Stefanie Weisman was born and raised in Queens, New York, across the river from Manhattan. She was valedictorian of New York City’s renowned Stuyvesant High School and graduated from Columbia University with the highest GPA in her class. She has a B.A. in History, a B.S. in Computer Science, and an M.A. in Art History.  Stefanie has received numerous awards including Best Performance in Columbia’s Core Curriculum, Best Senior Thesis in History on a non-U.S. Topic, Phi Beta Kappa, and Summa Cum Laude.  She was a Craig Hugh Smyth fellow at NYU’s Institute of Fine Arts, where she specialized in ancient Greek and Roman art.  Stefanie is the author of The Secrets of Top Students: Tips, Tools, and Techniques for Acing High School and College (Sourcebooks, 2013), which was recently translated into Chinese.  Her short story “In Search of E.B.” was named a Notable Essay in The Best American Essays 2013.  She is currently writing a historical fiction novel on the ancient Minoans.  Her hobbies include traveling, reading ink-and-paper books, visiting museums, memorizing Shakespeare, listening to classical and classic rock, playing piano, and eating her way through New York City!

The Secrets of Top Students is now available in Chinese! You can find it here.

Check out my extended bio on Amazon.com.

You can also follow me on Twitter @StefanieWeisman. I have a blog on travel and art called Glimpses of Paradise. My photos are available at Fineartamerica.com.

Award links:
My 2003 prizes
My 2002 prizes
Albert Asher Green Memorial Prize

New! Images of my awards
Stuyvesant Valedictorian
Columbia – Highest GPA
Columbia – First Place in Core Curriculum

Education articles I’ve written:
Taming the Tiger of Achievement (New York Times SchoolBook blog, 3/30/12)
Six Surprising Myths About Succeeding in School (CollegeXPress, 5/6/13)
Five ways to avoid the pitfalls of technology in college (USA Today, 3/5/12)
I Got the Highest GPA at an Ivy, But Not Because I’m Smarter Than Everyone Else (Your Teen for Parents, 6/27/13)
What Motivates Top Students? Getting Into the Heads of High Achievers (HackCollege, 7/24/13)
Struggling to be heard: What it’s like to be a student who stutters (USA Today, 7/31/13)
Six Surprising Study Techniques From a Valedictorian (Edudemic, 8/14/13)
Get Smart! (Girl’s Life magazine – not available online, Spring 2012 issue)
The Top 5 Back-to-School Tips for College Success (College Countdown, 8/22/13)
Top 10 Techniques to Help You Survive Finals (College Countdown, 5/9/13)
The Top Seven New Year’s Resolutions for Students (College Countdown, 12/31/12)
Top 5 Tips for Student Success This Summer (College Countdown, 6/21/13)
How to Write a Research Paper in College by Mastering the Five Rs (StudentAdvisor.com, 1/24/12)
The LD Advantage (Originally published by The Rise Scholarship Foundation.  LD stands for learning disability, difficulty, or difference.)
Message To Students: Why Perfectionism Is Bad For You, And What You Can Do About It (Noodle.org, 12/16/13)
8 Tips for Battling Senioritis in High School (College Countdown, 2/27/14)
8 Things Every Humanities Student Should Do in a STEM Class (Noodle.org, 12/22/15)
Expert Stefanie Weisman: How to Study Without Distraction (Freedom Blog, 9/28/16)

Mentions in the press:
Study Smarts: Valedictorian’s secrets to college success, by Erika Prafder (New York Post, 5/1/13)
Lifelong Astorian Publishes Book On Academic Success (Queens Gazette, 6/12/13)
‘Secrets’ are out: Must-have book has tips for students, Book Review by Lisa J. Curtis (Brooklyn Family Magazine, August 2013 issue).
Astoria Characters: The Straight-A Student of Life, by Nancy Ruhling (Huffington Post, 11/3/13)
The Study Dude: Study Tips from a Semi-Anonymous Friend, (The Voice Magazine, 10/24/14)
Sticking with STEM: Valedictorian Reveals Tips for Students, by Beth Goodbaum (ThomasNet/ IMT Career Journal, 4/12/13)
Stefanie Weisman ’03CC, ’11GS Publishes First Book (Columbia School of General Studies News, 5/10/13)
Book Blurb, (Columbia College Today Bookshelf, Fall 2013)
Book Review by Tammy Turner, Centennial High School, Frisco, TX (School Library Journal, July 2013 issue) Note: You need a BookVerdict login to view this.
Why Are STEM Classes So Hard? (Educated Quest: Your guide for the journey to college, 5/21/13)
NACAC review of The Secrets of Top Students (National Association for College Admission Counseling, Spring 2013)
Book Review: The Secrets of Top Students (Refreshingly Riki, 6/12/13)
Review by Alain Burrese, J.D. (Ezine articles, Spring 2013)
Goodbye, ‘bamboo ceiling’ – Corporate barriers spur Asian-Americans to start fast-growing enterprises, by Emily Laermer (Crain’s New York Business) Note: You need a Crain’s log-in for this.
Mention in Phi Beta Kappa website (Spring 2013)
Future of Gifted and Talented Programs Discussed at P.S. 122, by Thomas Cogan (Western Queens Gazette, 3/13/13)
The Secrets of Top Students, by Ana Weber (Jennings Wire: The World of Success, 6/26/13)
Surprising Tip for Test Success – Have a Snack, by Jennifer Hughes (Foster Care to Success, 7/22/13)
Des secrets à partager: Les secrets des très bons élèves, by Brice Lequeux (Lycée Alexandre Yersin, Vietnam, 7/5/13)
The Secrets of Top Students is the September Non-Fiction Book of the Month (DAML: Dorothy Alling Memorial Library in Williston, VT, September 2013)
What Makes a Top Student? by Danford Chang (12/4/13)
Top Secrets of One Top Stuy Student, by Dawn Helene (Stuyvesant PA Bulletin, Nov. 2013)

YouTube video of a talk given at Stern College, 12/9/13