Most families with a high school junior experience stress at home regarding the college search and application process. One primary factor leading to this stress is that the understanding of timeline differs with the parent and the student. Psychologist, Michael Thompson, offers some food for reflection. [read more]
Jeff Silingo, an editor for the Chronicle of Higher Education, posts an article on LinkedIn discussing the growing trend of colleges that see their role as job-training facilities rather that the more tradition role of developing graduates with “the broad skills to succeed in a career and in life.” [read more]
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Graduating early from college can have a significant positive financial savings. Using such tactics as using AP, dual credit, and/or CLEP credits to fill core requirements as well as taking advantage of summer opportunities and online courses at local junior colleges to fulfill core requirements can eliminate thousands of dollars from the more traditional four-year graduation plan. Students finishing in the middle of the year often have less competition in the job market because only about five to ten percent of students graduate in December, according to Inside Higher Ed. [read more]
Peter Orszag of The Miami Herald and former Director of the Office of Management and Budget for the Obama administration, offers an opinion regarding a paper recently released by economists Martha Bailey and Susan Dynarski of the University of Michigan regarding the widening gap in college completion rates. Bailey and Dynarski posit that the gap between the rich and the poor has grown by 14 percentage points since 1980. Orszag reminds us of a fundamental national concern; we are risking “the traditional American notion of equal opportunity.” [read more]
The Chronicle of Higher Education reported on 3/21 that the US Senate appropriated funds to continue research at colleges and universities, however deep cuts are in store for political science research. Sen. Tom Coburn, a Republican from Oklahoma strongly disagreed with the foundation’s spending priorities. He “sent a letter last week to the NSF’s director, Subra Suresh, listing a series of agency-financed projects he considered a waste of taxpayer money. His list included several involving political science, including studies of voter attitudes toward the Senate filibuster and of the cooperation between the president and Congress.”
“Michael Brintnall, executive director of the American Political Science Association, who called it a dangerous act of political interference in science…(citing a) NSF-sponsored political-science … study of school districts and government that informed many of the efforts by mayors in recent years to improve school-system governance.” [read more]
David Bergeron, Acting Assistant Secretary for the US Department of Education, outlines the impact of sequestration on federal student assistance programs intended to defray some of the costs of higher education. [read more]
Check out The Fiscal Times for some interesting and important lists and articles relating to colleges and universities. Among some of the choices are:
- Public universities with the worst graduation rate
- Ten public colleges with insanely luxurious dorms
Another great list-at-a-glance site is Kipplinger where you can find such groups as:
- Ten best public colleges with highest graduation rates
- Ten best values in public education for out-of-state students
- Ten best public colleges with the lowest student debt at graduation
US News and World Report shared thoughts from some admissions counselors at various colleges and universities. The article is a few months old, but still very helpful – especially for current high school juniors. [read more]
College Board, the organization in charge of the SAT, has announced that changes in the test are on the horizon. Brian Gabriel of Business Administration Information helps to shed some light on the theory behind the changes. [read more]