Hey! Seniors out there! You guys ready for a round of twenty questions?

I am certain it has already begun for some of you. Those infamous queries – “What are you going to do?” and “What is next after graduation?” – can cause any senior to close their eyes and wish to rewind back to freshman year, even willing to regain the “freshie 15” just to avoid that Doom’s Day in May.

While applying for graduate schools and fishing through the job market almost always make a senior’s “Beyond graduation” options, a year or two of service rarely makes the list. Sure, community service like the Peace Corps and Teach for America are on the rise for recent graduates (especially with the economy struggling even more than Lindsay Lohan these days), but those only “employ” a teeny, tiny fraction of college grads each year.

Why??

Becoming a volunteer after graduation is a way to expand your worldview and options for your future, while giving you an experience that won’t soon be matched. Trust me, the stories you will have to tell will dominate any dinner conversation from this point forward.

As I am currently volunteering for a year with an organization in NYC, I know firsthand how intimidating the leap towards giving a whole 365 days worth of time and a solid salary can be. To help you discern whether or not you were made for volunteering, allow me to give you all the facts. And I mean ALL. Read More »

Would anyone actually watch a Paris Hilton show?

Guess Tom Cruise is insecure about his height

Romantic proposal gone wrong

Fashion Challenge: wear a hat

Our favorite Modern Family couple finally kisses

10 scary realities of today’s job market. wah. wah.

How to deal with your pestering mom

Top Shop beauty collection for 2010

Obviously the current job market isn’t looking so hot for anyone right now.  Most of us don’t have a trust fund to fall back on, and the state of our economy makes attending grad school a distant dream for so many of us.  With the pressure to land an entry-level position armed only with perseverance, savvy, and Bachelor’s degree in hand, the importance of choosing the right college major is more crucial now than ever  before.

In a recent article, Newsweek names the nine majors that lead to the “best” jobs.  The list includes majors along the lines of finance and information systems – things that have always been regarded as boring safe and prestigious.  I have to say, though, that the value of a career can’t be summed up by the median starting salary.  Sure, some people are actually passionate about construction management (hey, we don’t judge) and if you are, then of course this is the perfect major for you.  But for those of us who prefer to pursue skills that are slightly less mainstream (or that won’t make you want to bludgeon yourself with a calculator during your third all-nighter in a week), I say “why not?”

Throughout college, I remember seeing my peers who chose to major in things like biology struggle to stay awake during their work days while my Communications major (obviously not the most conventional) allowed me to spend the days of my internship interviewing high profile celebs at a major magazine. Win!

With that being said, we say “suck it, high paying jobs!” and have compiled 5 majors that put you on the path to career awesomeness. Read More »

Jobless and in debt, grads turn to stripping.

Just another reason Gen Y (that’s us!) is screwed.

Caroline Giuliani: Why do rich people shoplift?

Apparently 911 is not a cab service….

Uh, Brett Favre is a dirty old dude.

A sex ed video game – good or bad idea?

Here at College Candy, we’re huge supporters of the college experience.  Whether you’re navigating the sometimes-choppy waters of freshman year or dealing with a horrible roommate, dealing with an LDR or preparing for graduation, we think all these experiences are crucial to shaping post-high school you.

Apparently not all of you agree with us, though.  The Wall Street Journal is reporting that only 63.5% of those aged 18-29 believes college is a good investment. Somewhat more shocking is that 61.5% of those over 65 agree that college is a worthwhile experience.  These numbers have dropped significantly since 2009- from 76.7% and 82.1% respectively.

Given the current economy, it’s not difficult to see why young people regret or want to avoid strapping themselves with hefty student loans.  But for people who went to college over forty years ago, have they not enjoyed receiving a significantly higher paycheck?  Or working in a field that requires a degree?  Do they think that spending four years among other educated young people, sharing ideas and growing together as a generation, isn’t important?

I know we often talk about the more lighthearted highs and lows of campus life, but the truth of the matter is that colleges genuinely benefit those who graduate from their hallowed halls.  Between tailgating and hooking up, five days a week you’re sitting in a classroom actually learning something and working towards a degree that will help you earn almost double what you would with only a high school diploma.  Prior to reading this study, I would’ve felt this is the point at which you’d all be shouting “Duh!”, but I question that now. Read More »

I don't know what to do!

Looking back, college didn’t require a lot of serious decision making – even though I thought it did. For the most part, I made decisions about frivolous things such as: Should I wear pajamas to class today? Should I stick to rum and Coke or go for the Jager bombs? Should I go out tonight or should I spend time working on that eleven-page term paper? I know at times these choices sure stressed me out, but looking back, they really didn’t matter the way post-grad decisions seem to.

A lot of difficult decisions have come my way recently. There was me deciding where to live. Atlanta, Georgia or Southern California? It was not an easy choice to make, and many factors played into my choice to move to California. Then there was the decision of what to spend my time doing. Should I reapply to graduate schools for next year or pursue my other dream of becoming a lawyer? These questions required a lot of long-term thinking, and I’m glad that I had the time and the options to choose from. However, now that life is moving full speed ahead – more life-decisions are coming my way and many of them are giving me a day to decide, instead of a month or two.

So, you know how I was running my mouth last week about no jobs being available and how awful it is trying to find something? Well, that very same day, I received a call back from a marketing firm wanting to hire me for an entry level position. A real adult job. One with benefits and a respectable first year salary. One that requires business professional attire from 8:30am to 5:30pm. A marketing firm with connections to major Fortune 500 companies.

Sounds great, right? Well, they could only take me on as a full-time worker Monday-Friday, with a lot of events that I would be required to attend on the weekends. My initial reaction was whether or not I could balance my LSAT prep course and study time in the midst of having a blossoming career path. Could I do both? Maybe, but I’m not someone that does things half-assed, so a balancing act possibly could jeopardize my work experience and hurt my practice for the LSAT. Read More »

Somehow, the girl who always comes stumbling into your 9 a.m. with uncombed hair and smelling of vodka from the night before turns out to be the only one in the class with an A. Other times, the guy who always cuts class or, if he actually manages to show up, winds up falling asleep is the only one in the class who actually managed to get an internship this summer. Basically, in a nutshell, looks may be quite deceiving.

And that is exactly my opinion about this new study by York University that says college grads are unprepared for the workplace. The study names a bunch of qualities and characteristics our generation is supposedly lacking, which might leave us all screwed when it comes to our futures. However, I think researchers are just looking at everything the wrong way.

Study Says: We fail to communicate and listen respectfully
Uh, do researchers have any idea of our obsession with Facebook, Twitter and Linkedin? Is this not considered communication? With my friends constantly updating their Facebook statuses letting me in on every detail of their lives, I think it’s safe to say we know how to communicate. If anything, we know how to do so more effectively (there’s nothing clearer than “liking” something) and efficiently (who needs a phone call when you can GChat from the office?).  Read More »

I think many (myself included) kind of just wind up at college somehow with little thought in advance as to why we’re there in the first place. There’s elementary school, middle school, high school… college is just kind of the next step in the education process. An expectation for some; a requirement for others. The reason why college is so paramount to parents is because they equate four-year degrees with success and large figure salaries to come in the future. But now, a number of economists, academics, and policy analysts are challenging all this. And experts have some pretty convincing evidence as to why two-year or technical training schools could be a better option for some Americans.

The main argument is that there are just too many people going to college in the first place–many who are unqualified. There is also a large amount of overqualified degree-holders in today’s struggling job market. But there are other major issues dealing with the current state of the economy. Before deciding to imprison yourself in one of these four-year institution, there are factors to take into consideration like rising student debt, stagnant graduation rates and, of course, the high unemployment rate among college graduates. Read More »

Grad school or no grad school - that is the question.

[It's pretty obvious that the average CollegeCandy reader has some very strong opinions. Opinions that she likes to share with everyone on the site. We love a strong woman (unless she happens to be charging at us with her fists raised), so we thought we'd give her a real forum to discuss her thoughts, feelings, and perspectives. Every Friday I'll be featuring a hot topic (like taking him home for the holidays!) and leaving it up to you, the readers, to duke it out. So, read it and get your debate on in the comments section below!]

The New Year is here, and for those of you graduating in May, it’s time to start thinking about the future (insert groan here). Probably the biggest question you face down as graduation approaches is, what next? You could go out and get a job, bum around your parents’ place for a while, or you could keep the education train rolling with grad school. Applications to Masters programs have gone way up in the last few years (and they’re starting soon) - should you be joining them?

On the “pro” side of the argument, there are a lot of reasons it could be worth it to go to grad. There’s a lot more freedom in graduate study than in undergrad, which means that you get to make your own rules a bit more and you can really immerse yourself in one area of interest instead of taking all those required classes you’re never going to use again. Also, the job market still pretty much sucks (depending on your field, of course) and studies have shown that people who start jobs now (at lower pay) will continue to be paid lower even 10 years down the road – WTF? So in that respect, grad school is a really good way to buy yourself a little time and maybe a better pay check in the future. And ultimately, the truth is that a Masters degree is going to become increasingly the standard for our generation and the ones following us. For our grandparents it was a high school diploma, for our parents, a college degree and for our generation, where soooo many go to college, standing out is going to mean a Masters at least. Consider it an investment in your future.

But there are some distinct “cons” here too. To start with, you finally managed to graduate, the day you’ve been working toward since you were five, and now you’ve got to go in for at least 2 more years?! And while many grad schools are less expensive than undergrad, it’s still not exactly cheap. If you already have student loans or debt piling up, grad school may not be such a helping hand, particularly since there aren’t nearly as many scholarships or grants for grad. And while you don’t have to take those crappy required classes, grad school doesn’t allow for a lot of blow off courses either, which means an awful lot of stress. Speaking of stress, let’s not forget that most grad programs require you to take the GREs - yep, it’s like the SATs all over again. Joy! Oh, and BTW, when I mentioned up there that applications to grad school were way up, some schools have seen jumps of over 30%, so just getting in could be an issue.

Do you see yourself in grad school? Or would you rather eat your backpack than add on more school years? Will you be applying? Have you? Or do you think the whole idea of a Masters degree is just silly? Duke it out!

As a senior entering her last semester in college, there’s really only one thing on my mind: doing stupid things one last time before they are no longer socially acceptable finding a job after graduation.

But no matter how often I search “high-paying magazine job” on Monster.com, or how many fake ads I peruse on Craigslist, the harsh reality is that our economy still kinda sucks…and finding a job (where I don’t have to take off my clothes…) isn’t easy for anybody. Even a charming, well-educated woman like myself.

But don’t fret, my collegiate friends! Earlier this month the Bureau of Labor Statistics predicted the top 10 industries that will GAIN jobs in the next decade. If you think you would enjoy changing old people’s diapers, filing medical records or serving the “Rise and Shine” breakfast on a regular basis, you might be in luck. Even jobs that involve helping other people find jobs made the list!

Who woulda thunk?

It’s a little too late for me to change my major to “Hospitality Management,” but for those of you still in school (or thinking about changing your major/your entire life plan), I would heed this advice. Job security is hard to find these days, so if that’s what you’re after you just might consider putting those journalism dreams on hold and put in an app at your local Target.

At least that’s what the experts say.