O's Notes

Games are having their biggest moment today, with many families working and learning from home in a post COVID world. The sales and engagement of video games, online games and board games are soaring in 2020. Think Animal Crossing, Fortnite, Monopoly, Pandemic … the list is endless.

COVID-19 has highlighted the importance of and the interest in public health related careers. The question that many students face is what does a career in public health entail and what should a student study in college to prepare for a career in public health. We’ll go through some of the majors and possible careers in public health in this post.

Nestled in the Adirondacks foothills, Clarkson Universityis a small private college located in Potsdam, New York which is also home to SUNY Potsdam. Potsdam is a small college town located in upstate New York close to the US-Canada border, and can be reached via a short flight from New York City. By road, Potsdam is a 6 hour drive from New York City, a 2.5 hour drive from Syracuse and a 2 hour journey from Ottowa and Montreal in Canada. Potsdam’s location is ideal for those who love the outdoors and activities such as hiking or mountain biking.

Situated in Eugene, OR close to interstate I-5. University of Oregon (UO) is the flagship public university of Oregon. UO is reasonably easy to get to: Visitors can choose to fly into Eugene or drive 2 hours south from Portland on I-5. Eugene is a medium sized city in southern Oregon and is located at the southern end of the Willamette valley. The Willamette river flows through Eugene and McKenzie river borders the northern and eastern edge of Eugene. Students at UO can enjoy both an urban life in Eugene and at the same time partake of the outdoorsy life and sports around Eugene.

A question that most high school families have been pondering as the world grapples with the COVID-19 or the coronavirus, is, how are college applications going to change and the effect on the students and their families. One of the biggest questions that families will face is paying for college and financial aid.

Whitman College is a small urban private liberal arts college located in Walla Walla, Washington. Walla Walla is a small city located in south eastern Washington. It is a 4 hour drive from Portland, OR and a 4.5 hour drive From Seattle, WA. Walla Walla also has its own airport. Walla Walla is situated in a valley surrounded by agricultural lands, vineyards and spectacular nature.

Nestled between I-80 and SR113 in Davis, California resides the campus of University of California, Davis (UCD). UCD, a public university is one of the 9 UC campuses known for its top-notch academics and bucolic setting. Davis is located 15 miles west of Sacramento and can be an easy or a rough drive from Sacramento or San Francisco depending on the traffic and the time of the day. The area around UCD is beautiful, with fruit orchards lining the highway and some gorgeous California sunshine. Davis is a small and safe college town whose heartbeat is pretty much UCD and the orchards and farming near Davis

Santa Clara University (SCU), a private Jesuit university is in the middle of Silicon Valley. A sun-drenched campus, beautiful mission style buildings, stately palm and flowering trees greet you as you walk through Santa Clara University. It is a very beautiful campus, located in Santa Clara, CA, a small city in the Silicon Valley. Take a virtual tour to see for yourself. SCU is in a safe residential neighborhood, surrounded by houses, schools, nearby eating options and reasonably close to Safeway, Costco, and other big box stores. Since Santa Clara is a city, the feel around SCU is more suburban.

A gap year(s) between high school and college may be under consideration for many students. Planning a gap year needs a fair bit of research into the various programs, options, finances and planning for college.