Introducing… the College Money Network!

I’m thrilled to announce to you the launch of a brand-new PF network, set around the theme of money and college. There are six members (including yours truly), and we are college students, grad students or recent grads.

The College Money Network is a place where we’ll pool our information, giving you the best content we can, all about money, school and being a 20-something in the midst of it all.

Here are the other members (you’ll also notice a list on my sidebar):

• Broke-Ass Student || http://www.brokeass-student.com
• Broke Grad Student || http://www.brokegradstudent.com/
• Green Panda Treehouse || http://www.greenpandatreehouse.com/
• MFA or Bust || http://mfaorbust.blogspot.com/
• Poorer Than You || http://poorerthanyou.com/

New Grad: 5 Things I Wish I’d Known

I finished grad school just a year ago, so I remember really well what it was like to search for The Job that would correspond with your major. I also remember that it was a little scary.

So Grads, this is for you. Here are five things I wish I’d known then that I know now. (And, congratulations!)

1) It’s OK if you don’t have your job lined up in March.
There are always those people who land their future jobs months ahead of graduation. If that happens for you, great. If it doesn’t, don’t stress. A lot of smaller, good companies will hire when they need people, not ahead of time. You aren’t out of options. Finish school strong and focus on growing your skills/accomplishments.

2) Your situation will be unique.
No matter what anyone, including I, tell you, know that your situation will be unique in a lot of ways. I remember thinking that my job-hunting process should go a certain way. Here’s a secret: yours will be its own, from timing to interactions to your own perceived success rate.

3) Use every resource, and trust the process.
Think creatively about what resources are available to you, and use all of them. Does your school have a career center? Do you have friends/contacts in either HR (advice, resume tips) or your industry (networking)? What/how many job-hunting resources are you using? Have you made an online portfolio? Whatever you’re doing, look for additional ideas.

4) It helps to have an outlet.
Personally, I got into PF blogging during the whole job-hunting phase of my life. It was nice to have an anonymous outlet to write about interviews, job offers, decisions, etc. I also talked with my family frequently (but I’m pretty sure they got sick of it after all while!). So have you thought about PF blogging? It’s a great distraction.

5) When The Job comes (and it will), don’t forget the people who helped you.
The professors, your friends, the contacts/professionals who did something (however small or large) to help… thank them. Even if their particular advice didn’t get you your job, thank them. Connections are invaluable.

I Was the Guest Speaker.

Today, at a college class at my alma mater, I was the designated guest speaker. This is, I’m quite sure, one of the weirdest things I have gotten to do, to date. Just a year ago, I was sitting in a grad class, listening to guest speakers. Now I was the one doing the talking? Telling them about my job? Giving writing advice? It was Twilight Zone, strange dream and confusing, bad story all rolled into one.

Most of the drive up, I was practicing things I could say when I spoke to this class. My biggest fear was that I’d burst out laughing or that I’d say something horrible like, Guess what? We’re in a salary freeze! Oh, gosh.

All in all, it went well. I’d forgotten how much I loved classrooms and workshops and discussion.

Beyond major specifics, I told them a lot of the things I’ve written here: TRY, make an online portfolio, double-check your work!! and so on.

I left, having really enjoyed talking about my job, remembering all the things that are great about it. And it made me realize how valuable it is to count your blessings–out loud and to someone.

Try it, and see if you don’t feel like things are going well in your life. I dare you.

Go to School for Free!

I’m a big believer in the value of school, especially because of the benefits I’ve received since graduating. However, even for people (especially writers) who can’t, don’t want or don’t need to attend college, there are online courses available for free, just for the enjoyment of learning.

Where?

Take a look at this post from Education Portal:“10 Universities Offering Free Writing Courses Online.”

We’re talking about classes from major universities like MIT and Purdue. Check it out! If you done anything like this before, I’d love to hear about it.

Networking: LinkedIn!

I was reluctant to set up a LinkedIn profile, for a lot of reasons. It’s another site to join, another thing to keep up with. I didn’t really know what benefit it would be or how many people would be on it.

But this week I set up a profile, and then I used my e-mail address book to locate contacts. The next day, an old professor contacted me about speaking to his undergrad writing class. My alma mater will pay an honorarium of $175.

LinkedIn is already working!

What about you? Do you use LinkedIn?

The Secret to Getting Your Money’s Worth in Grad School

I loved grad school. I mean, I loved grad school.

I made friends, learned specialized skills and was propelled into a career I enjoy and make good money doing. It was one of my best life decisions ever, and I do not regret it one bit.

In fact, that very principle is sort of what this site is built around. Yes, it’s about spending/budgeting/finances, but it’s also about those things in relation to a girl with a master’s degree. When I first started writing here, I wrote about the top 10 reasons I think you should consider grad school, whoever you are and whatever your career goals. And I still think that those points are valid.

But, confession time: I have to admit I may have been more than a little biased about the experience. While my education was fantastic, I’ve encountered more than my fair share of nay-sayers; maybe you have, too. So what’s the difference? Why did I love school and get more than my money’s worth, but others regret their decision and debt?

I think I know the answers, the “secrets,” if you will to getting all you can from the grad-school experience. If you’re a student, if you’re thinking of becoming a student or if you just want to hear the other side of the great debate, consider these:

Secret #1. DESIRE
First things first: I never thought I’d go to grad school. I was shocked to get in and had sort of a shifting-eyes-back-and-forth mentality the first few weeks, thinking someone would tell me I shouldn’t really be there, and yes, there had been a mistake, thank you very much.

Why? It’s a long story, but primarily I’d gone to a small, not regionally accredited undergrad. I’d majored in education, not writing like I later realized I wanted to pursue. I had little experience in the field, and I felt so unqualified, so unskilled, so behind the pack.

When I found out I got into a school that would make me able to pursue my dreams, I could’ve cried.

Secret #2: TEACHABILITY
I went to every class I could, even to lectures I wasn’t required to attend. I took notes even when the material wouldn’t be on the test. I read every book we were assigned, studied hard for every test, pushed myself with every paper. I was there for real, with all my chips on the table.

Secret #3: ENTHUSIASM
At The Writer’s Coin recently, there was a discussion of the value of a library card versus the value of a college degree. Great points made, I think. Mostly though, what he’s saying about the value of a library card is what I’m saying about grad school: use it for all it’s worth. Even as a commuting grad student, I used computer labs, libraries, city parking. I knew the campus facilities and spent time learning about my professors. When I was job-hunting, I contacted every teacher I’d had at school, asking for contacts, references, advice. I met with someone in the career department. To me, this is using the resources in front of you.

So, there you have it, the secret to a valuable grad-school experience: college is what you make of it. The choice is up to you.

a year ago or, the internship: part one

It hit me recently that a year ago, I was a lowly editorial intern, making minimum wage at a book publisher. My boss was a year older than I, the head assistant editor who seemed so far ahead of me. I pulled out my journal today, which brought back all the memories. In the interest of nostalgia and because it relates to writing/jobs, I’m going to be posting my internship story over the next few days. If you’re at that breaking-into-writing/editing stage, I’d love to talk to you–if only for the empathy.

Here’s part one:

I sat in the animal-print chair, holding my canvas Barnes & Noble bag on my shoulder, clutching my umbrella, still wearing my jacket. It was my first day at a local book publisher that had agreed to take me on as an editorial intern. I thumped my black leather heel on the ground, partially out of nervousness, partially to shake the raindrops, and picked up a company catalog with my free hand, scanning to see if I recognized any titles.

“I don’t think she’s in yet,” Annie, the receptionist, said about my new manager Leah Robin, when I’d approached the front desk. “I’ll keep trying her phone.”

A year into my grad program, my favorite class was unquestionably Editing. I had taken it on an every-other-Saturday basis, earlier in the year. I remember that when I signed up for the class, friends were surprised. “Seven hours on a Saturday? Editing?” But my professor was animated, the discussions were fascinating, and the hours flew by. Our class spent entire afternoons discussing punctuation and grammar, and it was fun. My professor let us argue about sentences: “Should this be an en dash or a hyphen? Is ‘Renzo piano’ definitely an open compound?”

Rapidly, grammar and editing occupied even my free-time thoughts; I became one of those annoying people who find errors in the day’s newspaper or a favorite magazine. And that March, I got a freelance editing opportunity as a result of my new habit. I had contacted a local publisher about her magazine’s errors, and she’d hired me to correct them. For the magazine, I received sixty-some pages of proof to read and edit from my home in one day; then I returned them to the magazine’s office.

Fast forward a few months: summer was beginning, and I wasn’t planning to take any classes. Tossing around ideas for summer work, I wondered about an internship—but what kind? A teacher of mine suggested several companies; only one was located in the area: a small, independent book publisher just thirty minutes from my house. I researched them online and found they had an editing internship that would allow me to learn more about the publishing industry and also to refine my editing knowledge. I applied right away, but its summer positions were full. I applied again in August, and it took me.

“I guess she was here all along,” Annie peeked over her desk at me. “She’ll be right out. Do you want to put your lunch in the fridge?” I shook my head, not bothering to explain the bag I carried held my copies of The Chicago Manual of Style and Merriam-Webster Dictionary, not my afternoon meal.

In moments, Leah greeted me, clad in a comfortable shirt and blue jeans, and led me to my cubicle. “I tried to get you everything I thought you’d need,” she said, pointing to flags, post-its, pens, tissues, and a company copy of CMS. She’d even posted a “Welcome” sign on the cube’s wall. When I’d first met Leah, at my interview, I’d been surprised at how young she looked with her long blonde hair and trendy glasses frames. At the interview, too, she’d worn blue jeans; this company was definitely different than any I’d worked for before.

I set my things on the desk and followed Leah as she led me through the building. She introduced me to people in almost every department (IT, design, acquisitions, sales, human resources, printing) giving their names, though I knew I wouldn’t remember them. The company’s offices filled about half of a small, one-floor building and housed around sixty employees. Most departments held several cubicles, and only some department heads and executives had private offices. The central space, known as the “bullpen,” housed a sort of meeting place for the staff, where parties were held and announcements were given. The bullpen was also where the company’s cow, formerly one of Chicago’s many, resided. I later learned they’d actually beat out Oprah on the bidding for the literary bull. The bullpen, like the rest of the building, had a bright and cheerful feel—all red, orange, and yellow color choices. And nestled next to the cow and drums (what they used to call meetings—really!), a large fountain flowed serenely.

After touring the building, Leah and I returned to the editorial department and met in the media room. We spent the morning going page by page through the blue-binder editorial intern manual, which involved a review of key areas of The Chicago Manual of Style, as well as information about house rules that involved deviations from CMS or Merriam-Webster. For example, the company prefers “email” to “e-mail” and “U.S.” to “US.” Leah also gave me a typed sheet of comments previous interns had made at the end of their assignments. Several stood out to me immediately: “Eight hours of editing is tough!” “Really tedious work!” and “You are not a slow editor. Really. Take your time.”

The amount of information I was given in one day intimidated me at first: How would I remember the order of final checks? What were all the ARC tags again? Could I bring this binder with me everywhere? But Leah assured me that she didn’t expect me to know everything that day; I had time to learn and absorb the procedures. One day down; sixty-one to go.

random thoughts

ON LAW SCHOOL: Last June, I took the LSAT and seriously considered law school for fall ‘07. Since then, I’ve decided against the idea for a lot of reasons, mainly money; nonetheless, it’s interesting that a school just offered me a large scholarship: they’d give me $20,000/year of the tuition’s $25,888/year. Basically, I could get the entire J.D. for around $16,500. Tempting, a little.

ON THE INTERVIEW: Lots of pros and lots of cons about yesterday’s meeting. The biggest drawback is the commute: 1.25 hours each way. Good pay and benefits, good opportunity for advancement, nice people.

ON GAS PRICES: If I had the energy, I’d make this a post of its own, but can I just put in another plug for my fabulous, inexpensive, diesel VW Jetta? I’m paying $2.89/gallon, here in Chicagoland. My friends and family are paying almost $4/gallon for their gas. My car gets 50+ miles to the gallon, and it’s reliable. Best gift I was ever given.

Reason #216 why I love my school

My meeting at the career center went well yesterday: I met with the Assistant Director, and she gave me practical advice for revising my resume, as well as lists of places to look for job postings. I left with new hope, seriously excited about the future.

10 reasons you should go to grad school

I’m 24 years old, about to finish school for (I think) the final time. And in the course of my educational career, I’ve heard a lot of people knock higher education: they say it’s not as valuable as experience, it’s too expensive, it takes too much time.

I say they’re wrong. Here are (my) top 10 reasons for thinking grad school has been one of my best decisions, ever.

1) It broadened my perspective.

No matter where you go for undergrad, it’s still just one (OK, maybe two or three for some of us) place. That school gives you one sense of the world, one slice of academia, but it’s still just a small, small bit of it. Attending another school, with other people, in another place widens your world, enlarges your perspective.

2) It challenged my beliefs.

I have a very strong sense of my place in this world. My moral views and personal convictions are set, and, honestly, in many interactions, that’s OK. My co-workers and acquaintances will let me hold my ground without much confrontational discussion. But in a classroom? where touchy, controversial issues get brought up? It’s no longer enough to “just believe” something, not really. In my two years of grad school, I consistently came head-to-head with people who disagreed with me, and they wanted to talk about it. What this did for me was push me to ask hard questions–to wrestle with issues that I really feel are important. I became a better defender, communicator, arguer–all valuable skills.

3) It opened up new opportunities.

Through grad school, I scored a copyediting internship with a book publisher that a prof recommended. This was after I’d learned the copyediting skills I needed in a previous course, also at the university. I published an essay and magazine articles that I’d written for classes.

4) It provided connections.

I met people who worked in my field. I interacted with authors, editors, marketers, advertisers. In whatever subject matter one studies, grad school hooks you up with others in the industry; they say networking is a huge part of building a career.

5) It detatched me from my work.

Entering grad school, I was very (too?) attached to what I wrote. They were my words, my thoughts, my chosen sentence structures. Through repeated workshopping with talented students, I stepped a way a little. At some point, I saw my writing as independent of me, as something that needed to communicate effectively.

6) It was fun.

Yes, yes, this isn’t the first argument you’ll hear* for returning to the classroom, and I realize my situation was ideal, since I only worked part-time. Still, studying something you love is … well, there’s nothing like it. I highly, highly recommend it.

7) It wasn’t that much money.

Here’s where we get personal. For me, the base of my total tuition was $20,000. This was for two years of school, full-time. I worked part-time, and I got good grades. The good grades earned me a quarter of the tuition: $5,000. Then, that internship I scored, through the school, happened to be paid, earning me another $3,000. Factor in the publications I had, also because of classes, and that’s yet another $1,000 off the bill. All in all, roughly $11,000 for a graduate degree from an excellent school. When you consider my much better job prospects, my heightened enjoyment in this field as opposed to my former one, and (most of all) the higher salary I will command with an MA, that $11,000 becomes a very small price to pay.

8 ) It strengthened my confidence.

Not just as a writer, but as a person. I feel much more aware of the world around me, the market for writers, the lingo of the industry. When I apply for a job I want, I’m able to fulfill its requirements: I know how to copyedit, to write in different styles, to articulate my thoughts quickly.

9) It was manageable.

As a full-time student, I attend two night classes each week. They are three hours long, and the out-of-class work usually takes around 10 hours of additional time (true, it was more at the beginning). I also commute, which factors for another four hours of time each week. Twenty hours a week is like a part-time job, on top of a busy life, and I know that’s a lot for some people. However, almost all grad programs have alternatives: part-time students take just one class at my school, for example. You can also take a semester off, if that helps you.

10) It’s becoming more and more necessary.

There are a ton of people in my grad program. Seriously. With increasing students getting MAs, those without them will eventually wish they had. In today’s competitive job market, I almost wonder if we can afford not to consider grad school.

*Edited, with the original typo (here) removed.