College Class of 2013 Students Beware... Is a Company Behind Your Facebook Group?
Saturday, December 20, 2008
Brad Ward, the Electronic Communication Coordinator at Butler University noticed something strange about Butler's Class of 2013 group on Facebook... the administrator for the group had not actually been accepted to Butler. Alerted to something fishy by a colleague at Winthrop, Brad began digging deeper and noticed that a few names were behind hundreds of Class of 2013 groups on Facebook.
Company Uses Student Interns to Set Up Facebook Groups
Now the Common Application may make it easy to apply to a dozen schools, but three students appeared as the administrators for more than 40 Class of 2013 groups each. Ward eventually traced the Facebook users back to College Prowler, which had recruited students as unpaid interns to spearhead its "social marketing strategy."
Colleges Concerned About Use of Facebook Groups for Marketing
Ward and many of his colleagues at universities across the country expressed concern that these groups could have been used to "spam" students and push affiliate links onto unsuspecting students.
The Role of Colleges on Facebook
This started a healthy debate about what roles colleges should be playing on Facebook. Should they be actively engaging students, starting "official" Facebook groups for incoming classes, or leveraging other Facebook opportunities? Or should they take a more hands-off role allowing students to drive interactions related to college admissions? This latest incident is likely to push many colleges and universities to be more pro-active. Ward already intends to set up the OFFICIAL Butler Class of 2013 group, not because he wants to moderate the discussion, but because he wants to make sure students have a safe place to discuss Butler without having to worry about being marketed to by for-profit companies.
Labels: admissions, college, Facebook, marketing
A College Interview... on a Webcam
Monday, December 8, 2008
Wake Forest University is experimenting with an interview technique that may become much more common... talking with students via webcam. This is a great idea. It offers an opportunity for students to interview with admission counselor when they may not be able to afford a visit to campus or they may not live in an area with alumni interviewers. It seems to be a win-win for students and colleges.
Will Other Colleges Be Trying Webcam Interviews?
This is the first year for Wake Forest's webcam interviews, but I would not be surprised if this practice were put into use by other colleges over the next few years. While face-to-face interactions are likely the preferred method for conducting interviews, the webcam option would seem to be an attractive alternative when a face-to-face interview is not possible.
Could This Help Colleges Stand Out?
Additionally, I think colleges embracing technology in a constructive manner such as this will win some bonus points with students. It demonstrates that they are willing to think creatively to interact with prospective students and to adapt to students' needs. If you can't make it to campus for an interview, we'll figure out a way to bring the interviewer to you virtually. I think it gives students the feeling that a school really is interested in getting to know them and will go to great lengths to do so.
Labels: admissions, college, interview
College Tuition Increases Far Outpace Income Growth over Last 25 Years
Friday, December 5, 2008
According to the Measuring Up 2008 report (PDF copy) by the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education, college tuition and fees have increased by 439 percent in the U.S. between 1982 and 2007. Over this same period, median family income rose only 147 percent.
College Bills Rising Faster than Medical Bills
WOW! That means college costs grew almost three times as fast as family income. College costs grew nearly twice as fast as medical care costs, according to the report. If that trend continues, parents may need to start playing the lottery in hopes they can win enough money to pay for their children's college education.
More Debt, Please
And financial aid has not been able to keep up. The poorest families (those in the bottom 20 percent) have seen the net cost of college increase from 39 percent of their income to 55 percent of their income. That is the net cost, so it takes into account financial aid they may have received. That doesn't leave much money for food, rent, and clothing... some other "nice-to-have" items. If this trend continues, college graduates will be leaving school with more and more debt. It may really start to affect the decision of whether college is worth the money or not, if it hasn't already.
No College or College Abroad?
If something does not change, are we headed for a time when college is not really accessible to everyone? Or maybe more and more people will look abroad instead of attending higher-priced private institutions in the U.S. – see the NY Times' article Going Off to College for Less (Passport Required).
Labels: college, debt, tuition, value
Top Colleges See Rise in Early Decision / Early Action Applicants
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
Is it the economy? Is it an increase in the number of students going to college this year? The answer is probably both. A number of top colleges are reporting a significant increase in early applicants this year.
Students and Parents May Want Certainty in this Economy
Many colleges anticipated a drop in early admissions (which often times is binding), assuming students and their families would be more budget-conscious and therefore want to do some "comparison-shopping" among schools' financial aid packages. Apparently, the economy may have had the opposite effect. Students and their parents may be looking for certainty in what has been a crazy few months with the economy.
Competition for Admission to Top Colleges May be Peaking
Additionally, competition for entrance into top colleges is likely at its peak right now. The number of students graduating from high school is up from 5 and 10 years ago, and early admissions is often perceived as a way of improving one's chances of getting in.
Early Admission Increases at Some Top Colleges
Here is a sampling of top colleges and their increase in early admissions applicants:
A handful of top colleges, including
Harvard,
Princeton,
and the University of Virginia,
have eliminated early decision altogether in the past few years.
Labels: admissions, college, early action, early decision
Baylor Trying to Game U.S. News Rankings by Paying Freshmen to Retake SATs?
Monday, October 20, 2008
The New York Times recently published a story about Baylor University paying incoming freshmen $300 to retake the SAT and awarding them a $1,000 merit scholarship if they raised their SAT score 50 points. Just to clarify, Baylor paid students who were already admitted to the school $300 to retake the SAT.
Why Was Baylor Paying Admitted Students to Retake the SAT?
While the university claimed that much of the motivation for letting incoming freshmen retake the SAT was to award additional merit aid (that is, the $1,000 merit scholarship if they raised their score 50 points), the tactics seem a little fishy. The initiative appears to be a veiled attempt to improve the school's standing in popular college ranking guides.
First, the offer was only open to incoming freshmen. No upperclassmen were offered the opportunity to do the same. Why is that significant? Well, because the test scores of upperclassmen have already been reported to organizations like U.S. News and World Report and Princeton Review in past years and won't have any affect on the school's current rankings.
Second, it was not as though they had pre-defined standards for merit aid and were encouraging students who fell just short of those standards to retake the SAT so they could qualify. That might seem compassionate, in some way, letting a kid who scored an 1220 on the SAT and fell just short of a 1250 cut-off for a scholarship give it another try. You could qualify for the merit aid whether you had a 1000 SAT score or a 1300 SAT score.
Finally, if it was mostly about giving out additional merit aid, aren't there better ways to give out scholarships rather than making a freshman retake the SAT? One quick idea could be to tie the merit scholarship to community service.
The Results of Paying Students and the Criticism that Followed
The program cost the school a reported $862,000, and the average SAT score of incoming freshmen climbed just 10 points from 1200 to 1210. When the news broke in the university's student newspaper, The Lariat, the school received criticism from all quarters of the university. The newspaper released a highly critical op-ed piece, the faculty senate condemned the practice, and many students on campus derided it as unfair and out of line with Baylor's institutional values. Criticism also came from the admission professionals around the country.
Baylor Stops the Program
In response to the mounting criticism, Baylor has stopped the program. It's unclear whether it was initially intended to be a one-year program or an ongoing offer to incoming freshmen.
The whole affair has stoked the fires for critics of published rankings and for critics of standardized tests.
Labels: admissions, college, SAT, U.S. News
Are the SATs Days Numbered?
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
A panel of admission experts, assembled by the National Association of College Admission Counselors (NACAC) and led by William Fitzsimmons, dean of admission and financial aid at Harvard, recently put out a report that raises questions about the use of SAT and ACT in college admissions decisions. The panel asked colleges to look critically at the correlation between SAT and ACT scores and performance in actual college classes and decide whether the use of these standardized admissions tests is appropriate.
So What Does This Mean?
Many colleges have already started a shift toward test optional policies, meaning students can submit SAT or ACT scores if they like, but are not required to do so. According to FairTest.org, the number of colleges and universities that have some form of test optional policy now approaches 800. This trend seems likely to continue. However, it's unlikely that college-bound students will be able to completely ignore the SAT and ACT any time soon.
If you're a high school or middle school student, you may not want to get too excited. The report does not advocate eliminating testing altogether. It proposes the consideration of alternative tests that are more curriculum-based, meaning they would test what you actually learn in high school. Some examples of curriculum-based tests are AP Exams and SAT Subject Tests. According to the report, these tests tend to be better predictors of success in college classrooms than the ACT and SAT.
The Test Prep Industry
The panel also pointed to the entire industry that has sprung up around test preparation for the ACT and SAT as an unfair advantage for some and an unnecessary distraction from actual learning. Not everyone can afford an SAT Prep Class from Kaplan or Princeton Review. Additionally, the panel believed that curriculum-based tests would send "a message to students that studying their course material in high school, not taking extracurricular test prep courses that tend to focus on test-taking skills, is the way to do well on admission tests and succeed in a rigorous college curriculum."
My guess is that the test prep industry would adapt their methods to the new curriculum-based tests. They may not be as easily "gamed", but there will likely be places where test prep will allow for improvement of scores. For example, the MCAT is largely based on specific subject matter and plenty of organizations offer test prep for it, including Kaplan and Princeton Review.
Labels: ACT, admissions, college, SAT, Test Prep
Online Degrees: Are They Worth the Money?
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
For many, getting a degree at a traditional 4-year college or 2-year community college is not an option. You may have kids to take care of so 9am classes aren't realistic. You may be holding down a job and need the flexibility of an online degree program. How do you decide if an online degree program is worth the money?
Here are a few steps that may help you determine if getting an online degree is a good way to spend your hard-earned dollars (or a good reason to take on some student loan debt).
1. Will the online degree give you access to new career opportunities?
Do you need a specific skill set to advance in your current job? Do you need training to transition to a new career path? Before you decide you want a degree for a degree's sake, you need to understand what doors an online degree will open.
A good way to do this is contact companies that are in your desired field and talk with someone involved in hiring. Ask them how they view candidates who have received a degree from an online program and which programs and schools they consider the strongest. Find out whether getting more formal training through an online degree program will improve your chances of breaking into the field or advancing in your job.
You may also want to talk with graduates who have received online degrees from the schools you are considering. Learn whether the program was a valuable experience for them and if it helped improve their marketability to potential employers.
2. Is the online degree program a reputable one?
If you've done some of the work answering question #1, you have probably already started the process of evaluating a specific online degree program.
Another good way to determine if an online degree program is legitimate and reputable is to research their accreditation status. The U.S. Department of Education provides a way for you to search for accredited postsecondary institutions. This is probably a good starting place. For specific programs, there may be other sources. For example, the AACSB and ACBSP provide accreditation for business programs.
3. Do they participate in federal financial aid programs?
Paying for your online degree program is likely going to be a concern. As we always say, you should do your best to find scholarships and grants first since they are essentially "free money" for college. After that, federal financial aid programs are typically your best, most affordable options. You should check whether you'll be able to get Stafford loans to pay for an online degree program. These are essentially schools that participate in the federal government's Title IV program.
We hope these tips help you determine whether an online degree program is worth the investment of time, effort, and money. Start your search for online degree programs now!
Labels: admissions, college, online degree
College Admissions Officers May Be Checking Your Facebook Profile, But You Don't Need to Panic
Friday, October 3, 2008
You may want to be more careful what you post on your Facebook or MySpace profile, it could come back to haunt you. According to a Kaplan survey of 320 admissions officers, 1 in 10 had visited the profile of an applicant on a social networking process as part of their evaluation process for admissions.
The trend is not only present at the undergraduate level. Admissions officers at some business, law, and medical schools have also taken a look at social networking profiles in their decision-making process.
What Can You Do
While some may say, don't use these sites or don't post anything that you wouldn't want on your admissions application, that's probably an unrealistic demand. These sites can be great tools for connecting with friends, meeting new people, posting photos, or just having fun. Some of you probably check Facebook more often than you check e-mail.
However, there are a few steps that you may want to consider so that your profile does not come back to bite you.
Set Your Profile to Private
Most of the social networking sites, including Facebook and MySpace, have a way for you to adjust your privacy settings. It's probably a good idea to give full access to your profile only to friends. This will help you avoid having to decide every time you upload a picture, add an application, or post on a wall whether it's something you'd want an admissions officer to see.
Don't Mix Business and Pleasure
For those of you who may be artists, directors, or musicians, Facebook and MySpace can often be great places to showcase your work and share it with friends, family, and others. However, you're probably using the site for social reasons as well and everything may not be intended for the eyes of admission officers. If you want to send links to your portfolio to admissions officers, you should think about posting your work elsewhere as well. You may want to create a Flickr or YouTube account solely for your work and share links to these accounts as part of your college application.
Use a Little Judgment
We know that your Facebook profile may not be intended for viewing by admissions officers, or even your parents for that matter, but a little judgment may help you avoid some heartache down the road. If you're under 21, you probably should think twice about setting the photo of you with a beer in each hand and drool on your face as your profile picture. Illegal activity is probably not something you want to be highlighting for all to see. In fact, even if you're over 21, this photo may not be your best choice as a profile picture.
Labels: admissions, college, Facebook, MySpace, social networking
How Much is Your College Degree Worth? Salaries from Top Colleges
Thursday, July 31, 2008
Dartmouth comes in at #1 for all schools and the University of California - Berkeley tops the list for public schools when it comes to salary potential. According to the PayScale College Salary Report, Dartmouth graduates (with only a bachelor's degree) have a median mid-career salary of $134,000 while Berkeley graduates earn $112,000.
When it comes to starting salaries, the top engineering schools offer the best short-term return on your education investment. Cal Tech and MIT had the highest median starting salaries at $75,500 and $72,200 respectively.
We've included the top 25 schools from the PayScale Salary Report as well as a list of the top 25 paying degrees.
Top 25 Schools - Median Mid-Career Salary
- Dartmouth College - $134,000
- Princeton University - $131,000
- Stanford University - $129,000
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) - $126,000
- Yale University - $126,000
- Harvard University - $124,000
- California Institute of Technology (CIT) - $123,000
- Harvey Mudd College - $122,000
- University of Pennsylvania - $120,000
- University of Notre Dame - $116,000
- Polytechnic University of New York, Brooklyn - $114,000
- Cooper Union - $114,000
- Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) - $114,000
- University of Chicago - $113,000
- University of California, Berkeley - $112,000
- Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) - $111,000
- Rice University - $110,000
- Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) - $110,000
- Cornell University - $110,000
- Georgetown University - $110,000
- Bucknell University - $110,000
- Brown University - $109,000
- Colgate University - $108,000
- Columbia University - $107,000
- Amherst College - $107,000
Top 25 Bachelor Degrees - Median Mid-Career Salary
- Chemical Engineering - $107,000
- Computer Engineering - $105,000
- Electrical Engineering - $103,000
- Aerospace Engineering - $101,000
- Economics - $98,600
- Physics - $97,300
- Computer Science - $95,500
- Industrial Engineering - $94,700
- Mechanical Engineering - $93,600
- Math - $92,400
- Physician Assistant - $91,700
- Civil Engineering - $90,500
- Construction - $88,900
- Finance - $88,300
- Management Information Systems (MIS) - $82,300
- Philosophy - $81,200
- International Relations - $80,900
- Chemistry - $79,900
- Marketing - $79,600
- Geology - $79,500
- Political Science - $78,200
- Accounting - $77,100
- Architecture - $76,800
- Information Technology (IT) - $74,800
- Business Management - $72,100
Source: Payscale.com College Salary ReportLabels: bachelors, college, degree, salary, value, wage
High School Students Will Be Able to Choose Which SAT Scores Colleges Receive
Thursday, June 26, 2008
The College Board just announced a change in its score reporting policy. In the past, a school received all of a student's SAT Scores. If you took the test 3 times, a college received all 3 scores. The new policy will allow test takers to select which SAT scores a college receives.
Reduced Stress from Taking the SAT
The shift in policy was intended to "reduce student stress and improve the test-day experience", according to the College Board. With the new policy, you would know going in that if you screwed up royally on the SAT, you could always take it again and the college would never see your poor score.
Is the New SAT Policy Unfair?
Some people worry that this new policy may help higher-income families disproportionately. They have the money to cover the cost of the multiple SAT exams. If you could afford to, you could keep on taking the SAT until you got a score that you liked and only show that score to colleges.
More about the New SAT Score Reporting Policy
The policy does not kick in until the March 2009 test date. However, once it's in effect, it will apply retroactively, meaning you could choose to send your March 2009 score to a school and not your November 2008 score (even though the November 2008 test date was before the start date of the policy).
The new score reporting policy is "opt-in". You will need to actively choose this score reporting option or all of your test scores will be sent to colleges and universities.
Labels: college, SAT, Test
In-State Colleges versus Out-of-State Colleges
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
The age-old dilemma of in-state vs. out-of-state... stay close to home or venture off away from your family... save some money or go to the best college possible.
Many of you are going to grapple with this question, and it's not always an easy one to answer. We're going to share a few thoughts on the benefits of both staying close to home at an in-state college and going off to an out-of-state college.
The Benefits of In-State Colleges
In-State Colleges Make Financial Sense
So the main reason most high school students opt for an in-state college is the cost. You typically get a really good deal on tuition when you go to a public school in your home state.
Easier to Get Into In-State Colleges
You'll typically have an easier time getting into the state schools in your home state. For example, the bar is much higher for a New Yorker to get into the University of California, Berkeley than a Californian.
There May Be Money In It For You
A number of scholarship opportunities at public colleges and universities are reserved for in-state students. Many states want to encourage top high school students to stay close to home, figuring that they are much more likely to work in that state after graduation.
The Benefits of Out-of-State Colleges
See a New Place
One of the biggest benefits of venturing off to a college far from home is your newfound independence. You'll experience a new place that may open your eyes to new ways of looking at things. Going to college in Massachusetts is likely a very different experience than going to college in Florida (if nothing else, the weather will be dramatically different).
Meet New People
You'll also meet a whole new set of people. That was a big draw for me as I looked at colleges. I lived within a 2-mile radius my entire life and I wanted to meet people from all over the place. That's not to say there won't be a diverse crowd at most in-state schools, but it's likely that the majority of students will be from that state.
Go to the Best College Possible
You may have to venture out of state to find the college that has the best program for you. If you're an engineer, you probably can't beat MIT or Cal Tech. If you want to study visual or performing arts, Juilliard or RISD may be the best colleges for you.
Labels: college, college search, in-state, out-of-state
Making the Most of Your Summers
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
It may still be winter, but it's probably not too early to start thinking about what you want to do this summer. If you wait too long, you may find yourself sitting on the couch all summer or working at a job you don't really like. A little research and some planning ahead could help you make your summer a really valuable experience... and a big plus on your college application.
First off, it's important to take some time to consider what you want to get out of the summer. Do you want to make some money so you can put a little aside for college? Do you want to look for an exciting internship, getting a taste of the working world and exploring your career options? Do you want to take summer classes at a college campus, feeling out what university life is like?
For many of you, a summer academic program may be on your radar screen. No, we're not talking about summer school, where kids retake classes they may have failed the previous year. We're talking about hands-on academic experiences where you're likely to learn inside and outside the classroom. These summer programs can be a great option and offer some major benefits.
A Taste of College
Summer academic programs can be a great way to see what college life is like before you set foot on campus as a freshman. Many take place on major college campuses, have you living in actual college dorms, and taking classes from real college professors. It's almost like you get to take a test drive of college. You'll likely be tackling challenging academic topics and gaining a much better sense of the additional demands placed on college students. It's also a great way to really delve into an academic area like biology, photography, or business that you are passionate about.
A Real Plus on Your College Application
High school transcripts, admissions essays, SAT scores... they are all used by college admissions committees to determine if you will be a student who will excel at their college. But what better way is there to show you can do well in a college academic setting than by doing well in a college academic setting? Taking on the challenge of a college summer program may help you overcome an SAT score that is on the low end of the scale for a college or a little stumble on your high school transcript.
Actual College Credit
Not only could a summer program help you get into college, it may give you a head start once you get there. Many summer programs offer academic credit at the host college. You will need to check with whatever college you end up attending to see if you are able to transfer this credit.
Cost Can Be an Issue
Cost can vary pretty significantly from program to program. A summer college program can often cost thousands of dollars. But don't be discouraged if you can't afford that price tag. Many programs offer need-based scholarships. You might also take a look at Governor's Schools that many states have. These are typically free or very affordable summer residential programs for high-achieving students. Upward Bound programs might also be great options for lower-income students.
Summer Program Resources
We've provided links to a few sites that may be helpful in your search for some great summer programs:
We've also included links to summer programs at some of the top colleges:
Labels: admissions, college, summer
Your College Search... Reach Colleges, Safety Schools, and Good Matches
Tuesday, January 8, 2008
So you're wondering how many colleges you should apply to? How do you decide when you've filled out enough applications? Much of this decision depends on what type of colleges you are applying to. When doing your college search, it's important that you have a sense of which of the following three categories each of the colleges you are considering falls into.
Reach Colleges
Are there certain colleges on your list of colleges where you think to yourself "You never know... they may love my admissions essay" or "I don't have an 1800 SAT score, but I really would love to go to college there"? You've probably identified a reach college for you. Reach colleges are schools that may be a stretch given your high school "resume." For these colleges, your SAT scores may be on the low end of the range or your GPA may not be quite up to snuff.
You can probably come up with a dozen reasons not to apply to a reach college: it's one more application to complete, the application requires an additional essay, or it's going to cost another $50 to apply. If it's a college you really want to go to, and you think you've got a shot (even if it may be a long shot), why not apply? What do you have to lose? For these colleges, you're likely going to need to put some extra work in on the essays to really knock them out of the park. If they offer admissions interviews, definitely take advantage of the opportunity. It's these additional factors that are going to help the admissions committee make a case for admitting you even though your academic stats may be on the low end.
Safety Schools
Is this whole college admissions process making you nervous? Are you really stressing out about where you are going to get in? Applying to one or two safety schools can really help calm the nerves. Safety schools are colleges where you are going to be at or near the top end of the applicant pool and your chances of admission are extremely high. State colleges can often serve as really good safety schools since they usually offer preferential admissions for in-state students. It's even better if your safety school has rolling admissions or non-binding early action admissions so you can find out early on whether you got in somewhere. It will be a huge relief to know you got into a college you'll be happy at, even if it may not be one of your top choices. And, at the very least, you'll know you're headed off to college next year.
Safety schools can also serve another purpose. They can give you options when it comes to financial aid packages. If you can avoid it, you don't want to leave yourself evaluating just one financial aid award package. The cost of college can often be a major factor in the college decision and having a few choices certainly can't hurt. Often times, you may be eligible for honors scholarships at your safety school, meaning that it may end up being significantly more affordable than your other options. In a worst-case scenario, you may even be able to use a financial aid award package from one school to highlight shortcomings of a package from another school.
You can use our Financial Aid Award Evaluator to compare packages side-by-side.
Good Matches
So good matches are the middle ground between reach colleges and safety schools. These are colleges where you likely fall toward the middle of the applicant pool. Checking out the profile for last year's freshman class can often help you make a call on whether a college is a good match for you (at least academically). You're likely not a shoo-in at a good match school, but you also won't be surprised if an acceptance letter comes your way.
Planning Your College Applications
Once you have some sense of where the colleges you are considering fall within these categories, you can take this knowledge and use it to craft your own college admissions strategy. Your ultimate goal is to get into a school you'll be happy at. A mix of colleges in each of these categories can help ensure you receive a fat admissions envelope from a few colleges, while also allowing you to take a chance applying to a few long shots.
If you are looking to apply to 5-7 colleges, it might be a good idea to shoot for the following mix of colleges:
- 1-2 safety schools
- 2-3 good matches
- 2-3 reach colleges
A little bit of strategy can help make the whole process a little less stressful and may even end with you receiving an acceptance letter from a college you considered a real reach.
Labels: college, college search, safety schools
Value of a College Education — What's a College Degree Worth?
Friday, November 23, 2007
We've talked a lot about the cost of college in previous blog entries, but we don't want you to forget about the value of a college education. Unless you happen to be Bill Gates or Mark Zuckerberg and develop a billion dollar company in your dorm room at Harvard, getting a college degree is likely a good investment.
College Graduates make more money
For those of you focused on dollars and cents, we won't mince words about the value of college. In pure financial terms, college graduates make nearly 80% more money per year than high school graduates. According to the U.S. Census, adults 25 and over with a college degree earned an average of $56,740 in 2006 compared to only $31,664 for those with only a high school degree. If you're thinking about getting even more education than a bachelor's degree, adults 25 and older with an advanced degree (Masters, Professional, or Doctorate) earned an average of $80,417. That's pretty good money.
Take a look at the Value of College Calculator on the College Toolkit website to run some of your own numbers and calculate the value of a college degree.
A College Degree Leads to More Than Just Money
For some of you, it may not be all about the money (although you may not be against a well-paying job). That's fine. In fact, we think that's great that you're thinking about more than just the bottom line. As it turns out, getting a college degree carries with it a number of additional benefits as well.
1. Lower Unemployment Rates
You're less likely to find yourself unemployed if you have a college degree. According the Department of Labor, the unemployment rate for college graduates was 2.3%. For high school graduates, the unemployment rate was 4.3%. So a college degree doesn't just mean more money, it means you are less likely to be without a paycheck.
2. Better Benefits
A college degree tends to lead to jobs with better benefits, including better health coverage and pension plans. A study by the Economic Policy Institute found that employees with bachelors degrees were more likely to be covered by employer-provided health insurance than high school graduates (67% of college graduates were covered compared to 51% for high school graduates). And this gap has been growing over the last few decades.
The numbers are pretty much the same when you look at pension plans. About two-thirds of employees with college degrees are offered employee-sponsored pension plans while just over half with a high school degree receive this same benefit. This may make life more difficult for high school graduates when they retire (or it may mean they need to work longer before they can retire).
3. Greater Job Mobility
Spend some time looking at job postings in your local newspaper. We bet a lot of them require a college degree to be considered. I doubt you'll find any that say high school graduates only... no college graduates considered. College graduates tend to have more career opportunities available to them, meaning they are less likely to be locked into a job they don't like. Don't underestimate the importance of having this ability to transition to a new job or even a new career.
These are just a few of the benefits of a college degree. College graduates are more likely to have better working conditions (e.g, indoors with air conditioning and heating). They're children are more likely to go to college as well. They are even more likely to have leisure activities and hobbies like playing sports or going to museums.
So what are you waiting for? Start your college search!
Labels: college, degree, salary, value, wage
2008 U.S News College Rankings: The Great Debate Rages On
Friday, November 9, 2007
A few months back, the 2008 U.S. News College Rankings were released. Princeton topped this year's list, edging out Harvard and Yale. As usual, the release of the U.S. News rankings sparked considerable debate about whether they help or hurt students' efforts to find colleges that are a good fit.
Some argue that high school seniors get caught up worrying about where a college is ranked rather than focusing on their own preferences and finding a college that matches these preferences.
Proponents counter that the U.S. News college rankings can be used as one of many tools to help high school seniors and their parents assess the quality of colleges.
How You Can Effectively Use College Rankings
We do not recommend basing your college decision solely on the U.S. News College Rankings or any other ranking system (unless you've devised your own personal ranking system). However, these rankings can often have significant value for you in your research. If you take some time to look beyond the actual ranking of a college and look into the underlying data, you can uncover some very useful information.
First, these rankings can often serve as a quick barometer for how competitive a college will be to get into. The top colleges on the list will generally be the most selective colleges in the U.S. Colleges further down are generally a little easier to get into. That can be a huge help as you start narrowing down the list of colleges you want to apply to. You should be thinking about whether a college is a reach, a good fit, or a safety school. You ideally want to have a school or two in each of these categories when you are applying to colleges.
Second, the U.S. News College Rankings, as well as other rankings, often provide quick snippets of data in a single location on a number of colleges. The U.S. News College Rankings can be a useful place to go to find SAT Scores for the 25th and 75th percentiles of the incoming freshman class. The Washington Monthly does their own college ranking, scoring colleges on what they are "doing for the country". These rankings provide interesting data for students who might be interested in ROTC or public service. You can find out which colleges have the most graduates go on to serve in the Peace Corps or which university work-study programs have the most money going to community-service efforts.
Finally, a major bi-product of rankings efforts is that they encourage colleges to share information. The Common Data Set, an effort to standardize data reporting and data sharing by colleges, was largely a result of the proliferation of college rankings. All college-bound students have benefited from this data being more readily available.
Create Your Own College Ranking System
We've created a tool that allows you to come up with your own college ranking system. Our College Scorecard lets you to decide what criteria are important to you and then allows you to rank up to 4 colleges using these criteria. You'll end up with your own personal college rankings... which are the best college rankings of all!
U.S. News College Rankings - Top 50 Colleges with Links to their College Profiles
1. Princeton University (Private)
2. Harvard University (Private)
3. Yale University (Private)
4. Stanford University (Private)
5. California Institute of Technology (Private)
5. University of Pennsylvania (Private)
7. Massachusetts Institute of Technology (Private)
8. Duke University (Private)
9. Columbia University (Private)
9. University of Chicago (Private)
11. Dartmouth College (Private)
12. Cornell University (Private)
12. Washington University in St. Louis (Private)
14. Brown University (Private)
14. Johns Hopkins University (Private)
14. Northwestern University (Private)
17. Emory University (Private)
17. Rice University (Private)
19. University of Notre Dame (Private)
19. Vanderbilt University (Private)
21. University of California-Berkeley (Public)
22. Carnegie Mellon University (Private)
23. Georgetown University (Private)
23. University of Virginia (Public)
25. University of California-Los Angeles (Public)
25. University of Michigan-Ann Arbor (Public)
27. University of Southern California (Private)
28. Tufts University (Private)
28. University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill (Public)
30. Wake Forest University (Private)
31. Brandeis University (Private)
31. Lehigh University (Private)
33. College of William and Mary (Public)
34. New York University (Private)
35. Boston College (Private)
35. Georgia Institute of Technology (Public)
35. University of Rochester (Private)
38. University of California-San Diego (Public)
38. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (Public)
38. University of Wisconsin-Madison (Public)
41. Case Western Reserve University (Private)
42. University of California-Davis (Public)
42. University of Washington (Public)
44. Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (Private)
44. University of California-Irvine (Public)
44. University of California-Santa Barbara (Public)
44. University of Texas-Austin (Public)
48. Pennsylvania State University-University Park (Public)
49. University of Florida (Public)
50. Syracuse University (Private)
50. Tulane University (Private)
Labels: admissions, college, college search, rankings, selective, U.S. News