Avoid Summer Travel Scams

Looking forward to relaxing at a sandy beach or exploring a new city? Travel scams can make summer more stressful than relaxing, and cost you big bucks. Here are some tips on how to avoid the most common traps.

Know Who You’re Booking Through
Only use trusted sites to book airline, hotel, or event tickets. Rather than using ad links, go to their public URL or use their official app. Look out for emails saying your reservation has been canceled or payment did not go through. All communication should come from the domain you booked through and include a confirmation number/reservation details. 

Third Party Headaches
Check the reviews for listings on third-party sites, such as Airbnb. Beware of any listing that requires you to leave the site to complete the booking or communicate with the owner. Also, while travel aggregators make it easy to compare prices, hotels and airlines often offer better rates when booking directly and are more upfront about fees and policies. 

Event and Tourist Attraction Scams
As with other vacation scams, buy tickets for the attractions you are interested in from their official website. Only buy concert tickets from an authorized seller (like Ticketmaster), especially for tickets that are being resold by an individual.

Watch for Email Offers and Social Media Ad That Are Too Good to Be True
Don't jump on a deal before you have the chance to research the offer; limited time only pressure is a red flag. Another sign that your “free” or “low-cost” trip is a scam is that it requires large fees or taxes. Be wary of winning any contest you don’t recall entering.

Excelling in Summer Classes at Pitt

Did you know that Pitt offers more courses during the summer than the school year? With a plethora of four-week and six-week options, they provide an excellent opportunity to explore your interests and accelerate your academic progress. 

Plan Ahead:
Carefully plan your classes with Degree Planner in PeopleSoft/HighPoint CX. Consider which courses you need to fulfill degree requirements and how they'll impact your graduation timeline. Pay attention to the enrollment deadlines in the academic calendar so you can take the courses that are right for you.

Be Mindful of Intensity:
Many summer classes are more condensed than regular courses, which means you can make rapid progress, but you should be prepared for an intense learning experience.  Manage your time effectively to keep up with coursework and assignments; consider using Outlook to help manage your schedule effectively. 

Make the Most of Campus Resources:
From state-of-the-art libraries and research facilities to student organizations, there's no shortage of resources available to support you. When you are on campus, the Student Computing Labs are open (check for summer hours). When you are at home or traveling, make use of Pitt IT's Virtual Computing Lab.

Panther Bytes to Nibble On

Check out these bite-sized blogs about tech topics you should know. You can access all of our Panther Bytes blogs at any time from pi.tt/blog.
 

• Planning Scam-Free Summer Fun

• Connecting Communities to Care: The Hub's Journey of Innovation and Service

• Elevate Your Summer with Learning

• 6 Essential IT Tools for Researchers

• Embrace the Heat: Summer Classes at Pitt

• Protecting Your Tech While Moving

LinkedIn Learning: Bite-Sized Courses with a Big Impact

All Pitt students have access to LinkedIn Learning courses at no cost. Connect your Learning account with your LinkedIn profile, so potential employers can see the courses you've taken! Recent graduates will lose access at the end of the summer, so take the courses you need now! Some of the newest and most popular courses include:
 

• Understanding Information Architecture

• Staying Positive and Persevering

• Sustaining LGBTQ+ Allyship

• Microsoft Copilot Quick Tips

• The Data Science of Economics, Banding, and Finance

• Using AI Tools for UX Design

• Monetizing Podcasts

• Releasing Music on Digital Streaming Platforms