“Find something you love to do, and then convince people to pay you for it. As long as it’s something legal.”

That was the advice from my high school band director to a group of upperclassmen as we faced college and career decisions. We thought it was fairly original, but a look at this map from WTHR-TV shows that at least one group of professionals heard similar advice and ran with it.

That’s the only way I can wrap my head around the fact that 39 of the 50 states have a sports coach as the highest paid public employee.

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A trend that many have suspected to be on the rise - including college graduates - has been confirmed in a recent survey regarding employment rates among young people. An online survey from PayScale.com conducted between July 2011 and July 2012, showed that 63 percent of young people between the ages of 18 and 29 have a bachelor’s degree, however, are often forced to take jobs that don’t require one.

The survey included input from nearly 500,000 young workers, and only further suggested that a four-year college degree doesn’t mean as much as it used to when it comes to securing a job.

As reported by MarketWatch, a similar survey conducted by Rutgers University saw similar conclusions. They found that nearly half of young people who have graduated in the last five years say their jobs don’t require a four-year degree, and only 20 percent said their first job was actually in their desired career field.

Cliff Zukin, a professor of political science and public policy at Rutgers, told MarketWatch that these findings paint a grim picture of employment for recent college grads, saying, “Our society’s most talented people are unable to find a job that gives them a decent income.” Read the rest of this entry »

Good news for those who live in California: a recent study showed that almost 75 percent of high school graduates go on to pursue a higher education.

This statistic was determined from data collected during the 2008-2009 school year and found that these students were enrolled in a college or university in the USA. The names of students were cross-checked with the National Student Clearinghouse to determine if they were actually enrolled in a higher education establishment. The data can be analyzed by district, county, school, and even by personal demographic categories, such as race and gender. The students are identified in the study by their names, dates of birth, and other factors.

More than half of the students studied attended a school in either California Community College, California State University, or the University of California systems. More than 25 percent of the students who attended these schools earned at least one year’s worth of college credit within their first two years of enrollment.

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It’s no secret: teachers in the USA are not given the respect they deserve. These are the people who are shaping America’s future, but in many states, they are underpaid for their invaluable services to today’s youth. Now, with President Obama’s desire to improve the quality of education that children in our nation receive, it’s time to step back and take a look at the important role that teachers have in this process.

“Teaching in the U.S. is unfortunately no longer a high-status occupation,” said Andreas Schleicher, who monitors an international achievement test known as Pisa. “Despite the characterization of some that teaching is an easy job, with short hours and summers off, the fact is that successful, dedicated teachers in the U.S. work long hours for little pay and, in many cases, insufficient support from their leadership.”

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Student at Manhattan Free School

57 year-old Pat Werner is the principal at The Manhattan Free School in East Harlem, New York, and while the school is anything but free, she might as well be.

With 18 years of experience in the New York public school sector, Werner’s salary last year was a mere $3,000. While society recognizes that education professionals are grossly underpaid and over worked, $3,000 is unfathomable.

But it was Werner’s choice to accept that minimal pay. Her school is all about idealistic Utopian education and learning for the sake of learning. The students at her school are taught to only learn what they feel like learning, with no tests or grades given. Read the rest of this entry »

Planning on attending a liberal arts college? Then plan on shelling out some hard cash. With that said, liberal colleges have proven to be a great educational investment. PayScale, a salary data site, released its recent report on this year’s top liberal arts colleges by salary potential. Here are some of PayScale’s most beneficial liberal arts colleges ranked by the average starting graduate’s salary:

1. Harvey Mudd College: The average salary is $68,900. The yearly tuition is, as of the 2009-2010 school year, $38,467.

2. Claremont McKenna College: The average salary is $58,700. The yearly tuition is, as of the 2009-2010 school year, $38,510.

3. Bucknell University: The average salary is $55,800. The yearly tuition is, as of the 2009-2010 school year, $40,816.

4. Lafayette College: The average salary is $54,800. The yearly tuition is, as of the 2009-2010 school year, $37,815. Read the rest of this entry »