Value of College Degree > Education Debt

While I am fortunate to have parents that fulfilled their promise of assuming the financial burden of higher education, I know other students feel like they have the weight of the world on their shoulders when taking on debt to pay for school. Since I hope to be a college professor someday, I always search for articles that discuss the importance of obtaining a college education. I came across a blog post that provides a glimmer of hope for students who feel like they will never be able to pay off their education bills. The overall message is loud and clear: students with college degrees will reap the benefits of higher education long after they receive their diplomas.


According to a report issued by The College Board, the benefits of a college degree significantly outweigh the costs associated with obtaining one. One statistic in the article was particularly surprising: “Among ages 25 to 34, women with college degrees earned 79 percent more than those with high school diplomas, and men, 74 percent more”. While universities across the nation continue to steadily increase tuition and other student fees, the value of graduating from an accredited college has not been threatened. The article further discusses the lifelong benefits associated with having a college degree; like lower health costs because college education leads to healthier lifestyles.

So for all of you soon-to-be graduates who will assume $200,000 of debt as well as a USC degree--have no fear. You are already way ahead of this crazy game known as life.

The Power of Self-Confidence

While eating breakfast this morning, I talked with one of my roommates about her job search for a full-time position in the marketing field. She mentioned how hard it is to compete in this job market because of how qualified all of the applicants are. When I was interviewing for accounting internships, all of my competitors had great GPAs; most had legitimate work experience at a credible firm. So how does one stand apart nowadays?

Confidence. According to my roommate as well as William Blazekeski, the ability to sell yourself is key. As cliche as it may sound, if you don't believe in yourself, no interviewer will want to invest money and resources into you either. Students often get caught up in stressing about their academic success, but if you look at history, grades do not define the overall success of an individual. Take Bill Gates for example--he dropped out of college due to his lack of academic motivation, but he became one of the richest men in the world by his ability to convince others of how talented he was. 

I'm not saying that grades and work experience aren't important; however, I strongly believe that they will only get you TO the interview. While some of us are not naturally confidant individuals, invest time into thinking about your accomplishments and how you can add value to the corporate world. 

So message to all of you seniors: get good at selling yourself.

Nice Girls Don’t Get The Corner Office, Says Citi

          Corporate feminists all across the country are up in arms over a recent leak of a Citi pamphlet given to female employees that highlights the common mistakes women make in the business world. While Citi denies giving out the materials, a commenter who works for Citi claimed that the handout was on her desk when she arrived at the firm. The tips were copied from the bestseller “Nice Girls Don’t Get The Corner Office: 101 Unconscious Mistakes Women Make That Sabotage Their Careers”, written by a female with a Ph.D in Psychology. While I do agree that it is extremely inappropriate for Citi to impose such paraphernalia on its employees, I read the “common mistakes that women make” and couldn’t help but agree with them. For example, one tip said:

“Women ask permission-children are taught to ask permission. Men don’t ask permission, they inform.”

Since I consider myself a female in the business world (I was an intern for a public accounting firm this past summer), I definitely understood where the advice stemmed from. I hate to go against my own kind, but women (including myself) are not taught to be strong competitors in the business world. Women have fought for years to decrease the salary gap between men and women in the workplace, but we do little to act as an equal in business practice. Whereas women force themselves to be micro-managed because of the need for “permission” from others, men are confident in their skills and abilities and do not seek constant affirmation.

            I am not saying that women are the only people who make mistakes like the ones mentioned in the book, but I think the tips highlighted in the Citi handout should be taken seriously. Women need to stop getting angry about inequality in the workplace; change has to start from within.

Faith in Humanity Restored?

Throughout my academic career at USC, business courses taught me the importance of “the bottom line.” While true cynics believe that money is the only factor that drives individuals, a part of me still believes that humans are more complex than that. I gained a spring in my step today when I came across a blog conversation discussing “The Buffett-Gates Pledge”. Led by Bill Gates & Warren Buffett, they along with 40 other billionaires have pledged to give away half of their overall wealth to philanthropy. Amongst the 40 individuals are top donors like Michael Bloomberg, Larry Ellison, Barron Hilton, and George Lucas, to name a few.

            While I commend Gates for his efforts at helping the poor, I am certain there will be great debate as to how the money raised by the pledge will be allocated. Only a month after the announcement of the pledge, bloggers are already up in arms about who is more deserving of the charity.

            One blogger claims that “rather than helping the poor, the Buffet-Gates pledge might actually make inequality worse in the United States.” This leads me to ask: Does no good deed go unpunished nowadays? Rather than buying 80 more private planes or a small island in the Pacific, Gates wants to do his part to change the world by gathering an elite group to donate their hard-earned money to charity…and people are UPSET about it. While I understand the idea that philanthropy must be focused on the poor in order to bring about the kind of change Gates’ aims for, I cannot believe that people are trying to discredit the generosity exhibited in this promise. While cynics will continue to bash the rich and belittle this pledge, my faith in humanity has been restored.

Public vs. Private

I was one of several USC students to be shocked and horrified at an article published in the Wall Street Journal today regarding corporate recruiting on college campuses. According to the article, recruiters from top-rated firms favor public school students over private school attendees because they “get more bang for their buck”. Moreover, the recruiters ranked their top 25 picks and I was GROSSLY offended to see that USC was ranked below Arizona State University. While I will admit to being an education snob, I can’t fathom that a recruiter from a top-rated company would give a job to an ASU grad over a USC alumnus. This ranking has seriously made me question my relationship with The Wall Street Journal.

The Price of Happiness

Since each day that passes I get closer and closer to entering the real world—8 months away!—I find myself thinking more and more about….money. How am I going to sustain the life that my parents have generously created for me? Why are there so many different types of insurance I have to suddenly start worrying about paying for? Although some optimists claim that money can’t buy satisfaction, I’m beginning to think money is the ONLY thing that keeps people satisfied.

I’ve never dreamed about being a billionaire,but I’ve always wondered what it would be like to not have to stress over money. I mentioned in a previous post that I am a huge fan of the Wall Street Journal, and today I came across a blog post from The Wealth Report titled The Perfect Salary for Happiness: $75,000.  This sparked two thoughts in my mind; 1-How is any survey able to come up with a tangible salary number for happiness? and 2-I NEED TO READ THIS.

The author of the post referred to a Gallup survey administered in 2008 and 2009 that split happiness into two categories: day-to-day contentment and overall life assessment. According to the results, higher income always leads to an increase in life assessment, but day-to-day contentment plateaus at the magical number…$75,000. Angus Deaton, a Princeton economist who conducted the survey, states, “Giving people more income beyond 75K is not going to do much for their daily mood … but it is going to make them feel they have a better life”.

I’m thankful I found this post because it put things in perspective for me. While a high salary makes individuals feel more accomplished in terms of success, it does not mean that you will enjoy life as much as any other person.

New life goal: Aim for $75,000.

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