You may be starting college in the fall; you may have just finished up your first year; you may be preparing to toss your cap this weekend. Either way, college graduation is a major milestone in a person's life ... and it can really help, amidst the chaos, to spend a few moments reflecting on the seriousness and importance of the occasion.

If you're not sure where to start, check out a list of motivational quotations about graduation. You can use them to meditate on, to put in a speech, or even to put in your thank-you notes. Enjoy!

For many families -- mine included -- where you got into college was equally as important as how much financial aid you got from each school. And even though financial aid is such a critical, essential part of a student's ability to go to college, it can still seem overwhelming and confusing.

One thing to keep in mind as you, a newly admitted college student (congrats!), begin signing financial aid forms is that financial aid isn't as scary as it seems at first. With a little patience, reading, and/or research, you can feel in control of your financial aid package instead of feeling like it controls you. The first step: check out a list of 5 things to know about your financial aid package. They'll help you see just what can and can't be done with your aid as well as what you'll need to know now in order to have a financially successful (instead of scary) year next year.

Mothers' Day, unfortunately, often comes at an awkward time for students: they're low on cash at the end of the semester while also trying to juggle finals and other end-of-the-academic-year craziness (including, for some, graduation!). It's not like you don't want to get something for your mom ... it's just that you have so many, many other things on your to-do list.

While all of that might be true, of course, it still won't get you out of a major jam if you really do forget to recognize your mom on Mother's Day (May 13th). If you're short on cash and time, take a quick look at 7 great gift ideas for moms. The list is specifically catered to students who, shall we say, can't exactly rush out to Tiffany's and buy their moms diamond earrings -- as much as they might deserve them, of course!

One thing that I love about working in higher education is how cyclical everything is. Just as we prepare one class to graduate, we're getting ready to welcome a new class of first-year students.

Over the summer, I'll be posting an article targeted at incoming first-years each Monday. This feature, called "New Student Mondays," will aim to make the transition from high school senior to college frosh as easy as possible.

Without further ado, then, we're going to start big this week with The Ultimate Before-You-Arrive To-Do List. Targeted at first-year students, this list covers everything you'll need to do, pack, prepare for, and overall expect before your first day on campus. It's worth the read (if not a bookmark) sooner rather than later!