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Posted
Aug 26 2009, 02:35 PM
by
Teresa Mears
Rating:
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
As students head back to school this fall, an age-old debate is raging: Do school uniforms save parents money on school clothes? Catholic school students have always worn uniforms, but in recent years more public school students are wearing uniforms, too.
Whether requiring students to wear uniforms improves the education experience continues to be debated. Marian Wilde at Great Schools reports that studies have found both that it does and it doesn't.
But is it cheaper? Parents disagree on that, too. And the answer may depend on whether the school uniform code is flexible, such as requiring any navy pants and white polo shirts, or navy pants and white polo shifts from specific vendors.
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Posted
Aug 24 2009, 11:56 AM
by
Teresa Mears
Rating:
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
We've all thought about how much more we'd learn if we got a chance to go to college again as mature adults, and there is a monster list of online college courses. One of the best places to be a student again is at iTunes U, which provides free access to thousands of audio and video files from some of the world's top universities.
The service also provides free access to public radio and TV programs, and this summer the Library of Congress began participating. You can listen to American Public Media's "Marketplace" or watch PBS programs, all free and at your own convenience.
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Posted
Aug 04 2009, 03:27 PM
by
Karen Datko
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
Forget a job on Wall Street. If you want to make money when you get out of college, engineering is the current hot choice.
The National Association of Colleges and Employers released its 2009 ranking of the top 10 average starting salaries for new college grads, and petroleum engineering was No. 1, at a cool $83,121. Nine of the top 10 jobs have "engineering" in the title.
But does that mean you should change your major immediately? Hold on, said Darwin at Darwin's Finance. Not so fast.
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Posted
Aug 04 2009, 09:00 AM
by
Karen Datko
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
The Post-9/11 GI Bill that took effect with much fanfare will provide many veterans and military members with expanded educational opportunities.
Contrary to some reports, the older Montgomery GI Bill isn't going away with the advent of the new bill and, in some cases, may still be the better option. But for many, the new law will cover the full cost of a college degree.
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Posted
Jul 28 2009, 06:17 AM
by
Karen Datko
Rating:
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
This post comes from Jim Wang at partner blog Bargaineering.
If you go back 10 or 15 years, there were two things you could do online that would get you laughed at: finding a date and getting a postsecondary degree.
With dating sites flourishing and online education popping up everywhere, the stigma associated with the online versions of both has all but been washed away. Meeting someone online no longer means you're meeting someone capable only of interacting with a computer, and getting a degree online no longer means you took some cupcake classes and paid for a diploma.
However, just as you still want to be careful whom you choose to meet in person from an online dating site, you'll also have to be careful which online university you choose to attend. Like dates, not all universities are created equal.
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Posted
Jul 23 2009, 05:24 PM
by
Karen Datko
Rating:
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
Want your college experience to be meaningful? Campus Grotto produced a comprehensive and insightful list of more than 100 tips to survive -- and actually learn something, which is why you're there. Right?
Some of the advice on the list won't vastly improve your prospects (although "Wear sandals in the showers" could prevent the distraction of itchy feet). But much of it could be critical, particularly as educators debate the pros (you save money) and cons (you work your buns off) of earning a bachelor's degree in three years.
(We did it, many years ago. Limited finances were a powerful motivator, and taking several advanced placement classes in high school helped.)
In fact, some U.S. colleges already offer three-year programs, the Houston Chronicle reports, adding, "But the programs aren't for everyone. Part-time students can't participate. Nor can those who lack discipline."
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Posted
Jul 20 2009, 11:11 AM
by
Karen Datko
Rating:
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
This guest post comes from "vh" at Funny about Money.
Tina, my associate editor on the day job and my moonlight business partner, sent a link to this interesting discussion. The main post itself has several links to relevant, equally interesting posts and conversations.
Given the astonishing burden of student loans that too many young people are saddled with -- my son's roommate's girlfriend, for example, remarked that she will graduate from a top-quality institution with a master's degree in international business and $1,400-a-month student loan payments -- assessing the "value" of graduate education is not a crass or pointless exercise.
It's well and good to love learning for learning's sake and so to feel that the graduate school experience is irrelevant to one's vocational prospects. However, once that graduate school experience ends, you still have to pay for it. You still have to keep a roof over your head, put food on your table, and foot the considerable cost of raising a family. When young people are saddled with five- and six-figure student loan debt, they should reasonably expect the financial investment in graduate education to pay off with jobs that will support them.
That, unfortunately, is too often not the case.
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Posted
Jul 13 2009, 10:22 AM
by
Teresa Mears
Rating:
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
You may not be thinking about school supplies yet, but retailers are. The school supplies deals have already started. Even if your state has a sales tax holiday week, you might want to start shopping now instead of waiting.
Before you head out, take inventory of the supplies left from last year. Leah Ingram of Suddenly Frugal spent only 13 cents on school supplies for her two daughters last year, after finding lots of leftover supplies in the house and taking advantage of some Staples deals.
Dollar stores are another good source of school supplies.
Here are some of the deals advertised in Sunday's paper. Most are good through Saturday, July 18:
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Posted
Jun 23 2009, 09:53 AM
by
Joan Melcher
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
How many times have you wished you could wipe that telephone pole out of the picture? Or crop away an empty space to put your subject front and center?
Round up all those wayward photos. A free photo-editing class is available online this summer, taught by a professional photographer.
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Posted
Jun 16 2009, 09:16 AM
by
Joan Melcher
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
Outdoor gear retailer REI wants kids to explore the outdoors and it’s providing incentives with its Passport to Adventure program. Kids ages 5-12 can win prizes (and not just some trinkets -- we’re talking cool REI kids’ gear) when they keep an adventure journal, documenting hikes, biking and other outdoor adventures.
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