College Success Blog

The current economic downturn is effecting many schools. It is a double edged sword for many schools.

For elite schools, many parents are having a hard time paying the tuition and costs of attending. This leads some students to consider less expensive state universities. This is because the parents may have lost their job or their college savings may have been lost in the stock market.

For state universities, while the additional students may be welcome they will also be facing state budget cuts. This shortage of funding will effect extra curricular activities and will also effect scholarships and classes offered. Many universities will try to make up for the budget cuts by increasing class sizes.

Community colleges and trade schools often see an increase in enrollment during economic hard times. This is because laid off adult workers will go back to school to retool and learn a new trade. They will also use financial aid to help pay their bills until things improve.

This economic downturn may be a good time to exam the excesses in college expenses. It also time to examine why college tuition has grown faster than the rate of inflation for the last decade.

Or, Should a College Degree Be Worth More Than Knowledge and Ability.

This is Part 3 of a series of three on diploma mills.

I am setting politics and issues of politicians aside in this first case to focus on ability alone. Laura Callahan had successfully preformed the duties of Deputy Chief Information Officer (CIO) of the US Department of Labor and Senior Information Technology Manager at the White House. She then became Senior Director at the United States Department of Homeland Security. No one has questioned her ability to do the job but she was forced to resign due to the fact she listed a diploma mill as the the source of her doctorate in computer information systems. In fact she was able to perform all her duties successfully with her only accredited degree being from a two year degree from a community college.

Frank Reed is a softball coach for University of Tennessee-Chattanooga. The position of coach requires a bachelor’s or master’s degree at that university. His team has just finished another winning season(41-22). The college website with his biography proudly lists Western States (wildly considered a diploma mill) as his alma mater.

So whats the point? If people can be successful and are being successful with a a fake degree why are having degrees a requirement of employment. A measurement of a person’s abilities should not be the the weight of there degrees. If Frank Reed can consistently lead a team to a winning season who cares if he can even write, or has a masters degree. If Laura Callahan was able to run the computer network at the White House she is capable of doing that with or with out the proper pedigree.

More and more educational requirements are becoming the norm in our society. Capable teachers are forced back to school for advance degrees even when they do an excellent job with there current educational level. See College: Door to Opportunity or a Barrier to Enter?

It is time to look at a person as a whole with no one part of the resume being used as a trump card or a barrier to entry. I do not condone lying on a resume or using fakes degrees. It is also wrong to use degrees to keep the capable out of jobs they would succeed at.

The Dumb Kid

References: http://www.gomocs.com/ViewArticle.dbml?SPSID=92092&SPID=10582&DB_OEM_ID=17700&ATCLID=1146493&Q_SEASON=2008
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laura_Callahan
http://www.newschannel5.com/global/story.asp?s=8674699

Useful links:

How to choose an online college

College Tips

This is the first of three posting on degree mills and online education.

I just finished going to nursing school at 40 years old and got my Computer Science degree at 30. I did not go to college right after high school like most people think I probably should have. To be honest I would have fallen flat on my face if I went to college right after high school.

There are many reasons that people decide to go back to college later in life but mostly they need a better job. There are also many reasons that people did not go to college after high school perhaps they did not even complete high school and that is what I want to address here. The person that want to go to college for a better job but does not have a high school diploma.
A recent article “Quick-Fix Diplomas Often Aren’t Real GEDs talks about how colleges do not accept High School Diplomas that are offered either online or though the mail. The marketing for these programs are all too familiar “Earn your high school diploma in 30 days” with a picture of a smiling parent in her cap and gown with a proud child looking on. These programs pray on students that are low income and strapped for time that want nothing more than to earn a fair living.

So how do you avoid this pitfall and save yourself some time. Either it is a GED or it is not. Do not except any thing that is just as good as a GED. Secondly, visit a local publicly owned college. Either a State university or a community college and speak to an adviser on what is needed to be accepted- do this even if the you do not plan on attending that school because as a publicly owned entity they have no profit motivation to deceive you. Then ask them is there any financial assistance available, there may not be but it does not hurt to ask.

Ok, you got your Real GED and are ready to apply to college now what. Decide on what your goals are either to get a good job or is it to get a good job in a specific career. Then do some research in whether this degree will help you achieve your goals and what is the best school for you to attend to achieve that degree? But beware of sales pitches that sound to good to be true.

The Dumb Kid

For more information see:

Just because the college is accredited…

Eight steps to choose the right college

When I started college I was lucky enough to have a coworker that just finished his nursing program pass on his text books to me. Now that I just graduated I passed on my books, digital recorder and other stuff to a student that is starting the program just finished. So it is in that spirit that this post comes from.

Eliminating Barriers for Low-Income Students to go to College

Checked the price of required texts lately? The prices are so exorbitant they have made recent headlines. Low income students are much more likely to attempt courses by borrowing books from roommates or friends. Have you noticed?

It can be frustrating to loan a needed text to a classmate; however, have you considered the circumstances as to why that student seems to be working, studying and remains without enough cash to purchase the $300 required reading?

How many times have you attempted to turn in a used text only to find that the bookstore isn’t accepting any more? What did you do with the text? What could you do on your own campus to create a system that ensures no student has to borrow and beg chapters to pass coursework?

Students in this situation often suffer silently. They may explain that the bookstore sold out of used texts and there are no more available used. They may not explain at all. You may find them a little defensive about the predicament. The fact is, they are less fortunate and attempting to study, eat, and work just as you are but with fewer options.

Take the time to consider this situation. Talk to your friends and make it a point to ‘pass it on’ with texts the college bookstore no longer wants. Address the issue with college administrators, especially if text books are forever changing for a particular class. This is a financial drain for many students that can only be described as wasteful and unnecessary spending. It is often the difference between pass or fail, a month of dinners or weeks of earnings. No student should have to make decisions like that after paying thousands of dollars for higher education.

What you can do:

1. Assess the need in your dormitory, club or other groups. Which texts are the most expensive and largely unavailable as ‘used’? Which classes change texts on a regular basis?
2. Visit the campus bookstore to confirm the lack of availability and address other questions.
3. Place a campus advertisement asking students to join you to discuss the difficulty of paying for required textbooks, changing texts for the same content and lack of affordable used texts.
4. Discuss tactics with this group.
5. Make an appointment with the appropriate administrative personnel;
6. State your case;
7. Request permission to establish another path to obtain the appropriate texts.
8. Formally request, in writing, that the institution review the exorbitant cost of textbooks and create financially sound alternatives.

Well done! You have effectively alleviated barriers to required textbooks for low-income students on your campus! Now, spread the word! Go to MySpace, Facebook and college social sites to build momentum and ‘pay it forward’! With determination and devotion, you may just change college campus access to textbooks across the country!

– The Dumb Kid

The mortgage meltdown has been in the news lately. As we all know, lenders have been making bad loans and borrowers have been borrowing too much lately. This has led to people loosing their houses and people loosing their jobs. There is another problem on the horizon, the mountain of student loan debt. There are actually three kinds of student loan crisis’s, the student who can not get money to finish college, the student who has borrowed too much money and the effect on the banking industry.

When I was in my last semester of Nursing School I was told I could not receive student loans to finish my education. This obviously caused a financial crisis for me and I had to borrow using a private student loan. For many students having 4/5 of a degree is about as useful as having no degree. I have known many students in this situation who had to make tough decisions about school and money and did not always make the best ones.

This leads into the problem where the student has too much debt either out of necessity or foolheartedness. This leads to the students having to put off buying a house or starting a family. This is especially troubling for students who didn’t finish their degree or get a job that allowed them to pay back the loans. This often happens with socially conscious students who want to make a difference because these professions do not pay very well.

As students borrow excessively and the lenders loan foolishly, this increases the risk for default. Many student loan lenders will find themselves in the same position as the mortgage brokers in the future with borrowers unable to pay back their debt, but it will be even worse. For you call repossess a house and sell it on the market, but you can not repossess a degree.

College Scholarships

– The Dumb Kid

I was reading a blog post from Michael Robertson and it got me thinking about economics and why some people get paid more than others especially in regards to getting a college degree.

Why do people go to college? First, some people go to college simply to get an education to become a well rounded person. While others go to college because they want to use their education to help the larger community. Finally, many people go to college to get a better job so they can provide a better standard of living for their family. Of course, some people don’t know why they are going to college, but we will ignore them for now.

So why do some people earn higher wages than others? Some people believe that a higher education demands a higher wage. Other people believe that higher wages are related to how hard you work. Both of these theories are incorrect. Wages are based on your employers ability or inability to replace you. The employer will pay the least amount possible for any position in a capitalist economy.

First, let’s look at wages in regards to education. I know diploma nurses, an LPN with less than two years of formal education, making more money per hour than a friend of mine with a master’s degree in computer science. This is because the nurse cannot be replaced with someone who has not been licensed by the state. Where as, the computer programmer must compete with every Tom, Dick and Harry that can write code properly or quick and dirty. I also have a friend who has a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology from the University of Arizona and an Associate’s Degree in Computer Networking, but now makes more money running a janitorial business. This is why Paris Hilton, the fine woman that she is, is able to make a lot of money doing nothing because she can not be replaced. She is a monopoly unto herself. There is only one Paris Hilton, Thank God, and if you want her you have to pay her price.

As far as the theory of hard work, if this were true every dishwasher and busboy in the nation would make more money than Paris Hilton. Unfortunately for the busboys, if they do not accept the wages offered they can be replaced by in house staff picking up extra work or by anyone on the street.

So why are you going to college? If it is to become a well rounded, well educated person you are golden. If it is to help others in society, college may help, but remember that even without an education you can make a real difference in the world if that is a priority in your life. However, if you are going to college to earn a better living, chose carefully, budget wisely and do your homework before choosing a school and not just when you are in it.

The Dumb Kid

I believe strongly in education. I believe education can open your mind to new ideas (although sometimes the opposite happens). College can also prepare you for jobs you could not get without a college degree, but is this a good thing?

College is a door to opportunity when it teaches people new skills, makes them more productive and gives them a greater understanding of the world around them. College is a barrier to entry when it takes people away from practicing what they are already proficient at or prevents them from becoming proficient in a new area with greater possibilities.

What is a barrier to entry? In economic terms, a barrier to entry arises when people or businesses are barred from entering into a market such as a lack of “credentials” or education. A barrier to entry can be a good thing: it can raise wages and provide job stability, but it can also be used to keep working class people out of certain professions.

Abraham Lincoln became a lawyer not by going to law school, but through an apprenticeship. And we all know he went on to become one of the greatest presidents in United States history. Today, only a few states would recognize Lincoln as a lawyer. This is a shame when arguably one of the greatest presidents could not practice law because he did not worship at the ivory tower.

The line between a college education and a person’s ability to do a job competently and rise to the level of encountering a barrier to further success is well illustrated with the profession of Physical Therapy.

In 1980 a bachelor’s degree was a standard requirement for an entry-level position; currently you need a master’s and soon you will need to be educated at the doctoral level. I think it is obvious that fewer people will have the time and means to complete a doctoral program than a bachelor’s level program. While it is argued that the public will be better served if all Physical Therapists are educated at the higher level, I believe the opposite will happen.

In the 1980s a person could choose the best Physical Therapist among those with an education level greater than BSN; soon they will only be able to choose from a smaller group of doctoral level Physical Therapists.

There are many attributes that will make a person excel at his or her chosen profession, Physical Therapist or other: Dedication, work ethic, moral standards, natural skill, and experience, but all these get trumped when education is used as a barrier. The caring person who would have excelled at her/his profession but decided that education beyond a bachelor’s degree took too much time away from her children is now out of consideration. Ironically, the higher the education level needed, the fewer the people who will be able to find or afford treatment from a doctorally prepared Physical Therapist. This will lead to the population being served by Physical Therapist “assistants” with less education. Think of the last time you saw the dentist. Did you spent more time with the dentist or the dental assistant?

What is the solution? We need multiple paths to entering in every profession regardless of level of education. This would require both a written board exam and a practical examination to demonstrate proficiency. Things such as years of experience, level of skills and knowledge would then be as valuable as being good at school and having the means to support yourself (or having someone support) you through college.

The Dumb Kid