Colleges

Colleges

Perspective on Student Debt

Blog, Colleges, Financial Aid, General, Information, News, Parents, Students

 and  of The Atlantic  supply an interesting take on the state of student debt as well as the value of a college education.  While “the cost of college has spiked 150 percent since 1995, compared with a 50 percent increase in the cost of other goods and services” and “outstanding student loans soared to nearly $1 trillion—a 300 percent jump since 2003” is the student debt level really a national crisis?  [read more]

New Degree Plan – Nation’s First Degree in Commercial Space Operations

Blog, Career, Colleges, Information, Parents, Students

“Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University announced plans to launch the nation’s first bachelor’s degree in Commercial Space Operationsduring a news conference Wednesday at the 16th Annual FAA Commercial Space Transportation Conference in Washington, D.C.

The new degree program, which would be offered at the Daytona Beach, Fla., campus of the world’s largest accredited aviation and aerospace academic institution, will supply the commercial spaceflight industry with skilled graduates in the areas of space policy, operations, regulation and certification, as well as space flight safety, and space program training, management and planning.”  [read more]

Elite Colleges Offer Free Courses Online – MOOC

Blog, Colleges, General, Information, News, Parents, Students, Uncategorized

One of the latest trends in Higher Education is the use of MOOC “Massive Open Online Courses.”  The industry leaders, Coursera and edX, announced last week that they have almost doubled their course options by adding courses from some of the top institutions in the country.  “MOOCs have attracted millions of students and captured the public imagination over the past year, allowing people from all walks of life to learn from leading scholars at top-tier universities — free of charge”  writes TERENCE CHEA of the Associated Press.  At the same time he questions the effects of this movement on the degree seeking population.  [read more]

The Crisis in Higher Education

Blog, Colleges, General, Information, News, Parents, Students

Higher education is a broken system, a problem that threatens the economic health as well as democratic fabric of our nation, according to Ethan Miller, a senior at American University – a well-respected student activist and blogger for the Huffington Post.  “Higher education… has reached the climax of a decades-long transformation from a system of intellectual exploration and learning, where degrees were measurements of achievement and creative thought was valued and fostered to a system modeled after corporations, fraught with grade inflation and worthless degrees, focused on career paths and earning as much money as possible.”   Miller proposes that higher education should be about one thing: the relationship between professor and student with the intent of the pursuit of knowledge – food for thought when thinking about college prospects.  [read more]

Connection Between Student Debt and Teacher Shortage

Blog, Career, Colleges, General, News, Parents, Students

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is investigating the connection between student loan debt and the teacher shortage, both projected and current, especially in the areas of math and science.  “The National Center for Education Statistics estimates that the United States will need over 425,000 new teachers by the end of this decade to make up for the wave of retiring baby boomers. Despite this challenge, compensation for public school teachers has not kept pace with the private sector— according to one study, starting public school teachers in 19 states earn less than $33,000 per year.”  With the average student loan debt approaching the $30,000 mark, considering a career in education is becoming more and more difficult.  [read more]

 

 

http://www.consumerfinance.gov/blog/student-debt-and-schools/

College Degree – the New Minimum Requirement

Application, Blog, Career, Colleges, General, Information, Students

“The college degree is becoming the new high school diploma: the new minimum requirement, albeit an expensive one, for getting even the lowest-level job. ” reports Catherine Rampell of The New York Times.  Many employers with positions that traditionally have not needed any education past high school are now requiring a minimum of a Bachelor’s Degree.  The upside is that these positions can be openings to much more lucrative opportunities within the company with little risk to the employer. [read more]