Higher Education

Universities Are Adapting Admissions For Coronavirus Pandemic

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The pandemic that unfolded in full force was not at all appropriate. After all, spring is in full swing. This means that there are only a few days left before the large-scale wave of final exams and admissions to educational institutions. How are things with entrance examinations, admission of documents, and passing of other tests today? Sorted this out in our material.

The Current Situation

A new dangerous and poorly understood viral infection has already made our world the way it was not before. Almost a million infected, tens of thousands of lost lives, the strictest quarantine regimes in almost all countries, the most powerful economic collapse, and thousands of canceled (or postponed) events, including:

  • All national championships and international tournaments in football and other sports;
  • Summer Olympics;
  • Cannes Film Festival;
  • Eurovision;
  • ExoMars Mission;
  • E3 Annual Gaming Conference;
  • The World Economic Forum;
  • Numerous premieres in the world of cinema;
  • Concert tours and music festivals;
  • Fashion weeks and shows.

The educational process is no exception. The coronavirus has made its own major adjustments. Now, most schoolchildren and students are homeschooled (thanks to modern technology). All educational institutions are closed. Each university or school can introduce its own additional precautions. For example, Harvard asked all students to vacate their dorms back in mid-March. And China, where the infection came from, developed a national educational online platform in a short time. Exams, tests, and even the defense of diplomas are also planned to be transferred online. While trapped at home, it’s possible to learn quite a lot, and not only your university program. Online courses open doors to a range of exciting career options (marketing course, for example).

In some countries, they have introduced long-term vacations and stopped the educational process altogether – Kuwait schoolchildren back to their desks only on October 4 (with the exception of graduates).

Admission to universities during a pandemic: entrance exams and admission to universities

COVID-19 also affected higher education institutions. All universities in the world have been quarantined and are trying to introduce new remote learning systems. As for the final and entrance exams, at the moment improvisation is read in almost all addresses to students. Administrations do not know how long the quarantine will last. Therefore, they are trying to come up with some convenient date on which all exams can be postponed.

The problem is that such a system fails since all events are clearly timed. All this action stretches for about three months. And now all this needs to be either postponed or greatly reduced in terms of time. Therefore, each university chooses its own model of overcoming the crisis. At the moment, 1 billion people in the world have switched to a remote learning system.

USA

Entrance exams in American universities were moved from April to June. The country’s most advanced universities, such as the Massachusetts University of Technology (MIT), are organizing full-length remote classes and, when the general quarantine is extended, are ready to conduct entrance exams over the Internet.

Otherwise, American higher education institutions are not yet worried about the cancellation or postponement of entrance exams, believing that the COVID-19 epidemic will end earlier. For example, Harvard University did not devote a single paragraph in its large-scale FAQ, which deals with the situation with the coronavirus. But they, along with Stanford University, announced that they would forgive students for any delay in tuition payments. And the president of the country, in turn, said that for students the interest on student loans…

How Universities Are Adapting Their Admissions During The Coronavirus Pandemic

Special exams

GRE

Graduate Record Examination is testing conducted in the US and UK for students entering postgraduate programs in all areas. Distinguish between General GRE and Subject GRE. The former is usually included in university-wide charters, while the latter is valid for specific specialties and faculties. The purpose of the GRE is to assess the general level of knowledge and to fairly compare different curricula around the world. The test is conducted entirely in English. The admissions offices of different universities are lukewarm about the GRE. However, his average score is taken into account if it is too low or too high.

In connection with the outbreak of the coronavirus, the development company GRE – ETS has launched an online format for its testing. To take the test at home, you will need to install two special programs on your computer: ETS Test Browser and ProctorU Systems Check. In one, you will take the test. The other will make sure you don’t cheat.

GMAT

Graduate Management Admission Test is a test for students wishing to study at a master’s degree or business school in finance, economics, business, and management programs. Typically used when enrolling in an MBA program. The test was developed in the middle of the last century. Its structure is undergoing massive changes up to the present day. For example, in 2012 a big new section (Integrated reasoning) was added.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, most tests around the world have been canceled. At the moment, on the official page of the GMAC organization on Facebook, it is noted that an online version of the GMAT test is being developed.

LSAT

The Law School Admission Test is a special test for law applicants created by Harvard and Yale graduates in 1943. Its results are used by admissions committees of higher education institutions in the USA, Canada, Australia, and several other countries. Hosted by LSAC. About 200,000 people undergo this testing every year.

The March LSAT test has been canceled worldwide due to the coronavirus epidemic. All those who registered for the test in March were automatically registered on April 25th. This is a new tentative testing date. 

By the way, after the February 2021 exam, more states plan to offer the bar exam remotely again (Connecticut Bar Exam, for example).

MCAT

Medical College Admission Test is a standardized exam for medical students who wish to study in the United States, Canada, Australia, and the Caribbean. Hosted by the AAMC, the Association of American Medical Colleges. It is one of the most difficult and longest examinations in the world. The last major changes to the test were made in 2015 to reflect all modern medical advances.

In connection with the coronavirus, the April MCAT exam has been completely canceled. The association has eliminated all additional cancellation and postponement fees until the situation stabilizes. The next testing date has not yet been determined. It is recommended to stay tuned for updates on this page.

TOEFL

Test of English as a Foreign Language is a well-known test of English language proficiency. Like GRE, TOEFL is developed by ETS. During the COVID-19 epidemic, it is possible to take the test online.

IELTS

The International English Language Testing System is the main competitor of TOEFL. Created mainly for admission to higher education institutions in the UK. Often used by various companies during hiring. At the moment, the IELTS test continues in some regions, if the admissions committees manage to create a competent isolation environment. But in most countries, the IELTS exam has been officially canceled. Its renewal depends on the quarantine rules of other states.

Final thoughts

The situation in the world in connection with the virus is changing not only every day but every minute. That is why everything, including studying in schools and entering universities, can change more than once. Follow the news on the websites of the educational institution you are interested in and on the news portals of the country where you are already studying or just planning to study. Take care of yourself and your loved ones!

Positive Words Research – How Universities Are Adapting Their Admissions During The Coronavirus Pandemic

How Spirituality And Mindfulness Increase Positivity

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Focusing on one’s personal spirituality, practicing mindfulness and honoring self-care are known for naturally increasing positivity in your life. These three different acts can seem a bit ambiguous to those who are unfamiliar with the terms. This may be due to the fact that they can have many different meanings to different people, which is why they are personal to your own journey.

Spiritual traditions such as prayer, meditation, yoga, and journaling are meant to nourish the soul and allow time for self-reflection. Mindfulness is becoming more consciously aware of your thoughts and emotions in the present moment. Self-care is intentionally restoring your mind, body, and soul with activities such as disconnecting from the outside world, making yourself a cup of tea or treating yourself with a massage. Whatever act of self-service that helps you to reconnect with yourself with your own being and revive your inner light is good.

Physical Benefits

Our present-day culture tends to feed into the need to be fast-moving and overly productive. Refocusing your attention to your inner-self has the ability to positively transform your physical body, especially after a day of hard work. Using nothing more than your breath and focus, meditation has shown to greatly reduce stress and stress-related conditions such as irritable bowel syndrome, post-traumatic stress disorder, and fibromyalgia. If your work allows for you to escape to focus on your personal wellness, be sure to do so — even for as little as five minutes a day. Also, be sure to take advantage of communicating grievances to your manager. You’ll be surprised at how much more motivated and productive you’ll feel, after being honest.

Much like comparing a smoker to a non-smoker, personal choices and habits have an impact on our physical health and our ability to heal our own bodies. Healthcare-related research studies have found that having a connection with spirituality or religion helps ill patients better cope with stress and improves their quality of life. Giancarlo Lucchetti led a study that found that individuals with a strong spiritual connection have an 18 percent reduction in early mortality. This serves as evidence that establishing a spiritual life now may potentially prolong your life.

Positive Self-Image

The mind and body are inextricably connected. Treating the mind and body as a holistic system will aid in creating an overall positive self-image. When your physical body feels healthy and well, so does your mental health and vice versa. Practicing acts of self-care enable you to reinforce positive self-image by accepting that you deserve the best out of life. Self-care does not have to always look the same each time. Integrating routine exercise into your life’s schedule or simply looking at yourself in the mirror and saying the words “I love you” is as intensely impactful as treating yourself to something nice or going on vacation. By treating yourself with love and kindness you are simultaneously manifesting positivity and welcoming it into your life.

Start Young

A large percentage of a young person’s time is spent in school receiving their education. Integrating mindfulness practices into a child’s school day has proven to have many positive impacts. Millions of dollars have been invested into studies on the positive effects of mindfulness practices on students with results showing improved sleep, increased retention rates, and lower anxiety levels. Mindfulness practices not only have positive impacts on them at the time of the practice but the effects carry on throughout schooling into higher education. In one study by the University of California Santa Barbara, it was discovered that integrating mindfulness practices reduced mind-wandering, which helped to improve scores on the reading comprehension portion of the Graduate Record Examination (GRE).

Adapting intentional practices that benefit your mind, body and soul will naturally allow positivity to find you and influence your life. The positive outcomes will spill over onto those who surround you, creating a waterfall effect on all aspects of your life. Welcome and embrace mindfulness, spirituality, and self-care into your everyday routine — at work, school and at home. Every movement, encounter, and thought is an opportunity to intentionally be positive in the present moment.

Author’s Bio

Avery T. Phillips is a freelance human being with too much to say. She loves nature and examining human interactions with the world. Comment or tweet her @a_taylorian with any questions or suggestions. Avery lives in the United States.

Here at Positive Words Research, we are looking to share with our readers original content that hasn’t been published on other sites so if you are comfortable with Positive Words Research being your sole publisher, we are more than happy to share with our readers your inspiring and empowering story.

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Link Between Sleep And Grades: How Can We Benefit Now

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Yes, there is. If you want to improve your academic performance in college, make sure you are getting enough sleep. According to a recent study by the Douglas Mental Health University Institute and McGill University in Montreal, students who get enough sleep score better in languages and math.

This is not the only study that backs this claim. Several medical and scientific studies link sleep and grades. In another scientific study published in 2017, it was revealed that college students with a consistent sleep schedule are more likely to secure higher grades compared to those who do not follow a strict sleep schedule.

These studies reveal that not only having enough sleep is vital for students, but it is also necessary to follow a strict sleep schedule. As a student, you have to make sure that you are going to bed and waking up at a consistent time.

Why is Sleep so Important for Higher Grades?

With advanced scientific research, it is now common knowledge that the quality of sleep has an impact on our lifestyle, work productivity, and our ability to learn. Sleep quality plays a major role in improving memory, language learning, problem-solving skills, executive functions, and the ability to learn complex concepts.

There is more to the link between sleep and grades. You also need to understand there is a difference between “long sleep” and “quality sleep”, both having different effects. The studies show that long sleep is related to the improvement of academic results, while quality or deep sleep is linked with overall cognitive performance.

Make sure to not only sleep for 8-9 hours but also ensure you are sleeping in an environment that allows uninterrupted sleep.

The Challenge for College Students

The issue here is – college and university life is not easy for students. Most students not only attend college but also work in their spare time to meet their expenses. Moreover, they also have to make time to prepare for their examinations and to prepare assignments.

In most cases, the tough daily routine makes it almost impossible for students to have enough sleep. In the United States, college students on average get 6 hours of sleep per night, while most remain sleep-deprived throughout their college years, resulting in poor grades.

According to health experts, a college student must have 8 hours of quality sleep. Lack of sleep does not only impact grades, but also overall health, both physical and psychological.

What is the Solution for Students?

The best way to ensure enough sleep is to bring balance to your life. While it is a fact that life for students is tough, especially for those who also work while studying, but there are ways you can manage your time more effectively.

  • Finding Jobs that are Easier and Allows Multitasking

Commuting between college and the workplace often consumes a lot of time. The easier solution is to find online jobs that can be done by students. There are a lot of opportunities available online that allows students to work from their home.

For example, students can work as virtual assistants, email support, customer support, online chat, bloggers, essay writers, data entry specialists, web researchers, etc.

All these jobs not only save you time, as you can perform these jobs online from your room but also allows you to study at the same time. For example, if you are working as a virtual assistant, you can easily switch between your study and your work.

You can increase your sleep hours as you don’t have to travel between your work and college anymore.

  • Delegate More

Most students stay up late in the night just to complete their essay writing and other assignments. To counter this, many seek help.

Do you know that more than 20,000 university students in the UK use essay writing services? It is a great way to get some more time to sleep and have less stress.

  • Limit Your Nightlife

If you are spending too much time with your friends and staying late at night just to party, it is time to limit it at least for college years. As a student, you need a good night’s sleep. Limit the nightlife to weekends only.

In addition, you also need to limit the consumption of energy drinks, coffee, and other sugary beverages that have a negative impact on your sleep. Similarly, limit the use of the computer or mobile devices, especially in the nighttime. Exposure to the blue light emitting from digital screens severely affects the quality of our sleep and causes sleeplessness.

Conclusion

Every student has one goal, to achieve higher grades, but if you are not having enough sleep, it often becomes impossible. Many students don’t realize that there is a strong link between sleep and grades. It is now a scientific fact. So make sure to set your priorities right, manage your lifestyle, and make sure to have enough time to sleep for at least 8 hours each night.

Author ~ Donna Moores

Here at Positive Words Research, we are looking to share with our readers original content that hasn’t been published on other sites so if you are comfortable with Positive Words Research being your sole publisher, we are more than happy to share with our readers your inspiring and empowering story.

Positive Words Research – Is There A Link Between Sleep And Grades?

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Education is the Key to Success in Life and Peace on Earth

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Education plays a significant role to design your future as a successful person in life and as a useful citizen in society. I believe no one can neglect the importance of it. Education reduces the challenges of life that one might face.

When you have more knowledge and degree, there will be more opportunities for you to accelerate your professional and personal growth in life. Education is becoming very important for career building in this era. A person who acquires higher education will have more skills, capable of doing multiple tasks as well as meet the job requirement. Such a person is also aware of how to balance personal and professional life.

Importance

Education is important because it gives a different perspective on life and establishes a personal opinion after analyzing the situation. It helps society to develop socially and economically. Also, the latest technologies are developed and used in different areas like health, economy, military, and other business.

Educated doctors find the solutions to the dangerous diseases, causes, and prevention of these diseases.

It is the responsibility of each person to recognize the importance of education on the individual basis.

Education is very important to bring prosperity, unity and build a stronger nation. People will not make difference between right and wrong until they are educated.

When you have more knowledge and degree, there will be more opportunities for you to accelerate your professional and personal growth in life. In the race for higher knowledge, some students due to lack of time try to buy college essays online. You’d better buy an inexpensive laptop recommended for college studying and install some useful software and eBooks for this money.

It is clearly shown no person can open the doors of opportunities and success in life without being educated. Having a scholarly background not only gives knowledge of a particular subject but also teaches us the core values and ways of living. Self-respect and the basic rights of human beings are benefits of educated people.

All these lessons and values are important if we want to make Earth a peaceful place and it is done with the help of education.

We can say that education is a success factor for civilization, socialization, professional and personal growth.

It teaches us the manners of living. In the past, people had success without education and use alternative ways for it, but their success might be temporary. The key to success usually depends on educated people. So if a person wants divine success then education is compulsory.

When you are able to get an education it will help you to better analyze yourself and your skills, so you can excel. Education also gives a sense of management and patience. Is the ultimate way to improve communication skills, enhance your perspective, and refine your personal skills as well as your technical skills.

The most important thing that you need to remember about education is that it helps the individuals to gain personal control on their lives.

Always refine your education at any time and age because it opens the doors for various opportunities (if any of those doors are too hard to push you can always rely on cheapwritingservice.com to help you out). When you start understanding its importance, you will experience a great change in your life. After understanding yourself and your skills, you may reach your vision and dreams. In this way, you feel that you are doing a very enjoyable thing to get success in your life.

Author Bio

Kristina Gordon is a content research writer and marketer currently working at a USA firm. She has written guest posts for positivewordsresearch.com. Kristina also writes content for USA Assignment Service. She manages the content writing team successfully and loves traveling and spending time on social media.

Here at Positive Words Research, we are looking to share with our readers original content that hasn’t been published on other sites so if you are comfortable with Positive Words Research being your sole publisher, we are more than happy to share with our readers your inspiring and empowering story.

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A Short History and Future of Online Learning Today

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About 125 years ago, students could earn the correspondence degree. Correspondence programs were initiated in higher education by the Universality of London in the mid of 19th century. In the next century, different universities played with other modalities including radio and television-based learning. Most notably in the UK—with the Open University. Correspondence degrees in the U.S. remained solidly ground on paper and the U.S. Postal Service.

There was little sense among traditional universities before the 1990s that students should generate a profit or be in any way central to the institution. These programs operate on cost-recover bases, and they were demoted to the outskirts. Lack of profit was sarcastic considering one of the pioneers of corresponding degrees.
International correspondence schools enrolled a total of 900,000 students by 1906, driven by a sales force of 1,200. It made sense given the view that correspondence degrees should serve educational outreach missions of the university. In the middle of the 20th century, the University of Maryland College and the University of Wisconsin Extension led the market.

Internet era

The Internet has proved itself as a game changer for correspondence degrees by enabling three forms of interactivity.

  • interaction with content,
  • interaction with the instructor,
  • the interaction with other learners.

People closest to the correspondence were the last to see it. Extension and ongoing education programs viewed the internet as yet other in a long line of non-revolutionary technologies like two-way video.

Market leaders

Market leaders like University of Maryland (UMUC), Wisconsin, Washington, and University of California Los Angeles were caught unaware as for-profit entrants nurtured the market for distance degrees.
For-profit entrants were not afraid of UMUC, and for-profit domination did not happen overnight. In 2000, Sloan Asynchronous Learning Network estimated that for-profits occupied less than 5% of the market for distance degrees. For-profits like the University of Phoenix grew rapidly over the prior decade by making higher education more accessible.

Duke University, an elite university which initiated its global executive MBA in the late 90s, and Cornell University which started e-Cornell as the university’s vehicle for online certificate programs seemed to grab the potential of online delivery better than other universities.

Development of for-profit universities for a decade was powered by online degrees. These degrees entered into the huge market of nearly 40 million Americans. By 2010, students enrolled in online programs were 3 million.
70% of those students attended for-profit institutions. From 2000 to 2010, most of the potential customers were targeted with the opportunity to go back to college.

Experience

The experience of the for-profits in the last 5 years has been, in part a calamity of the commons. Too many fishermen fishing in a diminishing pool. It has also been a failure of investment. For-profit organizations focused investment in the areas of marketing and enrollment.

Consequently, enrollment growth slowed and reversed over the last 5 years. The immediate reaction was to redouble the focus on marketing rather than thinking about the development of a product.

Programs in 2015 were easily recognized by online students from the year 2000. Many for-profits institutes use the same learning management system that was used a decade ago. None of them have attempted to reinvent online learning based on the current technology. It is a failure of investment that is coupled with the failure of imagination.

Online Degree

Online degree programs in popular subjects like Business, Technology, Psychology, Criminal Justice, Health, and Education are very popular commodity programs today.

We saw no growth in the market for online degrees last year. That’s because commodity programs are declining as the time is passing by. This decline is offset by growth in differentiated online programs.

What is a differentiated online program?

Institutions can differentiate their programs in three ways.

First way is through branding

Recognizing that there is a limited number of prestigious brands in higher education. Non-elite brands like Bridgepoint’s Ashford University has partnered with elite and recognizable brands like Forbes for Ashford’s business school.
Consequently, Ashford’s business programs continue to grow.

The second method is through specialized programs

There are many splendid examples of triumph specialized online programs although there is a ‘tail’ to online education curve. The tail for 100% online programs is not nearly long enough to make a real contribution to the growth of the overall market.
The real tail is blended programs—a subject for another day.

Third one is by connecting students to a job

How to do this thing effectively is still a puzzle. One company, ProSky has hit upon a fascinating model by providing on-ground universities the opportunity to enroll their students in a 10-week project-based online course in discrete skills areas such as digital marketing, SEO, and Sales.
Employers contribute projects to the course, monitor the work of students, and directly recruit students.

Strong brands

Ivy League Schools like Yale are now entering the market for online degrees via a partnership with online project management companies such as Pearson Embanet and Synergis Education. The growth of online project management companies and the brands that they have enabled have significantly contributed to for-profit enrollment decline.

Online project management companies now have the opportunity to lead the market for online degrees in the U.S. and internationally. They also have the luxury to work with stronger brands. Though they need to avoid making the same mistakes as their for-profit university predecessors.
Undifferentiated online degree programs will become commodities. Online project management companies should ensure that students enroll in online programs will get the job that they want. Also get a reasonable return on their investment in a pricey online degree.

Author’s Bio

Alina Olive is a senior content writer. She has experience of long-term in the marketing field as a content writer. She often creates articles on online education. Alina works in a Do My Homework company and writes an essay for students.

Here at Positive Words Research, we are looking to share with our readers original content that hasn’t been published on other sites so if you are comfortable with Positive Words Research being your sole publisher, we are more than happy to share with our readers your inspiring and empowering story.

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