Christmas Plans

My plans for Christmas break are to relax and hang out with friends and family. To start off the break, I'm going to see the Nutcracker with Paige so I'm super excited for that. I plan on hanging out and catching up with my sister before the next semester starts since we haven't been able to now that she's down at Baylor for school. Some of the things I asked for for Christmas are a new phone, anything LSU, UT, or Baylor, and Starbucks gift cards.

Why I Want to Go to College

In college, I hope to complete my basics, go on to study pharmacy, and receive my PhD. I want to go to college for myself in order to get where I want to be in life. The characteristics that matter the most when choosing a college would be finding a college that you feel at home in, one that is known for good academics, and a college that offers your major or can help you prepare for your major if you have to transfer. A few of the people who I might ask for their input from would be my parents and my sister. They've always encouraged me to go to college so when I get to the point in my life when I choose where I want to go, I will want their advice and help with my decision. Also, since my sister is already in college, she can help me even more with my choice due to the fact that she's already been through that process. College will help me immensely with getting to where I want to be after high school. It will help me achieve my goal of becoming a pharmacist by having professors teach me about all of the criteria that goes along with becoming and being a pharmacist.

Thanksgiving Plans

Over Thanksgiving break, I plan on spending time with my family and friends and working on homework for multiple classes. I'm excited to spend the day with my family (especially since my sister will be coming home!) and then my friends and I are going to the lake next Saturday to hang out and have a picnic. I also plan to catch up on some much needed sleep so that I can hopefully focus on my work more after the break and not be as exhausted as I have been. 

Jobs for Teenagers in High School

A really good job that I found is babysitting. This job helps young teenagers learn how to be responsible and tolerable to others. On this website: http://www.moneycrashers.com/part-time-jobs-high-school-students/ it gives examples of popular jobs that teens have in high school. This job is an easy way to make money while having fun without the overwhelming hours of a job somewhere else. Babysitters, on average, make $10 per hour and sometimes more. A way to prepare for an interview for this job would be by understanding how to communicate with parents and the child (children) itself. Finding a job for babysitting online can sometimes be difficult because of the fact that the parents are protective. Gaining the parent's trust and having a former "family friend" relationship with them is easier if you've known them prior to considering this job. However, it's not impossible. There are multiple babysitting websites to use so people can contact you or vice versa. Websites such as care.com and babysitters4hire.com are popular websites that people use to find an acceptable babysitter for their children. Overall, this job is fairly easy and a great way to help a high school student with their social skills, as well as encourage them to be responsible and trustworthy.

Homeless to Harvard

My thoughts on the movie "Homeless to Harvard" were probably much like anyone else's. It made think about how thankful I am to not be in that situation. My favorite part was when she went to the school and filled out an application so that she could be successful. It shows her courage and that she can finally take care of herself instead of having to worry about her parents. Even though she had every reason to feel sorry for herself, she never did because it became a normal thing for her. I think over a period of time, if I was in her position, I would eventually recuperate but she was really strong and carried herself very well after everything. It takes a lot for someone who's gone through so much to pick themselves back up and start over but she did a great job.

College Budget

I think the most surprising thing about doing the college budget was learning about how much there was to pay for. I never actually thought about everything I would have to pay for in college and especially not on my own. Although I knew there would be a lot of expenses, I still didn't expect the total monthly cost to be as high as it was. I thought it would be closer to  Something I realized is that if I actually had to do this on my own at the same time of being in college and having a job, I wouldn't be financially stable. Making $10 per hour would barely be enough while still having leftover money.

Top Career Choice

My top career choice is to become a pharmacist. I haven't always wanted to be a pharmacist, but after hanging out at the pharmacy my mom works at, I started to want to learn more about the affects of medications and how some can act differently for different people. I'm always wanting to watch our pharmacist and learn how he makes certain things.

Stress

Schoolwork and teachers are some of the main things that stress me out when school starts back up. I'm constantly "beating myself up" over grades that aren't even that bad. I just always want better so I think of the worst case scenario, being that I might not be able to fix it or bring my grade up in that class. During volleyball season this is a big issue for me because I can't play if I don't pass so I worry about my grades all the time. The way I deal with this is by keeping track of everything I need to do in my planner. That way, I never forget what I need to do for homework and if I do, I have something to reference back to.

Organization and Procrastination

Being organized helps save so much time and effort. One way that I stay organized is by writing things that I've done, or that I need to do, down in my planner throughout the day. That way, if I forget something, I can always refer back to my something to make sure it gets finished. Procrastination does not benefit a student in any way. It is actually the complete opposite. Putting things off until the last minute only adds stress because you're limited on your time much more than you would be if you did it ahead of time. Being organized is a way that could potentially help a student to not procrastinate.

About Me and What I Want from College Transition

My name is Tori Byerly and I'm sixteen! I love God, my family, my friends, and volleyball! Something I want to learn from College Transition is how to get situated into the "college lifestyle" before I get there. I'm excited to learn about different scholarships and colleges that will help me get to where I'm going.