economics-schools

I bought this book about a year ago when my son was a high school senior, and was briefly considering not going directly to college. The edition I have is copyright 2000, so perhaps the content is not the same as the item listed here. But when I looked into a number of the programs listed, I found that many actually required some college, or a specific field of study, or required participants be a certain age, or turned out to be unpaid volunteer programs rather than jobs or paid internships. I'd prefer to think that the 2000 edition is simply out of date (the research was probably done five years ago, or more). But I'm reluctant to recommend this book, at least for the purpose I sought it out -- finding opportunities for high school grads who don't want to go directly to college.

I first picked up this book when I was debating about whether or not to stay in college. Danielle Wood's witty, down-to-earth, and downright common sense is one of the things that helped me make up my mind.

In a society where college is seen as the ONLY way to go if you want to succeed, and it's becoming a very expensive way to go at that, more and more people are wondering if it's really all it's cracked up to be. This is a great book because it doesn't trash college in any way. It's just a sampling of what's out there if you decide NOT to go to college.

I referred back to this book when writing an article for my website titled "The Ecology of College," and it's as helpful now as it was then. When you're being pressured on all fronts to go to college, this book provides a fresh perspective by offering some healthy questioning and unbiased honesty.

If I could, I'd buy a copy for every high school senior I know. This is the kind of book that might make parents a little nervous, and readers a little anxious, but ultimately it'll help you make an informed decision, which beats ignorance any day.

The UnCollege Alternative is a great resource for those students who are in college and questioning whether or not they should be there. Ms. Wood makes an excellent point early on in the book: would you just walk into a store and point at something and say "ring it up", regardless of the cost? The author states that when students go on to college without really thinking it through as to whether or not college is for them - they are saying "ring it up" possibly for a $80,000 education.

What makes The UnCollege Alternative shine is the wide variety of potential career paths the author discusses, many of which can bring in significant incomes. She discusses all aspects of each career path: needed training, certification, potential income and job market, as well as providing a sort of "day in the life of" feel.

I think often students just go to college not knowing what they want to study, just going because that's what they are "supposed" to do. I recommend this book for ALL high school and current college students. Even if you decide that college is the right track for you, at least you are educated in what some alternatives are. It is important to know just what's out there before you potentially spend four years of your life and tens of thousands of dollars.

Another excellent book I recommend on a similar subject is "Taking Time Off" by Colin Hall and Ron Lieber.

i got ahold of this book in bosnia and its great unless your stuck on a checkpoint without the accp catalog to pick out the courses you need to enroll in.

The only thing this book is lacking is information on the other assorted correspondence course programs the ACCP offers. When is the next edition to this book coming out, Noncom Publication?

Incredible stuff! The catalog doesn't go into detail on all the problems you can encounter with the ACCP. Need a bulk issue of subcourses? Need to start up a course you quit on months ago? Want to learn how to really knock out a subcourse quickly? It's all in here.

A lovely succinct account from four towers in a tradition of economics that is widely represented in the financial markets. Roger Garrison - himself a leading light in modern times - leads off with a brief overview. The nice thing is that Garrison manages to get it all across without resorting to waffle - another Austrian tradition.

In fact, in my view, Garrison is the star of this review since his ability to keep it simple is a tremendous asset. Anyone familiar with the dark mutterings of academics in Austrian academic journals will know exactly what I'm talking about.

Aside from Garrison, the pieces by Rothbard and Harberler are the best since they tackle the central issue of Trade Cycle theory - that any system run by central bankers is inherently unstable since their tinkering with interest rates leads directly to the business cycle. Much better to have a competitive banking system without a central bank and a curency tied to gold. That way credit expansions will never be explosive. Of course, what they don't tell you is that their proposals are inherently deflationary and force deficit countries to do all adjustment when they experience balance of payments problems.

Rothbard's piece sets out the mechanics of the Trade Cycle especially well and everyone should be able to understand what he's getting at without too much difficulty. It's no more difficult than the average economics course on an MBA programme. That's hardly difficult, is it?

Readers wishing to understand the micro-economics of the Austrian school should also check out some of the recent publications of one Israel Kirzner.

At last! An anthology from one of the most important schools of libertarian economics in a portable form! This book can be easily incorporated into a course on economics or banking.
And yet, "The Austrian Theory of the Trade Cycle" is a narrowly useful tool. It's like a tire gauge, that means everything when there's a problem with the tire, but tells nothing about gas or oil levels. I see few times when the average production supervisor, Sunday-school teacher or working mom would have occasion to read it.
In the introduction, Roger Garrison spells out the differences between the Austrian School and other movements in free-market economics. The Austrian School emphasizes the role of time in decision making. To think of an example, Joe wants to buy a car now that the interest rates are low. But if the interest rates are high, he'll put his money in the bank and wait a year until he replaces the family car.
Ludwig von Mises' essay, which lends its name to the book, reveals the international character of the Austrian School. The essay was translated out of the French, points back to the British Currency School, and alludes to the contribution of Knut Wicksell from Sweden. This theory was, nevertheless, developed by Austrians, beginning with Carl Menger. References to the University of Chicago and to the Ludwig von Mises Institute in Auburn, Alabama, bring the movement to a home in America.
The key point is that a boom produced and prolonged by easy bank money with government support will sooner or later contract into a bust when the easy money turns hard. Just ask any farmer who bought machinery on credit years ago, when inflation was rampant.
Gottfried Haberler demonstrates that economics is, in fact, difficult to reduce to mathematics. He points to how money is needed at different times as a product moves out of the ground through its production phases to the end user.
In contrast, Murray Rothbard tells us with sparkling satire why we no longer have "panics" and "depressions." He also gives insight on how a change in time preference changes interest rates; interest rates fall if enough buyers become savers.
Friedrich Hayek points to an insidious effect of inflation. Not is it more fun to be a debtor on a fixed-rate loan when inflation is high, but taxable profits are much higher than the profits are worth in reality. Easy money gives rise to inflation.
Roger Garrison finally draws a couple of price/quantity graphs in his summary, savings/investment graphs to be specific. Money created by the government has the same short-term effect as a genuine increase in savings, but genuine savings are lower because savers are coolly greeted by lower interest rates for their hard-earned money. The bust after the boom is a real let-down.
With my MBA from Campbell, this material is clearer and livelier to me than it would be to the man on the street.

I ordered this book as a part of a course I am designing for myself on economics. It is a good introduction to the Austrian school but provides information that even those familiar with the subject will find useful. Rothbard addresses many fallacies regarding the free market and provides a clear explanation of the Austrian theory of the trade cycle and other theories, relating them to history and comparing them with classical and Keynesian theories. This is a helpful comparison, as it reveals some inherent flaws in the latter and outlines the eventual results of the acceptance of those theories. This book does not give an in-depth analysis of its subject, but provides a cohesive picture and points for further examination. It is also a helpful text for understanding capitalist theory and the history of the Austrian school.

This book covers a lot of ground and is easy to follow (sometimes too easy). A lot of the contents can be redundant for those with a background in marketing, finance, etc. but it is well rounded. I compared it to the Dummies equivalent and found this one to be a better read (I usually buy Dummies though - this is my first Idiots guide).

Covers basics and most important things to get you started. The rest you will forget anyway

the fast way to teach mba basics

Terrific book great for helping to get a finance job! A must buy for any MBA.

I help manage the career center an elite business school in the Northeast - and this is one of our most popular books. Along with the VaultReports.com Guides, this book is essential preparation for a career in investment banking.

Terrific book great help for getting a job in finance. Great information direct for a huge number of the top finance firms.

This book is great. I'll tell you why. It tackles an idea that many of us fresh-out-of high school, in-college, or freshly-graduated-from-college students often think. That our first job, or perhaps our first office-type job will include such nuances as: people telling us mostly what to do with our days, and a relatively quick move onto the bigger office, with the nicer window view, and, that we could easily take over the corporate company, in ten years. Well, Luppert says to us, something similar to, 'hold your horses'! And then, she takes us through some interesting thoughts, and advice. What she is trying to say, is that, often, in a new job, you don't always get told what to do, and, there are certain things one needs to do, with their fashion, attitude, and ability of drive and goals, in order to make their job more smooth, less confusing, and, to make their career-furthering goals more possible. She also says something, like, if you do not learn to do your first job well, you may be repeating such a job, every six months or so, on and on. She knows how to speak to the young; and new workers. She gives very good advice. I found this book is good for people who "have" been working, too. For example, even if you already have a job, or are going to get another one, you can take tips from this book, or, for your future job. I also was happy to read about the detailed explanation of such important facts of job-related insurance. This book definitely covers "real-life" things that, yes, our boss, and parents probably won't necessarily tell us. That's why I recommend it to many people. If you do read this book, don't let the cold hard facts get you down. Just let "reality" allow you to take the map and further yourself down the wonderful journey of new jobs and improving careers!

Rules of the Road- is an easily read book I found to take a "real world" attitude approach that I, myself, like to use in workshops and presentations. The book opens with a tone of that of a "journey". It compares a new job to that of traveling aboard by using foreign country custom references; which I found to be humorous, timeless and all too true. The book does an excellent job relating these "foreign affairs examples" back to life's lessons. Her writing style was very easy to follow because the entire book is written according to "road rules" (which are short statements you'd find on quality fortune cookies, without the lucky lottery numbers) but then proceeds to explain them further for those who may not have quite understood what message was trying to be sent.
A few downfalls I found were a few early examples she used from the 1980's; which I believe will not relate to this generation of graduates and some of the road rules were harsh and negative. One example that stuck out for me was making photocopies. The book leaves the reader with the impression that this common office task is grunge work and will only have to be done while the reader is in this entry level job. When in fact, most of us know that this is not the case. (Learning how to use the photocopier seems to be included in most new employee orientation sessions).
At the end of the book the reader will find a short section dedicated to resources explaining standard company benefits and the employment laws. Although I think these will be of some use to the reader, I feel the advice on how to deal with one's work related problems, if any do occur, is unprofessional and should draw concern from Career Professionals.
This short book does accomplish its task of giving an insight to the first time, post graduation, job seeker and I do recommend it but I think like any book, readers should take everything with a grain of salt.

I picked this book up in a bookstore and read most of it before it left the store with me. I just started my first internship and the advice in the book helped me extend this internship from a one month position as office photocopier to a summer long position in the research department at almost twice the pay that i was getting previously. its an invaluable read for any kid my age, because just about every one of us walks into that first jb or internship expecting to be king of the office in two weeks or less. buy it, read it and take the advice. it'll save you a lot of embarrassment and even some photocopying!

I came at this work with an open mind and an independent background in the history of economic thought. I was severely disappointed. Occasional inconsistencies of argument or a few personal correspondences noting the short comings of the markets do not turn the classical political economists into dyed-in-the-subsidized-wool interventionists.

Far from being a "secret history" of primitive accumulation, this book is a work of theory plain and simple. I was really expecting more concrete evidence of the collusion of the classical political economists in the final phases of primitive accumulation in Great Britain, but this book does not present much compelling evidence to support its over-hyped premise. Primitive accumulation was all over but the shouting in Great Britain by the time the philosophers turned their attention to matters economic. The idea that intervention was required to move "self-provisioning farmers" (generously defined) into the factories as wage slaves is an appealing one. But the book simply does not cite enough historical evidence to prove the point.

The author is half way through the book before he addresses Adam Smith's supposedly interventionist tendencies to promote the "early" capitalists. Ricardo, Malthus, and Mill merit bare mentions. I did give the book two stars for introducing the reader to some of the neglected political economists of the early period. Overall, Marx receives the spotlight throughout the work.

This is the first book I've read that goes into much detail about the subject of primitive accumulation, and I'm impressed. Having an American History perspective, when I think about the social engineering behind a capitalist economy, I think about protective tariffs, slavery, moving Indians off the land, subsidies to canals and railroads, etc. It's fascinating to see that coercion and government involvement goes back much farther than that. And it's good to learn about some of the more forgotten political economists like James Steuart.

One does not have to be particularly leftist appreciate this book. Whether means to capitalist economic development was wrong or a "necessary evil", it's still extremely useful to know that things just didn't evolve naturally out of free exchange. The system was consciously engineered so that the "right sort" of people would be successful, and there's nothing sinister when people, through democratic choice, re-engineer things to bring about a reduction in income inequality, environmental protection, etc.

While not all leaders and thinkers in the 18th century were economists, I have a slight problem with the portrayal of Adam Smith. Now perhaps I've been seduced by his charm, but it seems as though he has a more complex view of the common good. Of course he wasn't a modern leftist or a cultural relativist, but at the same time, he wasn't a William Graham Sumner-style Social Darwinist of the late 1800s either.

"Whenever the legislature attempts to regulate the differences between masters and their workmen, its counsellors are always the masters. When the regulation, therefore, is in favour of the workmen, it is always just and equitable; but it is sometimes otherwise when in favour of the masters. "

The author doesn't use quotes like this from Smith, perhaps he assumes the "pro-worker" statements are well-known enough not to repeat. But how many ways can we interpret this?

"The capricious ambition of kings and ministers has not, during the present and the preceding century, been more fatal to the repose of Europe, than the impertinent jealousy of merchants and manufacturers. The violence and injustice of the rulers of mankind is an ancient evil, for which, I am afraid, the nature of human affairs can scarce admit of a remedy. But the mean rapacity, the monopolizing spirit of merchants and manufacturers, who neither are, nor ought to be, the rulers of mankind, though it cannot perhaps be corrected, may very easily be prevented from disturbing the tranquility of any body but themselves."

Pretty strong language. The author would say that he's talking only about a certain class of merchants, perhaps.

Some leftists like Noam Chomsky will talk favorably about Adam Smith, as part, I think, of a larger argument to show that market fundamentalism and Social Darwinist "class warfare" are a departure from Classic Liberalism. Maybe I'm being naïve but I'm more sympathetic to this view. I feel it unwise to throw away so much of classic liberalism when it seems that most 18th century liberals wouldn't support modern corporate capitalism. From reading this book, I partly get the sense that you should either be a supporter of "invisible hand" market economics, or a Marxist. But that isn't the case.

Benjamin Franklin, a friend of Adam Smith, wrote a lot of contradictory statements, it is true. But this quote, I think, shows the concept of civic virtue that many of America's "founding fathers" had:

"Private property is a Creature of Society, and is subject to the Calls of that Society, whenever its Necessities shall require it, even to its last Farthing, its contributors therefore to the public Exigencies are not to be considered a Benefit on the Public, entitling the Contributors to the Distinctions of Honor and Power, but as the Return of an Obligation previously received, or as payment for a just Debt."

This is a superb refutation of the warmed-over 1890s Social Darwinist mentality. Wealthy people aren't being punished when they pay higher taxes. Nor are they doing an act of benevolence. They are paying a "just debt" because in the long run, large-scale private-property is socially engineered, and the rich man depends on government more than the poor man.

Overall I have few disagreements with this book, and I highly recommend it.

You're self-employed, with many religious holidays, and while you're not rich, at least you're getting along. So why give this up to become a wage worker for somebody else, with little spare time, and a struggle for subsistence. Despite obvious simplifications, this is a core problem confronting capital at the dawn of the modern era, known also as primitive accumulation. How, that is, can self-sufficient peasants and others of similar status be converted into subservient factory hands, an obvious degradation. Yet without some such conversion, where would the labor for fields and factories come from if not the rural economy. To meet the need, New World colonies imported slaves and indentured servants. But Great Britain needed a new social division of labor, one that would stock emerging markets with commodities from a work force employed by a new social class. As conditions stood, the capitalist equation was only half complete--a wage labor class was needed.

Perelman examines the problem through the eyes of early political economists such as Adam Smith. What he finds is disturbing. Smith and followers generally suppress the real historical conflict, replacing actual coercive measures (game laws, etc.) with imaginary allusions to voluntary choice, as though worker autonomy was willingly swapped for a dependent wage rate. Nonetheless, voluntarism preserves the fiction of an immaculate conversion, and comports with market relations as an irresistable harmonizing force --the Smithian paradigm. However, other early thinkers primarily James Steuart are more candid than Smith, arguing that state intervention is necessary to separate working people from their subsistence, forcing them into the labor pool. As an analyst of the period, the obscure Steuart stands as a more accurate guide, in Perelman's view, than the celebrated author of The Wealth of Nations. Nevertheless, all the early economists, it appears, are eager to assist a nascent capitalist class in its quest for primitive accumulation. Yet, among them, Smith offers the most elegantly stated and publicly palatable version. Therefore, it is his version of a bloodless voluntarism that dominates an official record which even now continues to mislead. In short, orthodox opinion to the contrary, Smith and company operate as apologists of capital first, social scientists second.

This is an important and controversial contention. Perelman marshalls considerable evidence to support the thesis. Moreover, he argues that despite common impressions, primitive accumulation is not an historical relic, but continues in many parts of the globe. An important -- though unargued--theoretical point also emerges. Smithian thought characterizes market relations as a kind of natural necessity, like Law of Gravity; Marxian thought characterizes them as an historical necessity, a stage on the way to communism. According to both popular schools, there is something inevitable--beyond choice--about capitalist production relations . If I understand Perelman correctly, these same relations are understood as in no sense inevitable. Instead they are invented. History could have taken a non-capitalist course, and still can-- a key step in confronting the inequities of a post-Cold War world.

The author's style is accessible to the serious but non-professional. And except for a really murky last chapter on Smith and Lenin, the work stands as a solid and provocative piece of research. Recommended.

"A must-read for publishers producing their first or even their 200th catalogue! Carol Waugh has distilled a complex subject into a practical, how-to guide that provides valuable information from both a design and a marketing perspective. Highly recommended--Florrie Kichler, Patria Press, Inc.

A resource that every catalog marketer should have at their finger-tips. Packed with easy-to-follow advice that will improve the effectiveness of this important marketing channel.

Michael Subrizi
Director of Marketing
Market Data Retrieval

Carol does a fabulous job of detailing the elements of a successful, profitable catalog. For beginners, it is an invaluable checklist. For veterans, it is a reminder of basic principles. Best of all, Carol not only tells you what to do, but provides tons of examples. As Ellen de Generes and Martha Stewart would say..."Buy the book. It's a good thing.

Bill Evans
President
Evan-Moor Publishing

The publisher should be convinced that the automatic spell checker should not be so heavily relied upon. The cover art is an expression of how an armchair graphic artist can be innovative with Photoshop. If a book of such high esteem be put out for public enrichment its presentation should not be so insincere.

This work is a masterpiece of economic theory only second to
the Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith. Ricardo states that value
is a function of effort and not the price paid for labor. He
reminded us that labor plus the tools to assist labor affected
the creation of value. Therefore; increases in value were in
direct proportion to increments in labor. Value was also a
function of the time it took to bring the goods to market.
Surprisingly, the cultivation of inferior land resulted in a

higher exchangeable value of raw produce because more labor
was required in its production. If we become more efficient in
land cultivation, rents will go down because more can be
cultivated with less land. In addition, the exchangeable value
of commodities is undisturbed by natural or accidental causes.
Laborers derive their greatest pleasure when the market price
of labor exceeds the natural price. Therefore; wages will
increase in response to increases in the demand for labor.
Rises in rent are accompanied by increments in the share of
produce because landlords want more rent when harvests are
greater. Accordingly, the price of corn is a function of the labor to produce it. If wages go down, then prices must fall.
As the price of labor goes down, profits increase but the
price of the commodity may not go down. Taxes on profits
tend to increase the price of a commodity . If money is not
taxed, then all commodities will be subject to price increases.
Ultimately, a tax on land begets a tax on produce. In addition,
a tax on labor will raise its price. In addition, the price of
provisions determine the price paid to the worker. If money
decreases in value, all commodities will be subject to steep
price increases. This was seen in modern times with the
fluctuation of the Russian currency. Ultimately, bounty
lowers the price to foreigners because the government subsidizes
the bounty paid to the local merchants to stimulate trade.
The theory of rent transfers value but does not create it.
Ultimately, wages are determined by the price of food and
cost of production.

This theory of wages differs from Adam Smith who said that
wages were a function of the ease or hardship to do work, the
difficulty or expense of learning a trade, the constancy
of employment, the trust reposed in the workmen, the probability
of success or failure of the venture or the fear of misfortune.
David Ricardo's work is an important milestone in the theory
of economics and comparison to the work of Adam Smith.

David Ricardo was never one to mince words.
"The opinion entertained by the labouring class, that the employment of machinery in frequently detrimental to their interests, is not founded on prejudice and error, but is comfortable to the correct principles of political economy." Unlike today, the ruling class and their intellectuals of the 19th Century were not affraid to say what they were up to.

This book applies by all circumstances and all field of our life to improve its quality. I would like to pay more attention to the following 5 points of view and learn how to control your bad luck.

1. In charge of host not guest. He says, "Do prepare the things they are never expecting at the meeting. This means surprised something always can enforce the relationship between you and them. Get ready? Go for it. 2. Know about your customer or client first before you let them purchase your produts. Keep listening and watching their body and oral language to understand what they want rather than emphasize your desire. That's the point. This may lead you high performance.

3. Avoid conflicting. Excellent negotiator can be able to endure until right time coming with perseverance to win finally.

4. More listen less speak. Open your ears and close your mouth toward others. It will lead to successful businessmen but difficult to do.

5. Remind the importance of time management Persuade your time or you will be conquered by it. Manage it minute by minute effectively. In this case, we don't need speed. We need depth.

His lesson is still available even though 13 years over from his writing time.

Mr. McCormack reminds us of the fundamentals and basic goals of business in order to succeed and prosper. The book is quite clear and informative. It's the kind of book that you want to share with everyone, but on the other hand keep it to yourself because what you learn from this book will make you appear like a genius. This is a book that everyone from students to business managers and owners should read. It's a quick and easy read with long-lasting practical benefits. It is a must read.

I read McCormack's first book right out of college and use his advice daily. He has a no-nonsense approach to business and understands business is about common sense and relationships. This is an important book that everyone from the recent college graduate to the CEO should read. It is a must read.