Should I Go to University of Pittsburgh

Should I Go to University of Pittsburgh Nate is a Pittsburgh-based tutor specializing in science tutoring. He is studying psychology at the University of Pittsburgh. Interested in attending the University of Pittsburgh? Nate shares his thoughts on his college experience: Describe the campus setting and transportation options. Nate:At some universities, like the one I go to (Pitt), they give you free public transportation with your tuition, so you can explore the city for free. The campus itself is very compact, but the more city vibe is about 15 minutes away. Pitt is in a neighborhood named Oakland, and that itself is more residential, with two busy streets running through them. How available are the professors, academic advisers, and teaching assistants? Nate:Ive had a great experience with the professors, advisors, and TAs. Everyone is accessible by email and professors and TAs are required to have 3-5 office hours a week, so they always have times to meet during the week. The OMETs at the university are a teaching evaluation system, so it holds the professors accountable for being available to their students. How would you describe the dorm liferooms, dining options, location, socialization opportunities with other students? Nate:My experience at college was shaped by the residence life during my freshman year. I met about 80% of my best friends for the next four years on my floor, and my resident assistant always kept us busy and on task, while also doing fun things for us. The dining hall was exceptional. Some kids found the meals to get repetitive after eating there day after day, but personally, I was able to find different options throughout the week that always kept it appealing. Greek life and other student organizations, such as the Pitt Pathfinders, made socialization a breeze, incase one was having a hard time finding a social outlet to express themselves. Which majors/programs are best represented and supported? Nate:I am a bit biased because I am a pre-medicine student, but I think pre-med and engineering are the best represented and supported, mostly because thats how Pitt contributes most to the current science literature. Although, all of the programs are very competitive and supported. I chose pre-medicine for a variety of reasons, but I chose to do it at Pitt because of the great resources found within the UPMC healthcare system. They provided many wonderful opportunities such as committed volunteer hours, hypothesis-driven research, and a chance to shadow some of the best physicians in medicine. How easy or difficult was it for you to meet people and make friends as a freshman? Does Greek life play a significant role in the campus social life? Nate:For me, it was very easy to meet people and become close friends immediately. I had a lot of friends from high school come to my college for freshman year, but I was able to branch out and meet people from backgrounds I was never accustomed to before. Greek life does make it easier to meet people, along with the many other organizations offered at the university. I had an easy time meeting people because the social atmosphere in my freshman year was incredible. Greek life, although it is the center of college for some people, was not the main social aspect at my college. It was only about 10% of the student population, so it definitely wasnt a make-or-break decision whether you joined Greek life or not. How helpful is the Career Centerand other student support services? Nate:The career center is a great resource that I have never really utilized much, but they offer many services such as resume review, mock interviews, and internship opportunities. There is a tremendous amount of student support services, like the stress relief zone and student counseling. Many reputable companies do recruit on campus. In the nearby downtown area, there are around six Fortune 500 companies and even more Fortune 1000 companies that tend to recruit in the area. How are the various study areas such aslibraries, the student union, and dorm lounges? Nate:There are 15 libraries on campus, and the largest library on campus is by far the most popular. The libraries are typically not overcrowded, except during finals week when everyone crawls out of their houses to cram for finals. During that time, there are many other buildings on campus to be explored to find study spaces. There is definitely enough space to accommodate everyone, if that is a major concern. Describe the surrounding town. Nate:The surrounding town of Pittsburgh is incredible, and many students tend to fall in love with it in the first year of college. I would definitely take advantage of the free transportation to explore as much as you can during the four years. Each neighborhood is known for its own unique specialty. There are also movie theatres and shopping venues. Our football stadium is also located downtown, so kids frequently travel downtown, either for sports or live shows at the theatres. However, if youre not really feeling up to traveling out of the neighborhood every weekend, there are plenty of fun things to do right in the neighborhood where campus is located. How big or small is the student body? Were you generally pleased or displeased with the typical class sizes? Nate:The undergraduate population at Pitt is about 19,000 students, which I think is a small enough school to have intimate relationships and be able to walk down the street and see people you know, but it was also large enough to avoid people you dont like, if it was really necessary! Our student to faculty ratio is 14:1, so the class sizes have never been that troubling. About 7% of the classes were 100 or more students, and 58% of the classes were 30 or less students, so it wont be that much of a change from high school. For those big classes, they do break it down into smaller review sections once a week. Describe one memorable experience with a professor and/or class. Perhaps one you loved the most or one youregretthe most. Nate:One professor I really loved was my organic chemistry teacher. The class material was obviously very loaded and pretty difficult, but she made it very manageable and was very understanding to the students who were having a hard time and were making an effort. She was very accessible and was very thoughtful when writing letters of recommendations for her students and TAs. She really made the class enjoyable, even though the material was enough to make some students hair turn gray. Check out Nates tutoring profile. The views expressed in this article do not necessarily represent the views of Varsity Tutors.

The Truth About the Vocal Fry Epidemic

The Truth About the Vocal Fry Epidemic Suzy S. How bad is vocal fry, anyway? As a singer, should you be concerned about this new vocal trend, heard in artists such as Britney Spears? In this guest post by Ann Arbor, MI voice teacher  Elaina R., listen to a vocal fry example and learn the truth behind the fuss I was recently listening to This American Life (a popular radio show and podcast), and the hosts started talking about vocal fry. As a voice professional, I immediately started paying rapt attention. Within a few minutes, I could tell that there is a serious societal problem surrounding this tiny vocal fault. As it turns out, the media has been complaining about the glottal fry epidemic for years, claiming that young women use too much of it in their speech (check out this ridiculous article). Is vocal fry really a speech trend? Is it really limited to young women? What is vocal fry, anyway? Get the truth â€" and throw out the lies â€" here. What Is Vocal Fry? Vocal fry happens when someone doesn’t use enough breath to speak. The lack of breath causes a creaky sound as the vocal cords come into close contact. It usually happens at the ends of phrases, as the pitch of the sentence goes down and tapers off. Listen to some of the reporters for a vocal fry example on the aforementioned This American Life  segment. Vocal Fry Misconceptions There is an astonishing amount of misinformation in the media about vocal fry. Here are the misconceptions I find most alarming: Myth: Vocal fry happens because “that’s the way your voice is.” Truth: Vocal fry happens because youre using a very small amount of air to speak. That’s why lots of people talk with vocal fry in the morning, as their bodies are still getting warmed up. Myth: Only young women speak with vocal fry. Truth: Anyone can speak with vocal fry, and almost everyone speaks with vocal fry occasionally. In the segment, Ira Glass correctly points out that he, in fact, speaks with vocal fry. In this video examining vocal fry, the vocal coach exhibits a vocal fry example at the end of his very first sentence, probably by accident: Myth: Vocal fry is a new trend. Truth: Vocal fry is not new. It has been happening for as long as humans have been phonating. Myth: You can’t get rid of vocal fry. Truth: Vocal fry is very easy to get rid of. Is Vocal Fry Bad? Vocal fry is not an efficient way to speak. Not using adequate air to speak puts unnecessary stress on your vocal cords. It is also impossible to project when using vocal fry, so unless you are speaking to someone right next to you, it won’t serve you well. From a societal perspective, there is evidence that the older generations (people 40 and up) have negative attitudes toward vocal fry in young women. As the earlier podcast and article attest, middle-aged to older folks perceive young women who speak with vocal fry as unintelligent and insecure. This is just plain sexist, since the same views don’t seem to apply to men. However, if you are a young woman who speaks with vocal fry, it’s important to know what others may think when you speak. (Heres an interesting take on the issue from NPR.) How to Speak Without Vocal Fry To speak without vocal fry, simply speak with breath support. Try this: Take the time to breathe before you speak. As you speak, think about projecting your sound to someone across the room. Do not allow the end of your sentence to nosedive into vocal fry. If you have a voice teacher, she or he will be happy to help you master this. The more you work supported speaking into your daily life, the easier it will get. No Epidemic Here It isn’t fair that some people have such strong preconceived notions about vocal fry. However, the truth remains that those notions exist (and that vocal fry is not healthy in the first place). I also find that learning to speak well positively affects your singing. Speak well, sing well, and spread the word: vocal fry is no epidemic. It’s just part of life. Elaina R. teaches opera voice and singing in Ann Arbor, MI, as well as through online lessons. She is currently  working on a Master of Music at the University of Michigan, and she has a B.M. from the University of Southern California. Learn more about Elaina here! Interested in Private Lessons? Search thousands of teachers for local and live, online lessons. Sign up for convenient, affordable private lessons today! Search for Your Teacher Photo by hnkkk