Published using Google Docs
May 28 CCC Bulletin
Updated automatically every 5 minutes

May 28, 2014

Seniors

Tips for Parents of Graduating Seniors

Housing, Tuition, and Testing!

Best Jobs 2014

College and Careers:  What are Employers Looking For?

Juniors and Sophomores--Free SAT Test Prep!

College Sports:  Increased Spending at the Expense of Academics?


Seniors

Tips for Parents of Graduating Seniors

Are you the parent of a graduating senior who is heading off to college in the fall?  Are you wondering how you can best help him or her out?  What is the best way to help your student learn to succeed in college and beyond?  Here are some tips from John Warner from his blog, “An Open Letter to Parents of Incoming Freshmen”.

His advice is "to let your children struggle, up to and including the point of “failure.”"  This is a very difficult approach for parents who are accustomed to helping their child through all the rough spots, but, in the long run it will allow your student to develop the ability to successfully live their life!

Here are his ideas:

  • Call less than you probably want to.
  • Do nothing that they can do for themselves.
  • Resist the urge to interfere or assist in their academics.
  • Let them choose their classes/major/life’s purpose and direction.
  • Express empathy, rather than judgment, when problems arise.
  • Put them on a budget and stick to it no matter what.
  • When it’s time to step in, don’t hesitate.

Housing, Tuition, and Testing!

By now you have committed to your school, but you probably have not completed all of your “must do” tasks.  Before you head off to college in the fall there are a few more critical steps to complete!

There are several very important dates that anyone heading off to college needs to keep track of!  Check your school for information to find out when your housing preferences and deposit are due.  Another date you need to track is the date your first tuition payment is due.  Finally, make sure that all of your outstanding grades and test scores have been sent to your school.

Best of luck to all graduating seniors in all of their endeavors!


Best Jobs 2014

What are the top jobs this year?  Surprisingly, 9 of the 10 best jobs are STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) related careers.  CareerCast, a global job-search portal that compiles the Jobs Rated Reports, has released lists of the Best and Worst Jobs of 2014.  65 of the top 100 jobs are STEM related while only 7 of the bottom 100 jobs involve STEM!

The best jobs rise to the top because they include competitive wages, expect increased growth (more hires), and are critical in many fields.  The top ten jobs of 2014 are:  Mathematician, University Professor, Statistician, Actuary, Audiologist, Dental Hygienist, Software Engineer, Computer Systems Analyst, Occupational Therapist, and Speech Pathologist.  A graphic illustrating the 10 Best and Worst Jobs of 2014 can be found at CareerCast.

Learn more at Best Jobs.

Click here to see the  Best and Worst Jobs 2014.


College and Careers:  What are Employers Looking For?

You are a new college graduate, looking for a job.  Will your degree help you get started in your chosen career?  What might make you a stronger candidate in your job search?  A survey of employers by the Chronicle of Higher Education and American Public Media’s Marketplace revealed some surprising data about what employers think about their candidates.

Are colleges preparing graduates for a successful entry into the job market?

Almost seventy percent of the employers in the survey indicated that colleges are doing at least a “good” job producing successful employees.  Opinions vary by industry with the Government/Non-profit sector reporting the highest satisfaction with colleges and Services/Retail, Healthcare and Media/Communications indicating the lowest satisfaction rating.

Are graduates preparing properly for their interviews?

Employers indicated that almost one third of recent graduates were unprepared for their job search.  Over half the employers revealed difficulty in finding qualified candidates for job openings.  Employers in the study think that graduates can better prepare for their job search by researching the organization, improving their interview skills, and researching the industry.

What are employers looking for in the candidates?

When evaluating candidates, employers place more weight on experience, particularly internships and employment during school than on grades or major.  Employers who valued academic credentials over experience cited college major as the most important criteria, followed by coursework relevance to the job, grades, and college reputation.  All employers agreed that internships are a great path to a full-time job.

How important are things like college majors compared to grades?

Hiring Executives strongly valued coursework relevance and grades, followed closely by college major.  All other hiring groups valued extracurricular activities, like professional clubs, athletics, and service more than grades, relevance of coursework to position, and college reputation.  

Will anyone check out my Facebook?

Fifty-three percent of the employers investigated job candidates' online presence; finding the candidate on LinkedIn, general internet searching on the candidates’ name, and Facebook profiles.

What college majors are the most sought after by employers?

Employers indicated that some college majors are more desirable than others.  Accounting/Finance, Business-Other, Management & Administration, Computer Science, and Information Technology majors were highly valued by all industry sectors.

Learn more at The Chronicle of Higher Education.  


Juniors and Sophomores--Free SAT Test Prep!

A new option for preparing for the SAT next year is now available from Khan Academy.  You are able to download a real, full-length SAT practice test, watch someone else work through real SAT problems, and practice using interactive exercises.  The exercises include previously un-released problems from SAT tests and they are grouped by topic and difficulty level.  

Khan Academy is working with The College Board to prepare materials for the new SAT.  They will be available in Spring 2015.  They will be offering state of the art learning tools including exercises, software diagnostics and videos—all at no cost!


College Sports:  Increased Spending at the Expense of Academics?

Expenditures for intercollegiate sports programs have been rising as colleges rush to fund bigger and better programs for their athletes.  These expanded programs and resources are then expected to increase the visibility of the school which in turn will lead to more students seeking admission and more revenue for the school.

The Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics, a watchdog group of academic leaders and others, has been documenting this race in Div.I schools for many years. Recently they expanded their research to include Div. II and Div. III schools and community colleges.  They compare educational spending and athletic spending at public institutions using data from the US Department of Education, the NCAA, and their own surveys.

The data shows that the growth in educational spending trails far behind that of athletic spending--especially at community colleges and Div. II and III schools.  At community colleges educational spending declined while athletic spending per athlete rose thirty-five percent.  Athletic spending increased almost twenty-five percent at all public four-year colleges while spending on academic support and instructions remained virtually flat.

Despite large differences in the overall size of athletic programs across Div. I schools, compensation and benefits for athletic department staff are the largest expense at all schools, consuming about one-third of the athletic budgets.  

The reality today is that most schools rely on subsidies to support their athletic programs.  Less than twenty-five percent of Div. I schools generate more money from their athletic programs than they spend. Thus, these schools must increase funding for athletics by raising fees or lowering spending for other programs.  This leads to either increased costs for students or a decrease in the academic programs available.

The New York Times recently published “Colleges Increasing Spending on Sports Faster Then Academics, Report Finds” that is recommended if you would like more information.


Next Bulletin: Next Fall


College and Career Center

Room 20

Phone: (510) 594-2651

Director: Sandra Brod Email:sbrod@piedmont.k12.ca.us

Web: College & Career Center