FIRST-PLACE ESSAY:  Submitted by MAGGIE TALLANT

How NGCSU Can Improve My Learning Experience

By Maggie Tallant

     As I look forward into my future I see caps and gowns, congratulations from family and friends, and a major milestone in my life reached—graduation. However, following this joyous time I will be faced with reality (the real world as most call it). How will I attempt to enter the business world? I will have such a great education from NGCSU but no skills on how to transition into the working field. Job hunting, résumé writing, and interviewing will consume all my free time after graduation. Expertise in these tasks will be necessary for me to use the education that I will have received at school. In all, I believe that my learning experience here at NGCSU would be improved greatly with the addition of a class geared towards preparing students on how to enter into the business world.

     The course that I propose would firstly inform students on how to correctly write a résumé. A correctly written résumé is an extremely important document that will determine if you receive or do not receive an interview. But in order to send a résumé to a prospective job one must know how to search for a job. With technology advancements today, job searching could easily become discouraging. With the proper training on where to begin looking for a job the discouragement could easily be prevented.

     The most important information given during my proposed course would involve expectations of an interview. I believe it would be extremely helpful to study typical questions that are asked during an interview. The content that an interviewee presents during an interview is tremendously important, so knowing how to manage this content is vital for success. Learning what to expect during an interview would also greatly help to calm nerves that could possibly portray lack of confidence during an interview. Lacking confidence might be viewed as a negative characteristic from the interviewer. Not only would it be extremely important to learn how to prepare for an interview, but also what proper etiquette for an interview consists of. Dress could possibly be tricky when one is preparing for an interview depending on what kind of job one is pursuing. Inviting guest speakers who conduct interviews regularly at their places of business would be a brilliant way to inform students about dress attire that would traditionally be expected of an interviewee. These speakers would also be beneficial in explaining classic mistakes of interviewees and how to go about avoiding them.

     Post-interview etiquette would also be critical information to obtain in my proposed course. Knowing the correct information to include in a post-interview letter demonstrates knowledge of professional behavior. Exhibiting correct verbal follow-up etiquette on a completed interview is another way to show knowledge of expected professional behavior. Without this knowledge, the candidate for a job could possibly show undesired aggressive behavior by being too persistent. Learning these post interview follow-ups correctly is imperative for job interview success.

     Another valuable tool that should be used in the course would be interview roll playing. Pairing students up and playing the rolls of interviewer and interviewee would be valuable in two ways. Firstly, students would be able to practice their answers to interview questions in order to become comfortable with their responses. Secondly, students would be able to help tweak each others answers for maximum impact, while also gaining the perspective of the interviewer.

     The areas I have touched on in this essay are only a few of the valuable topics that would be covered in my proposed course. Being successful in obtaining one’s preferred job will require correct knowledge on résumé writing, job locating skills, the interviewing process, and post-interview process. These skills could be obtained from a book post-graduation, but why not gather this valuable information from the institution who taught students their secondary education? Merely reading this material from a book does not allow students to ask common questions and receive professional feedback. As students of NGCSU, we know that we are receiving a top-quality education and adding this course to the curriculum will help students locate the jobs that will demonstrate to the professional world what a great education is offered at NGCSU. Sending out knowledgeable graduates from our institution not only reflects well on the students, it reflects well on the college. This course is the best way to improve my learning experience here at NGCSU because it rounds out my college experience and will help me achieve the next goals that I have set for myself in life.

How NGCSU Can Improve My Learning Experience

By Richard Tabor

     The small town of Dahlonega offers many people the chance to approach a different aspect of college than most. Many students choose North Georgia for the overall reason that it is a small and beautiful campus. Although NGCSU is a great educational institution, there are a few aspects that can be improved in order to achieve an even more optimal learning experience.

     My perspective comes from two years of experience at North Georgia College and State University, where I discovered a sense of belonging, much like home. There are two concerning factors that can be improved in order to enhance my learning experience. The first is the use of the WebCT GoergiaVIEW Vista academic online system. WebCT is a great asset that has helped me learn more effectively, although I currently only use it for one subject. I believe this online class assistance program should be mandatory for all classes at NGCSU, due to the profound usefulness of the software. A few great reasons support my claim. The first, it is easier for professors to post their syllabi online, verses to print them off continuously for each student. This would also dramatically decreases the amount of paper spent in the classroom environment. Another great asset of WebCT is the announcements feature. This enables professors to put out any announcements such as a cancelled class or even hints of what to study for upcoming tests. Handling hundreds of email addresses and sorting through names are a thing of the past. Professors may also use WebCT to post assignments and even quizzes, in turn which are extremely easier to grade. Therefore, students have the capability to basically see a web page of all their current grades in order to keep an eye on their progress. Overall, WebCT GeorgiaVIEW Vista should be a required component of each class because of its profound usefulness and effectiveness. The less the professors have to spend on grading and other work outside the classroom, the more they can focus on meeting the requirements of their profession: to provide knowledge in the most effective and efficient way possible.

     Approaching a more technical aspect, many computers on campus are in dire need of an update. Many computers still run extremely slow, thus causing many computer labs to overfill, when others are barely occupied. Looking at the software on some of the computers, I discovered that there are still computers on campus with Microsoft Office 2000 as the active core software. I have noticed students who try to print their work only to be hindered by the differences in the current software versus the extremely outdated software that is eight years old. In today’s society, Office 2007 is becoming the primary core software in which many businesses are adopting. So why not upgrade the computers to the new software, resulting in individuals learning how to effectively use the programs before they enter the workforce of America? Many new students at North Georgia have Microsoft Office 2007, and from my experience I have worked with it, but have yet to succeed effectively. A computer science class for Office 2007 would be a great way to technologically advance the students’ capabilities with the new programs. NGCSU still offers classes based on the software of 2003, even now that students are entering the college with Windows Vista and Microsoft 2007 pre-installed on their computers. Updating the computers, software, and teaching computer science based on the new programs will be a great way to keep students ahead of the technical curve and achieve supreme learning.

     With new technical equipment installed in the classrooms, NGCSU is basing its learning experience off of technology. The new Library Technology Center will ultimately bring a great asset to North Georgia that I believe has been needed for far too long. I am personally glad that I will get to experience the benefits of the new library. Also, with new wireless internet connections placed throughout the campus, students are able to connect and have the true freedom of the internet. Add WebCT GeorgiaVIEW as a requirement, and professors will be able to concentrate more of the achievement of their students. Along with that, continuing to update the computers on campus will only better prepare North Georgia’s students for the future. NGCSU is doing a great job of promoting their care of academic priority for the students of North Georgia. The students of North Georgia College and State University are provided with ample tools, and a great opportunity to learn, in order to ultimately achieve success in life.

THIRD-PLACE ESSAY:  Submitted by PATTI MILLS

How NGCSU Can Improve My Learning Experience

By Patti Mills

     You don’t know me. Right now I am just another student with big ambitions and plans. My daily routine revolves around finding a parking space on campus and passing Spanish. It won’t always be like this. Someday my name will be one that people recognize. My books will be shelved in the school library. I might even be that author who wrote that book that got made into that movie.

     All those achievements are in my future. This year I am just a talented English major trying to get a good education. I’m soaking up knowledge, gaining skills, and wondering why I will have to leave my beloved campus and go elsewhere if I want a master’s degree in creative writing.

     Although there may be other master’s programs available in Georgia, NGCSU has something distinctive to offer. There is an ethereal quality to the energy here. It is so hard to grasp or define, but so easy to feel as you walk this ground. This quality is what spurs creativity and should make it so easy for NGCSU to entice writers here. The soul-stirring North Georgia Mountains have a unique rhythm of life that any artist is bound to find inspirational. These mountains are permeated with a rich legacy of folklore and culture. The tight-knit community is developed from a town and a college that seem bound together with a sense of permanence in an ever-changing world. It shocked me to find out this school has yet to offer a graduate program in creative writing. NGCSU has an opportunity to promote learning and exalt the kind of creative writing that comes from such a diverse and interesting community.

     There are several students majoring in English here who don’t necessarily want to be teachers. They feel limited in their choices here in seeking a master’s degree because the only option for them is English Education. There are already several published writers on staff who, I am sure, would jump at the chance to be part of such a graduate program in creative writing. With such a plethora of notable Georgia authors, a visiting writers series would also be a welcome addition to the program.

     In the last twenty years there has been a huge surge of interest in graduate programs for creative writing. I have spent many hours poring over information about other colleges and the opportunities they offer. I have read about writer’s workshops, guest teachers and writers, low residency programs, and teaching fellowships. Then I look at NGCSU, and it is so easy to visualize a graduate program like that being a huge success here, especially a low residency program. Typically a two-year low residency program consists of intense two-week residency periods on campus. Between residencies, students spend the term in individual writing, sending new writing to faculty members and receiving assessments.

     Perhaps we could develop an NGCSU Appalachian Center for Creative Writing that could also serve as a writers retreat and a place for local writers to meet. One building with the right design could cover a multitude of needs for the school and community and pay for itself many times over.

     Some of the most successful programs in the nation are deliberately kept small to keep funding high. There are many more gifted applicants each year than places for them which allows the program directors to choose from a rich pool of talent and undiscovered potential. This would guarantee that the students picked would all be highly motivated and a good fit into the community.

     I am well aware that hard work, talent, and a high GPA could get me a full ride to an already established top choice, but I would much rather help make NGCSU my first choice and a top choice for other talented writers as well. I have heard time and time again since I enrolled here how important teaching is. To me, writing, with its potential to influence millions, is the most important subject to teach. What I am asking from my school is just this – teach me. I will learn and I will become a success.

     You don’t know me now, but someday you will. When the day comes that people know who I am, I want to bring honor to my college. I want to be able to say that NGCSU was the school that gave me the tools I needed to succeed.

This Web page was created in April 2008.

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