To say that I’ve been enjoying the Winter Olympics in Vancouver is an understatement. While I certainly don’t have the expertise of the television commentators, most of whom have competed in these very same events, I do feel confident in being able to sum up the skiing events in one emphatic word: Ouch!

Yes, skiers (and a few unlucky skaters, too) are certainly falling, crashing, face planting, and otherwise wiping out quite often during these Winter Games. You might have been too busy cringing from your TV screen to notice, but luckily for those fallen skiers, the crew of medics was on the scene right away—a testament to the training one can receive at one of the many health care schools in Canada.

The health care industry has long been a great field to work in—after all, people helping other people is always a good thing. But with growing population of aging citizens in Canada, just like in the U.S. and in other countries around the world, the demand for trained health care professionals is growing every year.

When one thinks of the health care industry, two jobs that immediately come to mind are those of doctors and nurses. While these positions are without a doubt critical to any good medical team, they are just two of the many career opportunities in health care. From medical assistants to phlebotomists and from billing specialists to hospital administrators, there are countless promising careers in health care.

Canada is a large country, so depending on the province in which you live or in which you would like to work, there will be a health care school for you. Check into local vocational and career schools as well as larger liberal arts colleges and universities that have health care programs as part of their curriculum.

American students can also expand their search for health care programs by considering Canadian schools. Outside of Quebec, where French is often spoken, much of Canada is English-speaking; therefore, Americans studying in Canadian health care programs can study abroad without the culture shock of learning a completely new language.

If you are already working in health care, you can keep your job and work towards achieving the next level by taking classes part time or online. Whatever your goal—be it to work in a large hospital, in a nursing home, or even on the ski slopes of Vancouver—you can achieve it by enrolling in one of the many health care programs in Canada.

–Barbara Bellesi

Let’s be honest, no matter how much watching the Olympics makes us think we can become a famous snowboarder, skier or figure skater, only a few of us are destined to become Olympic athletes.

But as you watch the Winter Olympics in Vancouver and cheer for those who are at the top of their sport (like how Lindsey Vonn wowed me with her gold medal in skiing), you may notice that it takes so much more than athletes to pull an Olympics off.

In honor of the 2010 Olympics, here are behind-the-scenes careers that can be essential in big international events like the Games.

1. Broadcasting: Say what you will about how NBC is broadcasting the Winter Olympic results (it’s so hard to keep from learning who won before seeing the action on TV), but if it weren’t for those in the broadcast industry, we wouldn’t be planted on the couch for days watching the Opening Ceremony, tear-jerking medal ceremonies, and incredible competitions this month.

2. Journalism: Some of our friends are in Vancouver writing about athletes like Apolo Ohno and Shaun White, and covering all aspects of the games, for newspapers, magazines, and Web sites. Photographers are snapping shots of victories, upsets and the daily excitement of the games for the Olympic committee, media and companies like those who sponsor the athletes.

3. Lighting design: The lighting helped make the Opening Ceremonies a memorable moment, along with those involved in the sets, in the choreography, and working as dancers and performers during the ceremony and other events. Lighting designers also are crucial for viewers to see what’s happening at individual venues like the nighttime men’s half pipe snowboarding competition, too.

4. Athletic training: The education offered by sports management programs can land people jobs as trainers, who are vital to the athletes in preparation of and during the games.

5. Graphic design: The logos, merchandise and more for the Olympics require a cohesive look that graphic designers help create.

6. Event planning: Orchestrating a major event like the Olympics takes people who are knowledgable about conceiving, planning and pulling off everything from individual competitions to the much-watched Opening Ceremony.

7. Advertising: The endorsements from popular athletes for major corporations and ads shown in between the competition is crucial for businesses who see the Olympic audience as one they want to reach. They rely on advertising agencies and professionals who know how to create ads that play up the emotion and joy of the Games.

8. Food and beverage services: There’s a huge need to provide the food for the athletes, spectators and workers during the games, and pursuing the education provided by a culinary program can lead to employment for companies that get the Olympic-sized jobs.

9. Security: Keeping the Olympic venues secure is critical, so when looking at the field of law enforcement, consider that it’s more than just keeping your local community safe but you could be called on to assist during larger events, too.

10. Fashion design: From Ralph Lauren’s uniforms and apparel for the USA team to the aerodynamic suits for speed skaters to the sparkly outfits worn by figure skaters, there’s plenty of opportunity for those wanting to use fashion design to help athletes perform better, and look good while they’re doing so.

So, be inspired by the time and effort that the athletes have put into their sport, and you may find yourself on the job at a future Olympics.

~Lori Johnston

If Oscar nominee Meryl Streep’s portrayal of Julia Child in “Julie and Julia” has you considering the culinary industry or if you’re already pursuing a degree in this field, then you may be hungry for news of scholarships.

Check this out: The Culinary Trust, philanthropic partner of the International Association of Culinary Professionals, is offering 24 scholarships valued at nearly $150,000 for the 2010-2011 academic year. It is accepting scholarship applications for formal culinary education and independent study and research, through March 1.

Donors include top culinary institutes such as Le Cordon Bleu campuses around the world, The Culinary Institute of America, The Institute of Culinary Education, and The Italian Culinary Academy.

The qualifications include: merit, culinary goals, skills, and references.

So what else do you need to know?

• The scholarships are for those seeking vocational, associate or bachelor’s degrees.
• You don’t need food service experience unless that’s required for admission to the program, if pursuing those degrees.
• If you’re pursuing a continuing education and advanced degree scholarship, you need two years of industry experience.
• You will need to write a two-page essay with your culinary goals.
• You must have a 3.0 GPA or higher

So do what Julia Child did and be fearless – pursue these and other scholarships and you could find the financial stress of school could be taken away. And that could be a recipe for a successful career.

Bon appetit!

-Lori Johnston

Ask most adults who are thinking of going back to school what their biggest obstacle is, and chances are most of them will tell you it’s the cost. Understandably so — tuition is expensive! And, often,  students who are going back to school are doing so at their own expense, and with the hopes that a degree will lead to better income opportunities. In short, it’s an investment, and with investments come risk.

This notion was the inspiration behind CollegeSurfing.com’s new resource section that focuses on the costs of various degree programs. You can read specifically about tuition and fees by career field or academic discipline, from nursing degrees and culinary arts training to master’s degree programs.

If you’re thinking of investing in your education in 2010, be sure to take a peek at what it’ll cost you, and whether or not you can expect financial aid help.

Are there any degree programs not included that you’d like to know more about? Let us know, and we’ll get to work on it. Good luck!

My friends and I acted like unofficial advertising experts on Sunday night, immediately commenting in between bites of chips and salsa about which Super Bowl ads were funny (Betty White in the Snickers ad), poignant (Google’s Parisian romance ad) or a waste of time (the ad that seemed to be for the U.S. Census Bureau).

Did you do that, too?

And we shared our immediate like or dislike for the ads by those and other companies like Coca-Cola, Denny’s, Intel, Anheuser-Busch, Dodge, Doritos, Dr. Pepper, CareerBuilder.com and others, I realized that I was happily judging the work of professionals in the advertising industry. It probably took months to brainstorm and create the ad, and maybe even some sleepless nights. Even one ad, for Doritos, wasn’t done by a professional, but two unemployed and wishful filmmakers who won a $1 million prize for creating the ad for less than $2,000.

Whether you thought certain ads were well done or just dumb, you’ve got to admit that just being involved in the biggest advertising night on TV is cool.

You may think an advertising degree is the only degree you can pursue to do this type of work, but that’s not the case. Yes, some schools offer advertising degrees, but if not, don’t be disappointed because there’s an array of degrees you can pursue.

For example, a degree in arts and sciences or business management is what some advertising executives who created the Super Bowl ads earned as undergraduate students from public and private schools. Those programs give graduates the education to understand what clients want and how to do the research and build a team to create an interesting ad.

But for a little more of a focus, art schools and design schools are definitely worth considering. You’ll get the skills and training to learn how to create the ads for not just TV, but other media like the Internet, radio, print publications and even cell phones.

A degree in the media arts not only strengthens your natural creative talent but also teaches you about everything from the latest software programs to visual and special effects. Folks with ad firms on both coasts hold degrees in media arts, so that shows you it’s a wise choice if you desire to be involved in the artistic aspect of creating ads.

Or many folks in the advertising profession boast degrees in communications, or even more specifically marketing and public relations, which teaches them how to create an ad campaign for a client or a company, from the research to an eye-catching slogan or ad concept.

And definitely a degree in animation can be crucial, as the cast of “The Simpsons” appeared in an ad for Coca-Cola.

Of course, the Super Bowl ads are so great because it’s a way for us to see actors in unexpected ways, like having Oprah, Letterman and Leno watching the game together or seeing Betty White tackled or Kiss’ Gene Simmons talking about Cherry Dr. Pepper. So of course going to acting school could be the start of a career, too.

Are you ready to get into the advertising game? Go career exploring.

-Lori Johnston

Deciding to go to college later in life can be a little bit easier, if you live in a place where the state or university may waive your tuition.

The American Council of Education found that about 60 percent of accredited degree-granting educational institutions offer tuition waivers for older adults, according to its November 2008 survey.

For example, the University of Delaware offers tuition-free classes for credit if students are 60 or older (although fees are still charged). The University of Arkansas is doing the same.

Some states have free tuition programs, too, although you need to check with your state because some have changed their plans (North Carolina, for example, ended its tuition waiver policy last year).

Alabama’s Senior Adults Scholarship Program offers free tuition to those aged 60 and over who meet admission requirements to attend public two-year colleges in the state.

FinAid.org reports that these states offer tuition waivers at public institutions: Alaska, Arkansas, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Texas, Vermont, Virginia, and Washington D.C.

There is a catch – it often depends on which school, courses and degree program you are pursuing and if there’s space available for a non-paying student.

It’s also interesting to see some states and organizations trying to make it easier for older students to learn about higher education.

Here are a couple of relatively new efforts to keep in mind:

• Oregon’s Adult Learner Web site offers resources about financial aid and a toll-free number for folks to call with questions.
• Today’s GI Bill also provides the scoop on benefits and success stories of veterans who have earned their degrees.

Let us know if you qualify for any of the free tuition programs, and how it’s helping your wallet. Happy tuition-free learning!

-Lori Johnston