CollegeSurfing Insider

I know how important a degree is. (I write about career education for a living, after all!) I know that a degree can be key to getting a good job and a bigger paycheck. Education opens your world and sharpens your mind. I know. What I didn’t know is that education can actually lengthen your life.

This recently in from Harvard Medical School and Harvard University:

While life-expectancy has increased significantly for educated people over the last 20 years, it has plateaued for less educated people. In other words, those whose education level does not exceed high school have not been sharing the benefits of prolonged lifespan. This is the case for both African Americans and Caucasians. Deaths related to tobacco use account for at least one-fifth of the growth in mortality differences by education that create this life-expectancy gap.

Basically, those with more than 12 years of education are now shown to have significantly longer life expectancy than those who never went beyond high school. In the groups studied, as of 2000, those who were better educated at age 25 could expect to live to age 82; for the less educated, 75.

Is that motivation enough to finally get your degree off the backburner?

If not, consider this: Not only can education lengthen your life, it can help you live better, too.

According to the 2007 edition of the College Board’s “Education Pays” report, the more educated you are, the healthier you are. In 2005, 61 percent of four-year college graduates ages 25-34 exercised vigorously at least once a week. Only 31 percent of high school graduates did so.

In fact, at every age, those with higher levels of education are more likely to engage in leisure-time exercise than those with lower levels of education. Numerous studies investigating the relationship between education and health support the idea that the skills, attitudes, and patterns of thought fostered by education lead to more responsible health-related behaviors.

For a wellness-seeking society, these are correlations worth considering. Because your degree pursuit won’t just plump your paycheck — it will change your life!

-Robyn Tellefsen

Well, now you can… Each week CollegeSurfing.com profiles a different school to inform students of what they have to offer. Because with so many schools out there, it’s natural to feel overwhelmed. Let us do what we do best and give you the inside scoop on programs, offerings, and school-cool tidbits that’ll help you in choosing a college or university right for you.

Take a look, and then take a moment to view all our past Featured School sneak peeks. Reading. It does a body good.

ITT Technical Institutes
Students interested in a technology-based career are in the right place at the ITT Technical Institutes, which boasts more than 90 campuses throughout 30 states in the U.S. The technological advances are limitless here.

Milan Institute
The Milan Institute has many campuses in the western part of the U.S. and online to enhance your career and the appearances of others within cosmetology programs.

Arizona Culinary Institute
Arizona Culinary Institute has been helping students mix up a great education since 2001. The culinary school offers many different programs in culinary arts, baking, and restaurant management.

Rasmussen College
There are many different programs in different schools that are offered in different states at Rasmussen College. Students can find many different opportunities at this career school.

This past week, I was a guest speaker at a public relations course at St. John’s University, which also happens to be my undergrad alma mater. It was the first time I stepped foot on campus since I graduated in ‘98. In fact, the classroom I spoke in was housed in a gorgeous new academic center that used to be a lawn. It made me realize that some things are still the same (like the bad parking!), but mostly, times have changed.

When I was a college senior nine years ago, for instance, doing an internship was hardly a given. Not all students did them, and the ones who did, chose to as an excuse to take less classes. Lucky for me, I took the “easy” route and decided to intern for a small publishing company just down the road from campus above a strip mall. It was sort of related to my major — English — and I figured it was more interesting than taking some goofy elective like Astronomy or Medieval Archeology. The last thing I wanted to become, however, was the intern cliche, swimming in a sea of file folders, coffee filters, and band-aids from all the paper cuts. Hence why I figured a small company would be my best shot at getting some good experience under my belt.

So low and behold, I went to my internship 12 hours a week as my school required, and to my surprise, I learned so much. It was the first time I saw this new computer thing that made a gurgly fax machine noise called “the Internet” (yes, I’m serious!). I also handwrote my first article, and typed it into the company’s one computer while the other employees went out to lunch, and it eventually resulted in my first published byline.

As my internship progressed, I slowly realized I was hooked on seeing my name in print, and I wanted to be a journalist, a writer, and an editor. I graduated that May, but kept writing articles for my internship editor — some of which I was paid like $50 for. I was so ecstatic about all the extra income! As I’ve said, times have changed.

All these years later, that small publishing company is not so small anymore. They’ve relocated from the strip mall to a corporate office building, have a way larger staff, and everyone even has their own computer. Including me! That’s right — the internship that got me out of Intro to Woodworking, turned out to be where I’ve made my career home for the last nine years. I’ve grown along with The CollegeBound Network (and thankfully, they pay me now!).

What does this all mean for you, readers? Let’s extract some lessons:

- Don’t always go with the crowd. Had I taken Marine Biology for English Majors instead of testing the waters of a possible career path, I may never have discovered my affinity for journalism. To that end, had I listened to my college advisor and majored in business, I’d be punching numbers into spreadsheets right now — which is great if you’re good at that sort of thing, but I’m definitley not. And while it’s perfectly OK and quite common to change careers a few times over the course of your working life, it’s so much easier when you nail it the first time, don’tcha think?

- Decide what you love to do, and get good at it. Before I officially considered myself a journalist, I felt I needed to get some formal training, meet people in the field, and choose the right track for me. So before I went full-time with CollegeBound, I pursued my master’s degree in journalism at NYU to really hone the craft, and I realized my preference for magazines over newspapers in the process. Plus, it opened up a world of industry events and opportunities — in fact, I’m going to a media lecture for alumni next week. Which brings me to my next point…

- Build career relationships. You never know from whom your next job offer will come. Whether you intern for someone, meet at an industry trade show, or take classes, stay in touch with former employers, colleagues, professors, and classmates. Inevitably, networking is almost always how people land their dream positions.

- Change with the times. I wish I could travel back to ‘98 to tell myself to get in on the ground floor of that weird “Internet” thing. Oh well… But I did have the sense to keep up with technology and it’s a good thing. My print journalism career has completely transformed to a Web-based, blogging, HTML-ing one. And, well, the Internet basically runs my whole working life.

It goes to show that although times change, and campuses and companies grow, everything eventually comes full circle. Even if that circling happens to take place in a crowded college parking lot.

Q: Who can I go to for advice when I’m thinking of entering a new career field?

Great question! First off, you’re already on the right track in realizing that there are always people out there that can help you learn more about your field of interest. Online resources like CollegeSurfing.com are great (excuse the shameless plug), but surfing for information has to be paired with some proactive research. Here are three people that can help…

1. The admissions officer. If you’re considering attending a career school, college or university, it’s a good idea to start by requesting information from institutions of interest. Once you accumulate information, take it to the next level by contacting the admissions department to address any specific questions you may have. That might include requirements for being admitted into a program; if the school accepts transfer credit or credit for life experience; etc. Click here for five questions you should always ask.

2. A student or alumnus from a school you’re considering. No matter how helpful the admissions officer is, remember that he or she is trying to sell the school to you. To get more of an unbiased review of a school or a particular program, seek out a student or graduate and ask specific questions. What was the workload like? Did it prepare you for work in the field? Was there hands-on learning and/or intership opportunities? Etc. You can usually find such a student through a school’s Web site, on message boards, or if you visit a school and take a tour. Just be sure to speak with someone other than the school-trained tour guide.

3. A professional in the field. As you know, the CollegeSurfing Insider is fairly new to the blogosphere. So one of the first things I did to prepare myself to be a helpful blogger is read other well-known blogs. Once I felt comfortable enough to get started, I went a step further and contacted a few of my favorite career advice and education bloggers. And guess what? One of them, Penelope Truck, a well-respected columnist, author, and blogger, responded to me just this morning with kind words and advice. Likewise, whether you want to be a cosmetologist or an X-ray technician, it’s a good idea to pick the brains of people in the field. Find out what a typical day is like, if they’re happy in their work enviroment, what skills and educational background they have, etc. That way, you’ll see if it’s something you’re cut out for, and what it takes to make it.

After networking with these three people, you’ll hopefully have a clearer sense as to what is needed to be successful in your industry of interest. Of course, a second (or third) opinion never hurts, so get talking!

Is there anyone I missed? Let me know who’s been helpful to you in your new career quest.

Welcome to the crazy career world of Me, the CollegeSurfing Insider. I’ve explored so many career fields from health care to aviation, held dozens of jobs, and hold multitudes of diplomas, certifications, and full-fledged degrees in a variety of fields. And, I’m only 30 years old!

Alright, so that’s not quite the truth — well, except for the age part. I’m actually one of the editors behind the scenes at CollegeSurfing.com, a resource site — just under five years old — dedicated to sharing career advice, school news, search functionality and snazzy-cool interactivity to help you find the educational career path of your dreams.

From business corportate climbers and techie gurus, and lots of other hot professions, CollegeSurfing.com aims to connect you with educational programs that’ll prepare you for big-money, and more importantly, sanity-saving careers. The cool part? We’re there for you the whole way… so fire away some questions and we’ll choose the best ones each week and share our insight.

Stick around for the answers to these (and lots more), share your thoughts, and post your own questions in the comments section. And, be sure to check out the multitude of articles and resources at CollegeSurfing.

Any questions? The Insider is here…