Rachel Bennett

Rachel Bennett is a senior journalism major and cinema studies minor at UNC-Chapel Hill, and she has been a contributing writer for UNC-CH's Her Campus branch since the fall of 2010. Rachel has also written for The Siren, UNC-CH’s feminist magazine, and has been an editorial writer and online staffer at The Daily Tar Heel. As a content development intern for Bloginity, an entertainment news site, she has written numerous articles about her passion: movies and television. Just ask her about any television show (especially ‘Mad Men’) or movie, and she could pretty much talk for hours. She also enjoys spending time with family and friends, listening to music, discussing women’s studies and eating chocolate. Although her roots and heart are in the South, she has dreams of working in New York City as a film and television critic in the magazine industry. During the summer of 2011, she will be interning at Her Campus' national office and has been remotely serving as the love section editor. She is so excited to begin this adventure!

More by Rachel Bennett

10 Things No One Told You About Applying to College 10/4/2012	As you’re starting the college application process (if you haven’t already, you overachievers), most people will be telling you one thing: what college you should go to. Like Rory Gilmore of Gilmore Girls, you may have your heart set on Harvard, but your grandparents are pressuring you to go to Yale. Okay, we all can’t be Rory and have to decide between Harvard and Yale, but you get the point. Once you start filling out those applications, everyone will tell you where you should spend the best four years of your life. But what aren’t these people telling you? Luckily for you, Her Campus is telling you the 10 things no one told you about applying to college, so you’ll be even more prepared to make your decision by the time you’ve received all of those acceptance letters. 10. The application process can put a strain on friendships and relationships.
Love the One You're With?: How to Decide if You Should Break Up with Your High School Boyfriend Before College 8/6/2012	Now that you’ve chosen the college you’ll be attending this fall, all of your hard decisions are over, right? Not exactly. For pre-collegiettes™ in relationships, there is still one decision to be made that can be even harder than choosing a college: whether or not to stay with your high school boyfriend. He may be the guy who’s been by your side for the past four years, or maybe he’s the one you just met but already love like crazy. Whatever the case, college is a completely different atmosphere than high school, and will quickly put a high school relationship to the test. Luckily, we’ve gotten advice from love stylist and author of MENu Dating Tristan Coopersmith as well as collegiettes™ who had to make this decision themselves. We’ll tell you the questions you need to be asking yourself and the pros and cons of each decision, so you can make the best choice for your relationship as school nears.
I<3ME: 10 Ways to Love Yourself 10/29/2011	You’re running late to class. On top of that, you can’t remember the last time you shaved your legs, you’re sleep-deprived, and the guy you like was just tagged in Facebook pics with another girl. You finally get to class – only to realize you forgot that a huge paper is due. This is definitely not a moment you’ll include in your college scrapbook. We all have moments in life when we’re not exactly our #1 fans. Even though we usually realize how fantastic and one-of-a-kind we are, sometimes life can bring us down – and keep us down. It can be easy to be hard on yourself or get down in the dumps, but HC’s here to help you get out of these temporary slumps. So keep reading for 10 activities you can do to love yourself when life’s got you a little bit down!
10 Easy Ways to Save Space in Your Dorm Room 9/14/2011	School has arrived, and while you may be excited to start classes and make new friends, there’s one thing you may not be so excited about: your tiny dorm room. Some of you may be used to sharing a small room with someone, but for most of us, college means leaving our own comfortable space at home and moving into a room the size of a shoebox – only half of which is yours. So what’s a collegiette™ to do with all of her valuable possessions? Leave them at home?! Not if we can help it! Before you tearfully depart with half of your shoes or your favorite stuffed animal, read our top ten space-saving tips. Before you know it, you will have too much space in that closet-sized room of yours! 1. Under Your Bed Sure, at home you may put the most random things under your bed – and pretty much never see them again. But in college, the space under your bed is vital; in fact, this is probably the most important space apart from your closet. Crazy, right? The mind-boggling things college teaches us.
2,000 People Attend a Facebook-Advertised Party Near CSU 8/30/2011	Sending out your party invites via Facebook? You may want to think again. Four people were arrested and at least 10 were hospitalized after a weekend party advertised on Facebook attracted at least 2,000 people and quickly got out of control. The party-goers, mostly college students, attended the Facebook-titled “biggest pool party of the year” at an apartment complex near Colorado State University. Almost 3,000 people said they were planning to attend on the event’s Facebook page. “Some people came from as far away as Denver [which is about 65 miles south of the complex] for this back-to-school party,” Fort Collins, Colo., Patrol Administrative Lt. Hal Dean said, The Washington Times reports. According to The Washington Post, two people were arrested for assault (reportedly stemming from a fight), one for disorderly conduct and another for interference with an officer. Of the four who were arrested, 9NEWS.com reports that two were Colorado State University football players James Skelton and Zach Tiedgen. While 10 attendees went to the hospital, most of them were taken for overconsumption of alcohol or minor injuries.
Shop, Click, Auto-ship: Hoseanna's Got You (And Your Guy) Covered 8/15/2011	We’ve all been there: it’s that wonderful time of the month again, and without a car or the time to take the bus to the nearest drug store, your only option is to get your tampons at the, gulp, campus store. Whether your campus is big or small, you don’t want the whole world knowing – especially that cute cashier whom you’ve been flirting with for the past month. But it’s your only choice, and now he knows you prefer Playtex over Tampax … not exactly a flirtation device. Whatever the situation, we’ve all had times like these. These and other feminine must-haves are essential to getting us through the day, but as much as we need them, they’re a hassle to have to buy (and, more often than not, an embarrassment). We’re busy college women, and we don’t have the time to go out every other day whenever we run out of tampons, lip balm, deodorant, condoms, etc. And we especially don’t want to have to go to the campus store to get our tampons and pads – when it’s our only option, we feel like we might as well put a notification in the school paper saying that we’re on our period. Your days making those magically awkward campus store runs are now numbered thanks to a brilliant female-founded and run startup called Hoseanna. This great, revamped and totally HC-approved site has made shopping for these items easier than ever. They understand that we’re busy collegiettes™ who don’t have the time or the patience to deal with buying this stuff (as much as we need it).
Wear the Rainbow: How to Rock Every Color of the Rainbow as Eye Shadow 8/15/2011	A lot of us use the same makeup products over and over again: mascara, eyeliner, foundation and maybe some lip gloss. While some collegiettes™ may be bolder with their look, many of us shy away from such dramatic makeup statements – especially when it comes to eye shadow. Even if we use eye shadow, most of us play it safe and stick to the neutral colors – just as it is rare to see a rainbow in the sky, it’s rare to see the colors of the rainbow in our eye shadow. “Bright colors of the rainbow are great for the catwalk, but caution is needed when translating these looks to the street,” says Juliana Landis, one of Hollywood’s elite makeup artists. Her Campus shows you how to rock all the colors of the rainbow in your eye shadow this summer so your makeup will get cooler even if the weather doesn’t. Red Landis says red eye shadow looks best on those with medium skin tones as well as redheads, blondes and raven-haired collegiettes™. Rihanna is a great example, as she wore red eye shadow to the Brit Awards in February. Her shadow complemented her red locks beautifully, and, as you can see, her shadow goes up to the brow bone and out toward her temple.
Get 50% Off Socks at Ozonesocks.com! 8/3/2011	Let’s face it: socks aren’t always on the top of a collegiette’s™ fashion wish list. But where would we be without them? Our delicate feet would have blisters, and no self-respecting collegiette™ would ever wear heels again (if she could even walk)! Luckily for you, and your feet, CollegeBudget is offering a great deal on socks from Ozonesocks.com! For only a day longer, CollegeBudget is offering $20 of socks for only $10! Ozonesocks.com does not just sell your average sock. Instead, its socks are fashion-forward accessories that every collegiette™ must have! Maybe you want socks that you won’t be able to see with your flats, or maybe you want over-the-knee, printed socks that everyone can see – Ozonesocks.com has it all! Ozonesocks.com even sells single socks, so if one of your favorite socks has mysteriously disappeared, leaving the other without a companion, you can find another match! Ozonesocks.com has socks for women and men, so if you’re not shopping for yourself (and why wouldn’t you be?!), you can find a great pair of socks for that special guy in your life. Do not miss out on this 50% discount from CollegeBudget! Your feet will thank you for keeping them comfortable and fashionable!
Alleged Libyan Rape Victim Eman al-Obeidy Arrives in the U.S 7/29/2011	Eman al-Obeidy, the Libyan woman who in March accused men in Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi's forces of gang-raping her, has arrived in the U.S. al-Obeidy arrived in New York Wednesday night after spending 54 days in a U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees facility in Romania, CNN reports. The U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees is an agency that protects refugees and resolves refugee problems across the world. Once al-Obeidy landed in New York, she caught a flight to the location where she plans to live in the U.S. According to CNN, al-Obeidy says she is excited and happy to be in the U.S., where she has been granted asylum. She also sent her gratitude to the U.S. government and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. al-Obeidy made headlines in March when she burst into the Rixos Hotel in Tripoli, where international reporters were staying, and told them she had been taken, beaten and raped by 15 Qaddafi militiamen for two days.
Win a Chance to Meet Warren Buffett! 7/7/2011	Want to meet one of the world’s wealthiest people and most successful investors? Of course you do! Win a chance to meet investor and billionaire (that’s right, we said billionaire) Warren Buffett through Business Wire’s college video contest. If you are a full-time college student as of April 2011, whether you have since become a grad or are still an undergrad, all you have to do is submit a video that is 3 minutes or less answering the question, “What is the future of public relations and communications?” Your video can be humorous or serious, but it should be creative, thoughtful and original. All videos must be submitted by Friday, July 15. Your video must also be created by you and made for only this contest. And, of course, videos containing any inappropriate content or objectionable material should not be submitted and will not be taken into consideration (stay classy, ladies!). Once all the videos are collected and viewed, Business Wire will choose the top five videos by Aug. 1, 2011. The selection process will be based equally on creativity, originality and appropriateness to the theme. The five videos that are picked will then be put on Business Wire’s Facebook page so users can “Like” and comment on the videos. You are even encouraged to like your own video! The winning video will be selected by an executive Business Wire team. The winner will be notified by email and/or phone no later than Aug. 15, 2011. In addition to meeting Warren Buffett, the winner will get to spend three days and two nights in New York City – airfare and hotel included.

Rachel Bennett

More by Rachel Bennett

This Father's Day, Keep Your Dad Healthy and Win a Scholarship!