Month: February 2019

Such a ‘Bler: Vday by the Lake

Such a ‘Bler: Vday by the Lake

Happy Hearts Day!

The celebration of love is all around and I’m feeling extra warm in this Chicago wind. I’m currently scribbling this on the Loyola intercampus shuttle, one of which the driver let all the girls on first today which I thought was quite sweet haha.

For most of today I’ve been in my room trying to finish an assignment but since I opened my eyes, my social media feed has been flooded with festivities. From Loyola Valentine memes to special treats in our dining halls. Even last night there was a huge PSA going around Instagram stories about the red velvet cupcakes and chocolate fountain on their way!!!

The LUC Commuter Student Life Organization also put on an entire munch spread!!! Now I’m getting even more excited to live off campus next year knowing that I’ll still be able to join the campus food parties. Because what else is Valentine’s Day about apart from discounted sweets and platter deals haha.

In all seriousness, I think this post I made for Diminuendo’s social media says it best: “Fall in love with yourself, your life and those in it – today and every day ahead.” Love is love, and love is for all and in all. Be sure to call home and tell someone you appreciate them today.

Stay Munde-fine!

 

HEY, I ALSO MAKE VIDEOS! 

HERE’S THE SUCH A ‘BLER PLAYLIST: 

Have No Fear, Resume Tips Are Here!

Have No Fear, Resume Tips Are Here!

 

It is that time where many of us are either beginning to apply to graduate school, medical school, a job, etc.!

Many of us may need to start working on our resumes whether it is for a job, an internship, applying to a school, etc. Now what is the function of a resume you may ask? It is a concise summary of your education, work/volunteer/internship experiences and other qualifications relevant to your audience’s needs. Employers use resumes as a first impression and will use it to compare you to other candidates. NOTE: a good resume does not guarantee you a job, it just allows you to be considered. A resume demonstrates the skills and capabilities that the reader would value and it is essential for you to demonstrate your abilities and is showcases a sense of direction in your career.

How to layout and format a good resume:

There are a few basic resume types but lets focus on some things that are particularly helpful –

  • It is recommended to format chronologically so that the reader is able to see organization qualities as well as being able to follow your experience.
  • Aim to fit your resume on 1 page – unless you have more experiences that are relevant to the job, you should limit it to one page because it is a general overview of your skills and capabilities.

  • AVOID using templates as a basis for your resume because sometimes they can be difficult to alter and limits you from standing out if your resume looks just like everyone else’s. (Remember, the person reading your resume is most likely reading soooooo many others.)
  • Use CAPS, bolding, underlining, bullets, and indentation to direct the reader’s attention and separate different sections of the resume.
  • Do NOT use graphics or unusual fonts and colors to “dress up” your resume. It doesn’t look professional and you need to limit your space as well because you only have 1 page remember.
  • Use margins between 0.5″ – 1.0″ which leaves enough blank space on the page so that the document is comfortable to read and enough margin to allow for different viewing software and printers.
  • It would be better to save your file as a pdf before submitting electronically so that it preserves the format.

 

Sections within your resume:

 

Contact information

  • Include your name and email address as well as the phone number and street address you would prefer to be contacted at

Introductory Statement 

  • “Objective” statements are often considered awkward, obsolete, or unnecessary.
  • If you use a summary statement, make sure that your experiences live up to that statement.

Education

  • List degrees in reverse chronological order
  • List the official names of the school you have attended
  • You may list your GPA if it is strong
  • Course Work descriptions: which can include honors and awards (scholarships/fellowships)
  • Study abroad – list school(s), location, dates

Work Experiences 

  • List experiences in reverse-chronological order.
  • Show the name of the organization, your title, and dates of involvement.
  • Be consistent in your formatting of each experience
  • Use bulleted phrases to describe each experience which should demonstrate skills and capabilities – consider how your experiences demonstrate core work skills (communication/interpersonal skills, organization/time management/leadership, analytical/problem solving skills.
  • Use a professional and active voice

Internship, Co-curricular and Volunteer Experience 

  • List experiences that involve leadership or organizational responsibilities
  • Format the same way and be sure to demonstrate core work skills

Skills

  • This section is optional but this includes additional language skills you possess or certifications/licenses
  • This can also include technology or soft ware skills that are relevant to your career.

 

Hopefully this helps many of you! If you need additional guidance, refer to Loyola’s Career Development Center – they have many available resources, including sample resumes/cover letters!

 

 

Study Abroad and More!

Study Abroad and More!

 

A lot of people ask me what it’s like to study abroad, but have you ever wondered… what it’s like, coming back from studying abroad? I know, I know, I didn’t either. I was like: heck yeah! I’ll come back (I guess, if I have to… I’d rather just have stayed… But…)

There’s certainly ups and downs. One of the downs, it feels like, is that suddenly you don’t see the people you saw every day for a whole semester every day any more. Whaaat, we don’t live in the same building any more? Life is busy and it’s hard to make plans now that we can’t just run into each other in the lounge? We can’t just plan a weekend trip to another state because we have jobs and increased homework now?

Preposterous. Luckily, the Study Abroad office here has social events covered. I went to the Study Abroad Alumni social there and ran into not only my closest friends (with whom I had already arranged to meet there) but also some friends that I hadn’t seen in a long time, friends that I saw often while I was abroad but, because I was abroad again and they weren’t, I lost touch with.

The Study Abroad Alumni social wasn’t just open to alumni – nope, it was totally cool for people interested in studying abroad to attend too, so I got to talk with some students who wanted to talk with people who had been abroad. The event was held in Ireland’s – it’s the campus bar, right in our Damen Student Center, a pretty cool place to do your homework until (if you’re over 21) the night comes and your friends arrive but you don’t want to go off-campus. Plus, I mean, they had free food from Felice’s, our student-run pizzeria, so how could anyone say no?

The Study Abroad office was also hosting a raffle contest, open to students who answered a question or two about their study abroad experience on camera. So look out for a video from them soon, if you’re curious! I can’t guarantee they’ll put me in there, since they did interview a lot of students, but I did win a t-shirt for doing so. (It’s like, a really cool shirt. It’s got that Tolkien “Not all who wander are lost” quote, which is really taken out of context, but I love it anyway because I’m a huge Lord of the Rings nerd.)

So, the moral of the story is: Loyola takes care of her students who go abroad, from the moment you decide to go to when you come back, if you so wish. But it was really fun! If you’re even thinking about studying abroad, no matter what school you go to, I definitely recommend chatting with students who have already gone. I mean, I met a girl who had spent the semester in Russia! I didn’t even know we had a program that could send students there! Way cool!

UNIV 101 Class

UNIV 101 Class

The first year seminar, UNIV 101, is a graduation requirement for all incoming first year students during their first semester.

The course is designed to provide a comprehensive extended orientation that is holistic in nature and focuses on academic success and students’ transition to college. Through interactive sessions, students will gain an understanding of Loyola University Chicago, the City of Chicago, campus resources, academic planning and meet with other first year students.

Through support by academic advisors, students will manage the transition to college, identify their academic goals and plans, interact with full-time staff and create a sense of community with other first year students.

I benefited a lot from this course, especially with the four year plan we were required to make. It seemed overwhelming at first to layout your 4 years on a spreadsheet, deciding on which courses you will take in the next years of your college career. However, there are peer advisors in these univ 101 classes that are willing to sit down with you and make this plan with you! I look back and thank this class so much, because now that I register for my classes, I know right away which class I need to take to stay on track.

As you may already know, there are so many required tier I and tier II courses required by Loyola, as well as classes for your major, pre professional courses, and foundation course requirements as well. This may seem A LOT to fit within four years, however, making this 4 year plan allows you to see how many of them overlap, are exempted, or fit easily in the span of 4 years.

It is a 1 credit hour course, a GPA booster, is only once a week for 50 minutes, and benefits you a lot in the latter. There are about 3-4 other additional assignments, but they are due within a considerate amount of time and allow you to meet other first year students. It also allows you to self reflect on your first semester and work on some things you may be struggling in!

 

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What’s the Story – of Emmett Till?

What’s the Story – of Emmett Till?

Reading this blog sometimes, it may come across as if Loyola is just constantly hosting events about sad things in the world – I mean, I went to the Kristallnacht memorial, the session about the war in Yemen, and last week I went to an event called “Let the People See: The Story of Emmett Till.” Of course it isn’t, it’s hosting events that increase awareness of the injustices of the world, and memorials so that we don’t forget, as a collective. Among other events.

If you haven’t heard of the story of Emmett Till, I really recommend looking it up. I can’t tell it all in this blog, but … It’s good to know it. When I was there, an older gentleman I met – the spouse of a Loyola professor, who was at the basketball game going on while he was there at the talk – asked me why I was there.

“Well,” I replied, a little bewildered, “Academic interest.” I am a history major, after all. But as we got to talking more – about the topic, about Loyola life, even so far as to discover he was also a John Felice Rome Center alumnus and he was going to visit his son in China in the summer – I realized that I was also there out of a keen sense of I Should Know More. Just because something didn’t happen in my lifetime, like Trayvon Martin, like the events of Ferguson, and so on and so on, doesn’t mean I shouldn’t be educated about it, shouldn’t be seeing the repercussions and understanding how it has affected us to this day.

That’s.. definitely my Jesuit education talking, but it’s right. The Story of Emmett Till event was hosted by the Loyola Library and presented by Elliott J. Gorn, who has published a book of the same title. He told us the story, as promised, and answered lots of questions that the very, very full house wanted to ask.

It helped, I’m sure, that there were refreshments served, and one professor with her entire class showed up. But there were people of all ages – from students to Loyola alumni to interested faculty and Rogers Park community members, all there to learn a little more from an expert on the Emmett Till story.

As long as I am able, I want to keep taking these opportunities to educate myself. So maybe I don’t listen to literally everyone’s advice about going to a professor’s office hours (I know, I know.) But Loyola presents so many opportunities to learn and grow that I can hardly keep up with them all!

 

 

Such a ‘Bler: I Am a Social Media Student Ambassador and This Is Why I Love My Job

Such a ‘Bler: I Am a Social Media Student Ambassador and This Is Why I Love My Job

After several weeks of battling new schedules and the polar vortex, the Social Media Student Ambassadors of Loyola University Chicago and their fearless leader, Adam, congregated in the Undergraduate Admissions Office to examine thblueprints of Spring 2019.

It was really nice to see everyone again although not all of us were able to be present. However, I was glad that at least one from each of our three focuses (comm flow, photography and bloggers) were able to make it. An agenda was pre-set by Adam and we began to review last semester’s work and future goals. Okay this all sounds super serious but honestly, every talk with this bunch is a good time.

We ran through everything from our photo quality to the potential introduction of Loyola memes (yes you heard that right, I’m screaming too.) Very positive, productive and overall passionate vibes floated around the room and well, I love my job. I love being in such a creative space. I love being around such a motivated and ambitious people. I love how we build from each review and suggestion and want to take our work to even greater heights. And gosh I’m just to excited for what’s to come.

Our blog space is being updated very soon and we’ll also possibly be given direct access to Loyola’s Instagram. The goal is to create a ‘a day in a life of’ themed Instagram stories series as well as give prospective and current Loyola students an even more up close insight of the lives of us Ramblers. Adam has also been enjoying my video work (ahhhh) and is planning to expand the project into an official Undergraduate Admissions YouTube channel with other Ambassadors also jumping on and creating their own videos.

I can’t wait to create more content and see where all these blueprints take us. STAY TUNED!!!

 

HEY, I ALSO MAKE VIDEOS!

HERE’S THE SUCH A ‘BLER PLAYLIST:

Such a ‘Bler: The First Playwriting Workshop

Such a ‘Bler: The First Playwriting Workshop

I’m finally taking THTR 204 – Playwriting and wow has it been a treat! I have always been a writer at heart and though theatre is my minor and I’ve written a whole musical before, playwriting is still relatively new to me.

We have two workshops throughout this semester and the first of those was on Friday. Each playwright would submit their 5-7 page scene a week prior and then have them casted and read out in class during the workshop. And then, discussion would begin.

Each discussion is led by a student (who is not the playwright in presentation) who will ask the audience a short series of questions such as “what stood out about the scene/what was crucial to the scene?” and “what would you like to see more of?” After the group has exhausted the exploration, the spotlight would be turned over to the playwright who will ask and/or clarify anything they felt wasn’t cover or were still curious about.

It was nice to hear everyone’s voice, both through written words and through the readings. It occurred to me just how much a person’s voice can be found in the theatre/art they make, even if it’s just a short scene and even when they are not presenting it. The difference between each piece were so distinct and brought a refreshing start to the class each time we began a new read.

Our professor, Devon De Mayo stressed the importance of creating a safe space for our fellow writers. We even ran over ways to rephrase comments and suggestions such as saying “I crave…” instead of “I think you didn’t put enough emphasis on…” and I really appreciated that.

My turn is next Friday, and well I’m anxious and excited and everything all at once. But I know I’m in good hands.

 

HEY, I ALSO MAKE VIDEOS!

HERE’S THE SUCH A ‘BLER PLAYLIST:

 

Such a ‘Bler: Light Lab Life

Such a ‘Bler: Light Lab Life

Like what you see? (I do hope so, I’m being graded on this haha) Well let me introduce you to Fine Arts Annex. It looks a little different right now because it’s set up for our Lighting section of THTR 352 – Design II.

For this portion’s final, we had to create lighting designs for 7 scenes of ‘Aglaonike’s Tiger’ and capture them to discuss with our prior researched and created lighting storyboard of the play. Our instructor, Lee, brought the lightboard from Loyola’s underground theatre to the annex and we got a chance to play around with it before diving into the project, and let me tell you miniature lighting design isn’t as easy as you think.

We got 5 hours of lab time each and I used every minute of it. Lee taught us the important to modeling – using light to highlight the important parts of the cast and props so they don’t blend into the background or are not seen correctly. So I made sure to adjust each light for that main purpose. And well I also played around with colours to change up the mood.

My favourite part was using gobos – patterned pieces of circular metal that create different shadows when having light casted through the patterns. These are placed into the source of light. I manipulated a few to represent the presence of water and leaves on the stage floor and backdrop. The plot was a mixture between the themes Ancient Greek Traditions and Postmodern. I wanted to move away from realism with this plot and thought it was a good alternative for props and made the scenes more unique.

I’m very new to lighting design and well electrics in general, being mainly a playwright and dramaturg when it comes to theatre. I even had to call Lee in the middle of my session to ask for assistance…We were also required to provide two lighting sketches, which the techniques for were taught in Design I. I had to do some digging through my notes for a refresher but I’m glad they were good notes haha.

The project and section have been quite challenging, yet I feel so alive! It’s always good to step out of your comfort zone and see what your skills how do and how grow. Sound design is up next, stay tuned!

 

HEY, I ALSO MAKE VIDEOS! 

HERE’S THE SUCH A ‘BLER PLAYLIST:  

Such a ‘Bler: My Second Lunar New Year in Chicago

Such a ‘Bler: My Second Lunar New Year in Chicago

It was a day in my Vietnamese áo dài (our traditional costume), Vietnamese food and non-Vietnamese friends!

I am an international student. I was born and raised in Vietnam and have been in Chicago for almost two years for university. In Vietnam, we celebrate Lunar New Year, which tends to come around early to mid-February – whenever the moon decides to finish its cycle haha. It’s a tradition in countries that celebrate Lunar New Year to gather with their family and friends for food and celebrations.

Noon on Monday, February 4th was when the clock hit midnight signifying the walk into the new Lunar New Year 2019 in Vietnam. I, as usual, was in class. Last year, I was able to wish my parents and brother on Facebook under the table (shhh) but this year, noon on a Monday meant THTR 266 – Acting I and so, my found sat on silent in my bag as the fireworks crackled back home.

Right after class ended at 12:10pm, I had a 25 minute break before my next class THTR 352 – Design II and so I quickly called my parents. I was running from Mundelein in my áo dài, wrapped in my winter coat and holding a Starbucks. I felt very cultured. It was nice to hear their stories about celebrations back home, though things were a little quieter with me being in Chicago, and with my dad being under the weather this year. Seeing them smile upon my call home from class in my traditional costume, made me even more homesick.

Later that day, my friends and I took the L to Argyle and had Vietnamese food at Nhà Hàng Việt Nam. I let them choose their order though they insisted on my recommendations. To my surprise they all chose VERY special and authentic dishes – it was a proud moment for me. They their first shared reactions to the food whilst I shared stories of traditions back home. Chicago was still chilly that day but my heart was warm. 

Here’s a throwback of my áo dài from last year on the beautiful steps of Mertz Hall: 

I made sure and will continue to wear my culture with pride each year. Don’t forget traditions even when you’re half way around the world from where you learnt them. Besides, it’s always fun to answer the questions that people ask when they pass by. Happy Lunar New Year everyone!

HEY, I ALSO MAKE VIDEOS!

HERE’S THE SUCH A ‘BLER PLAYLIST:

Such a ‘Bler: Yule Balling into Spring 2019

Such a ‘Bler: Yule Balling into Spring 2019

Every year, the Loyola Quidditch Team hosts a Yule Ball! It’s often late December right before Winter break (hence the “Yule” in Yule Ball) but the festivities occurred in January in this school year. Regardless it was a Potter wonderland!

There were Hogwarts houses themed snacks and decorations, wintery and wizard-like decorations and a colourful playlist. I saw a reflective tie, wands and so many golden snitches. The ball was opened to all students, but I went this year (and the last) because a lot of those in my friend group are on the Quidditch team!

From what I’ve heard, they are a lovable and passionate community. The Quidditch team practices weekly and participates in tournaments with other university teams. I’d totally recommend Potterheads and those interested in magic in general to join, not only because they have a fantastic Quids-giving each year.