Career » Carol J. Carter

Responsibility of College Payoff: Colleges and Students

We are entering the months of graduation, inspiring speeches and anxious and excited graduates. With college debt exceeding a trillion dollars last month, the cost of college outpacing credit card debt, and the unemployment rate among graduates at a sixty year high, many Americans are asking what this means in the short run and the long run for these students and for our economy. What we should also be asking is: a) what responsibility do colleges have in doing a better job of delivering graduates who are both knowledgeable and capable in the professional world; and, b) what responsibility do those graduates have to get a clue before they start college about what the real world expects and demands of graduates? Let’s look at both of these areas.
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The New Grad’s Economy: Preparing for Economic Challenges Ahead

Graduates in 2012 will be entering an economy with more debt and less job opportunities than they would have 20 or even 10 years ago. The last recession of this proportion was actually in 1984, the year I graduated from college.

But the surprise isn’t only on the new graduates. Employers are gaining new hires who have spent some of their most formidable years in a bad economy and who have responded with either apathy or a zeal to overcome obstacles in the professional world. For both kinds of young adults, and those in between, they will be up against some challenges that, although sometimes grim, are the reality of our current economy. Instead of being the apathetic new hire or job seeker, I encourage you to take on the following challenges with the mindset that you will keep moving forward until you can overcome.

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Business Leadership Lessons Applied to The Game of Education

Today’s working world has fewer jobs and more expectations for its workers. The economy is one reason employers have become selective with their limited positions, but another factor involves the speed in which technology is taking over certain jobs–all or part–to save both time and money. However, people who can bring something extra to the table, who can do something more than technology can, are still in demand. Thomas Friedman says this is why “everyone needs to find their extra — their unique value contribution that makes them stand out in whatever is their field of employment. Average is over.”
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“Extra Credit” Mindset or “Over Deliverer”: Who Would You Rather Hire?

Many of today’s students are familiar with the option of “extra credit” on an assignment. Many high school classes give this as an option. Yesterday, I spoke with a professor who works with freshmen at a major state university. He doesn’t believe in “extra credit” because he feels that students should want to do a quality job because it’s important not because they get extra brownie points. There may be a place and time for extra credit at the college level, but with some caveats.
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How Teachers Can Reinvent Themselves This Summer: Idea Soup

The most effective teachers, like the most effective students, are lifelong learners. While many schools require educators to have ongoing training and professional development, many educators can craft their own learning experiences just like the most motivated and active students. Teachers like this provide a model for students of vibrancy, imagination, and active learning; they prove to all of us that learning doesn’t end with a certificate or degree.

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Riding the Waves of High Teen Unemployment: Turning the Tide in Turbulent Waters

Teens enjoy using their summer months to unwind from the long academic year, but many also expect to spend summer working a summer job, or increasing the hours at their part-time job, to save money, get experience, and have something structured to do. And these are the lucky students who have the luxury of being able to get a “legitimate” job. Many disadvantaged students living in the housing projects or at poverty level will be struggling to avoid street temptations and other fast ways to earn money. This year almost one out of four American teens ages 16 to 19 were unemployed in February. On average, over the last 20 years, teens have held a steady unemployment rate of between 14 and 18 percent. The teen unemployment rate in 2012 has reached 23.2 to 23.8 percent.¹

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Defining Unique Skills Powers Economic Success for Grads

In a competitive global market the soon-to-be college graduate and new professional needs to know their unique talents and abilities in order to stand out from the crowd. Our economy is recovering slowly; a shift in our schools and colleges can set new expectations to better prepare graduates for workforce realities. Many K-12 schools, whether out of choice or necessity, still teach to standardized tests and curriculums. However, the new professional is anything but standardized. The new professional is self-aware, stands out because of their ability to develop unique strengths, can connect their education to their career, is fully integrated into traditional and digital communication, and understands how to use personal discipline for professional advantage. If there isn’t enough time to emphasize this model in class, teachers can emphasize the importance of this exposure out of class.
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Skills to Succeed in the New Economy

Over the last few years, Americans have become more familiar with change. Our president’s campaign was based on change; our economy took a change for the worst and is making small steps to recovery; many members of our friends and families changed or lost careers; technology continues to change how we communicate, learn, listen to music, fight disease, etc. All of these factors have created a new economy that will only continue to get further away from what we know today (65 percent of kids in grade school are predicted to have jobs that don’t exist yet.¹)

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Professional Success Eclipses the Resume and Interview

You’re graduating this semester. Your resume is clean, you have your reference letters in order, your suit is pressed, and you feel confident your school trained you in the skills you need to land an entry-level job and climb up the career ladder. But are you sure you’re not missing anything?
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Promoting Nonfiction Literacy Standards Is a Collaborative Effort

Most states are adopting the new Common Core Standards, requiring that students’ reading curriculum include more rigorous and nonfiction materials. In fact, the goal is to have 70 percent of a student’s reading come from informational texts by graduation, according to the article “New Literacy Standards Could Challenge Even Passionate Readers.” This shift in reading content is aimed at helping build reading skills students will need in college, career and throughout their lives.

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