Breaking the Small Business Code

MBA and Jobs - Part 2

    I just read another article on how MBAs are having their visions of "corporate jets" crushed by the realities of the economy. One of the trends Business Week reports is MBA programs are seeing is more graduates interested in nonprofit and government jobs. Here is one of the most illuminating segments of the article:

"Better than Nothing

      Business schools have already been seeing some movement toward nonprofit professions, though historically those students have been outnumbered by investment bankers and consultants. Few new graduates—4.4% last year—typically take positions in nonprofits or government, says Kip Harrell, president of the CSC and vice-president for professional and career management at Thunderbird School of Global Management. However, the financial crisis and the scarcity of six-figure offers, could accelerate the do-gooder trend. Patrick Perrella, the director of MBA career development at the University of Notre Dame Mendoza College of Business, broke it down this way: It's an easy decision "if your choice is a government job at a lower salary or no job at all."

    What I find interesting is how this is positioned as a cynical trend with students looking for jobs, period. I would hope that students who enter nonprofit and government service have a passion and an interest in their new industries.  As a taxpayer and advisor to several nonprofits, I would hate to think that these students are working in their jobs by default. 

     Something NOT mentioned in this article is the enormous cost of an elite/Ivy League MBA and the return on investment the student (and/or parents) get. Is it still a good "investment" if the job you get pays similar to one you could have gotten with just a bachelor's degree?

    Any comments from students who took a nonprofit or government job because it was available instead of their vision? Are you still okay with the cost and time you invested?

MBA Schools "Retooling Emphasis" and Business Grads With No Jobs

     I recommend those interested in high end business schools read this article about Wharton MBAs in Reuters.  It is an interesting analysis of two key problems facing business schools and their graduates.

     The first problem is many of the banks, financial houses and major corporations had CEOs and senior advisors who were graduates of some of the most elite business schools in the country.  Yet having degrees from the exclusive programs at Harvard, Yale, Wharton and others did NOT stop the melt-down, bank failures, etc.  As a matter of fact, many insiders are saying the pride and hubris of these elite graduates would not let them consider there could be downsides to their actions!

     This "failure to plan for failure" has led schools like Wharton to rethink the curriculum being taught.  Many of the major companies had used the programs and skills they learned in Biz schools to justify their flawed thinking. So schools are now looking at planning for downside assumptions and using the melt-down as a "teachable moment".  As an engineer, I was taught to ALWAYS plan for failure.  Makes me wonder if maybe tech geeks would make better managers to help lead us out of this crisis!

     This leads to the second problem which is the lack of jobs for graduates. The article presents the obvious reason which is the traditional employers are gone or in serious contraction.  But what was unsaid is many employers do not want to hire students whose predecessors have not done such a good job! 

     I don't think graduating from a name brand MBA program will become a "Scarlett Letter" that keeps graduates out of good jobs. But many companies are not giving graduates a "free pass" just because they came from an elite school.  I see more and more companies looking for "dirty hands" and experience in making things work and grow. I am recommending more internships, MLM/network marketing businesses, and/or running a business from a "dorm" to my students!

    Comments and experiences from recent graduates are welcome!

Social Media Will Haunt You!

There is a great article at EduGeek Journal on how social media can result in undesired consequences. I want students and families to be aware of the risks and the responsibilities when it comes to using social media!  My recommendation is:

Don't use Social Media if you are not prepared for the consequences!

The blog discusses a story about a student posting a hate screed against a teacher on Facebook. The suspended student encouraged other students to also post hateful speech on her Facebook wall.  The student was suspended for her actions and as expected in America, the student is suing.

The blog is a great summary of positions on both sides of the "free speech" aisle - especially when it involves the education community. The situation raises many, many issues that students, families, schools, colleges and employers are just beginning to experience with social media "publishing".

What I find most illuminating is how NO ONE can agree on what net-based Social Media represents when it comes to "speech".

• Is it private free speech like "talking over a burger" or is it "print publishing" because it can be seen and read virtually forever everywhere?
• Does a private citizen have the right to publish an "opinion" and the opinion of others for public consumption OR is it "hate" speech that needs to be punished? 
• Is it private speech or is it "first amendment" press?
• Is it private speech or public incitement? 
• Is calling for an improper act with Social Media protected speech or opinion or something to be prosecuted?
• Does the "permanent nature", easy accessibility and freedom to forward virtually everywhere impact the free speech of the author if social media is used?

Facebook, MySpace and blogs are the equivalent of publishing private magazines and newspapers. Twitter is a public miniblog unless everything you do is a direct tweet. Even if taken down by the web host, many people print hard copy of sites to prove it once contained the information.And the print copy  is forwarded via the web after being scanned!

Once something has been forwarded, it will have an almost infinite life. How many times have you received the same set of cute puppy or kitten pictures from 3 different sets of friends?  Now imagine that the information is juicy gossip or negative information! As many celebrities have discovered, virtually everything posted to the web is stored somewhere and can be retrieved and passed around the world. 

Regardless of how this case turns out, this case and a growing number of others shows me that there is a BIG danger for students and others who fail to use social media in a positive way.  There are already stories about how social media information was used for denial of admissions to a college, kept someone from getting a job or even got users suspended or fired.

I agree with Matt Crosslin who posted the article that regardless of how the "legal" world spins this, you should ALWAYS be ready to take the responsibility for the action of posting, period.  Pulling out the "First Amendment" every time someone doesn't like the consequences of their postings is a disservice to the Amendment. If you do something "stupid" or hurtful on the web, be prepared for the fallout.

I recommend the simple guideline: "Don't post it if you don't want your grandmother to see it".  I also like what my mother used to say when I spread gossip: "if you can't say something nice, don't day anything at all".

Class on Boston Red Socks - Is This What College is For?

    Just read an announcement that Bates College in Lewiston, Maine is offering a class on the Boston Red Socks.  A lucky group of 15 students at this $51,400 per year college got into the class.

     Because the class is an elective, IN THEORY, taking it does not cut into the required/standard curriculum needed to graduate from Bates.  But when your student's college education costs over $50,000 a year, is this a good use of their time in college?  Is this what you are paying for on a per unit basis?  Should electives outside the major be allowed?

     As the daughter of a retired college dean, I have talked to many professors who teach classes on pet interests. I have seen classes on speaking "Klingon" or analysis of the soap opera "Dark Shadows" or classes on current "topics" like Paris Hilton.  Why such off-the-wall topics? 

      The real question is what is the purpose of electives?  Colleges say that electives "help a student become more well-rounded" by "exposing them to topics that help them better implement their major".  And virtually everyone of the professors I talked to defended their unusual topics by saying they "wove current events and unpopular topics into the class disguised by the more 'sexy' class topic".  But talking to the students, the class was usually more fun than "well-rounding".

      So is this a good use of your student's time?  Is this what you pay a per-unit tuition fee for? Does taking a class on the Boston Red Socks or Star Trek or . . . help with your career choices? And most important, should such classes even be offered when students can't get into required classes because there aren't enough of them?

      As an engineering major, taking an off-the-wall elective on "Star Trek" (yes I did) was a mental vacation for me.  But I should have taken a class in marketing or public speaking.  My parents weren't paying for me to use my units for "fun".  And about that "weaving" unpopular topics into the class -- talk to most students and usually does NOT happen. (Sorry professors who do, many of your peers use these classes for their mental vacations!).

      So what do you think about these not traditional classes being part of your student's options?  Do you think it is appropriate to pay per unit for these classes?  Do you think professors should teach these topics if the school doesn't have enough prerequisite classes?

Student Learning Outcomes and the Univ of California

       

      In today's Inside Higher Education News is a great summary article on proposed accountability plans for University of California.  The new system President Mark Yudof presented a draft of his suggestions to the Board of Regents over this past (September 20, 2008) weekend.

     Good news, is the proposal was a framework to pull together all the things the member campuses already measure but are scattered and difficult to find.  Bad news is the Regents are still fighting measuring student learning outcomes.  I appreciate their reluctance but . . .

     My issue is whether or not measuring things like faculty performance, finances and research output are really indicators of STUDENT learning!

      My main concern is that the UC system still does not participate in the Voluntary System of Accountability (VSA) which is designed to provide transparency on things like educational outcome.  The UC system does not participate in the VSA because of their suggestion to use one of three national tests measuring student learning.  The UC faculty states that such testing “usurps the role of campus and departmental faculty in assessing student learning”.

      I appreciate that no one likes being measured based on the success of another person.  Plus I know that learning is made up of many pieces that a college cannot control including preparation from high school and individual student motivation.  BUT I think there needs to be an independent measurement that is NOT controlled by the people who are being measured!

     I am the daughter of a college dean so I understand the need for research and scholarship by colleges. The problem for UC faculty is the  "product"  families are paying for is learning outcome.  Measuring how much the UC schools spend or how many grants and publications the faculty has in research is probably not something important to parents and students.   

   

WHAT DO YOU THINK?

Wall Street Meltdown Affecting Student Jobs

There is a great blog by Alison Go at the U.S. News blog site about the impact of the failure of Lehmann Brothers on student jobs.  Not only are college seniors and graduate students with offers being impacted, alumni from the elite Ivies like Yale are calling career centers for help.

     What I found the most interesting is a quote in the blog that was taken from the Michigan Daily by Al Cotrone, director of career development at the Business School:

"With fewer positions available and more veteran bankers looking for jobs, every student who's interested in banking will need to take a real serious look at the career they want and the life they want and the risks they take with that choice," said Michigan's business school career development director. "

    

 

             THE MAJOR YOU CHOOSE CAN IMPACT YOUR JOB PROSPECTS!

     Why is this such a big deal to me?  It's because over and over again I hear counselors tell students to pick majors in topics that interest them.  I like to call it the "follow your bliss" mantra from the 1960's.  Do something you love and success will follow.

     I agree with a Yes, BUT!  There is no guarantee that you will be able to find a JOB in what it is you like to do.  You may LOVE and be very good at English Romance Literature but I don't know about very many jobs in that field. 

    So the answer is BALANCE, RESEARCH and FLEXIBILITY.  It's okay to major in something you like but DO THE RESEARCH to understand the potential for jobs.  Have a balanced approach about picking a major you like with an education that lets you get a job.  And should you not be able to find a job in your major because the market has changed like it has just done, you need to be FLEXIBLE and learn new skills or maybe even look into a major or job you don't like as well!

    College is a great place for an education.  The problem is the real world will want to hire you to do something.  The question is whether or not your major in which you have an education can get you a job that allows you to live the life you want!