education-economics

The previous reveiwer hit the nail on the head. This essey collection does expose the greed and short-sighted planning at some of the most prestigous universities in the United States.
On the other hand, the contributers to this collection didn't address some huge issues. If the scholarly literature is incomplete in a sub-specialty of icthyology, does the university have an obligation to encourage future icthyologists knowing they might end up servers at Red Lobster? How do critics of useless degree programs respond to the point that some students want more then a meal ticket? Are financiers of student loans courting disaster knowing that the prospects for a career in Egyptology are nill?
None of these questions has a right or wrong answer. We need to explore all sides of the current economic crisis in many academic specialties.
My first job after graduation from a MPA program was guarding a scrap metal place in a bad part of town for $3.90 per hour. I didn't regret being a security guard with a MPA but regretted it was a weak MPA.

Even Allen Hale, co-descoverer of comet Hale-Bop couldn't find an academic job immediately after finishing a Ph.D in Astronomy!!!!
The Late Col.Sanders, once said,
"There aren't enough high school drop outs to hire all the college graduates."

A certain elite university boasts (literally) an endowment of $5.7 billion (yes, billion with a B)--or did as of Tuesday, 16 September; you should add a million or two per day to get the approximate sum on the day you read this. On that same date the university announced that it will embark on a $1 billion (with a B) program to renovate the buildings on its campus. Yet just eighteen months ago, this same anonymous university--by far the biggest employer in one of the most economically depressed cities in the nation--engaged in a no-holds-barred campaign to break the two unions that represent its nonacademic labor force. And just before that, the university crushed the latest effort by the graduate students' union, which was seeking, before anything else, simply to get the university to admit the self-evident truth that teaching assistants are employees and that, as such, they have the right to bargain collectively.

This institution fosters an extreme but not atypical example of the condition described in this book's subtitle. The academic labor force in the United States, from the celebrated professor to the undervalued custodian, faces an unprecedented crisis, a crisis deftly delineated in the seventeen essays of this book, roughly half of which focus on the labor struggles at the above-unnamed (but named in the book) elite university. That struggle brought support from labor's allies nationwide, but in the end it did little to change the workers' status from what frighteningly parallels--as Stephen Watt puts it in the book's most poignant metaphor--that of miners trapped in a "company town," where the perverted law of supply and demand means that the company supplies the work, so the company can demand whatever conditions are to its liking.

The book does not pretend to bipartisanship, and at times polemic detracts from persuasiveness. But the best of the essays--like Watt's, Kathy Newman's, and particularly Michael Bérubé's--back up their rousing calls to collective action with coolly logical evidence and solidly ordered argument. This is an important book for anyone who is concerned with the state of labor and/or higher education; these days, who can afford not to be?

The book is a good, quick read about the hows 'n' whys of project management. I'd like to have seen a bit more about the pros 'n' cons of using project management software, but that's OK.

If you're looking for a book specifically about software project management, immediately start with Steve McConnell's "Software Project Survival Guide".

As a pre-professional, this book has helped me with my own growth in student teaching. I know that I will use it in the future and continue to pass the word on about this useful resource.

The book was extraordinary in assistance with finding my current job. Graduating from a liberal arts college, I was at first nervous about finding a career. With the knowledge gained from this book, I realized the possibilities were endless.

Go ahead and make the first biggest investment (in terms of value) you can ever make for your children - by buying and reading this book!

Mike Powers uses strong and straightforward language, which urge parents to think, with words like, "What we are buying for our children is the ability to get good job and make more money over the course of their lifetime, without it, they are headed for 50 years of wearing funny little paper hats and endlessly repeating "would you like fries with that?" We know this and we'll pay whatever it costs to help them avoid it."

He explains why the colleges are so costly, where and why the colleges spend so much and how much it will cost in the next years to come. He suggests which colleges suit your child and what fits in our pocket. He has divided the book in to parts, investment and aid; I think all the possibilities are covered.

However, if you are already into investment, what you will find on "your contribution" section will appear basic. Also, if your child is about to go to the college in a few years time, the "other resources" section will look rudimentary. Unfortunately, Mike Powers does not reveal any specific strategy or scheme, which an individual can follow.

Not withstanding this, if you are interested in the welfare of your children, reading this book will definitely change your mindset, and help you start investing for the bright future. Particularly, parents who have small children will be highly benefited by reading this book.

If you are serious about a college savings plan, this is a good book to buy. It explains all the aspects to you in a simple straight forward way. Would definately recommend.

A very good book for small churches that would like to expand their youth group. Gives good help on funding the youth group with little or no church support.

I've been searching for an ideal business school guide for a while. I want something that will give me hard data (surveys, percentages, etc.), as well as the opinions of recruiters, graduates, and students of the school described... And while I found this Arco guide to be decent and informative, it certainly isn't ideal.

I picked up this guide primarily because of the interesting data it provided on each school. Aside from the traditional admissions/enrollment, costs, alumni success data, this book allows the schools the opportunity to rate their particular strengths and weaknesses. For example, schools will rate their programs in consulting, marketing, MIS, etc. as well as resources committed to that particular part of the program. The schools also get to rate their commitment to things like diversity and international perspectives (as well as resources devoted to those committments). You also get each school's rating (on a 3 point scale) on how important a role various admissions criteria--such as GPA, GMAT, experience, etc.--play in the admissions decisions. The evaluative data, while useful in its own right, is provided by the programs themselves and should be taken with a grain of salt.

In addition to these data, there is a decent, well-written and informative, but brief description of each school, its programs, setting, facilities, and opportunities.

The book is divided in two "sections." The first section (ch. 1-5) covers the general issues such as the MBA job market today, the MBA admissions process, etc.. While decently written and with some good points and information, educating the reader about all the intricacies of the MBA admissions process was clearly not the main goal of this book (if you're looking for general "how to apply" info, check out Montauk's "How to Get into Top MBA Programs").

The second section, the meat of the book, describes over 50 MBA programs in more or less detail. The US MBA programs are divided into three categories: Outstanding, Distinguished, and Recommended. A good amount of info is provided for the first two categories. The Recommended programs and the handful of international programs represented in their own separate section are given only cursory treatment. For info on international programs I'd turn to "Which MBA" published by the Economist magazine people.

To sum up this long winded review: This is a pretty decent guide with some unique information. However, I would recommend it only to those looking at the top 50 or so US programs.

As a teacher, one learns to live on a modest salary; stretching the dollar becomes an art more than a science. However, this book provided me with ways to make even my most stringent budget seem like my cup had run over! Everything from trimming household bills to discounts at retail stores. It even helped me buy my first car for less than my husband bought his (and they're the same make/model!). A top-notch resource for the financially challenged or penny-wise!

This is a very good book that explains exactly how one can prepare for and achieve an early retirement. Obviously some sacrifices are necessary, but Mr. Roth shows how we can still live well and ignore the alarm clock forever. I would say this is a nice confirmation of another favorite- "Your Money Or Your Life."