has your dream job, or your dad’s former colleague started his own business and is willing to talk to you about it. Reach out to your family members, tell them about your interests and ask them if they know anyone in your industry. You never know what you might find!

2. Your Professors

You see great networking sources in class every day! If you’re studying something you want to pursue professionally, make connections with your professors now. Mitler says professors are “a great networking resource and credible introducers” because they already have successful, established careers in your field, and they probably know plenty of people in the industry who they could introduce you to down the line.

Go to a professor’s office hours to talk about your class. Tell him or her how much you enjoy it and discuss the topic further. Let your professor know you’re passionate about this field and want to know how to best break into it after graduation.

Be sure to keep your relationship up after graduation! Send your professors occasional email updates on your career and ask how they are. If you stay in touch, they’ll be a great resource for college and beyond!

3. Guest Speakers

If your school ever hosts events with guest speakers in your industry or if your professors bring in interesting speakers to class, make sure you get to talk to them one-on-one! If it’s a small class, this will be much easier than meeting at a career event.

Find a way to make yourself stand out from the crowd. Research the speaker and his or her company beforehand so you can impress him or her with your knowledge. Ask questions during the lecture to show your interest. Carry business cards with you to give them to the speaker afterwards; this will make you look prepared, professional and passionate.

If you really want to stand out, take a cue from Alex, a junior at Tufts University, who landed an internship through Twitter!

“I was taking a PR and marketing course at my school, and throughout the course our professor had speakers who were thought leaders in the industry come in and talk to us,” she says. “Before one of these speakers came in, I tweeted at him saying I was excited to hear from him in my class.”

That one tweet ended up scoring Alex an internship. The speaker recognized her from her Twitter picture and spoke to her after his lecture. She interned with him for seven months!

4. Alumni

The easiest way to get in touch with alumni from your school? LinkedIn! It may seem obvious, but Mitler says that “many students are not aware that LinkedIn has a terrific resource.” You may be in alumni or sorority groups and connected to every person you’ve ever met, but have you checked out your new secret weapon,LinkedIn Alumni?

This amazing resource “aggregates all the [alumni] on LinkedIn from your school and allows you to apply numerous filters,” says Mitler. “I have had recent grads reach out to alum[s] they identified and got meetings or phone conversations with because of the alumni connection.”

Your school is a perfect resource for networking. Use this function to search for alumni from our school who work at companies or in fields you think you might be interested in. See what connections you have in common or just reach out on your own!

If you’re messaging an alumna you don’t know, remember to keep it professional. Just because she once went to your school doesn’t mean you can speak to them like she still does! Introduce yourself, your major and your year of graduation. Say something like, “I saw you work at Her Campus, and I would love to hear about it! I’m interested in pursuing a career in writing and it would be great to hear about your experience, especially since you’re a Harvard alumna and I’m a current student there.”

Ask to talk over email or, if she’s located near you, meet her for coffee. Most alumni love hearing from students. If she doesn’t respond in a week or so, send a follow-up message, but if you still don’t hear back, don’t push it. She may just be busy, but if she doesn’t respond to two messages than you should move on to another resource.

5. Your Dentist, Your Dry Cleaner… Everyone You Meet!

Potential networking connections are all around you. Everyone you know has the potential to be a great resource—you just have to get out there and talk to them!

 “I always advise my clients to think about people they know that have a lot of clients—dentists, doctors, lawyers, salespeople, members of social clubs, store owners and even your dry cleaner,” Mitler says. “Anyone with lots of clients can be a potential source of referrals.”

Reach out to people you know, and be sure to “let them know who you are interested in connecting with, what you are interested in doing and why you are qualified,” says Mitler. Talk to anyone and everyone and get yourself out there! 

Sarah, a sophomore at Gonzaga University, had an interesting encounter in a cab recently. Apparently her cab driver had given the intern director from Microsoft a ride the day before. “She had told him that if he ever drove any college students looking for internships, he should send them her way!” she says. The cab driver told her about all the interesting people he had driven around and gave her some ideas of places to look for internships.

Anyone you talk to has the potential to be a resource. Don’t be afraid to push yourself out of your comfort zone a little and just start talking to someone. Business cards can be a huge help; carry them in your bag and give them out to people you meet. It will make it easy to stay in touch and follow up later when you’re looking for work. It may feel aggressive, but just getting the ball rolling could lead to landing your dream job!

Networking isn’t just for career fairs. Many people you meet will have the potential to boost your career and provide you with great resources. Take a chance and just talk to people about your career! You never know when an opportunity will present itself.

Name: Meaghan Rose
Age: 34
Job Title and Description: CEO and Founder of RocksBox
College/Major: George Mason University/ Economics (Undergraduate); University of Pennsylvania/ The Wharton School MBA Program
Website: www.rocksbox.com
Twitter Handle: @megkendall and @myrocksbox

What does your current job entail? Is there such a thing as a typical day?

Meaghan Rose: At this stage, the company is growing so fast that my role changes pretty significantly on a monthly basis. I spend most of my time right now meeting investors; pitching ideas; negotiating with designers; and recruiting and managing the team.  What I really love is that my job cuts across all aspects of the business. The best thing about my job is that is changes all the time. Every single day, I am doing something I have never done before.  And that’s pretty awesome!

What is the best part of your job?

MR: Our customers. We have the most amazing women as members of RocksBox. Part of what women love about RocksBox is that they can wear new styles all the time without spending tons of money or time hunting through boutiques and department stores. In general, our members tend to be really awesome, smart women who have a lot going on but still love to look and feel good (and love to experiment with new styles).  We get the best love notes from our members –sometimes through email, sometimes handwritten, and a lot of the time on Twitter or Instagram – and it always makes my day.  We have a big wall in our office covered with the notes and photos that our customers post or send us, and I get to walk by it everyday. That’s the best.  

What was your first entry-level job in your field and how did you get it?

MR: I have been working since I was 13 years old.  As long as I can remember, I’ve wanted to have a job.  To me, that meant independence.  My first job out of college was as an analyst at Booz Allen.  I was really lucky to get that job – I spent my senior year in London (at the London School of Economics, which was amazing), traveled around Europe for a few weeks after graduation, and then came back to the States without a job.  I was actually pretty nervous that no one was going to hire me.  But I tapped every network I had, did a lot of research and was very passionate.  I took a pretty junior role but within three years, I was promoted three times.  I think you have to be willing to take a junior role and work your way up, but you also have to push for those bigger roles and not be afraid to ask for those promotions!

What is one thing you wish you knew about your industry when you first started out that you know now?

MR: I wish I had started earlier! I was working at McKinsey & Co. in New York when I finally decided I was ready to start my own business.  I do think that was good experience, and I really value those years, but I am still learning my way through everything as CEO. 

Who is one person who changed your professional life for the better?

MR: I worked with a partner at McKinsey who was just amazing with people.  She really listens to people and as a result, she is a better manager, negotiator, and is incredible at influencing people.  She has this amazing ability to get inside someone’s head and really understand what was important to them.  That’s a pretty powerful thing.  That is why we spend so much effort getting to know and engaging our customers – we believe it will make us better at sending them jewelry that they love, and that will make us a better business!

What words of wisdom do you find most valuable?

MR: Jeff Bezos (founder & CEO of Amazon) is someone I have a lot of admiration for – both as a person and an entrepreneur.  I love his philosophy on building an e-commerce company.  This quote from him pretty much summarizes it:   “We've had three big ideas at Amazon that we've stuck with for 18 years, and they're the reason we're successful: put the customer first, invent, and be patient.”

What is one mistake you made along the way and what did you learn from it?

MR: When I was younger, I was afraid to really go for what I wanted – I was afraid to fail or get rejected.  But working on this business has been so empowering. I’m out there all the time, asking people to invest, help, or work with us.  A lot of times people will say no, but a lot of times they say yes!  And without those awesome people, RocksBox wouldn’t be here at all! 

Okay, enough business for a second—what jewelry trends are you loving right now?

MR: Cocktail rings!  Cocktail rings are my favorite right now.  You just automatically feel more fashionable when you are wearing one. CC Skye has some pretty impressive ones that I pull out when I’m feeling especially adventurous. 

What do you look for when considering hiring someone?

MR: I look for someone who is exceptionally smart, thoughtful, and passionate at whatever it is that we are hiring [him or her] to do. [Also], I look for people who want to work hard and are driven to make an impact. 

What advice would you give to a 20-something with similar aspirations?

MR: Go out and earn your own opportunities.  Build relationships, [create] a reputation for yourself, and learn the skills that you need. It’s not enough to say that you are passionate about something, you need to prove it.  Be scrappy, don’t be afraid to fail, and work hard!

Ah, study abroad life. Those glorious four months when everyone could drink legally, Nutella was one of your main food groups, and every picture you posted on Facebook and Instagram earned you more likes that you had ever received in your life. As an American student abroad, you had a certain obligation to capture a few classic clichéd study abroad shots that denying yourself would just be un-American. C’mon. You know what we’re talking about. In case you don’t, the Her Campus team is here to demonstrate some classic study abroad photos that we’re sure you took:

First off, there’s no chance you missed out on the London phone booth pic.

How could you resist?

You definitely tried to cram as many friends as you could into one at some point too. 

Bonus points for getting Big Ben in the background.

Speaking of Big Ben, don’t even try to pretend like you didn’t take a Big Ben selfie.

Or a Tower Bridge selfie.

Or a Hall of Mirrors selfie at Versailles.

And no one can forget the classic Mona Lisa selfie. (Ugh, Mona Lisa, why are you so small?)

Of course you had to touch the top of the Louvre once you got outside.

Or, well, give it your best shot (#fail).

Feeling artsy, you no doubt nailed the John Lennon Wall pic.

So artsy!

How could you go to Prague and not capture this?

And still feeling the Beatles vibe, you of course had to cross Abbey Road.

Kudos if you could find three other friends to do it with.

You also had to hold up that Leaning Tower of Pisa.

I mean, it’s just asking you to pose with it!

That tower isn’t going to hold itself up, you know.

No trip to Italy is complete without tossing a coin in the Trevi Fountain.

Paolo, where are you? We’re waiting for you!

In Amsterdam, you couldn’t resist getting up on that I Amsterdam sign. Or, at least trying to get up on it and then giving up and posing near it. 

And you definitely sat in a wooden shoe.

Because how funny are wooden shoes?

And you had to make sure everyone knew you could legally drink abroad by getting that Heineken Experience picture in Amsterdam.

And the Guinness Storehouse pic in Dublin. 

And the Oktoberfest pic.

And if you went to an Ice Bar and didn't take a picture of it, then did it even happen? 

Nothing was funnier than taking a picture with a Royal Palace Guard.

Or a Scottish bagpipe player.

Or really, any uniformed official.

And then there’s the Lock Bridge pic in Paris...

...which you so made your new profile picture.

No trip to Paris would be complete without an Eiffel Tower picture.

C’mon, it’s the Eiffel Tower!

Everyone loves the Eiffel Tower.

And even though that jump pic took 20 attempts, it was so worth it.

Then there’s that time you stopped by Morocco to hang out with all the little camels and monkeys.

We can’t forget to mention the Park Guell pic in Barcelona,

or the "chilling on the Cliffs of Moher" pic in Ireland that made your mom nervous...

 ...because she just doesn't understand that you like to live on the edge.

There's also the East Side Gallery pic you took in Berlin that showed how cultured you are,

and the ever-popular Platform 9¾ pic at King’s Cross in London that made all your Harry Potter-loving friends super jealous.

We miss you, abroad life, for allowing us to be so unapologetically cheesy and so fleetingly popular on social media. We’ll be back someday, and there’s no guarantee we won’t reenact these pictures all over again. 

Photo credits: 

Alicia Thomas

Alexandra Bruschi

Kaitlin Noe

Quinn Cohane

Elisabeth Peterson

Irene Berman-Vaporis

Kelsey Mulvey

Rachel Lytle

Sarah Simonetti

Connie Chan 

Amanda Rodrigues

Mary Reischmann

Perhaps the most irreplaceable artist in the industry, Her Majesty Beyoncé deserves a little extra love for the surprise release of her self-titled fifth album. We can't help but fall crazy in love with her, so here are the 13 times she proved that as Queen Bey, she really does run the world.

1. When she literally made "bootylicious" a word. 

2. When she married Jay-Z and started the United States's first royal family.

3. When she made Grammy history in 2010, winning six awards in one night.

4. When Sasha Fierce was born because Beyoncé had too much talent for one person to handle.

5. When she announced her pregnancy at the 2011 VMAs.

6. And brought us Princess Blue Ivy Carter.

7. When she sang at President Obama's second inauguration.

And when she was caught lip-synching, she proved at the Super Bowl press conference just how talented she really is. She closed her awesome live rendition of the national anthem with, "Any questions?"

8. When she got the Baltimore Ravens and the San Francisco 49ers to open for her.

9. When she danced like this:

10. When she became her own backup dancers.

11. When her voice caused a blackout.

And Jay-Z confirmed it. 

12. When she chopped her hair off and, if possible, looked even more fierce.

13. When she released a full-length secret album.

With 13 music videos.

So who runs the world? QUEEN BEY.

So you’re finally home for the holidays, relishing in the fact that you’re done with exams and getting to spend some time with your family and friends. You’re grabbing dinner with your pals, visiting all your aunts and uncles, having a blast in the snow… and it’s exhausting! All the craziness of the season may leave you frazzled, and soon all you want to do is curl up with a mug of hot chocolate and a movie. The only decision to make is: which one? Here are six of our favorite romantic movies about the holiday season to chill you out and warm you up at the same time!

1. Love Actually (2003)

In potentially the most adorable and heartbreaking moment of this movie, Mark stands in front of his best friend’s wife with a stack of signs, one of which declares: “To me, you are perfect.” And you, Love Actually, are perfect to us! Love Actually weaves together nine stories about Londoners at Christmastime and teaches us about love in all its forms. The delicious mix of unlikely pairings, bittersweet endings and new beginnings in this film makes it an obvious choice for our list… as if Hugh Grant’s infamous dance scene isn’t enough of a reason!

2. Elf (2003)

“I love you! I love you! I LOVE YOU!” Buddy the Elf chirps in this Christmas comedy, and his endearing outbursts don’t end there. A human raised as an elf, Buddy spends the film trying to reconnect with his long-lost family and spread holiday cheer in New York City. This is one of our favorites because in the midst of his holiday adventures and mishaps, he falls in love with cynical Jovie (played by a blonde Zooey Deschanel), and his crazy goofiness may just win her over.

3. The Holiday (2006)

We would never complain about spending some time with Jude Law and Jack Black on our holiday vacation, and neither would Cameron Diaz and Kate Winslet, obviously! Two women who decide to swap their houses—and lifestyles—after bad breakups find exactly what they’re looking for in this flick. It’s chock-full of laughs and serves as a reminder that even when you’re feeling blue, some optimism and a change of scene (and maybe meeting someone with an English accent) can turn things around. 

4. How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000)

We wouldn’t touch him with a 39-and-a-half-foot pole, but that doesn’t mean we don’t love him anyway! We have to admit, the Grinch’s decades-long crush on Martha May Whovier is incredibly adorable, and we root for him the whole way through, even while he tries his best to ruin Christmas. If this movie isn’t already a part of your winter break tradition, it probably should be—there’s no movie out there that’s a better reminder of the powerful spirit of community and kindness.

5. Serendipity (2001)

This holiday story is so uplifting because nothing’s better than watching two strangers fall madly in love. Serendipity makes our list because it brings out our sappy, romantic side—we totally understand the simultaneous happiness and heartbreak Sara and Jonathan experience as they find each other only to lose each other. The two spend years thinking about each other and about what could have been… and what could still be, if fate works in their favor!

6. Bridget Jones’s Diary (2001)

Okay, okay, so this one isn’t technically a holiday movie. But the first big scene is a New Year’s party and there’s snow and festivity all around, so by our book, it qualifies. We girls all have secrets we keep from the guys in our lives, so we appreciate that this movie gives us an inside look at Bridget Jones’s sassy, honest opinions on her men. A classic girl-turns-her-life-around-to-catch-her-dream-man flick, Bridget Jones’s Diary is quirky and relatable, and it makes sure we know what the important things are in life: loving yourself and never letting anyone read your diary.

Whether you’re cheering for Sam in the airport or giggling at Buddy’s misadventures, swooning with Amanda or groaning with Bridget, these movies are sure to make you fall in love with love all over again. If you make it through all of them (we wouldn’t blame you) and are still in that lounge-y, movie-watching mood, be sure to check out our other favorite holiday classics!

The worst part of applying to college probably isn’t even applying.  It’s waiting—that awful period in between turning in applications and hearing back, when you’ve finished everything and there’s nothing more you can do to determine whether or not you’ll get in.

So what can you do to make this awful in-between period a little less painful?  While I spent most of my post-application time in front of the TV brushing up on my knowledge of the rom-com genre, there are more productive ways to pass the time.  Here some ideas from collegiettes on how to make your wait worthwhile.

Get more involved in your activities

You were involved in a million activities while you were applying to college, and hopefully you were doing them because you loved them, not just to look good on applications.  But application time is stressful, and it’s probably been a while since you were really able to enjoy yourself in extracurricular activities. Now’s your chance to spend some quality time at your activities and not feel like you have to balance ten million things at once.  Help plan events or spearhead a new initiative.

Hannah, a collegiette at NYU, says she used her downtime to spend more time with her gymnastics team.

“I was co-captain that year, so throwing all my focus on that helped me escape from the pressure of waiting,” Hannah says.  “I had a ton of extra time senior year, so it was fun to plan fun things for the team, like parties and personalized hair ribbons for competitions.”

“After I applied to all my colleges, at the strong encouragement of my friends, I auditioned for the school musical!” says Elyssa from Boston University. “I had auditioned in my freshman year but focused on other activities for the rest of high school to put on my resume. I got in and it was one of the best experiences of my high school career! All my friends were in the show and we had so much fun! Plus, I didn't allow myself to think about getting into college ‘til the show was over at the end of March. I actually got my acceptance to my top school while I was at a sleepover with the entire cast!”

Getting more involved in an activity and doing a project you can be proud of is a great way to leave for college feeling like you’ve actually accomplished something.  It creates awesome senior year memories with friends – and if you do something amazing, you can always send it to your colleges as a late-but-relevant addition to your applications!

Visit the schools you haven’t seen yet

Especially if you applied to a ton of schools, you may have been too busy to visit every single school you’re interested in prior to finishing your applications. Now may be the perfect time to hit the road and start checking out the places you may be living for the next four years.

“The period from January to April is a great time to figure out what you're looking for,” says Mara, a student at Chatham College. “The window between getting acceptance letters and making a final choice is unbelievably short; the last thing anyone wants is to feel rushed into such a big decision.”

Keep in mind that once you get your acceptance letters in April, most schools will only give you until around May 1 to make a decision. The feel of a campus should play a huge part in which school you choose – you can love a school’s programs and professors, but still just not like the vibe you get from the campus and students.

When deciding where to visit, take your schedule into account and how much time it will take to travel to certain schools – if you’re from the east coast, it might be too big a trip to visit a school in California.  However, also think about which schools are most important to you and where you see yourself ending up.  If that California school is your top choice, it should absolutely be a priority to visit.  Narrow down your list of schools to only the ones where you really think you might end up.

Think about when you’re going to visit as well.  It’s usually better to visit on a weekday, when students are out and about and you might even be able to sit in on a class (on weekends, students are probably either asleep or doing homework in their sweatpants).  You also want to be careful not to visit during midterms or finals, when people will be holed up in the library and campus life will be a lot different than usual – check the school website to see when exam periods are. You might have to miss a day of school to visit at the right time – only you can decide whether you’re okay with that, but it’s usually fine as long as you’re not doing it all the time.

If visiting schools won’t work with your schedule or budget, there’s plenty of research you can do from home, including reading Her Campus’s Pre-Collegiette Guide.

“I had a good idea where I would be going to school, so I did some research on the area and learned about public transportation,” said Alyssa, a student at the University of Texas. “I was trying to decide if I should take a car or if I could get by without one. That research really came in handy; I saved hundreds of dollars in parking passes, garages, meters and gas!”

Apply for scholarships

When she finished applying early to Boston University, Kelsey knew she couldn’t take a break just yet.  In case she didn’t get into her dream school, she kept working on her apps to other schools.

“Getting applications done before I even heard back from BU made the possibility of not being accepted a little easier to stomach. And in the best case scenario, you get to send a bunch of withdrawal application emails!” she says.

Alyssa also applied for scholarships, which meant she had to maintain focus in school second semester.

“I applied for ten to fifteen scholarships and most of the deadlines were not until January or February,” she says. “That meant they would see my fall semester grades included on my transcript, unlike the colleges I'd applied to.”

While most of your applications are probably done, scholarship applications will still be open to you.  Researching and filling out applications for interesting scholarships will take your mind off waiting, and take some of the financial worries away when you’re accepted to your dream school!

Finish senior year strong

While it may seem like you’ve done everything high school asked of you, there are still technically a few more months in the school year.

Onastasia, a collegiette at Chatham College, threw herself into doing well on final projects for both her classes and her extracurricular activities.

“Although you may be out soon, you owe it to yourself after all those great college applications to end high school with a bang,” she says.

Instead of just spending your last few months chilling in front of the TV or constantly updating your Facebook page (though you should absolutely take some time to relax!) set some expectations for your last semester of high school.  If you’ve got a paper for history, pick a topic you find fascinating and throw yourself into research.  Make it your goal to get an A in your math class.  Promise yourself that you’re going to finish strong, and take the steps to get there!

Even though waiting is hard, you’ve got plenty to keep you busy.  Leave an awesome legacy at your high school, visit your future school or keep doing applications – anything to stop turning the “Am I good enough to get in?” question over in your head.  Relax and finish strong, because you’re only a few months away from being a real-life collegiette!

As you enjoy your last winter break before college, you’re probably starting to realize that your high school years are almost over. While in the midst of college applications, exams, senior activities and banquets, sometimes it seems impossible to remember to take some time to relax and enjoy the end of high school.

If you and your friends are looking for something fun to watch during this important time in your life, curl up with one of these movies that are all about senior year. You’ll be surprised at how closely you relate to the struggles the characters are facing!

1. The Spectacular Now (2013)

This movie (which is based on a book of the same name), starring Shailene Woodley (from The Secret Life of the American Teenager) and Miles Teller (from the 2011 remake of Footloose), showcases the very different lifestyles of two high school seniors. The main female character, Aimee, is a sheltered good girl who is under the stiff control of her mother. She does well in school, keeps to herself and only has a few friends. Then she meets Sutter, a party-crazy bad boy who is focused on the “now” more than the future, caring more about his girlfriend that his future.

Sutter finds himself on Aimee’s front lawn after a rough night when heblacked out and fled from his friends. The two soon become friends and become closer than they ever intended, forming a love that is unlikely and unique.

The movie emphasizes the anxiety and uncertainty that senior year brings in terms of college and the future, reminding you that you’re not alone in your struggles. The main message is to live in the present while also being responsible for your future. Since the movie just came out in theaters in August, the DVD will be released January 14, 2014.

2. Ferris Bueller’s Day Off (1986)

With the spirit of Chicago in mind, writer, producer and director John Hughes created his classic film Ferris Bueller’s Day Off about a high school guy who skips school for the day to spend time with his girlfriend and his best friend. The only problem is that Ferris doesn’t tell his parents, his sister or the dean about his plans, and he has to be extra cautious that he doesn’t get caught. He fakes sickness to his parents, uses his best friend’s father’s car to get around town during the day and causes a ruckus between his sister and the dean. Overall, this movie gives a whole new meaning to having an epic senior skip day and reminds you to live life to fullest.

3. High School Musical 3: Senior Year (2008)

During your middle school years, the first High School Musical movie was released on the Disney Channel, and it became an overnight sensation. When you combine Zac Efron, sweet musical numbers and realistic high school cliques, it’s close to impossible not to tune in! In the final film of the High School Musical trilogy, the main characters deal with the common struggle of realizing that they will soon be separated once their high school journey ends. The main male lead, Troy Bolton (Efron), deals with the additional struggle of pleasing his father. Assuming that he will attend the University of Albuquerque to play basketball, his father puts pressure on him based on his expectations for Troy’s future, which Troy finds unsettling since he still wants to participate in theater. He also deals with separate issues with his girlfriend, Gabriella (Vanessa Hudgens), as they decide how to keep their relationship together despite the fact that both of them are heading to college.

If you’re a pre-collegiette worrying about what will happen between you and your current boyfriend once high school ends, you’ll really relate to this movie. Also, you’re probably concerned about what lies ahead once you and your friends part ways after high school, and the characters in this movie are going through exactly what you’re going through.

4. Grease (1978)

This classic film starring John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John deals with young love in an exhilarating and music-filled manner. After Danny (Travolta) and Sandy (Newton-John) meet during the summer before senior year and fall in love, they wonder if they’ll ever be able to stay together, since Sandy’s family is expected to move back to Australia. After her family decides to stay in America, Sandy enrolls in Danny’s high school, unaware that he goes there.

After she befriends The Pink Ladies, a clique of popular girls, she mentions Danny’s name and discovers that he attends that high school. When they’re reunited, the dynamics of their relationship change as Danny tries to maintain his bad boy image in front of his friends. One of the coolest parts of the film is the end credits, which resemble the style of a high school yearbook!

5. Footloose (2011)

The original version of this film came out in 1984, but a remake was released in 2011 with contemporary actors such as Kenny Wormald, Miles Teller and Julianne Hough. The seniors in this movie are dealing with the community ban on dancing after Hough’s character’s older brother and his friends get into a car accident after a late night of partying. City officials deem dancing as one of the causes of this accident, and therefore dancing is banned in their small town of Bomont, Georgia.

When Ren McCormack (Wormald) moves to Bomont from Boston to live with his uncle, aunt and cousins after losing his mother to leukemia, he soon meets Ariel (Hough) and the two start crushing on one another, even though Ariel already has a boyfriend. The film emphasizes having fun while you’re still young and making the most of senior year. It also shows that you can find love in the most unexpected places!

6. A Cinderella Story (2004)

Hilary Duff stars in this 2004 film about a girl struggling to make it through senior year while dealing with her mother’s death, a vicious stepmother, evil stepsisters and an online romance that she’s unsure will ever lead to anything permanent. After losing her mother when she was a young child and her father in 1994, the main character, Samantha, works hard to save up enough money to attend her dream college, Princeton, while living with her evil stepmother. She starts talking to a guy named “Nomad” online who also wants to attend Princeton. Little does she know that the true identity of her online romance is Austin Ames (Chad Michael Murray), the most popular guy in school, which she eventually finds out during a school dance.

The main themes of the film deal with working hard for what you want and standing up to those who try to get the best of you, which are important lessons to learn before heading off to college!

Before you receive your high school diploma, pack your bags and head to college, be sure to watch one of these entertaining, heartwarming films about senior year. You and your friends will soon see that regardless of when each movie was released, each of them carries important and relevant life lessons.

One of the most rewarding parts of the holiday season is the warm and fuzzy feeling you get by giving to others. In the craziness of searching for the perfect gift for your loved ones, remember that they aren’t the only people who need your help during this time of year. We told you over the summer about nonprofit organizations you can volunteer with. Now it’s time to channel that generosity towards start-up nonprofits this winter!

Start-up nonprofits can be difficult to find because they have fewer resources and less buzz than previously established organizations, so we put together a list of some organizations you can donate some of your hard-earned bucks to this season.

 1. The Adventure Project 

Founded in 2010 by Becky Straw and Jody Landers, The Adventure Project’s overall mission is to end extreme poverty. One especially cool thing about this organization is that you are the investor—you can choose which aspect of the nonprofit you send your donation to! The Adventure Project concentrates on four different social ventures you can contribute to in order to help improve the lives of those in need.

First, you can donate to the water fund, which helps bring water-well mechanics to Africa. More than one-third of wells in Africa are currently broken, and they need your help to get them working!

 The health cause is designed to train female leaders to become health care workers. Due to the donations Living Goods, a nonprofit The Adventure Project works with that aims to fight disease and poverty, has received, more than 650 women have been employed as health care promoters in Uganda. Help the organization reach its goal of 5,000 health care promoters in the next five years!

You can also help donate towards irrigation pumps in Kenya to support the hunger cause. This is an important one to donate to because less than four percent of farmland in Kenya is irrigated, causing the people experience serious starvation.

For each $20 you donate to the environment cause, you will provide one Haitian family with a charcoal-efficient stove. Your donation will help prevent people from cooking food over an open fire and inhaling the toxic smoke that exudes from it. The open-fire cooking harms the environment as well.

Especially with all the hardships those in Haiti have faced in the past few years, this is an excellent and pretty inexpensive way to change a family’s life. Bonus: If you find three friends to sponsor a stove on your behalf, you’ll be entered to win a trip to Haiti!

Abigail, a collegiette at the University of Delaware, is a strong advocate for this organization. “I donate to the Adventure Project regularly,” she says. “I wish more people knew about it—they help such an amazing cause in such a special way.”

2. The Malala Fund

This start-up organization also addresses issues in poor countries; however, this one is directed specifically towards young women. The organization’s goal is to empower women through education—all of the donations go towards the education of underprivileged girls. With more than 30,000 followers on Twitter and more than 45,000 on Facebook, The Malala Fund has been gaining major media attention since it was established in 2012.

Malala Yousafzai, the face behind the fund, is a 16-year-old girl from Pakistan who has an amazing story. On October 9, 2012, Taliban gunmen shot her in the head and neck while she was on her school bus after she started advocating for young girls’ education. After a week in a coma, Malala came out strong and wrote an autobiography about her experience. She is still fighting for her cause today!

We might sometimes take our education for granted, but Malala is fighting to give all girls the opportunity to learn. You can donate once or set up a monthly donation online here.

3. Amirah

This organization helps women affected by human trafficking to reach their full potential and recover from trauma. Through training sessions, support groups, a drop-in center and residential care, Amirah brings trafficked women back into society.

Jen Morgan, a sophomore at Messiah College, and her friend Jasmine, a human trafficking survivor, are heavily involved in the organization’s work done in Boston and the surrounding communities. “This is an issue that affects women for years; even after they've gotten off the streets, the emotional scarring and damage will still be with them forever,” Jen says. “The fact that Amirah provides them with a place to just be and rediscover themselves as individuals again is amazing. Those women need to be reaffirmed of their value in an environment that is empathetic so that they can take the necessary steps towards healing and reconciliation.”

Amirah provides safe places for healing and re-integrating back into society. You can get involved through volunteering, donating items or donating money here.

Donating to some of these organizations will not only benefit amazing causes, but help worthy start-ups expand. It’s not just a job for wealthy philanthropists; even college students can make a difference in the nonprofit world. Any donations, no matter how big or small, will help the less fortunate have a better holiday season and a better life.

Sick of eating cereal and ramen for lunch and dinner? Want to spend less money eating out and finally start cooking for yourself? Put down that frozen pizza, because HC’s Health Editor, Sammie Levin, is here to share her daily eats so you can get ideas for healthy, satisfying meals that are easy enough for any time-strapped collegiette to make. After you read Collegiette Eats, your taste buds, wallet and waistline will thank you.

Breakfast

Did you know you could make pancakes using only three ingredients? I didn't either, until I found this recipe on the blog Carrots ‘N’ Cake. It calls for only one egg, one banana and a spoonful of nut butter.

You just mash the banana and then stir in the egg and nut butter. I used almond butter and then also sprinkled some cinnamon into the batter. Then, you pour the batter into a pan over low to medium heat. I poured about half in to make one pancake, and then used the rest to make a second pancake when I was done with my first. Once the blob of batter starts to bubble and the edges solidify (this takes a few minutes—be sure to keep a close eye on it), flip the pancake. I haven’t perfected the flip yet so my pancake got a little wounded in the process, but that didn't affect the taste!

You wouldn't believe that these pancakes are just made from those three ingredients. They are really moist and rich! I topped mine with banana slices, cinnamon and honey and then melted some almond butter on the side for dipping. I love breakfasts like this that feel indulgent but are still healthy at the same time. 

Lunch

For lunch, I had a bowl of my mom’s vegetable barley soup. Gotta love leftovers. I sprinkled some Parmesan cheese on top for some cheesy goodness and had a piece of toasted Ezekiel bread on the side for dipping. 

Dinner

There were a lot of vegetables in my fridge at home just waiting to be roasted, so for dinner I made a smorgasbord of roasted veggies with brown rice and a jalapeno chicken sausage.  Roasted vegetables taste so much better than raw ones, in my opinion. It’s crazy what a little bit of olive oil and oven time can do.

I cut up Brussels sprouts, cauliflower and eggplant into even chunks, and then drizzled olive oil (about 1-2 tablespoons, to lightly coat) over them and sprinkled them with a little salt and pepper. I cooked them in the oven at 385 degrees for about 40 minutes, tossing them periodically. The rice I used was just a container of Minute Ready to Serve Brown Rice, so its preparation consisted of nothing more than microwaving it for one minute. I cooked the chicken sausage in a sauté pan for about seven to 10 minutes, until it was cooked throughout and crispy on the outside. Aside from the wait time for the vegetables, this was a relatively quick and easy meal to prepare. 

While many of us were watching holiday classics like Elf and How The Grinch Stole Christmas with our families this weekend, Jimmy Fallon was on NBC making Saturday Night Livehistory by garnering the highest ratings in almost two years. Though some viewers have been mourning the 2012 loss of essential cast members Kristen Wiig and Andy Samberg, SNL brought back its most popular host, Jimmy Kimmel, and musical guest, Justin Timberlake, to ensure that the SNL Christmas special would be a success. With cameos by Paul McCartney, Madonna, and Barry Gibb in addition to Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s appearance in the “Weekend Update”, the episode was full of surprises and soon-to-be viral hits.

Justin Timberlake’s hidden talents as a comedian have come to fruition in his Saturday Night Live appearances and as both a musical guest and host, he has quickly become a late-night favorite. His comedic chemistry with friend Jimmy Fallon make them a pair not to be missed so be sure to catch this hilarious duo in their “Wrappinville” (below!) and “Family Feud” skits or watch the full episode here for a little extra holiday cheer!

What did you think of Justin Timberlake's latest SNL song? Let us know by leaving a comment below!

When it comes to being a friend, there is no need for a job description. We know what is expected of us: loyalty, honesty, care and fun, to name a few. But when a friend is going through a difficult time, we might find ourselves asking for some clear instructions. We often wonder whether we are doing too little or if we are overstepping our boundaries. Does she want us to express our sympathy or does she want us to leave her alone? Whether it’s the loss of a loved one, a medical situation, family problems or a break-up, it hurts to see that someone you care about is hurting.

We spoke to Irene S. Levine, professor of psychiatry at New York University School of Medicine and founder of The Friendship Blog, about the dos and don’ts of helping a friend who is going through a difficult time.

Do accept that you cannot fix everything

An important thing to remember is that, as much as you want to help, many things are out of your control. Sometimes you don’t have the means to help, or even the best advice to offer. Do the best that you can to help your friend in whatever situation she is in, even if it means just offering your support. This is something that Katie*, a student from Northeastern University, realized.

“It's obviously difficult to see someone you care about go through such hard times, and it's been equally as hard – if not harder – for me to come to terms with the fact that I'm not in a position to solve their problems on my own,” says Katie. “The best thing for both me and my friend is to just let them know that you're there for them no matter what and will be a support system for whatever they're going through.”

Do let her know that you will be there for her

One of the main concerns about approaching a friend who is dealing with a difficult situation is how to act around her. What do you say? First, take cues from your friend, says Levine. Offer to speak to her about the situation. If she does not want to open up, respect her decision but let her know that you will be there for her. Levine suggests offering help such as going shopping or returning library books for her, or sending a card expressing your sympathy.

“Personally, I'm pretty independent when I'm dealing with stuff. I tend to bottle up and resist help,” says Amanda, a student at Kwantlen Polytechnic University, who recently lost a loved one. “But the most helpful thing for me is just knowing that there are people there I can call on if I need to. Say, to pick me up from the hospital because I'm crying too hard to drive or to make sure I have dinner at home because I'm too stressed to cook.”

Do listen but don’t judge

We all have opinions but even if the advice we offer comes from a good place, it might not be what they need to hear. Focus on lending your ear because even if a friend asks for your advice, they mostly just want to get their feelings off their chest.

“It's more important to listen than it is to talk,” says Levine. “Don't claim to know how they are feeling because you probably don't.” Beware of dominating the conversation with stories about your own life. Even though these stories might be brought up with the intention of relating to your friend, be careful not to make the conversation about you. Focus on your friend and what she is going through.

Don’t downplay the situation

It might seem helpful to encourage your friend to look on the bright side, but doing this might not help at all. According to Helpguide.org, you should avoid saying something like “look what you have to be thankful for” or “it could be worse.” Comments like these can come off as invalidating their feelings. Instead, remind them that they are human and are allowed to feel whatever they are feeling.

Don’t treat her too differently

You might be scared to say the wrong thing or do something that will make your friend feel worse, but sometimes walking on eggshells does not help the person.

Amanda from Kwantlen says that engaging in normal conversations keeps things from getting awkward. “Being treated like you're fragile when you are, in fact, fragile, really doesn't help matters at all. Don't be afraid to joke around a bit, talk about the latest episode of your favorite TV show or the gossip on campus or whatever. Sometimes all we need is a bit of normal in the midst of all the crazy.”

Do let her know that she’s not burdening you

Sometimes a friend will push you away, believing they have your best interest in mind. Reassure them that you want to help, says Levine. Encourage them to talk to you and let them know that they aren’t burdening you.

Hannah Orenstein, a collegiette at New York University, had a friend who was dealing with anorexia. Although her friend was getting the medical help of a doctor, nutritionist and therapist, she still lacked the feeling of support. “She was often insecure that she was boring me or pushing me away by talking so much about her eating disorder, so it was really important for me to remind her that I wanted to be her friend and that her eating disorder didn't change that.”

What if she refuses your help when she really needs it?

In some situations, a friend might refuse your help (for example, in the case of an addiction that she denies). This is different from her pushing you away because in this case, she denies having a problem even though she is clearly suffering.

“If you feel that the individual's safety is threatened in any way, you need to let a close family member know,” says Levine. “People are often in denial and lack insight, even in life-threatening situations.”

If this happens, make sure that you’re not enabling them in any way, such as bringing your friend to a party if she has a problem with drugs or alcohol, or lending money if they have a gambling addiction.

“Be sure to make the suggestion that help is available and the person needs to reach out for help,” says Levine. “For example, you might provide her with the phone number of AA or a domestic violence counselor.”

Each situation and each person is different but chances are your friend will appreciate your concern, even if she doesn’t express her appreciation in the moment. Continue to be there for her because sometimes, hard times test which friends are right for the job.

*Name changed