SavvySugar

How Money Are You: Match the Exam to the Graduate Degree

SavvySugar — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 10:33:39 -0700

Forty-four percent of you are headed to graduate school in the Fall, so many of you know that there's more to the applications than simply filling them out. Certain standardized tests are required in order to complete grad school applications, and they're different depending on what type of degree you hope to earn. Do you know which exams go with what degrees?

Take the quiz

I'm Asking: What's Your Plan B?

SavvySugar — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 11:30:51 -0800

Business school has served as a common back-up plan for many professionals when the economy and job market are in the dumps. The recession has seen its share of b-school applicants but this economic cycle also comes with a twist - it seems some MBA students need a back-up plan for their back-up plans. We're all being thrown for a loop and I know that I've come up with a couple of fall-back plans of my own, just in case. What's your plan B?

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Grind Tip: What to Do If You're Debating Another Degree

SavvySugar — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 08:00:04 -0700

Going back to school is a huge decision entailing two things that are valuable and hard to come by - time and money. A common misconception is that a master's degree will guarantee a bigger salary, but reality is that increased income is not automatic. We can weigh the pros and cons until we're blue in the face, and still end up without an answer about what is the best decision for our careers.

MSN Money personal finance columnist Liz Pulliam Weston gives a simple but smart piece of advice: "Talk to people in the positions you see yourself in someday, and ask what degrees they have and whether they needed those degrees." Many professionals are happy to help others who are interested in the same field, and getting that input could be just what you need to land on a decision.

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News Flash: Money Is on Everybody's Mind

SavvySugar — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 04:00:21 -0700

Forbes released its 27th list of the Forbes 400 ranking the 400 richest Americans - you'll need at least $1.3 billion to join this club. Of course, Bill Gates made the list. - Forbes
Networking in a time of need: University of Chicago's Graduate School of Business called its alumni that were Lehman employees just one day after the bank filed for bankruptcy. - The Wall Street Journal
The federal government is considering forming a new agency to handle the mortgage-related assets that have crippled Wall Street. - The New York Times

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Introducing the More Female Friendly M.B.A.

SavvySugar — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 04:00:33 -0700

The applications for business schools may be pouring in, but they're not necessarily from candidates the schools want to create a more balanced student body. While almost half the students in law and medical schools are female, women make up only 30 percent of students enrolled in business schools.

Some schools have begun offering part-time, morning M.B.A programs they hope will appeal to women. The early classes are intended for those with schedules that may not fit with traditional part-time evening or weekend M.B.A. programs. The Wall Street Journal sites students like 26-year old Nancy who juggles her "M.B.A. studies with an evening internship, a student-government post and home life with her boyfriend."

Would a part-time, morning M.B.A. be a better fit for your lifestyle than evening or weekend programs?

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How to Calculate the Cost of Going Back to School

SavvySugar — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 12:30:10 -0700

Many of you are enthusiastic or on the fence about going back to school sometime soon, and Sallie Mae recently launched a free online tool to help estimate the cost of your decision. Their Education Investment Planner was developed to help students better assess their choices when selecting a school and understand the true cost of education.

According to Sallie Mae's press release, the Education Investment Planner is equipped with the following capabilities.

Estimate the full cost of a college degree: Find out how much four years for a bachelors degree, two years for a masters degree, or other programs will cost at a specific school, including the average growth of tuition over time.
Build a customized Plan to pay for college through a combination of their own money, federal and state grants, scholarships and, if necessary, federal and private student loans.
Compare schools: Compare actual costs for approximately 5,500 colleges and universities not only tuition, but also average room and board expenses, fees, books and supplies.
Determine if they need student loans and, if so, estimate what their monthly payments could be after graduation and project how much a graduate would need to earn to keep payments manageable.

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Raise Your Hand If Grad School Is Looking More Appealing

SavvySugar — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 04:07:56 -0700

Per usual in a weak economy that's spurned hundreds of thousands of layoffs, business school admissions have seen the number of applicants jump visibly. Some workers strategize it's the best option for boosting their resumes and setting themselves up for a better job offer once the market picks up again.

It's not the safest of havens as many rely on student loans to pay tuition and there aren't any promises that opportunity will be knocking on the other side of their degrees. It does seem that everyone knows someone who has taken the GMAT and considered applying to B-School, but their consideration does not guarantee admission and the competition will be more fierce as applicant pools grow.

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Would You Take a Stanford Class on iTunes?

SavvySugar — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 06:00:10 -0800

Maybe you're wondering if it's even possible to take a class on iTunes. It is now - and not just from Stanford, but from Yale, Wharton, Berkeley, and more. In a relatively new move, prestigious colleges and universities are making lectures, classes, and even written materials available online.

The experience isn't exactly like taking an actual course. For one, you won't be awarded any credits, but considering it's all online and free, it seems a fair trade. You may not have access to everything from the class, but that's not really the point - as Money Magazine's Pat Regnier might tell you. He downloaded Berkeley's American economic history course on iTunes last year and a Yale professor's lecture series on the Civil War.

He wasn't seeking a secondary degree, but the lectures satisfied the urge to sharpen his intellect, without shelling out cash for grad school or a costly MBA. Just check out iTunes, Academic Earth, or OER Commons to find out what's available. So, what do you think? Would you take the time to give your intellect a boost with a little free online education?

Your Two Cents: Are Women Better Managers Than Men?

SavvySugar — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 13:30:09 -0700

In a recent interview with the New York Times, Carol Smith, who is senior vice president and chief brand officer for the Elle Group, said women are "hands down" better managers than men. She even went so far as to add "There’s no contest."

In my experience, female bosses tend to be better managers, better advisers, mentors, rational thinkers. Men love to hear themselves talk. I’m so generalizing. I know I am. But in a couple of places I’ve worked, I would often say, “Call me 15 minutes after the meeting starts and then I’ll come,” because I will have missed all the football. I will have missed all the “what I did on the golf course.” I will miss the four jokes, and I can get into the meeting when it’s starting.

As a woman, the bold stance intrigued me, particularly having just read about Shari Storm's Motherhood Is the New MBA: Using Your Parenting Skills to Be a Better Boss. Do you think it's true?

News Flash: 1 Million Homes in Foreclosure Is a Record

SavvySugar — Fri, 06 Jun 2008 14:03:24 -0700

The number of homes facing foreclosure in the US continues to climb and is currently over the 1 million mark, which is significant because it's the highest rate ever recorded. One million homes comes out to about 2.5 percent of the loans serviced by members of the Mortgage Bankers Association. Other cheery figures from the MBA's first quarter report: 3 million home loans (6.4 percent) have missed at least one payment, while 737,000 are at least three months past due but not in foreclosure just yet.

Approximately half of the homes in foreclosure are spread among six states - California, Florida, Arizona, Nevada, Ohio, and Michigan. Jay Brinkman, MBA's vide president for research and economics, commented, "Clearly things in California and Florida are going to get worse before they get better."

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