Michelle Udeli, Your College Auntie & Success Coach

Michelle Udeli, Your College Auntie & Success Coach This page provides college students with knowledge and resources that can be applied so that you can win!

Here in this corner of the internet, we believe that if you pursue knowledge and apply what you learn, it’ll lead to wisdom.

09/11/2026

STORY TIME: A professor once ghosted my request for a letter of recommendation. 😭😂 Looking back, I can laugh—but I also learned some important lessons!

First, make sure you’re asking the right person. 🎯 A cordial relationship does not always mean a close relationship. Choose someone who genuinely knows you, your work, and your strengths. 🤝🏾

Second, read the room! 👀 If they’re responding to everything except your recommendation request, they probably didn’t miss the email. 😬 Don’t try to force or beg someone to write your letter—you need a recommender who is willing and excited to write a strong, positive recommendation for you. 📝✨

And finally, give them something to work with! Send your résumé, information about the opportunity, the deadline, and a reminder of the work you completed with them.

Learn from my slightly embarrassing story: build relationships before you need them, choose your recommenders wisely, and prepare them to advocate for you well. 🙌🏾

Stay tuned—next, we’re talking about exactly what you should provide your recommenders when requesting a letter from them! ✍🏾📧

09/10/2026

Y’all, some of the best opportunities on your campus may be hiding in plain sight. 👀

It’s career and internship season, so I know many of you are searching online, updating your résumé, and preparing for career fairs. But I have one simple tip that could give you an advantage:

✨ Open your eyes and check the bulletin boards! ✨

Professors, researchers, academic departments, and campus programs are constantly posting:
📌 Internships
📌 Scholarships and fellowships
📌 Summer research programs
📌 Study abroad experiences
📌 Graduate school opportunities
📌 And so much more!

And please don’t just stick to the rivers and the lakes that you’re used to! 😂 Venture beyond the student union, your residence hall, and the buildings where you normally take classes. An unfamiliar building might have an opportunity that’s open to every major—including you!

I recently found an education abroad opportunity posted inside a plant sciences building. I hadn’t seen it anywhere else, and because it was open to all majors, you already know I sent it straight to my students! 🙌🏾

Your next opportunity might already be waiting for you—you just have to look up long enough to see it. 👀

Have you checked your campus bulletin boards lately? What interesting opportunities have you found? 👇🏾

09/01/2026

NINETEEN attempts on an eight-question syllabus quiz?! 😳 Baby…at some point, we have to open the syllabus. 😭😂

In this case, they only needed an 80%, could use the syllabus, AND had multiple attempts. At that point, guessing was taking more time than finding the answers! 🫠📖

And y’all, your professor can probably see every single attempt. 👀 You don’t want your first impression to be, “Oh, this student is just clicking buttons and not really trying.” 😬

Because later, when you need help, flexibility, mentorship, or a recommendation letter, you don’t want to be fighting against a reputation you created during the first week of class. 😅

Your syllabus quiz is not there just for busy work. It is usually there to give you some easy points AND make sure you know the information you’ll need to be successful in the course. That is a gift! Receive it! 😂🎁

So here’s some advice from ya Auntie: Slow down. Open the syllabus. Look up the answers. And please don’t email your professor later asking about a policy that has been sitting in there since Day One. 😭📚

Now be honest: Have you read all of your syllabi yet? 👀

08/25/2026

🗣️ Pro Tip: Before you try to figure that class out all by yourself, talk to somebody who has already taken it!

Ask them:

✨ What helped you succeed?
✨ How did you work with the professor?
✨ What mistakes or common traps should I avoid?
✨ If you struggled at first, what helped you turn things around?

And y’all, we are gathering wisdom...not trying to finesse the course. 😂 The goal is to learn from people who performed well AND people who had to pivot, adjust, and persevere.

Sometimes the best advice will be surprisingly simple: Go to class. Read the syllabus. Start assignments early. Ask for help before you’re drowning. But hearing it from someone who has already been there might be exactly what helps it click.

You do not have to enter every classroom starting from scratch. Use your resources!! Ask good questions. Learn from other people’s experiences, and then create a strategy that works for you. 🩵

Save this as your reminder, and send it to a student who needs to build their “been-there-done-that” team this semester!

08/18/2026

As you begin your first week of classes, I need you to remember something:

You belong in every classroom you walk into. You are worthy of being there. You are good enough. And yes—you are capable of succeeding this semester. 🩵

Now, unless you’re sitting in the wrong classroom because you didn’t check your schedule…then, baby, you do not belong in that particular room. 😂 Please get up and find your actual classroom.

A few College Auntie reminders for your first week:

✨ Double-check the building and room number before you leave.
✨ Give yourself more travel time than you think you need.
✨ If the walk should take 10 minutes, give yourself 15–20.
✨ Arrive early enough to find the room, choose your seat, and get settled.
✨ Pull up your notes and materials before class begins.

The goal is not to start your semester rushed, flustered, late, or caught slipping. Give yourself the time you need to walk into the room calm, prepared, and ready to learn.

You belong there. Now show up like you know it.

Love,
Your College Auntie 🩵

Save this for your first week, and send it to somebody who needs the reminder.

04/06/2026

🚨New Series Alert: Hard Truths from Auntie🚨

Let’s talk about group projects. Here’s a HARD TRUTH…

If you’re the one not pulling your weight in group projects…you’re not getting over.

You’re getting comfortable.

Comfortable being last-minute.

Comfortable being unclear.

Comfortable letting other people carry you.

And that might “work” in class… for now.

But in the real world?
People keep receipts. 🧾

They notice who follows through.
Who communicates.
Who disappears when it’s time to work. 🫠

And when it’s time for promotions, recommendations, or layoffs…
your name will come up.

Not for what you said you’d do.
For what you actually did. 😳

And if your teammates can’t speak highly of you now…
what makes you think your coworkers will later? 👀

You don’t build work ethic overnight.
You practice it daily. 💪🏾

✨ Auntie Challenge (start TODAY):
Send one message to your group:
“Hey, I want to take ownership of [specific task]. I’ll have an update by [date/time].”

Then actually FOLLOW THROUGH.

No more hiding. No more coasting. It’s time to step up. ✅

Are you in a group this semester? Are you or someone else in the group not pulling your weight? Let me know in the comments!

03/24/2026

Soooo, I may have gotten a little carried away with March Madness this year. 😅 I put both of my brackets outside of my door. 😎

Anyone one else following along? Who do you have going to the ?

Here’s a hard truth from your College Auntie…Some academic crises are preventable.I recently saw a nursing student facin...
03/16/2026

Here’s a hard truth from your College Auntie…

Some academic crises are preventable.

I recently saw a nursing student facing dismissal — not because she failed, but because of missing or incomplete assignments. 📝

And unfortunately, I see this pattern all the time. 🙄

Students who are:
✔️ smart
✔️ capable
✔️ passionate about their field

But they never built a real system for managing their time and responsibilities. ⏰

If you rely on memory, Canvas notifications, or last-minute pressure, you’re leaving too much to chance.

College success is not just about intelligence.
It’s about structure. 📅

If this semester hasn’t gone the way you wanted yet, you still have time to reset.

Start with systems. Read through this post for some helpful tips.

— Auntie 💙

03/03/2026

Hot take 👀🔥:
Studying 2 hours a day won’t carry you to a 4.0.

Not because you’re incapable.
But because the math doesn’t support it.

College runs on the 2–3 hour rule.
For every 1 credit hour, you should be spending 2–3 hours outside of class learning, practicing, and reviewing.

So if you’re taking 15 credits?
That’s 30–45 hours a week of focused study time.

That doesn’t mean cramming.
It means previewing lectures, reviewing within 24 hours, practicing problems, and testing yourself consistently.

Two hours a day isn’t “bad.”
It’s just not aligned with elite results.

✨ Auntie Assignment:
Multiply your credit load by 2.
That number is your minimum weekly study commitment.
Now open your calendar and schedule it before the week starts.

Your GPA reflects your structure.
If you want uncommon results, you need uncommon discipline. 💪🏽

12/05/2025

Y’all, this is further proof that professors can tell when you use AI. Please don’t assume that they are naïve. Don’t say that I didn’t warn you. 💅🏾

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