A Midterm-Taker's Guide to the Perfect Study Break

Any college or high school student knows how stressful the mid-to-late October stretch is in the Fall semester. It's when tests, projects, papers and quizzes start to build up and stress is at an all-time high. As a pre-med student, I know just how hard this time of the year is, but I try to take time out of studying to relax and rejuvenate. I think it's important to take some time for yourself while also focusing on your studies! These are some study breaks I've taken this midterm season, and I encourage everyone should try to take a little time off as well!
My favorite study break involves my favorite pastime: eating! New York is one of the culinary capitals of the world, so my friends and I love to take advantage of the amazing food that we can find in our area. Arthur Avenue is a Fordham favorite, so we always like to explore the restaurants and bakeries around the area. Cannolis from Madonia Bakery on Arthur are one of my favorite treats if you ever want to "treat yo' self!" My friends and I also love to go to brunch in the city. Last week we went to Jack's Wife, Frieda in Soho. I would definitely recommend it!

Brunch from Jack's Wife, Freda in Soho

In the city that never sleeps, there are infinite things to do. My friend, Matt, and I found out that our favorite Instagram dog celebrity, Marnie the Dog, was having a meet and greet in Greenwich Village. We decided to take some much deserved time off from studying and go. We got to meet Marnie and take a picture with her, which was so much fun!

Matt, Marnie the Dog and I!

Although midterms is a stressful time of the year, it's still very important to take time to yourself, explore the city and enjoy the beautiful fall foliage (especially before the winter!).

Fun Fearless Life

Hanging out in the Hearst Tower with a
fantastic view!

Last weekend, Cosmopolitan Magazine hosted the Fun Fearless Life conference in David H. Koch Theater at Lincoln Center. The event was a two day conferences which hosted a variety of speakers, panels, networking events, and meet and greets with the editors of Cosmo. The speakers gave tips on amping up your morning beauty routine, managing money, finding your voice, staying healthy and many other things inspiring people to make the best of their lives. 



Getting ready backstage!

Our big performance!

The Fordham cheerleading team was invited to help kick off Day 2 of the conference. The night before our big performance, we were attended the special VIP party in the Hearst Tower where the Cosmo offices are located. We were able to meet many of the editors and hang out in the company of celebrities like Kelly Osbourne, Chrissy Teigen, and Perez Hilton!

On Sunday morning, a few of my teammates and I arrived at Lincoln Center to prepare to open the conference. We were escorted to a dressing room and given clothes from Express’s new active wear line to model while we performed. The best part was that we got to keep the clothes! Right before we took the stage, we had the honor of meeting and chatting with Editor-in-Chief, Joanna Coles. Following our performance we were able to stay and watch some of the speakers for the day, one being Jillian Michaels! The entire weekend was incredible and the advice we received was inspiring. Definitely a memory I will never forget!

A Beautiful Internship Experience

One experience I have had at Fordham that is incredibly unique to going to school here is the access to internships and career opportunities. This past summer, I stayed in New York and interned with Beauty Cares, a domestic violence nonprofit in Chelsea. Beauty Cares seeks to end domestic abuse through early education on the differences between healthy and unhealthy relationships. I believe that one of the primary reasons I was able to secure this internship is because of the incredible support and resources I found in Career Services. Because I live in New York year round, I was the only summer intern who was asked to stay on for the school year and not have my internship end after the summer was over. This allows me to greatly increase my skill set and job experience, something that will be highly valuable as I begin to move forward with my career goals.

At an event I helped plan with Beauty Cares' team member Maggie Cely and our CEO and Founder Aryn Quinn

Some of my responsibilities include managing our social media accounts and developing new online marketing and community building strategies. I have taught myself about SEO and analytics - skills that are invaluable in the job market. One of my points of pride from the summer is successfully developing and launching a plan to use Pinterest to drive traffic to our website. It was a difficult task, but one that I realized would be important to increase our visibility and reach.

One of my favorite CelebriTees, from actress Julianne Moore

I also had the privilege of working with our CelebriTee Campaign, where we ask celebrities to decorate wife beaters with an anti-domestic abuse slogans or messages. I recently helped secure the Tees from actor Mel Brooks and designer Tom Ford. One of my favorite aspects of working at a nonprofit is that I don't have a typical day, nor do I do the stereotypical intern things, like making coffee and copies. I have secured event space and sponsorship, negotiating donations from companies that have no idea I am just a college student. At Beauty Cares, I know I'm an integral member of the team, and that is an incredibly empowering feeling, one I'd never expected to receive from an internship!

Fordham Takes The Chew

"New York is my campus, Fordham is my school." This motto definitely emphasizes all that New York City has to offer and Fordham students are not afraid to take advantage of being in one of the best cities in the world. Fordham wants its students to not only excel in school but to also have fun! And what better way to have fun in New York than to sit in a live audience for a daytime talk show?

Residence halls want to make sure that the students are having a good time and resident assistants (RA) are in charge of running programs that will get the students more involved. As a senior, I want to make sure that I take advantage of these programs before I graduate, and one recent program that caught my eye was the opportunity to sit in the live audience for a taping of the ABC daytime show The Chew. The show is about lifestyle which includes everything from recipes and Do-It-Yourself crafts to etiquette tips and is hosted by Iron Chef America's Mario Batali and Michael Symon, Top Chef's Carla Hall, What Not to Wear's Clinton Kelly, and author of several wellness books Daphne Oz. RA Drew from the Residence hall Salice was able to get four free tickets to see the show, so my friends and I made sure to sign up. We all love watching the show and were extremely excited to be a part of it.

The day started off bright and early as the four of us got on a 7am Ram Van to make sure that we would make it on time. Luckily, the ABC studio for The Chew is only a couple of blocks away from Fordham's Lincoln Center campus. Once inside, we were approached to sit on the tasting row, which allowed us to get a small tasting of the recipes used on the show. A great day just got better! The show was really fun and interactive as the hosts of the show danced and talked with the audience during the breaks. Before we knew it, the show was over and it was time to head back to campus. This was definitely a great experience that I will never forget, and going to Fordham made it possible. 

If you would like to see the episode we were on make sure to watch Tuesday, October 15 at 1pm (EST) or 12pm (CST/PST). Want to learn more about how to get tickets to see The Chew? Visit ABC's website, http://abc.go.com/shows/the-chew/tickets. 

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