And by “top,” I mean, “the ones I paid attention to.”
1. For a policy wonk such as myself, the biggie is the student loan scandal. The government finally noticed that maybe, just maybe, private lenders have a conflict of interest when hawking their wares to 18-year-olds who really don’t have a concept of “8% for the next 30 years.” New York leads the way. (more…)
Have you been listening to discussions in Election 2008? If you have, then your ears are probably still ringing with the deafening silence over education. The media seems to only be talking about immigration, Iraq, and health care. I’m not lessening the importance of those issues, but given that education costs are increasing and that we’re falling behind in educating our workforce, I’d like to hear more discussion about education.
The Hoover Institute offers a Republican perspective and a Democratic point-of-view on what the education focus in 2008 politics should be. (more…)
Everyone remember to be kind to your serfs, minions and underlings this year.
With so many new buildings, products, and Web sites that need designs and an eye for the aesthetic, an art degree can be invaluable in today’s job market. Throw in some computer know-how (Photoshop for sure, but some html and web coding is great for your marketability), and you’re ready to roll. Here’s a top five for art careers:
5. Graphic Designer
4. Multimedia Artist/Animator
3. Art Director
2. Illustrator
1. Fine Artist
But studying the arts goes beyond pursuing an art career. Eric Jensen’s book “Arts with the Brain in Mind” postulates that “[A]rts are not only fundamental to success in our demanding, highly technical, fast-moving world, but they are what makes us most human, most complete as people.” (more…)
If you’re one of those rare birds who actually enjoys holiday shopping, have you ever wondered what it’s like to do it for a living? I’m talking about purchasers and buyers for retail stores–the people who decide what their store will sell. In October, the New York Times interviewed some buyers for well-known NY stores to find out what the job is really like. (more…)
A week or so ago we talked a bit about the issue of cheating in online degree programs. It’s true that the advent of any technology brings out the good and bad in people. Online education makes learning easier for a lot of students–but it makes cheating easier as well.
Fortunately, we can add one more item to that list: it makes catching cheaters easier too. Here are a few of the methods profs are using these days to police their classrooms–some high-tech, some as old as education itself. (more…)
Time for a little fun. So, what do you do with an English or creative writing degree? Lots of people assume that teaching is the only path for a writing grad. But as a holder of one such degree, let me offer a few interesting career paths:
8. Grant Writer. If you’ve got a big heart and a cause that’s dear to you, becoming a grant writer will put your talents to use while you help a non-profit obtain much needed funding.
7. Technical Writer. You know how to break things down into simple steps? Perfect. As a technical writer, you’d write manuals and process documents for anything from computer products to company procedures so that other people can figure out how to use/follow them.
6. Lawyer. Surprised? (more…)
A spot of lovely news today for the privileged few… Harvard announced major new financial aid policies benefiting the struggling middle-class families who make too much for federal aid but not nearly enough to meet Harvard’s $45k-plus price tag. As the article states,
Families with incomes above $120,000 and below $180,000 and with assets typical for these income levels will be asked to pay 10 percent of their incomes.
This sounds fairly ridiculous to a lot of people (why on earth would someone making six figures need financial aid?) until you consider that the average cost of a private college education in the U.S. is about $120,000.
Meanwhile, assuming you are not among the lucky 9% of the 22,000 applicants who made it in, why should you care? (more…)
Remember that National Center for Higher Education Management Systems (NCHEMS) report stating that we’ll be lacking at least 16 million degrees in the U.S. to keep up with our workforce demands and to stay competitive internationally by 2025? The Sloan Consortium’s recent report, “Online Nation: Five Years of Growth in Online Learning,” reveals that online enrollments increased by 9.7% compared to traditional universities’ growth rate of 1.5%. Plus, the report says that about 3.5 million students were enrolled in an online class during the fall 2006-2007 semester. So, if we’re looking for a sign that we might have the means to facilitate the needed education expansion, this might be it.
(more…)
Ever spent an hour or so staring at the same page in your reading assignment? Whether you’re in the classroom or at your computer, building the right study habits can be tougher than you think. So print out this handy little list and eyeball it whenever you’re starting to struggle.
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