We love it when celebrities advance in their education, such as country star Garth Brooks, who earned his master’s degree this year from Oklahoma State University. (And we checked – it wasn’t his old rock alter ego Chris Gaines who earned the degree).

In honor of Brooks – the No. 1 selling solo artist in U.S. history – we had fun taking a look back at some of his famous song titles and connecting them to the life of students in school.

“Ain’t Goin’ Down (‘Til the Sun Comes Up)”: Those nonstop study sessions or remaining hours until a project or paper is due might have you staying up all night to make the grade.

“Friends in Low Places”: You may need to be the one to encourage your classmates, if they get down about the amount of work needed to complete their degree or if they don’t perform as well as they wanted to on an exam.

“If Tomorrow Never Comes”: Sure this is intended to be a love song, but you may feel overwhelmed by so many exams, like tomorrow will never come. But don’t be discouraged. You’ll get there!

“Much Too Young (To Feel This Damn Old)”: If you’re in a class with younger students, or “tougher broncs,” as Garth says, you may start out the semester feeling your age. But recognize that your life experience can be a plus in school, and you have learned what it takes over the years to persist and be successful.

As a student, what’s your school theme song? Tell us in the comments, on Facebook, or Twitter.

It’s a puzzling predicament: people can’t find jobs, and employers can’t find people to hire. It’s called a “skills gap,” and it basically means that workers don’t have what it takes to get hired or to get the job done.

Some say the answer is to get more people go to college. This is certainly an important piece of the puzzle, since post-secondary training can impart the kinds of skills needed to succeed in today’s jobs. But just making sure more people get certificates or degrees isn’t the answer. The key is to get the right kind of training, the kind that is needed to keep our changing economy afloat.

The good news is that there are already some national and state-wide initiatives in place to help workers get up to speed.

Developed by the Council for Adult and Experiential Learning (CAEL), Lifelong Learning Accounts (LiLAs) are employer-matched, portable accounts that workers use to finance their education and training. The Lifelong Learning Accounts Act of 2011 is still in the first step of the federal legislative process (if it passes, workers can get tax benefits from their LiLA), but several states have already launched these 401(k)-like programs for their workers. Maine was the first state to launch a state-based LiLA program, and Illinois was the first state to pass legislation for a pilot in the health care sector that provides matching dollars for LiLA contributions. Washington state has also adopted a LiLA program, and California has passed legislation to establish a LiLA program in 2014.

Michigan is bridging the skills gap with its very own “No Worker Left Behind” initiative, which provides unemployed or low-wage workers with up to $10,000 in free tuition for community college, university, or other approved training. Workers must pursue a degree or occupational certificate in a high-demand occupation or emerging industry (e.g., advanced manufacturing, health care, biotechnology, renewable energy) or in an entrepreneurship program. In an increasingly knowledge-based economy, Michigan is taking serious steps to get its workers up to snuff.

Exciting things are taking place at the federal level, too. The Aspen Institute, an international nonprofit, is spearheading a national campaign specifically designed to close the skills gap. Through Skills for America’s Future, a nonpartisan initiative, employers are connecting with community colleges in order to train students for 21^st century jobs. In one of its most recent endeavors, Skills for America’s Future joined forces with the National Association of Manufacturers to give students the training and industry credentials they need to make it in today’s advanced manufacturing workplaces.

If you don’t live in an area that’s offering special skill-building opportunities like these, all is not lost. It just means you have to be especially proactive and take your career preparation in your own hands. Going to college is an important step, but what you do there is more important than just showing up or getting a piece of paper at the end. And one of the best experiences to incorporate into your education is an internship or apprenticeship. Internships offer a great opportunity to determine and hone the kinds of skills employers really need. That way, once you have your coveted piece of paper in hand, you’ll already have real-world experience and demonstrable skills.

With opportunities like these in place, we’re hoping the “skills gap” goes the way of the dinosaur.

-Robyn Tellefsen

Stop and share this news with your smartphone: More American adults (35 percent) own a smartphone than a bachelor’s degree (27.5 percent)!

I have both – a two-year-old Blackberry Storm (although I’m eagerly waiting for the new iPhone to give it a try), and a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of Georgia, which I earned in 1995.

I love my smartphone (oh, the instant access to e-mail, Facebook, Twitter, photos, TV shows, and more!) and my degree. So I figure that’s enough of a qualification to share my three reasons why a bachelor’s degree is more important than a smartphone.

1. A smartphone may make you feel smart, but a degree gives you a key credential to show potential employers.

It takes dedication and determination (not to mention a financial investment) to earn your bachelor’s degree. Once you have it, it shows employers that you have met the college’s requirements and have a strong aptitude for the subject. Sure, you may be able to quickly pull up restaurant reviews, the latest YouTube videos, and beat friends in Scrabble by using your smartphone, but I doubt any of those will impress an employer during a job interview.

2. A smartphone helps you be connected at all times, but a degree gives you potential connections for a rewarding career.

If you love the instant access to email, text messaging, photos, videos, and other information that you get from a smartphone, you’re likely the type of person who likes to be in the know and on top of the latest trends and news about your friends, celebrities, or things that you’re passionate about. A degree offers those same kind of connections. You’ll form relationships with professors and students who could lead to your first job or big career steps. You’ll learn about industry groups and major companies to follow (even by using Twitter on your smartphone) to find out about the latest trends in your field and make you a smarter employee or job candidate.

3. A smartphone’s battery life will lessen as you watch TV, movies, and video, and just use it on a daily basis, but a degree will boost your life professionally.

My biggest problem with a smartphone is how much just daily use sucks the life out of my battery, often causing my phone to die until I plug it in and resuscitate it. Earning your bachelor’s degree won’t harm any of your career aspirations, but will juice up your professional life, increasing your earning potential and allowing you to find a job in a field you love.

There’s one thing a smartphone and a bachelor’s degree have in common – it takes research when deciding what type of smartphone to purchase and what type of bachelor’s degree program you want to pursue. We can’t live without our smartphone, but if you’re only living with your smartphone, consider pursuing your bachelor’s degree, too!

-Lori Johnston

Hope everyone’s summer is off to a great start! We wanted to let you know about the “traveling” that the CS Insider has been doing lately. OK, not traveling exactly, but we’ve guest blogged for a couple of really terrific sites as of late, and we didn’t want you to miss out.

First, head over to Bad Ballet. The site is for women who are taking the leap onto the next stage of their lives — get it? Much like you, many of the Bad Ballerinas are making big changes in their lives, and sometimes that involves a new career or educational journey. We share our tips on how to decide if going back to school is the right move.

Next, we’re over at RamenRentResumes.com, the destination for students fresh out of college who are newly on the job hunt, and struggling with the beginnings of adulthood. There, we chimed in about the 5 Things Every Graduate Needs to Know.

Happy reading!

With the “Twilight” and “The Hunger Games” series over, let’s face it, we all know enough about vampires and postapocalyptic worlds and can focus on some career reading this summer.

Slip one of these books into your beach bag this long holiday weekend, and get inspired about your career or furthering your education.

These authors make it easy to soak up both the rays and important information about earning a first-time degree or advanced degree to move up the ladder professionally. Just imagine what were to happen if Katniss was to combine her Hunger Games experience with a college education – she would be even more unstoppable!

How to Get Any Job: Life Launch and Re-Launch for Everyone Under 30 (Or How to Avoid Living in Your Parents’ Basement) by Donald Asher (Ten Speed Press)

Asher, a career consultant who is author of several books, encourages people to think about their “top five issues in this world” as part of considering a career path and gives the low-down on education options, recognizing that career paths can change over time. Plus, there’s a special chapter on summer jobs.

Bossypants by Tina Fey (Reagan Arthur Books)

It’s your typical career book, but Fey’s hilarious memoir shows what it’s like to succeed in a male-dominated industry, working at SNL and having her own Emmy Award-winning show, “30 Rock,” and how she balances being a mom in show business. You get all that, and be prepared to hide under your oversized beach hat because you may be embarrassed at how much Fey’s essays are making you laugh.

The MBA Reality Check by Evan Forester & David Thomas (Prentice Hall Press)

If you’re considering earning your MBA, you probably need a summer vacation from all of that research. This book presents the MBA pursuit from the mindset of how you can be a compelling candidate to a college, written in a way where you feel like you’re chatting with a friend – albeit a very experienced, knowledgable friend who is an educational consultant. Forster’s insider’s look into getting into a business school is fueled with stories of applicants, making it an easy summer read.

Let us know if you’ve found other career- or education-related books or biographies that have inspired or informed you to take your next career step!

-Lori Johnston