Posted on

When to Consider College Majors and Careers

I frequently get asked when it is time to start thinking about colleges, careers and majors.  Certainly the earlier the better and there are plenty of things you can do well in advance to prepare yourself for making these critical decisions.  Middle school and certainly high school freshman can begin a low impact process.  It is also important to understand that when you do the work up front, it allows you to have greater peace of mind, focus on other important details, and to understand that even with the work you have done, you can still change your mind but within a more defined framework for success.  It’s about creating opportunities!

In June of 2008, The Wall Street Journal published an article referencing The Highlands Ability Battery and the importance of students being able to identify their natural abilities for the benefit of lifelong career management.  But it is also important to understand that the abilities that are measured at age 17 for a high school student, remain constant throughout your life.  Therefore, the results are applicable for a lifetime and serve as a great resource in career decisions whether that decision includes deciding on a major area of study, promotion opportunity, going back to school, or transitioning into retirement.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB121375062383682907.html

Selecting the right major can mean the difference between graduating college on time or becoming one of the national statistics.  Nationally, less than 40% of college students complete a four-year degree on time and more than 51% require up to 6 years to complete a four-year degree.  That frightening statistic impacts your ability to create a productive income after 4 years, but it also comes with a price tag that equates to a national average of $30,000 per student in loan debt due to changed majors.  Imagine being ahead of the game just by graduating on time!  Imagine saving $30,000 for an advanced degree or to open your own business just because you had a plan and graduated on time!

Posted on

Top 10 Jobs Trends…Now and Through 2017

Whether you are a student in school or an adult in the workforce, it is important to recognize that many of the millions of jobs and even careers that have been lost in the last 5 years will not return even when the economy gains strength.  Our society as a whole has had a major shift in technology and jobs.  Jobs of the future will be “knowledge jobs”.   Regardless of how expensive education is, it will be vital to the future of our nation and the individuals within.  Education may be a university degree or it may be a trade or technical school certification, but having that education will make all the difference.

So, when thinking about the options,  it is important to pay attention to trends.    Trends of success in the future will include leadership and knowledge jobs.  Just check out this list of “Top 10 Jobs” and see if leadership and knowledge are not key components:

 http://www.boston.com/jobs/galleries/best_jobs/.

Want to know more about trends? Want to know if your natural abilities are well suited for one of these career directions?  Which college degree programs connect best with your abilities for a best fit and optimal success? Contact me.

Posted on

Halloween and Other Scary Times

How perfect to end the month with Halloween and a topic of Scary Times.  If you are a junior or senior in high school or a senior in college you are facing scary times.  There is enough uncertainty in the world to create plenty of anxiety in those who are in pivotal transition points in their lives.

Actually, anyone who is trying to make decisions about college and career direction is facing scary times.  But you can reduce the stress by arming yourself with tools that enhance your decision-making and place yourself in better positions for opportunities.

In a time when information is a key to success, resources can be your most important tools.  Here are some key resources for you to pay attention to regularly:

1.  Athletes in any sport – www.collegesportstrack.com – a terrific resource for understanding the college sports recruiting experience and communicating with coaches to secure your opportunity.  Hans writes a great blog with specific information.  Bookmark it!

2.  College bound students and parents – www.sat.org – a must for registering for the SAT, pacing yourself with a prep program, practicing with their Question of the Day, and they are usually the first indicator of college cost increases.   An underused resource.  Bookmark it!

3.  Anyone thinking about career opportunities – www.bls.gov – a wonderful resource for looking at trends of jobs, sectors of employment and demographic availability of employment.  Another underused resource.  Bookmark it!

Scary times can be made less frightening when armed with effective tools.  Knowing your options, how to manage them and knowing more about yourself enables you to make more effective decisions and capitalize on opportunities.  Need a great resource to learn more about yourself, choosing a college, college major or your career direction?  Contact me.

Posted on

Finding Your Balance – A Good Fit

It doesn’t matter whether you are a high school student, a college student, or an adult … finding a “good fit” for college or work is a bit like finding your balance.  Robert Fulghum wrote about it in his book, All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten.  He said, “Live a balanced life – learn some, think some, and draw and paint and sing and dance and play and work every day some.”  Wise and wonderful words!

As a high school student, it is important to be engaged in not just the grades of specific classes, but the activities and experience of high school.  In doing so, you build your value to colleges and universities through your experiences of participation, leadership and service.  All of which include opportunities to work, or play or dance or perform or demonstrate who you are as an individual.  It helps you to find your balance and understand where you fit in.  Likewise, as you search for colleges and universities you begin to develop an understanding of those things that are important to you in finding the “good fit” experience of higher education.

College students looking for that first job coming out of school, you begin to understand the kind of environment that you would find satisfying or the kind of people you want to spend the bulk of your day with as you go about creating a career.  Life begins to take on a new balance that is based on an evolving set of values, interests and abilities.  Do you know what yours are?

The culture of an institution like high schools, colleges and universities as well as the culture of a work environment all provide opportunities for you to find your balance.  But it does take some effort, it doesn’t happen by accident and you must pay attention.  Just like Mr. Fulghum said in his book, “Live a balanced life – learn some, think some, and draw and paint and sing and dance and play and work every day some.”

Posted on

Preparation as a Determining Factor in the Duration of Your Degree

When we set out to buy a car, we do our homework.  We check websites for best deals and dealers, price special features, and determine in our mind what our budget will be and the kind of vehicle we can afford.  Part of the equation may even be determining how long we intend to keep and use the vehicle, how serviceable it will be, and how much satisfaction we will get out of using it.

Actually, college is a similar investment.  We do our homework, compare schools, tuitions and, unfortunately, while we may think we budget enough for college, changing your mind on a major can completely change the financial picture.  The national average indicates that students in college change majors 3-5 times.  And although a bachelors’ degree typically only requires 4 years of college, the national average for students’ indicates they require 5.8 years.  Changing majors changes the duration of your degree and has huge financial impact.

Preparing ahead of time can make all the difference in the world from your performance in college classes to the amount of money invested in attaining a 4 year degree and even to the level of satisfaction with the chosen field of study and eventual career.  Preparations can begin as early as middle school and most of them take almost no time to invest beyond what you already do.  But you do have to be organized and have a plan.  Obviously the closer you get to junior and senior year in high school the more you need to be doing and the amount of money you invest becomes more demanding.  After all, tests, college visits and many activities include costs.

Good preparation can save time and money both in high school and in college.  So when you think about getting that college degree, have you thought about how much you are willing to invest in upfront costs of time, effort and money to save thousands on the back end?

Posted on

Plan Ahead for All Around Success

When you eval­u­ate the cost or invest­ment in some­thing, some­times we humans can be a bit short sighted.  So when it comes to eval­u­at­ing the cost of a col­lege edu­ca­tion and your invest­ment of time, you want to make sure you invest well and pro­vide good mar­ketabil­ity for your­self.  You also want to reduce the poten­tial of debt after graduation.

There is an excel­lent arti­cle, The Best Val­ues in Pub­lic Col­leges that ranks 20 of the best uni­ver­si­ties and rea­sons for the rank­ings.  I point this out because there is an addi­tional fac­tor to pay atten­tion to in these num­bers and it isn’t printed.  The last col­umn on the chart iden­ti­fies “Aver­age debt at grad­u­a­tion.”  This is important…many states, like Florida, offer aca­d­e­mic schol­ar­ship dol­lars to in-state stu­dents based on GPA.  But even with those dol­lars, the “Aver­age debt at grad­u­a­tion” for stu­dents at Uni­ver­sity of Florida is $16,013.  Maybe your most eco­nom­i­cal and major spe­cific insti­tu­tion isn’t in-state.  Look at all of your options.

By doing some work up front, you can explore careers, majors and schools that are inter­est­ing, make sense and are a nat­ural fit for you.  That’s where I can pro­vide you excel­lent guid­ance and steps to cre­at­ing an effec­tive plan for col­lege and career direc­tion.  Those steps help to lead you to a great col­lege experience, on-time grad­u­a­tion with a mean­ing­ful degree that is mar­ketable in a career path geared to your sat­is­fac­tion and reward.

Get­ting the biggest return on an edu­ca­tional invest­ment means:

  • Grad­u­at­ing on Time
  • Reduced or No Stu­dent Loan Debt
  • Mar­ketable Degree
  • High Degree of Sat­is­fac­tion in Career Path

Click here for more infor­ma­tion on cre­at­ing a suc­cess­ful high school and col­lege to work­place plan.

Click here for the full arti­cle and table – The Best Val­ues in Pub­lic Colleges.

Click here for evidence that Loan Debt isn’t just for the younger student.

 

Posted on

3 Considerations to Avoid Student Loans

At a time when student loan debt exceeds credit card debt in our nation and the national average is that students coming out of college will owe $30,000 in loan debt, it is important to have a plan before you enter college.  That plan needs to include a plan for financing long before the start of college, but even with a savings plan, there are other considerations.  So whether you have lots or little saved for college, here are 3 considerations when determining your financial capability for paying for a college degree.

1 – Evaluate your own financial resources, schools you are looking at and the total cost of a degree.  That doesn’t mean you start eliminating schools strictly because of cost.  But it does mean that you have to know what resources you currently have, consider any potential scholarship awards for sports or academics, and recognize that some degrees require 5 year programs for a bachelor degree.

2 – Estimate the cost of your education at specific institutions vs. earning potential upon graduation.  If the cost of the education far outweighs the earning potential, perhaps other schools should be considered.  On the other hand, if advanced degrees are part of your plan, then the track record of the sending school is important for getting in to advanced programs and costs for education have to be considered over a longer period of time.  If loans are part of that plan, then it is even more important to evaluate earning potential.

3 – Evaluate your position in the equation of Career Directed vs. No Direction.  Twenty years ago college costs were 400% less and students could afford to “change their mind” when declaring majors.  But now, at the cost of a college education and the risk of spending so much on something you don’t want to work at for 30 years or more, the risks are enormous.  Throw in college loans and there is a recipe for disaster.  It is no surprise that John Hennessy, President of Stanford University, addresses the fact that “debt burden” is a huge issue facing parents and students today and that “I Don’t Know” and “Changed My Mind” are the top two choices for majors as declared by culminating freshmen.  Click here to listen to his 7 minute interview on NPR.

A directed plan that helps you sort out majors can save you thousands of dollars and help keep you on a four year graduation track.  Contact me for help with your plan.

Posted on

The Importance of Identifying a Major for College – Early

In June of 2008, The Wall Street Jour­nal pub­lished an arti­cle ref­er­enc­ing The High­lands Abil­ity Bat­tery and the impor­tance of stu­dents being able to iden­tify their nat­ural abil­i­ties for the ben­e­fit of life­long career man­age­ment.  But it is also impor­tant to under­stand that the abil­i­ties that are mea­sured at age 17 for a high school stu­dent, remain con­stant through­out your life.  There­fore, the results are applic­a­ble for a life­time and serve as a great resource in career deci­sions whether that deci­sion includes decid­ing on a major area of study, pro­mo­tion oppor­tu­nity, going back to school, or tran­si­tion­ing into retirement.  The results are also a great source of data verification on resume’s and in interviews.      http://online.wsj.com/article/SB121375062383682907.html

Select­ing the right major can mean the dif­fer­ence between grad­u­at­ing col­lege on time or becom­ing one of the national sta­tis­tics.  Nation­ally, less than 40% of col­lege stu­dents com­plete a four-year degree on time and more than 51% require up to 6 years to com­plete a four-year degree.  That fright­en­ing sta­tis­tic impacts your abil­ity to cre­ate a pro­duc­tive income after 4 years, but it also comes with a price tag that equates to a national aver­age of $30,000 per stu­dent in loan debt due to changed majors.  Imag­ine being ahead of the game just by grad­u­at­ing on time!  Imag­ine sav­ing $30,000 for an advanced degree or to open your own business!

Posted on

Bring It Up to Date – 6 Resume’ Reminders

There is nothing worse than sitting down after four years and trying to reconstruct the work you’ve done, courses you’ve taken and awards received in order to write or bring your resume’ up to date.   April is the perfect time to review or initiate a resume’.   With summer employment possibilities or first job opportunities, now is the time to get it done.  Consider your resume or athlete profile as a “work in progress” and keep it updated regularly.  Have you recently added….

  • Courses or Special Classes for Training
  • Conferences (as an Attendee or Presenter)
  • Athletic Showcases or Camps
  • Publications you have written
  • Scores on National Exams or most recent GPA
  • Awards or Recognitions

Students, employees, employers and stay-at-home parents who may one day re-enter the workforce all need to pay attention to their profile or resume’ and bring it up to date.   In addition to keeping it current, be sure that the presentation of material highlights the most current or relevant information for the position you are targeting.  If you were doing the hiring, what makes you look like the best candidate for the job?  Need help with writing a targeted resume’?  Contact me.

Posted on

Getting the Biggest Return on an Education

When you evaluate the cost or investment in something, sometimes we humans can be a bit short sighted.  So when it comes to evaluating the cost of a college education and your investment of time, you want to make sure you invest well and provide good marketability for yourself.  You also want to reduce the potential of debt after graduation.

There is an excellent article, The Best Values in Public Colleges that ranks 20 of the best universities and reasons for the rankings.  I point this out because there is an additional factor to pay attention to in these numbers and it isn’t printed.  The last column on the chart identifies “Average debt at graduation.”  This is important…many states, like Florida, offer academic scholarship dollars to in-state students based on GPA.  But even with those dollars, the “Average debt at graduation” for students at University of Florida is $16,013.  Maybe your most economical and major specific institution isn’t in-state.  Look at all of your options.

By doing some work up front, you can explore careers, majors and schools that are interesting, make sense and are a natural fit for you.  That’s where I can provide you excellent guidance and steps to creating an effective plan for college and career direction.  Those steps help to lead you to a great college experience, on-time graduation with a meaningful degree that is marketable in a career path geared to your satisfaction and reward.

Getting the biggest return on an educational investment means:

  • Graduating on Time
  • Reduced or No Student Loan Debt
  • Marketable Degree
  • High Degree of Satisfaction in Career Path

Click here for more information on creating a successful high school and college to workplace plan.

Click here for the full article and table – The Best Values in Public Colleges.