The word “stress” seems to be synonymous with “student” or “school,” sometimes. But are there ways of minimizing college-induced tension? Trillium College shares 5 ways you can stay on top of the “daily study grind” without losing your sense of cool and calm:

1. Use an agenda

Keeping an up-to-date agenda can help you visualize what you need to do, when. It can help you avoid panic and confusion by allowing you to lay out your due dates, course times and other commitments in front of you, and plan for their step-by-step completion.

2. Set boundaries

Oh, those elusive things: boundaries! Popular psychologists say we need them to be happy and whole, while magazines often offer hints on how to build – and police – our personal boundaries. The fact is, without boundaries, you can feel pushed to and fro by various forces in your life. You need to be able to say “no” to that friend who absolutely wants you to come out, no matter how busy you are, or to tell people what makes you uncomfortable and ask them, politely but firmly, to stop. Setting boundaries, and helping others know what you need to be happy, can help keep you focused and calm, with a sense of control over your own life.

3. Get exercise

Yes, it’s hard to get off that couch sometimes – especially when it’s -25 degrees Celsius outside and there’s a tempting bowl of popcorn by your side. But, did you know that exercise could help reduce stress and elevate your mood? As the Mayo Clinic suggests, a mere 30-minute brisk walk or gym workout a day is all you may need to feel happier, more confident and more in control of your life.

4. Eat well

When you put regular gas into a diesel engine car, it won’t run (or at least not very well). In a similar way, food is the fuel by which we, as humans, live. And excessive junk food can start to hurt our cognitive and physical functioning.
A healthy diet high in vegetables, fruits and lean proteins can help you stay focused and maintain a more positive frame of mind. Key foods indicated in the healthy regulation of stress levels are omega-3s (found in certain types of fish, eggs and nuts), vitamin B and vitamin D. Also, as Dr. David Servan-Schrieber points out in The Brain Chemistry Diet, certain foods like bananas and avocados can contribute to the production of serotonin, a brain chemical indicated in boosting happy feelings.

5. Get started early

There’s nothing more stressful than starting a project at the last minute. Start early and you’ll thank yourself: you’ll be less stressed, you’ll have more time to do a decent job – and you’ll feel better when you get the good mark you deserve at the end!

Although it’s easy to feel overwhelmed when returning to college, the pointers above can help you maintain your calm.

So you’ve made the big decision to go back to school and make a positive life change. Congrats! Just remember, though, that keeping yourself energetic and focused on learning takes more than just coffee. Although it can be hard to make the right food choices when you’re busy studying and on a budget, Trillium College is here to help. Here are 5 foods that can enhance your ability to stay focused and energized throughout the busy term:

Fish

Fish is full of Omega-3s, which have been shown to positively impact memory, brain function and mood. As WebMD’s Brunilda Nazario, MD, confirms, a diet higher in Omega-3s has been linked to lower levels of mental decline, stroke and dementia later in life. If you’re a vegetarian or you cringe at the thought of eating seafood, never fear: Omega-3s can also be found in eggs (especially the Omega-3-enhanced kind), nuts and other sources too.

Nuts

Nutritional Therapist Claire Ward suggests nuts are an important brainpower food. In “Six Foods that Help to Improve Concentration,” she comments that flax seeds and walnuts – high in vitamin E and Omega-3s – not only help you stay focused, but feel more motivated as well. If these things aren’t important for success, we don’t know what is!

Whole Grains

Have you been hooked on white bread since childhood? Well, it’s time to make room for whole grain toast and cereals. Ward again points out that, high in vitamin B6, whole grains help your brain withstand the ravages of aging, specifically in the area of memory. They also help balance out blood sugar, which can help us focus on the tasks we have at hand.

Avocados

This delicious green fruit (yes, an avocado is technically a fruit!) tastes great on salads, in guacamole, or simply on its own with a little olive oil, pepper and salt. But did you know avocadoes can help build your body’s serotonin levels, and that this neurotransmitter is essential in helping you feel positive, motivated and focused? The National University System for Integrative Health notes that anger, loss of memory, blurred vision, depression and concentration difficulties can all be signs of serotonin deficiency. So make sure you pick up avocadoes (or cottage cheese, chicken, oats and eggs, for that matter) next time you’re at the supermarket, as they may enhance your mood and mind.

Bon appétit – and happy concentrating!

Life can be busy, period. When you’re a student working on part-time schooling, however, time can seem even more precious. Throw parenting or taking care of life’s daily necessities into the mix and things seem even more hectic.

Here are a few ways you can keep up with the pace, without losing control of your daily “to do” list and your all-important sense of balance:

Time your tasks

For those of us who have trouble getting places on time, there’s a helpful solution at hand. Think through all of the steps you need to take before getting to a class or an appointment. For example, let’s say you need ten minutes to get out of bed, 15 for a shower, 20 to brush your teeth and dress, and an added 20 for breakfast. Be realistic about the time you’ll need to accomplish each task, and add it all up. Having a clear view of the time it takes to prepare—in addition to driving time—will help you use your time wisely, and get places on time.

Don’t overcommit

Are you a “yes” person? Do you find yourself overcommitting to people and events, because you want to keep others happy? If so, it’s likely that you often find yourself feeling overwhelmed, with little time to get through the list of things you need to do for yourself. It’s hard, but being direct and realistic with others about what you can and cannot do for them helps you keep a sense of balance. And your friends will appreciate it in the long run, because it means they’ll likely be able to count on you more: You won’t need to cancel last minute when you’ve overcommitted yourself, and realize you still have an assignment to do for tomorrow!

Prepare the night before

There’s no better way to make mornings less stressful than preparing the night before. Whether it’s making a lunch, laying out the kids’ clothes, or packing your school bag beforehand, this form of pre-planning and preparation heightens your level of organization, as well as your sense of being calmly in control of your day.

Give yourself some breathing room

Life can be unpredictable. You may have set aside 2 hours to write an assignment—but then your daughter came down with the flu, or some other emergency arose—and that time flew right out the window. A good policy is to expect the unexpected: If an assignment should take 2 hours to complete, give yourself 3 or 4 in which to do it, just in case. If you finish on time or early, you can still use the leftover time for something else, but it’s nice to have the buffer zone in case life throws one of its curve balls at you!

Get rid of distractions

Likely the simplest of the provided tips, this one can also be hardest for today’s student to follow. In a world where the mobile phone, social media and other digital distractions reign supreme, putting your phone on silent—or away—can seem nearly impossible. Today, distracted driving is one of the leading causes of automobile accidents. In a similar way, distracted learning can be a major cause of “academic crash”—the failure to get your work done, or achieve the grades you could have had you simply paid attention! So, no matter how hard it may seem to avoid Facebook or Instagram for an hour, putting that phone away is a great way to enhance your time management.

Have you been “hemming and hawing” about your next job market step? Or have you been feeling unfulfilled in your current career, yet been unsure of how to make a positive change? Making the decision to enrol in a college program can seem hard, but this choice represents a great step towards a better future. Here are 5 reasons to enrol today (yes, there’s still time!) for Trillium College’s upcoming fall start date:

1. Pride

Imagine telling your friends or family that you’ve decided to go back to school, and change your life for the better. Or imagine seeing the pride in your children’s eyes, when they find out you’ve taken the heroic step to become a paramedic, Community Service Worker—or someone else who plays an invaluable role in promoting community well-being. People admire a person who is brave enough to better themselves—and the world around them.

2. Pride of self

Can you imagine what it will feel like to graduate, in as few as 25 weeks, as a Personal Support Worker and help people in need? Or can you see yourself as a Medical Office Assistant, supporting our medical professionals as they care for members of the community? So many of us end up in unfulfilling jobs—simply because we need to pay the bills and can’t imagine a better alternative. Trillium College offers a number of programs that will give you the training you need to become a Community Hero—soon.

3. A higher salary

Educated candidates are more likely to get the salary they want than those without training. According to Employment and Social Development Canada, Canadians with a college diploma earn as much as $23,000 more per year than those with only a high school education. If we’re looking at relative paycheques over a lifetime, PayScale’s “Colleges Worth Your Investment” ranking notes that a college graduate will make $560,000 more than a high school graduate, and $860,000 more than a high school drop out.

4. Time is precious

There’s truth to be found in the saying, “time flies.” Because private career colleges offer specialized training and prepare you to step into a specific career field, no time is wasted teaching you things you don’t really need to know. Through focused hands-on and practical training, career colleges like Trillium College give you the skills you actually need—without demanding you do added months, or even years, of schooling. By enrolling in a program of your choice during our next start date, you could emerge workplace-ready in as little as 25 weeks’ time, depending on your area of study.

5. Convenience

Trillium College has 8 campuses around the GTA. With locations in St. Catharines, Oshawa, Burlington, Peterborough, Ottawa and downtown Toronto, we’ve made it easier for our students to get the education they need right now.

Call 1.855.234.2008 to schedule your FREE Career Planning Session, or visit one of our 8 campuses today.

You may have heard people talk about a “specialized” vs. “general” education, and they probably had an opinion as to which was best.

In reality, however, the type of education that you should choose should depend on your needs, preferences—and the money and time you have available to spend! Here are the “who,” “what,” “when,” “where,” and “why” of seeking a specialized vs. general education.

Who?

Do you know what you want to do and be, career-wise? Do you feel time shouldn’t be wasted when it comes to achieving your career goals, and that hands-on experience is the best kind? If so, a specialized education may be for you. A specialized education offers focused, practical training to students who have a clear career path in mind.

Students who don’t have a fixed career goal, don’t mind taking added time to complete their training, and want to develop their analytical skills and knowledge base in general could benefit from a less focused, general education. A general education requires students take many courses for breadth of knowledge—but these courses may not have anything to do with the student’s final job goal.

What?

A specialized education will require that you focus only on classes that directly lead to knowledge and skill building in your chosen career field. With the hands-on, focused practical learning many specialized educations provide, you’ll be job-ready as soon as you graduate.

Students pursuing a general education often take English, math, history, social sciences or other courses that don’t relate closely to their desired career goal. General education students often have to search for jobs that match their developed skill set, as they graduate ill-prepared to enter any defined job role.

Where?

You can find specialized training at private career colleges near you. If you want to become a paramedic, personal support worker, or manage a business, for example, a private career school like Trillium College has 8 campuses around Ontario at which you can train to achieve your goals.

University and college humanities programs offer general education programs for students.

When?

Trillium College is currently accepting students for its 2014 September start. It isn’t too late! Contact Trillium College today to take your first step towards a new career now.

Students often have to apply months in advance, on the other hand, for acceptance into university programs.

Why?

If you want to escape a job you don’t love, comfortably pay your bills and enter a dynamic career of your choosing, it may be time to enter a specialized program today.

If you want to broaden your understanding of the world and enhance your level of education in a general way, then a general education might be your best choice.

So, what kind of education is best for you? Make a change and take your first steps towards the career of your dreams now: contact Trillium College at 1.855.234.2008 to schedule your FREE Career Planning Session. We are still accepting students into our many exciting diploma programs, and with 8 campuses around Ontario, we’re here to help you succeed.

If you’re considering coming back to school to become a Network Administrator, we’d like to tell you you’ve made a great choice. And it’s true—you have. Our diploma program, which is 42 weeks long, gives you the knowledge and hands-on skills to plan, install, configure, maintain and secure networked computer systems, as well as write an array of industry-recognized certification exams. It prepares you for work in a growing industry, in an array of technical and specialist positions.

But the reality is, you’re probably going to appreciate the viewpoint of someone who’s “in your shoes” more: someone at your stage of life who’s experienced our program, or who has decided to pursue network administration as a career. This is where the importance of Trillium College reviews comes in…

Below are some of the questions we often hear from people like you—people who are considering a job in network administration, and who want to know more about our program. And following each question you’ll find Trillium College reviews real graduates have offered, following their experiences working towards our Network Administrator diploma. Read on, and call us at 1.866.661.2070 if our Trillium College reviews leave you with any questions, today.

Prospective Student: Am I too old to go back to school, or become a Network Administrator?

Trillium College Review: “When I started the Network Administrator program at the age of 56, I felt like I was behind the eight ball. My instructor, Rick McMaster, assured me that all would work out and he put me at ease. All the modules went smoothly and I passed with flying colours. Without Trillium College I would not have a future. I am on my way to better places now.”

– Serge Krisman, Network Administrator program graduate

Prospective Student: I’m interested in computers, but don’t know much about them. Does this mean I shouldn’t enrol in Trillium College’s Network Administrator program?

Trillium College Review: “I came to Trillium College knowing only how to turn a computer on. Thanks to Rick McMaster, the instructor teaching the Network Administrator course, I can now repair and/or build almost any computer system, and I also understand how everything works in computing and networking. I owe Rick and Trillium College a great deal of gratitude for all my career successes.”
– Serge Krisman, Network Administrator program graduate

Prospective Student: What are the instructors like in the Network Administration program?

Trillium College Review: “The staff members are outgoing, friendly and dedicated to seeing you succeed. My instructor, Rick McMaster, pushed me to not only believe in myself and my abilities, but also to succeed at all that I do. I owe him a great debt of gratitude and respect.”

– Shanna Miller, Network Administrator program graduate

Prospective Student: What if it’s too hard? Maybe I shouldn’t try…

Trillium College Review: “My experience here at the college as been beyond my original expectation. After three years of trying to succeed at other colleges my success here has—although tough and at times downright stressful—been the most rewarding in my educational career.”

– Shanna Miller, Network Administrator program graduate

Prospective Student: How can Trillium College’s Network Administrator program help me reach my career goals?

Trillium College Review: “Throughout the past 42 weeks I have learned more than just how to take care of a computer network. Rick has taught the class what it is to be a professional and go above and beyond the call of duty. The program itself has prepared me to follow the goal that I had set for myself when I started the course: to have the knowledge and ability to open my own computer business. Taking this course would benefit anyone who is thinking about a career in the IT field.

– Ryan Clapper, Network Administrator program graduate

Prospective Student: Coming to back to college seems scary. I’ve heard big post-secondary institutions treat you like a “number”!

Trillium College Review: “I found that in the larger colleges I attended I was treated more like a number, whereas here at Trillium College everyone made it a personal goal to learn my name. This attention to detail made a difference each and every day.”

– Shanna Miller, Network Administrator program graduate

It’s never too late to come back to school. While it’s important to keep learning in pursuit of our career goals, however, seeking out the right learning experience is an important step. Trillium College reviews help prospective students benefit from our graduates’ knowledge base. Who knows, but maybe you’ll be able to offer your own Trillium College review soon!

Call 1.855.234.2008 to book your Career Planning Session now. It isn’t too late to join our Fall 2014 programs, so what are you waiting for?