IT Grads: Go to Grad School or Join the Work Force Now?

With the tight job market, many graduates in IT and other areas are tempted to go to graduate school instead of braving the market. This move might be good for some and not so good for others, depending on your situation. Below are pros and cons to consider concerning going to grad school.

Graduate School Pros: 

Going to grad school is a good idea for some people. If you are one of those students who really likes to learn and wished you could keep going to college, you might be a candidate for graduate school. You also might be a good candidate if you believe a larger yearly strategy is worth waiting a couple years. Professionals with graduate degrees generally make larger yearly salaries.

If the idea of being on the cutting edge of research and learning new theories and ideas that are not yet applied in the work place appeals to you, you might also like graduate school. Finally, you might choose graduate school if you do not like the idea of starting at a very low entry-level position. You are more likely to have access to jobs that give you a high degree of responsibility after proving your leadership abilities as part of a graduate research team or as a graduate teaching assistant.

Graduate School Cons: 

Graduate school is not for someone who needs to make money right out of college. If you have a mountain of debt that just won't wait until you finish an advanced degree, then you might want to forgo graduate school, at least until you are more financially stable.

Instead, you will find that school means that you start out making money, instead of spending it on more tuition and books. Going straight into the work force also means that you will gain more practical experience than someone coming from grad school. In other words, you get to jump right in and get your hands dirty. Also, you will have more experience in the everyday skills all corporate workers experience.

Only you know what is the right path for you 

There is no one right career path. You will need to sort out for yourself what is the most sensible route for you. If you have the means, patience, and intellectual curiosity, you might consider grad school. If you like to get your hands dirty and want to get right to work, you might want to jump right in to the job market.

As always, only you can make the choice.

Publishers Perish: Ending Unjustified Subsidies For The University Press

College professors have long been told that they must publish or perish. The universities that print their books are facing a different ultimatum: stop wasting money on ancillary activities, like publishing, or perish.

While universities around the world operate presses devoted to scholarly work, only the University of Chicago, Oxford and Cambridge University presses are generally believed to be profitable. The rest rely upon their university to fund them through the tuition, endowments, and, in some cases, state subsidies that finance general campus operations.

This practice is beginning to fade. Facing rising costs, about half a dozen schools have closed or suspended their presses within the past three years. The University of Missouri is the most recent example of school officials confronting their problematic press. The school's new president, Timothy M. Wolfe, has announced that the university will no longer continue to shelter its unprofitable publishing arm. The University of Missouri Press now must operate without the $400,000 annual subsidy it previously received. To make ends meet, some paid employees will be replaced with students.

Predictably, professors are horrified. Without amply funded university presses, many fear that the dissemination of knowledge will cease and academia will fall into a Dark Age. Arguing that a university is intended to both educate students and provide faculty an opportunity to engage in important intellectual discourse, college professors claim that this sort of intellectual discourse cannot be sustained by an unsubsidized or commercial publishing house.

I am not arguing that research unsuited to commercial publishing has no value, nor am I arguing that professors should slavishly grade papers into the night without a spare minute to advance their specialized fields of knowledge. I have one simple objection to the current system: It is unconscionable for universities to subsidize their faculty's publications while students are racking up ever-higher debt to pay skyrocketing tuition.

Professors would likely argue that students benefit indirectly from the money they involuntarily contribute to university presses, with better-informed and better-known faculty to teach them. In reality, however, the professors who spend the most time on research and publishing are often the ones who spend the least time teaching undergraduates. Those undergrads help fund the tenured faculty's research while being taught by graduate assistants and non-tenure-track adjuncts.

Fortunately, there are many ways professors can share their knowledge without financially burdening their students. One way is to rely on private and government grants to finance the publication of scholarly works.

Alternatively, professors might consider making their work more accessible to a larger audience in order to attract commercial publishers. Clear, understandable writing can make even a technical topic interesting to a non-technical reader. And as self-publishing becomes easier, academics themselves could pay for the cost of publishing. They can then recoup their investment if their books sell. At the very least, such self-publication should count for tenure or promotion.

Also, if what truly matters is academic exchange, not nicely printed book jackets with flattering author photos, professors can find cheaper ways to communicate. Progress does not require printed books. Electronic publishing is cheaper, though not always cheap enough. Rice University replaced its traditional press with a digital-only one, but was forced to shutter its virtual doors after four years due to costs that were still too high.

Regardless of how professors publish their work, it should not be done at students' expense. The University of Missouri administration has wisely taken away its press's subsidy. That this is such a rare and newsworthy event says a lot about what's wrong with the way American universities are managed.

Does Dropping a College Class Show a Lack of Strength of Character?

During all my days in college I only dropped one college class. You see, I didn't believe going to a few classes before the drop date was enough to ensure that I liked the teacher or the class. Also, I realized there was a weeding out process, and it didn't make sense to be the one who got weeded out, I always felt I was better than that, and was never afraid of hard work, or the adversity which comes with some of the tougher classes.

Further, I realized there would be monotone professors in future classes where dropping the class just wouldn't be an option, and I may as well get used to it now. The other day, I was talking to an acquaintance about that, and he said he never dropped the class in college because he felt that would show a lack of strength of character. Is this true? In many regards I think what I was explaining above is along the same lines of thinking. It does somewhat reveal character, but sometimes there are such overwhelming circumstances that only a fool would not drop the class.

You see, I've been in classes where the teacher or instructor was unworkable, wouldn't answer questions, talked in monotone, or didn't have what I felt was the knowledge to justify my cost, thus, felt it was more responsible to drop the class in that case. So there is that point is well, and I'm sure you see the rationalization for the occasional dropping of a college class. Also you might realize that it costs a lot of money to go to some of these classes, and you shouldn't have to pay for something that is not serving you.

As a college student you are also a consumer, and you should vote with your dollar and your feet. Too often colleges are so authoritarian-based they think they can get away with lousy professors with tenure who don't really care about the class they are teaching, and are merely assignment coordinators for you to read various passages in the textbook, do rote memorization, and then answer the test questions which they purposely make tricky to trip you up.

If that's all these classes have to offer, then perhaps you should occasionally drop a class - because otherwise you could study all that information on the Internet anyway. I can tell you this, since I left school I have always studied and learned at a maximum level equal to or more so than during my time in college. Today with the Internet, you don't really need to go to college if you just want the information. Of course, college is an experience in and of itself, a chance to socialize, and it's quite fun. Still, you have to decide if you want to deal with these types of classes, pay for them, and then deal with the student loans after you graduate.

Staying in classes that cost too much money and will further deepen you in debt causing you to live your business career in economic enslavement makes no sense whatsoever. Much of this information is available online in YouTube videos and lectures, and you can buy a textbook from the used bookstore or thrift store for under two dollars these days. Indeed I hope you will just please consider all this and think on it.

Is Changing Your College Major a Sign of Weakness?

The other day, I was talking to an acquaintance about his college education and how he believed it helped him succeed in life and business. He told me that one of the secrets to his success was never changing his college major. He felt that those who had would appear to be wishy-washy, end up with extremely high student loans, and would be more likely to switch professions out in the real world as well. Some of what he's saying is probably true, but let's go ahead and talk about this for second shall we?

You see, it appears to me that in life people now change their careers every 2.3 years, so, I wonder if rigidness towards a major is wise, perhaps a more homing in on the niche within the niche or moving within in the overall category without changing the entire category of the major? Indeed, I asked my acquaintance; "would you agree or disagree with that concept?" Now then, I would like to ask my reader of this article to consider the same thing.

Some might say that switching your focus makes it very difficult to become an "outlier" as it takes 10,000 hours to become an expert in anything. If you were constantly switching your focus and your life's mission you can never become great at one thing, therefore you become a master of none. If you are a master of no human endeavor, business career, or skill - then what good are you to an employer? Yes, I think this gets back to his major point.

Further, why would your spouse ever wish to hook up with you and get married if you are busy switching your life focus, as it shows a lack of stability, which may even cause you to get a divorce later on, leaving you both frazzled and in a disarray during a subsequent future transitional period, which indeed also means a transitional period with personal economic challenges. Too many of those on your way to retirement, and you just aren't going to have all you need.

So, is changing your college major a sign of weakness? It may or may not be; it might be the prudent thing to do, but it might also show poor decision-making, bad strategy, and indicate that your future life will also be a series of changes preventing you from ever becoming great at one thing. Still, it also might help you with such transitional periods because as Einstein said; "change is the only constant." Okay so, I'd like you to think about it, and I hope you will please consider all this.

5 Benefits Offered at a Local Community College

Community colleges offer many benefits to high school graduates looking to get a higher education. However, these two-year schools are also beneficial to adults who want to go back to school, or brush up on a few lost skills. By taking community college courses, you can find yourself saving time and money, and use the skills earned to even make a little more money down the line. Below are five reasons to consider enrolling.

Close to Home

If you work and the nearest college is several miles away and/or costs too much, a closer campus may prove to be a better alternative. They usually offer the same or similar courses, and if one is nearby, your commute is much lighter than having to go out of town to a university.

Lower Prices

In many cases, courses at a community college are much cheaper than those at a four-year college or university. By taking classes there, you could save thousands of dollars in just the year or two you spend. As a result, you will not have to take out as many student loans, saving you a bit of a headache in the long run.

Professional Certification

Many community colleges offer professional certification or workforce development programs, which allow students to pick up relevant job training skills and experience. The certification programs require the student to complete a set number of hours. In some cases, the credits can go towards a Master's degree, but also a higher salary or advancement within the company.

Adult Education

You may want to learn more about a specific field, or just pick up a new hobby. Community colleges offer courses in both that teach various skills. Those skills include computers and technology, photography, arts and crafts, and foreign languages. In many cases, you may only need one or two courses, instead of going for a degree. However, the knowledge learned can still refresh skills you have not used in years. By consulting the course catalog, you can easily find a number of classes to help you attain your goals.

Flexible Scheduling

If you have a busy lifestyle due to work or raising a family, community colleges offer flexible schedules that fit your full plate. You can attend evening courses or weekend classes in between your work week. In addition, many schools offer distance learning, where a student can take courses online from his or her computer, tablet or smartphone. This is a new alternative providing convenience for any student on the go.