College Decisions!

Posted on March 18, 2015 by Mike

Hello all!

Being a senior about to graduate, I feel I can look back and reflect on my decision to come here. Furthermore, I hope to share this decision with you to help better make yours.

As I have said in the past, I have always wanted to fly as long as I can remember. In 8th Grade, Google was becoming the big thing, and I searched “Number One Flight School in America.” Among the top search hits was Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. I had never heard of this school, however they kept putting quotes on their website saying, “Most advanced flying fleet”, and “A quarter of all Airline Pilots studied at Embry Riddle.” It was these types of statements that had me interested in the school in general. Like I have told you before, I am from Syracuse, NY and the Daytona Beach Campus is much closer than the Prescott, AZ campus. However, I decided to check out the Prescott Campus for two reasons. First, I have family in the Phoenix area and wanted to be closer to them. Second, because of flying, I looked for the diversity in high altitude operations that Prescott has to offer.

In 10th grade I flew out to Arizona and toured the school. As soon as I stood on the campus I was convinced this was where I wanted to study. The mountains, the campus, the smaller town feeling, I knew this was a place where I could be successful. The tour guides where more than helpful, and my Admissions Counselor Bryan Doughtery (Now Dean of Enrollment Management) also showed me every option I had at Embry Riddle. With that knowledge in hand, I applied in 11th grade and got an early acceptance.

One last choice I made was to attend Accepted Student Preview Day before coming in the fall. Preview Day is essentially a tour on steroids. All the labs, all the professors, all the facilities are open to only the accepted students to give you more of an idea of what being a student here is all about. You can get your student ID card, and make your schedule even. It was exciting to get into the mind set of attending college. This year’s Accepted Student Preview Day is March 28th, 2015 hope you can attend! For me though, after August of 2011 the rest is history and I am very happy with everything that I have accomplished here.

Finally, I will provide you some suggestions to better put your mind at ease about choosing this school. Firstly, ask yourself is this really what you want to do? If yes, then Embry-Riddle will provide the tools to make that dream a reality. Secondly, are you willing to put forth the effort during the good times and the bad? Honestly, it is not all a picnic getting a college degree at any school, and you need to have the vision to get to where you want to go, no matter what. Finally, I suggest you visit multiple schools. If I could change anything about my college making process, it is that I did not visit any school other than Embry-Riddle. That said, at the end of the day, ERAU is the best at what they do and that was what I wanted.

Overall four years later, I am very happy with my decision to come to this school. I will always recommend it to anyone interested in the programs Embry-Riddle has to offer.

I wish the best for you on your journey of making what is the biggest decision of your lift so far. A blog on my Spring Break in the Caribbean to come soon! Take care!

ERAU AFROTC Advantage

Posted on March 18, 2015 by Cherie

Here at Embry-Riddle in Prescott, AZ our Det 028 Air Force ROTC has the privilege of getting to hear from amazing guest speakers who come to share their life experiences in the Active Duty Air Force. Most recently, several quest speakers shared inspiring stories of their military careers and good advice to current cadets who want to commission as officers in the Air Force. They spent their entire day getting to know cadets and answering questions about life in the Air Force. Last night one of the guests even did a low altitude fly over at Prescott’s Love Field, it was amazing!

Our detachment is very lucky to be well known in the Air Force community due to the ties that the world wide campus has with the military and as we produce slightly fewer pilot candidates from our campus than the Air Force Academy. So why not come and join us here as a cadet?

If you are interested in coming out to tour our beautiful campus and checking out DET 028 please contact us! As a cadet and a student here you too can meet some really amazing people who will inspire and cultivate your career goals!

Spring Break!

Posted on March 9, 2015 by Cherie

This week the Embry Riddle Prescott campus will be on spring break! Yay!! We are all very happy to have a nice break from school to relax and catch up on rest. However, spring break is also a great time to get out and see some new places. For those of us who are low on funds the best places to get out and see are in the local area. Prescott, Az is known for its fantastic hikes and gorgeous lake views so getting out in nature is one fun and literally priceless way to enjoy your spring break. If you do have a little extra cash then you can always take a quick road trip down to Phoenix or head up state to Sedona or Flagstaff. Those areas are all wonderful around this time of year and a quick visit allows you to learn more about the state while having a ton of fun!

If you can afford a longer road trip then Southern California is about 7 hours away, the trip is actually pretty fast and it is really fun to be able to relax on the beach for a little bit. The weather down there is also perfect for tanning this time of year! If your not up for that long of a trip however, Vegas is about 3 hours away and many of our current students live in Vegas so, if you have a close friend who happens to live there, you can crash at their place for a week to reduce costs.

Then of course there is always the classic parent funded spring break get away to Mexico, if you get to go there then you are so lucky!! Have fun, stay safe, and get a sweet tan!!

Whatever you are up to this spring break or for our potential students who, I am sure are already planning their first college spring break adventure, we here at Embry-Riddle hope you have a fun and safe trip!

From ERAU to OSU for Graduate School in Medical Physics

Posted on March 5, 2015 by Chelsea

I am so incredibly ecstatic to announce that you are looking at the newest member of the joint Medical Physics program between Oregon State University and Oregon Health and Science University. Upon graduation in May, I will be moving to Portland, OR to start my graduate school career that ERAU has so greatly prepared me for!

It is not uncommon for students in physics to continue their education after earning their bachelors degree. My professors were a huge help in this process by giving me advice, writing me letters of recommendation, and telling me about their experiences in graduate school.

Embry-Riddle offers a select few Master’s degrees and PhD programs which can be explored here, http://prescott.erau.edu/degrees/index.html. I apologize for the short post, I just wanted to share my excitement!!

Three Trophies to Air Force ROTC at SCIDM

Posted on March 4, 2015 by Cherie

The Air Force ROTC Honor Corps of Det 028 at Embry Riddle Prescott Az has proudly returned from the Southern Invitational Drill meet with three trophies!!!!! Our teams performed excellently this year and we are more than happy to be returning victorious.

For some who may not know what SCIDM is, it is a drill competition for both senior and junior level ROTC detachments in the nation. The competition celebrated its 50th year on Feb 28th with competition teams as far away as Washington and Utah. From Prescott, AZ it takes about 7 hours to make the trip into Redondo Beach and compete but, it is well worth it. The teams, Rifle, Sabre, and Honor Guard, spend about 10 hours a week perfecting each performance. We are known as one of best Corps in Northern Arizona and we are very proud of it as we put in large amounts of work every week.

If you are interested in joining AFROTC please consider joining a team on the Honor Corps. If you have any questions please let me know I am more than capable of answering them.

Choosing the Right University for You

Posted on February 23, 2015 by Adam

Are you applying to universities or making the decision of where to go? Then you are in the right place. I understand the struggle! It’s already a ton of work applying to multiple universities, but making the big decision can be even tougher on you.

Well you’re in luck because I am here to help you make the decision process easier. Let’s say you were accepted to University A that has a really high reputation for its quality and outcomes which means graduates get awesome jobs after graduation! While on the other hand you were accepted to University B which isn’t as reputable as University A but ts located 25 minutes from the beach!…Which do you choose?

A good question you need to ask yourself is “do I want to go to this school because it’s fun or because it will most definitely land me that cool job with the company of my dreams”. Well I want you to think about this, every university has something different/better to offer then the next but remember this is the most important decision you have to make. In my opinion, the location of the school is not your primary question! For me, the most important decision we have to make here is what to study which means choosing a university that outshines others in that area.

This decision is the most important for a few reasons:

A. It will determine what classes you have to take. In other words you will either really enjoy going to school or not which could eventually lead to bad grades. You have to like what you do.

B. Having faculty experts and labs to work in will mean that your learning is solid – not in just theory but in practice.

c. This will help you land the job you want. You want internship opportunities, a strong career center, and plenty of interaction with industry.

If you know what job you want to have in the future, then take a look at the credentials you need to put yourself on the right path. Choose a school that offers your major and has expert faculty teaching. Yes! It’s that important.

The decision I made to attend ERAU in Prescott AZ has been a great one for all of the reasons above!

Thanks for reading, I hope I could make help and possibly the decision process a little easier. Good luck!

Ever Had a Favorite Professor?

Posted on February 23, 2015 by Adam

I am sure we have all encountered a teacher that fits our learning style just right. Embry-Riddle has a pretty tight knit community when it comes to its professors/faculty and students. It’s pretty common to have a favorite teacher but since each student is different in the way they learn my favorite teacher may not be the same as my friends.

At Embry-Riddle one of the best professors and counselors I have had is Dr. Cone. While there are multiple characteristics that make him a great professor the one that sticks out to me the most is his background and expertise.

He is accredited with a BS and MS in Electrical Engineering as well as a PhD in Physics. Now there a lot of professors that have degrees and PhD’s but not only is Dr. cone accredited, he has experience working in multiple fields. This is beneficial because I really enjoy learning the applications of the topics in class. It makes the information stick in my brain a lot longer then just discussing it and doing the homework. Plus when you learn about some of the awesome things your professor has done with their careers it is a lot easier to be excited about what you are learning and what future might await you in your career. You will encounter teachers at ERAU with incredible backgrounds and experiences and they definitely love to share that with you. I encourage you to ask one of your teachers about their career experiences and what they enjoyed most about it.

Thanks for reading! Stay tuned.

You can discover our professors below:

http://prescott.erau.edu/college-engineering/faculty/index.html

Must Have Apps for College

Posted on February 19, 2015 by Chelsea

It is a little uncommon these days to see someone using a physical planner around campus. Most people use their phones, tablets, or laptops to stay organized and productive. Me being curious, I went around asking people what their favorite productivity and resource applications were. Here were the top five results with a little info I found on them after researching.

dropbox_logo Dropbox lets you bring all your photos, documents, and videos anywhere and share them easily. Access any file you save to your Dropbox from all your computers, iPhone, iPad, and the web. It’s great for saving large files and group projects.

bjqYUx_0XoQfRcNDh0POeBEo0a4pHprm-xd8zcA-94j-MjJHvj4eu9KqcQ__2C94IQ=w300 Any.do is used for organizing your day. Manage all your tasks, work projects and personal to-dos in one place and collaborate with others to be more productive. If you really want to get stuff done, whether its chores around the house or a critical team project, use Any.do to get it done faster.

images_noticias_6de0fff8bb4f7e5df138b4215b326c51 Remember the Star Trek computer? It’s finally happening–with Wolfram Alpha. Building on 25 years of development led by Stephen Wolfram, it has rapidly become the world’s definitive source for instant expert knowledge and computation. I highly encourage anyone with technical degree to download this!

Evernote

Evernote is where you do the work to achieve it. You can take notes in a clean workspace, get organized in designated notebooks, share ides, keep up with to-dos, manage expenses, plan travel, the possibilities are endless. You can also access this anywhere which makes it even better!

myHomework

myHomework is the best student planner for beauty, simplicity, and reliability. It has a modern design and simple interface making it easy for anyone to use. The app fill their role as a planner without network connectivity.

Another thing, all these apps are accessible for iOS and Android! Check them out!! And let me know what you think!

A Lesson From Newton…

Posted on February 19, 2015 by Chelsea

…and no I don’t mean Sir Issac. I’m talking about the cross-eyed siamese cat that resides in my apartment. If there is anything I’ve learned from Newton, its that sunshine is the best form of therapy. Vitamin D from exposure of our Sun is proven to show an increase in brain function and mood.

School will get stressful and it’ll be easy to get lost in your work but make sure you take the time to keep yourself happy and healthy. Our sunshine activities from this past President’s Day weekend included rock climbing, kayaking, and a lot of lounging.

How cool is it that we live in a place that where its warm enough in February (sorry east cost) to go outside for a whole weekend? Don’t cheat yourself by by skipping a walk on a nice day just because you’re a little busy. Speaking of weather, did you know we have a meteorology here at ERAU? Check out this link to some weather resources! http://meteo.pr.erau.edu/

Prescott by week, LA by weekend!

Posted on February 18, 2015 by Mike

Hello all! It sure has been a “rough” winter here in Prescott with most of our daily highs getting above 60 degrees, and of course more of that glorious sunshine! That was one of the reasons I choose to come to this school, and might be one for you as well!

As I mentioned in my previous post, there are a lot of travel opportunities to get you out of Prescott if that is how you would like to spend your weekends. A little over a week ago, during the first full weekend of February some of my friends and I went to Los Angeles for a few days. From Prescott to LA by car is only about a 6-7 hour drive, assuming traffic is good in the LA area. (No traffic to worry about in Prescott!) However be advised, it is quite a bit of driving. When we were all done we drove almost 1,200 miles! At least gas is cheap.

Since all of my friends and I are pilots, we naturally tried to find a hotel that would give us a view of LAX and their incoming airplanes. If this interests any of you, the LAX Renaissance Hotel is one I would recommend! It was far enough away that no engine noise kept us up, but also close enough to see the action. If you face the north, you’ll have a really good view of 24L and 24R. Furthermore we decided to go to the Santa Monica Pier for a part of the evening. In which after that we took a drive down to where I used to spend my summers, San Clemente, CA. Personally my favorite town in all of So Cal but maybe I’m biased. Beachfire restaurant has great food if you’re ever in the area!

United 787 on Short Final

China Southern Cargo 777 about to touchdown!

Singapore A380-800

Santa Monica Pier on a Saturday Night!

I had to remember the real reason we went to California was for the USA vs. Panama Soccer Game! I personally am a fan of soccer, but had never been to an actual game. If it was to be anything like basketball or baseball games I have previously attended I figured I would enjoy it. However, by the end of the match I could honestly say it was better than any live sporting event I’ve ever been to! No other sport do the fans get so into the game, and so behind their team. It was truly a sight to behold, and enjoy. Tickets weren’t bad either, only around $40. In the end USA wins it 2-0! GO USA!!!

This was the beginning, when they played both Panama and USA National Anthems

USA would go on to win it 2-0!

Just another option for our ERAU Prescott students to go out and explore! I want to make sure all of you understand that no matter what it is you enjoy, there is something for everyone! If it is not in Prescott, it won’t be that far away!

Stay warm and fly safe!