Life After Allegheny...Student Panel.
Panelists included (left to right) Jamie Skender, Liz Marsh, Angie Ricciardi, Katie Cross, and Kristen Lane.
Not that you all don't love being at Allegheny, but, eventually, you will have to venture into the outside world. Cognitive Group was very excited to invite four seniors and an '08 alum who have recently gone through this transition process to talk to us about their experiences. The students included Katie Cross, who has been accepted to a Masters program in Speech Pathology, Angie Ricciardi, who was accepted to a Masters of Education program, Kristen Lane, who has just accepted a position with the FBI, Liz March, who was accepted to a Cognitive psych PhD program at Arizona State University, and Jamie Skender who was accepted into a Masters of Education early intervention program for children with disabilities with an autism specialization.
After a brief introduction of each program, the meeting was opened up for questions and answers. Discussion centered on thinking about what programs to pursue, how to find them, the application process, the GREs, and what it was like to interview. The panelists also shared what they were most excited about in terms of their new programs and pursuits.
If you were not able to join us, you can still benefit from this great conversation. Just follow this link Life After Allegheny to listen to our discussion.
Thanks so much to all the panelists for sharing their experiences. We wish you the best of luck in your future endeavors.
At the last meeting of the 
Although this is a little late, I just wanted to share some follow-up information regarding the Cognitive Group meeting from November 2nd. Specifically, we discussed the myth regarding the idea that the meaning of words should not be allowed to change. Instead, we talked about the flexibility that is inherent in language and how change is an inevitable outcome for any viable language. Although common ground (and common meaning) is important for successful communication, language must also be able to grow and adapt to meet the needs of its users. Most of the time, change in language happens slowly enough that we don't notice it; other times, language change comes blazing in with a bang in the forms of new slang (although often it seems these words can also die a sudden death). Overall, however, the community that uses the language does a pretty good job in understanding one another.
Cognitive Group started this week with a great article on study strategies that impact long-term memory for information learned in class. One of the most interesting findings was that overlearning (practicing material immediately after you've mastered it) does not improve long-term memory. Instead, the research showed that it is much better to set the material you've mastered aside for future study and use that extra study time to review previously learned material or to focus on other information you would like to learn. I also thought that the article made a rather insightful suggestion regarding how textbooks should design practice problem sections. And, of course, you've got to love an article that makes a strong case for cumlative exams, right? To find out more, check out the article: