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College Tips

Behind the Scenes at MWCC: College Expectations

“They won’t accept that kind of behavior when you get to college!” Sound familiar? In high school and in the media, we’re taught that college is a scary place where you’ll be expected to shut your mouth, work hard, and do what you’re told. We’re given a plethora of misconceptions about college that are just […]

On your mark, get set, study!

This article originally appeared in the opinion section of the Telegram & Gazette.  For a student, going to college is amazingly similar to a runner competing in a marathon. There is a start and a finish, lots of steep hills and terrain to climb, plateaus that require much less effort, and the exhilarating feeling of […]

15 Fun Tips for College Freshmen (that I learned the hard way)

Starting college is a big step into your future. You’ll be working towards a goal that may feel light-years away, and I’m betting you don’t want to screw up. I didn’t either, but I did. You will too, I promise. However, looking back at my college years about to graduate with my bachelor’s degree, I […]

6 Tips for Returning to School as a Parent

  “I had lived with the lie that I was never going to be anything more than a food service worker and I had settled,” said Lisa Ferrara-Caron. A mother of six, she was working at a restaurant as an office manager and did the books. After her husband noticed her interest in accounting and […]

Panelists Offer Encouragement to First-Generation Students

Mount Wachusett Community College students, faculty and staff who were the first among their families to have gone to college shared their experiences at a panel in honor of National First Generation College Students Day at MWCC’s Gardner campus. “I feel like being a first generation student has made me scrappier. Maybe I am not […]

Dealing with Your Mental Health as a College Student

As college students, life can oftentimes be super stressful.  We no longer live under the umbrella of security and stability, but we’ve begun our own journey towards independence and discovering who we are meant to be.  Along that journey, there are many challenges we must face that make us stronger and more capable in the […]

5 Questions Families Should Ask College-Bound Students

1. What is your goal? College is expensive, challenging, and time-consuming. Understanding why you and your student are investing in college will help you make better decisions. Ask your student: “why are you going to college?” Discuss the answer. It may be surprisingly difficult to get to a definite answer, but for most families, the […]