There’s a great series of student job search posts up at Phil’s Career Blog. The articles hit on three different students, their respective education paths, and how each one tends to move through the world. The advice Phil gives goes into pretty excellent detail based on each student and what skills/knowledge they each bring to the table.

Amy Achiever’s Traditional Search
Steve Striver’s Traditional Search
Bridget Blazer’s “Off Road” Search

Posted by Alexa Harrington

(job search)

The unfortunate phenomenon of elementary-aged girls becoming interested in STEM (Science Technology Engineering Math) subjects, going off to college intending to major in and then pursue a career in one of those fields, and ultimately veering off somewhat sharply into less science-and-math rich majors and careers is common.

Fortunately, it has not gone unnoticed by the chicks who have gone on to work in their dream STEM fields, and several entities have started working to foster girls’ education and career paths in STEM subjects.

Michelle Obama, not a STEM girl herself (what with being a lawyer and all), is all for supporting girls in math and science and gave a little talk about it recently. My favorite bits from the transcript:

And if we’re going to out-innovate and out-educate the rest of the world, then we have to open doors to everyone. We can’t afford to leave anyone out. We need all hands on deck. And that means clearing hurdles for women and girls as they navigate careers in science, technology, engineering and math.

And it starts with lighting the spark for science and math in elementary school and grade school. We talk about this all the time. I know for me, I’m a lawyer because I was bad at these subjects. (Laughter.) All lawyers in the room, you know it’s true. We can’t add and subtract, so we argue. (Laughter.)

And so encouraging girls early not to lose heart in those fields, and encouraging them through high school is important. But it also means making sure that these young women can keep pursuing their dreams in college and beyond.

Further Reading:

Why So Few Women In Science, Technology, Engineering and Math?
Dual Academic Careers
First Lady Michelle Obama Speaks to the Dept. of Education

Posted by Alexa Harrington

Forbes contributor Robert W. Wood gives advice about which forms of higher education qualify for tax breaks. Wood lists the following articles for even more information on how to get a break from the IRS for funding one’s higher education pursuits:

Ten Rules for Deducting Career Education
Who benefits from student loans and educational tax benefits?
Two Tax Credits for Higher Education
IRS Publication 970: Business Deduction for Work Related Education
IRS Tax Topic 513: Educational Expenses
Deductibility of Work Related Educational Expenses
IRS: Tax Incentives for Higher Education

Posted by Alexa Harrington

(image: taxes)

UC Berkeley has a cool page on their site that allows you to click on any of their given majors and get a write-up of what you can do with said major (i.e., grad school, job). It’s fun to check out everything from underwater basket weaving (poli sci, psych, philosophy, etc.) to bioengineering and see the possible trajectories, especially if your parents are demanding proof that a degree in philosophy will lead to a prosperous future. Good luck with that.

Posted by Alexa Harrington

(photo: bioengineering)

According to the Associated Press, American public colleges and universities have managed to spend their way through the $10 billion-pile of government stimulus money. Insanely large tuition fees and class sizes along with decreased course offerings are still front and center on American campuses, but at least the stimulus money helped to prevent (or maybe only slow) the shutting down of degree programs and entire schools. Now that the money’s gone, I predict more and deeper tribulation.

Is it too obvious to suggest that keeping higher education a viable option for Americans should be among the highest priorities? An ever-expanding cohort of young, energetic, jobless and uneducated Americans sounds like the crappiest American Dream ever.

Posted by Alexa Harrington

(photo: ed andrieski)

When you’re a fresh-faced newbie trying to make your way through this harsh and unkind world, it helps to have an older, wiser, more experienced hand to hold onto. Standing on the shoulders of giants makes the machete-hacking stumble through the jungle go a lot more smoothly.

Those giants are called mentors, and every chucklehead youngin’ like yourself wants one. The more awesome a mentor, the more sought out they are. This has the unfortunate effect of making them ignore most of the tweedle-dums who come begging for their priceless advice and knowledge. If you want to be mentored by the best, you’re going to have to be better than all the other chuckleheads at asking. Ramit Sethi has some advice for you.

Posted by Alexa Harrington

(standing on the shoulders of giants)

Practical but depressing: An article in SF Gate about five jobs with high salary and minimal education. Not that I want to promote less education, but budget cuts are jacking up tuition beyond all reason. Sometimes you’ve got to do what you can to survive when the people in charge are hosing your future. You can choose fashion designer, car salesman, registered dental hygienist, registered nurse, or certified occupational therapist assistant.

Posted by Alexa Harrington

Georgetown University’s Center on Education and the Workforce recently released a study on how median earnings compare between 171 Bachelor’s egree majors in 15 categories: What’s it Worth? The Economic Value of College Majors. Yes, it sounds familiar—there are dozens of studies and reports out there ranking degrees and future earnings potential–but this one’s actually a shiny new study based on a larger research group, newly available census info, and includes gender and race/ethnicity data.

Excerpt from the press release:

Some of the findings include:

The top 10 majors with the highest median earnings are: Petroleum Engineer ($120,000);
Pharmacy/pharmaceutical Sciences and Administration ($105,000); Mathematics and Computer Sciences ($98,000); Aerospace Engineering ($87,000); Chemical Engineering ($86,000); Electrical Engineering ($85,000); Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering ($82,000); Mechanical Engineering, Metallurgical Engineering and Mining and Mineral Engineering (each with median earnings of $80,000).

The 10 majors with the lowest median earnings are: Counseling/Psychology ($29,000); Early Childhood Education ($36,000); Theology and Religious Vocations ($38,000); Human Services and Community Organizations ($38,000); Social Work ($39,000); Drama and Theater Arts, Studio Arts, Communication Disorders Sciences and Services, Visual and Performing Arts, and Health and Medical Preparatory Programs
(each at $40,000).

So if you’re just in the college game for the money, go for Petroleum Engineer and avoid the Psychology Department at all costs.

Posted by Alexa Harrington

(image: petroleum engineering paraphernalia)

The only comic strip that has consistently made me laugh since Calvin and Hobbes left the building is Dilbert. I have thus far managed to avoid being a 9-to-5 prairie dog slaving away in cubicle-ville, but Dilbert applies to several pertinent areas of reality, not just office life. Plus: hilarious. I’m a hard sell; I want to laugh, but most people just aren’t that funny. Scott Adams manages to pull it off nine times out of ten.

Since he’s already got my respect, I had no trouble giving full focus to his article in the Wall Street Journal about why the average college student would benefit more from learning how to run a business than from all that chemistry, calculus, and art history mumbo-jumbo. I loathe business and can’t get enough of the mumbo-jumbo arts, hard sciences, and math, but his article made so much sense I was forced (against my will!) to agree.

From the WSJ article:

I understand why the top students in America study physics, chemistry, calculus and classic literature. The kids in this brainy group are the future professors, scientists, thinkers and engineers who will propel civilization forward. But why do we make B students sit through these same classes? That’s like trying to train your cat to do your taxes—a waste of time and money. Wouldn’t it make more sense to teach B students something useful, like entrepreneurship?

I speak from experience because I majored in entrepreneurship at Hartwick College in Oneonta, N.Y. Technically, my major was economics. But the unsung advantage of attending a small college is that you can mold your experience any way you want.

There was a small business on our campus called The Coffee House. It served beer and snacks, and featured live entertainment. It was managed by students, and it was a money-losing mess, subsidized by the college. I thought I could make a difference, so I applied for an opening as the so-called Minister of Finance. I landed the job, thanks to my impressive interviewing skills, my can-do attitude and the fact that everyone else in the solar system had more interesting plans. More…

Posted by Alexa Harrington

(Dilbert)

Drawn to the sciences? Hoping for a career in research? I have it on good authority that society has some issues with Alzheimer’s. It’s a problem, but the first wave of Boomers are hitting old age hard and fast and our little Alzheimer’s problem is only going to get bigger.

When the sh*t is actively hitting the fan in large amounts, everyone who was supposed to be dealing with the crap in the first place suddenly starts running around like their hair is on fire, desperately scrounging for a solution.

This is good news for the future of Alzheimer’s research. I’m hoping the research will increase due to the hotness of the topic, and that research funding will begin to flow as people start throwing money at the situation. Fingers crossed, people.

Plus, where’s the negative in your day job involving the using of your powers for good? And, as an added bonus, no one looks stupid in a lab coat. Those things are hot. Unless that’s just my thing…

The following hard-to-ignore information comes from the Alzheimer’s Association and their recently released, groundbreaking study: Generation Alzheimer’s: The Defining Disease of the Baby Boomers.

“¢ An estimated 10 million baby boomers will develop Alzheimer’s.

“¢ Starting this year, more than 10,000 baby boomers a day will turn 65. As these baby boomers age, one of out of eight of them will develop Alzheimer’s — a devastating, costly, heartbreaking disease. Increasingly for these baby boomers, it will no longer be their grandparents and parents who have Alzheimer’s — it will be them.

In addition to the human toll, over the next 40 years Alzheimer’s will cost the nation $20 trillion, enough to pay off the national debt and still send a $20,000 check to every man, woman and child in America. And while every 69 seconds someone in America develops Alzheimer’s disease today, by 2050 someone will develop the disease every 33 seconds – unless the federal government commits to changing the Alzheimer’s trajectory.

Posted by Alexa Harrington

(alzheimer’s)