Nerdy Bot Scholarship Essay by Dora M. Donnelly

We’ve had all the fun. We’ve been to concerts and movies. We’ve spent time with family. We’ve hung out with old friends and bonded with new acquaintances. For those who don’t do much socializing, we’ve had our me-time and enough rest. But like all good things, now it has come to an end. Spring break is over and now we must all go back to the busy school lives we lived before the break. It’s now time quit checking Reddit reviews and check out what Nerdify reviews team suggests to get that assignment done. Just how difficult can that be? For most people, it’s quite the task. You see, making the transition back to the life you were only glad to take a breather from just some weeks ago is daunting for several reasons. The biggest factor, however, is the fact that you have to mentally reinvigorate and recalibrate your mind and body to go back to old routines and ways of doing things, even though your body loves the fun and won’t readily cooperate with you immediately. Anyways, the school won’t wait for your body and mind to come around, will it? That leaves you with no option but to consciously whip your mind and body into shape. The next part of this blog post will give you 5 tips that can help motivate you and keep the anxieties away as you return to school.

1. Plan Ahead

One way to keep the anxieties away and prepare your mind for a return to college life is by putting plans in place beforehand. This will send subtle messages to your subconscious and begin to put you in the mood for a return back to school. But that’s not the only reason to plan your return to school. Clearing the hurdles and making your transition smooth is also important for other reasons. If you work while in school, for example, you might want to draw up a new schedule to meet up with both school and work obligations.

You could also talk to your advisor and ask for your syllabus to have an idea of how much work is involved in the coursework for the rest of the school year.

2. Re-establish Your Routine

Before spring break, you most likely had a schedule you were following. You had a routine that helped you plan your time between all the activities you’re involved with in college. Now that spring break has come to an end, you might want to pick up that routine again, or draw up a new one in tandem with your coursework, social and other activities for the rest of the year.

Try getting into this routine some days before school resumes. This will help put your body in shape for what’s to come.

3. Quit Procrastinating

According to stats, only about 56 percent of people who enroll for a degree will see it to the finish. Scary stats right? But have you ever asked yourself why this stat exists?

It takes discipline, focus, and diligence to start a degree and complete it. A lot of this will be hinged on knowing the right things to do and doing them at the right time. To whip your mind into shape, you must do everything possible to stay true to your plans and routines. Every time you postpone or procrastinate, you do not only put your own goals in danger, but you’re also sending the wrong signals to your brain.

4. Set Attainable Goals

It is not just enough to create a new routine or continue with the old one, it is also important to give yourself a believable “why?”. Why should you follow this routine? Why should you attend this 8 AM class? What will this coursework add to your life? Setting attainable goals will help you answer the “why?” questions. These goals will be the fuel in your jet for days when you won’t feel up to them. For days when you will wake up and feel like there’s no point in trying. These goals will keep you on your feet and motivated.

5. Be Mindful

It’s the post-spring break. The classes will begin to pour in thick and fast. You’ll have assignments pouring in from all angles. Thankfully for you, you have a “why”, you have a routine, you have set the right priorities, but now you need to be mindful as well. Mindfulness should be a key component if you want to have a fantastic continuation of your school year. It’ll take a certain level of calm and clarity to get your head back in the right place. Look for a quiet place and consciously reset your mind to align with the goals you have set for your return to school.

Now that you’ve read this article, I’m sure going back to school now doesn’t look so daunting anymore. Beyond that, putting all these in place shows how serious and determined you are to end the school year on a high. Sometimes in life, that could be the difference between success and failure— the right attitude towards the important things. Now you can go back to sifting through school assignments, Nerdify reviews, Reddit reviews, and other aspects of your life. And while you’re at it, don’t forget to have fun!

We’ve got a feedback story from our grateful customer who decided to share his success story and help students who struggle with the chi-squared test.

This article contains a full and really simple guide to solving chi-square. To keep his identity anonymous, we’ve changed his name.

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I’m Donald and this is my story about conquering chi-square. Einstein was completely right saying that, “If you can’t explain it to a six-year-old, you don’t understand it yourself.”

If you’re currently struggling with the chi-square test, I’ll answer all — and I mean all — your questions about this tricky statistical method in really easy to understand terms!

I’ve adapted this article from the “Methodology” section of my paper. You are welcome to use it to understand how the methodology of your own homework should work.

What is the Chi-Square Test and Where to Use It?

The first time I had to use chi-square was when I was at the 4th year of my undergraduate program at Pittsburgh University School of Nursing. I planned to prove that googling about mental health issues can cause anxiety and negative emotions.

Thus, the topic of my paper was “How reading of online resources about mental health issues impacts patients’ mental and emotional state”.

I surveyed 100 patients. I asked them how often they read about health issues, and whether such a guilty pleasure triggers their anxiety. Then, I recorded their answers on a table.  

All I needed was to find the right statistical test. I looked through a short chi-square guide online and it totally triggered my math anxiety.

You know, I felt that I’m the dumbest person in the world. Thankfully, I did not give up and continued.

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At the end of the day, Donald resolves his case — being mentored by a professional Nerd.

Let Nerdify find your perfect academic match using AI! 🤖

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❓ What is the Chi-Square Test?

First things first, I got to know my enemy. Chi-square test is a common statistical method used to determine whether two things (in statistics they are called variables) are somehow related.

❓ How to find out whether variables are related? If one variable somehow changes, and another immediately changes in response, it means that they are related.

This is actually very simple to understand once you put the concept of chi-square in the context of a real example.

In my case, patients would be reading about health issues online and experience anxiety. If they feel bad after browsing horrifying symptoms of mental illnesses on WedMD, that means these variables are related.

To make sure that the chi-square method suits your particular research, check these criteria:

1. You need to analyze numerical results — specifically, the numbers of times you’ve observed something happening, or how many people gave the same response.
2. Variables are categorical — variables should belong to specific groups. For instance, respondents in surveys can be categorized by gender, age, political views, etc.
3. There are two individual variables (e.g. how frequently people google online about mental illnesses (very frequently or rarely) and the effect of their googling (increased anxiety or no negative emotions)
4. You only need a “yes” or “no” answer – chi-square can only tell if two variables influence each other. It never tells how strong the influence is and when or why it occurs.

Chi-square is used pretty much anywhere because it is a simple, suitable for any sample size, and cheap way to test whether two variables are related. For instance:

 

• In healthcare: is anxiety associated with online research about health issues?
• In sociology: is crime rate related to the poverty level in a specific region?
• In marketing: do sales depend on the region where products are sold?
• In politics: does voter turnout depend on voter age?

Given all this info, I decided that chi-square was exactly what I needed for my research. But how to convert my data into a table and then get all the calculations done right? After 5 days of trial and error, all I had was only errors and I got stuck.

Why Chi-Square Test is Mistakenly Thought to be Difficult?

You’d think that the good old Google knows everything, but nope. Page after page of the search results, I saw the same explanations by-the-book, which were all Greek to me. Without statistical education, I got the theoretical part but was completely lost when it came to practice.

Then a friend of mine recommended me Nerdify. Nerdify connected me with a perfect Nerd — a Master in Medical Statistics and finally, I knew I was going somewhere!

A detailed explanation from the Nerd on how chi-square works and how I should use it — it was all that I needed to nail my super difficult paper.

Why was chi-square so difficult for me? As my Nerd said, it happens with all the students for the following reasons:

• Extremely complex definitions and explanations that make chi-square seem very entangled and confuse students
• Without illustrative examples, complex formulas are overwhelming for anyone who does not have a fancy for math.
• Lack of time teachers can devote to explaining every topic — students often have no one to ask for an extra explanation
• Lack of knowledge due to that your major doesn’t have anything to do with statistics. As a student nurse, I didn’t have any background in studying statistics at all.
  

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• Explain formulas?
• Provide real-life examples?
• Mentor customization of statistical methods to your project?

 📲 Message Nerdify to get help!

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If you’re struggling just as I did, for whatever reason, I’ve got a perfect step-by-step guide to chi-square that you can use!

Really Simple Step-by-Step Chi-Square Guide

Right off the bat, you should know that it’s totally acceptable for non-statistics students to skip doing all the calculations manually and use online chi-square test calculators.

However, my college professor required all the chi-square formulas explained in the paper. Thus, if you’ll use chi-square, you need to understand this method to interpret the results correctly.

▶ Formula Explained

When you see this abomination of a formula, you probably think it’s extremely complex:

where

• χ2 — value of chi square
• Σ — sign of sum, means the total amount of elements in a sequence
• O — observed value of a variable, or the numbers you already have from observations or task description
• E — expected value of variables you need to calculate yourself; they represent how the variables would be distributed if there would be NO relationship between the variables

Even if you do all the calculations using MS Excel or SPSS, you still need to know where to put which number!

In sections below, you fill find out more about where to find these numbers.

Now it’s time for the best part — calculations!

 

0️⃣ My Case ➕ Sample Size

In my research, I surveyed 100 patients. I asked them how often they read about health issues, and whether such a guilty pleasure triggers their anxiety

• So there were two categories of patients: those who frequently research health issues and those who rarely research them
• There were also two options of their emotional response: increased anxiety and no changes  

Right now, I know my sample size — the number of observations. How many people responded to the survey? How many times you’ve seen something happening during the experiment or study?

In my case, sample equaled 100 — the number of people who participated in the survey.

 

1️⃣ Creating a Chi-Square Table

Using this data, I created this contingency table:

❓ Contingency tables present observations in matrix format — rows and columns, just like the table above. This type of tables is very commonly used in statistics, especially because it demonstrates how two variables are connected.

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	Increased anxiety	No changes	Total
Frequently research
Rarely research
Total

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2️⃣ Choosing Statistical Significance

If you’re writing a paper using the chi-square method, chances are that the level of statistical significance isn’t given. Where do you get it? You choose it yourself!

❓ Statistical significance — is the likelihood of that the relationship between two or more variables is accidental and the results of the observation are caused by something else than just chance.

For instance, if a patient gets anxiety every time he does online research about health issues, then statistically the probability of getting anxiety, aka level of confidence is 100%, or 1.

If a patient gets anxiety in 9 times out of 10, then we can confidently state that the probability here is 90%, or 0.9.

The most typical levels of significance are 0.05 and 0.01 — both are 100% safe to use in your paper. I chose 0.01 because the lower the value, the more significant results you’ll get — lower significance implies a lower risk of error.

Why do we need the level of significance? My Nerd had a good metaphor to explain it. Imagine that you have to climb up a ladder that has 100 steps. The more steps are missing, the higher the risk that you’ll fall. That’s why we set a very low level of significance — to make sure that calculations are correct!

 

3️⃣ State your Hypotheses

The hypothesis is a fancy word that confuses many students, but in reality, the hypothesis is just an assumption that you have. In chi-square, you’ll need 2 of them.

• Null hypothesis (H0)– usually states that the results of the observations could result purely from chance and the variables are independent — if one of them changes, another one stays the same and doesn’t react to the changes in the first one.

My H0 would say that getting anxiety isn’t connected with researching health issues online.

• Alternative hypothesis (H1)  states that the sample observations result not from a random cause, but from a specific cause and the variables are dependent in some way.

That is, my H1 says that patients really do get anxiety and experience negative feelings after researching health issues online.

4️⃣ Fill in Observed Values

Here just enter all the observed values into the table:

❓ Observed value — what actually happened or how many times you’ve seen something occur. For instance, how many respondents out of 100 admitted to frequently research online about mental issues and get anxiety from it

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	Increased anxiety	No change	Total
Frequently research	36	9	45
Rarely research	24	31	55
Total	60	40	100

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5️⃣ Calculate Expected Value

Here we calculate values that would be observed in case if there would be no relationship between researching health issues and experiencing negative emotions.

❓ Expected value — it’s calculated by the formula below and show what would happen if the variables were absolutely independent — wouldn’t affect each other at all.

where

• E — expected value
• Mr — row total for the cell you’re calculating an expected value for
• Mc — column total for that cell
• n — sample size
  

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	Increased anxiety	No change	Total
Frequently research	27	18	45
Rarely research	33	22	55
Total	60	40	100

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• Expected value for “frequently research, increased anxiety” E=45*60/100=27
• Expected value for “only rarely research, increased anxiety” E=55*60/100=33
• Expected value for “frequently research, no negative emotions” E=45*40/100=18
• Expected value for“only rarely research, no negative emotions” E=55*40/100=22

 

6️⃣ Calculate Chi-Square Using the Formula

Once again, you can use online calculators, but this how it’s done in practice (aka the hard way):

 

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Not ready yet to move further with chi-square test?

Find your Nerd to ease your pain. In anything. Unless it’s legal. 😎

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7️⃣ Calculate Degrees of Freedom and Critical Value

Now that we got chi-square calculation done, let’s calculate the degrees of freedom

❓ Degrees of freedom (df) — the number of independent variables that went into the calculation.

Just think of those promotions “buy 2 — get 1 for free!” — you’re free to choose several things, but +1 product is always set by the promotion. Degrees of freedom, however, subtract 1 from both your rows and columns.

You need to use a chi-square distribution table and find your critical value at the intersection of the degrees of freedom (df=1) and the level of significance (α=0.01):

So, our critical value is 6.63. This value is smaller than our χ2 =13.63 Therefore, in our chi-square test example, researching about health issues online and getting anxiety or negative emotions are related.

We don’t know how much they are related, because chi-square doesn’t answer this question. But we definitely know that they are somehow related.👌

Chi-Square Calculators — the Easy Way

Even if you need to do all the difficult calculations by yourself, these calculators are awesome to verify your results. Or, if you’re lucky, online calculators are all you’ll need to use to calculate chi-square!

1. Social Science Statistics Calculator — easy to use chi-square calculator that can calculate up to 5 rows and 5 columns. You can enter category names, fill in the data, and get the result in a flash.
2. Kent University SPSS Guide for Chi-Square — if you have SPSS, you can consider your chi-square test pretty much already done. This guide will help you learn how to import chi-square tables and graphs into the SPSS and get the task solved. Many colleges and universities use SPSS as their default tool, and your professor may ask you to show your SPSS datasheet.
3. Chi-Square Calculator — another extremely simple online chi-squared test calculator. All you need to do is enter the observed values and you’ll get degrees of freedom and chi-square ready.

How Can You Nail Chi-Square: My Pro Tips

If anyone told me I would be able to do it just a week before connecting with a Nerd, I’d never believed it. It was simple and logical explanations from my Nerd that helped me completely nail chi-square test and do all the calculations by myself.

Now, I understand each step of chi-square and interpret results correctly. For me, it was crucial that a professional, with a background in studying and applying statistics in practice, would explain everything to me in human language, not math language.

And now a few tips for you to cut corners if you’re dealing with chi-square:

• Keep in mind that chi-square isn’t rocket science — it is doable and actually very easy if you have a really simple and detailed guideline
• The number of rows and columns can vary and your table can be much larger than mine, however, the principle remains the same — you’ll just need to do more arithmetic
• When calculating the expected value, you’ll most likely get fractions, which can confuse you, especially if you’re calculating the number of people in each category. Don’t bother about it — these calculations are intended for further calculation of chi-square

That’s all I wanted to share in my feedback story today. Hopefully, it will help you nail chi-square and get the grade you deserve! Chi-square isn’t as difficult as it may seem at first, so go ahead and break a lance!

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Of course, you can make your own success story too!

Nerdify is an AI-powered platform to quickly connect with the experience of 1000s of Personal Nerds

✨Give a try right now!

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Spring break is an excellent opportunity for students to get away from their hectic college or university obligations. But because most students have limited budgets, they may think they have few choices in terms of locations and activities. 

But the truth is that you can enjoy spring break trips 2024 without breaking the bank. Nerdify reviews some of the best ideas to ensure a budget-friendly yet fun and memorable spring break.

1. Book Early

Some 1.5 million people travel during spring break, according to a report from HotelBeds.com, a Spanish travel technology company. Decide where you want to go several months in advance so you can book your flights and accommodations early. 

Traveling should be a no-brainer during spring break. It is sure to be a fun adventure, especially with friends. 

Understandably, the cost of doing so may be intimidating. Here are some spring break destinations for college students that are affordable:

United States

There is no need to leave the country to enjoy spring break, as there are so many inexpensive and even hidden gems just a drive or short flight away:

• San Diego, California
• Key West in Miami, Florida
• New Orleans
• Outer Banks in North Carolina
• South Padre Island in Texas

Mexico

Its proximity to the United States has made Mexico a popular spring break destination. It is affordable and has some of the best beaches in the world. But the best part is the authentic Mexican food. Here are the best and most affordable destinations in Mexico:

• Cancun
• Guadalajara
• Los Cabos
• Mexico City
• Puerto Vallarta

Jamaica

Jamaica is the heart of the Caribbean. It has the most amazing beaches with the bluest waters, all-inclusive resorts, and great music—it is the birthplace of reggae, after all. 

Plan your trip to any of these spring break destinations for college students way ahead of time. Flights booked earlier are cheaper, and you can take advantage of promos for cheaper hotel or Airbnb stays. 

The Nerdify Reviews team considers these places, along with the Bahamas, Canada, Dominican Republic, Norway, and Puerto Rico, to be the best budget-friendly areas for spring break. Except for Norway, these countries are quite close to the U.S. And there are many cheap flights going to and from Norway, the Land of the Midnight Sun. 

2. Start Saving Ahead of Time

With your flights and accommodations booked, you can start saving pocket money for your trip. You can take on part- or full-time gigs for these funds. 

3. Apply for Credit Cards That Are Ideal for Travel

If you’re going abroad, be aware that some credit cards rack up high fees for currency conversion. Look up your bank’s fees for foreign transactions. If they are quite high, you can try applying for a new credit card. 

Find one that rewards travel-related spending. You may even get free trips by using your card regularly. 

4. Consider Camping

Spring break trips 2024 don’t always mean hopping on a plane. You could pool money with your friends and rent a recreational van, gas it up, and go across the state or country to go camping. It is very affordable, as you can just sleep in tents and cook your own food. You will also see and appreciate the beauty of the country. 

5. Get Cooking

One of the joys of traveling is trying out new food from other locations and cultures. But if your budget is tight this spring break, you can simply learn how to cook food from different countries and do a deep dive into their culture. It’s still a delicious way to enjoy spring break!

If you can’t swing a trip to Mexico, you and your friends can learn how to make different types of tacos. Nerdify reviews the following as among the best-tasting tacos:

• Al pastor
• Barbacoa
• Birria
• Carne asada
• Shrimp

6. Explore Mountains

There is no need to travel far to have a memorable spring break. Explore nature around you. The mountains are a great place to hike and enjoy the fresh air. You may even encounter wild animals!

7. Organize a Community Project

Spring break is also a perfect opportunity to give back to your community. It is a good alternative for those who are not into traveling or partying and would prefer to feed their souls rather than their social appetites.

Look up local charities, soup kitchens, or organizations like Habitat for Humanity and United Way. They likely run community projects year-long, and you can spend several days helping make the world a better place.

In Conclusion

Spring break is every American student’s favorite academic period. It is synonymous with fun parties, enchanting beaches, picturesque destinations, and loads of drinks. You can have the time of your life without breaking the bank with our list of budget-friendly activities.