Author: Michelle Burton (Page 16 of 26)

AOL Cuts Nearly 1,000 Jobs

March 10, 2011 / Michelle Burton

AOL BUILDING

AOL cut 20 percent of its workforce today, eliminating 950 jobs in the U.S. and India. Last year, the company cut 2,300 employees during its first round of layoffs. This year’s round of layoffs was aimed at trimming the budget, getting rid of positions that no longer serve a purpose, and eliminating jobs that overlapped with the Huffington Post website, which AOL acquired just days ago. None of the 250 Huffington Post employees that joined AOL lost their jobs. Instead, 200 employees who work for AOL’s media and technology groups lost their jobs, and 750 employees in India.

In the U.S., AOL laid off reporters and editors who worked for its travel site and business, personal finance sites Daily Finance and Wallet Pop. It also cut across its news and politics sites, including Politics Daily, according to people familiar with the matter. Employees who were laid off started packing up their belongings on Thursday, a person familiar with the matter said.
The operations in India are in part a vestige of AOL’s old business as an Internet service provider, starting with call center outsourcing into 2002 and later changing into a business operations center. Recently, the group focused more on tech and financial support as well as functions such as advertising operations.

Although AOL acquired the Huffington Post for $315 million, the company is still on shaky ground. According to WSJ, AOL shares are trading at their lowest levels since the company split off from Time Warner Inc. in December 2009. Shares of AOL were off 34 cents, or 1.8 percent, to $19 in Thursday 4 p.m. composite trading on the New York Stock Exchange. And according to research firm eMarketer Inc., AOL’s ad revenues dropped 26 percent in 2010, while the overall online ad market grew around 14 percent. AOL has steadily lost market share to rivals Google Inc. and Facebook Inc.

AOL CEO Tim Armstrong said he expects AOL’s online advertising business to start growing again during the second half of the year.

“AOL remains in the middle of the disruption that the Internet is causing and we are starting to move from being a disrupted brand to a brand that is leading the disruption,” Mr. Armstrong said in his memo. “The changes we are making are not easy, but they are the right changes for the long-term health of the company, the brand, and for our employees.”

After all is said and done, AOL will employ about 4,000 people. This figure does not include staff that currently work for AOL’s local Patch news sites, which recently hired 1,200 new employees.

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Benefits of an Engineering Degree

March 9, 2011 / Michelle Burton

Engineer

Everyone wants to get paid what they’re worth, right? Well, engineering graduates have the opportunity to do just that, and then some. Engineering graduates have the potential to earn $72,490-$108,020 per year and they also have a wide variety of specialty areas to choose from including:

-Aerospace, Agricultural, Biomedical, Chemical, Civil, Computer Hardware
-Electrical, Electronics, Environmental, Health and Safety, Industrial, Marine
-Materials, Mechanical, Mining and Geological, Mining Safety, Nuclear
-Petroleum

Earnings could be even more depending on specialty. For example, at a median annual wage of $108,020, petroleum engineers earn the highest salaries in the industry, followed by computer hardware engineers at $97,400, and nuclear engineers at $97,080 annually.

Salary is only one advantage to pursuing a career in engineering. The industry is stable and growing. Although job growth is expected in all specialty areas, except chemical engineering, job growth for biomedical engineering is projected at 72 percent for the 2008-2018 decade. For environmental engineering, employment growth is 31 percent, civil engineering is 24 percent, and petroleum engineering is around 18 percent.

Although stressful at times, particularly when a deadline must be met, overall, the work environment for engineers is pleasant and well suited for the tasks at hand. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics,

Most engineers work in office buildings, laboratories, or industrial plants. Others may spend time outdoors at construction sites and oil and gas exploration and production sites, where they monitor or direct operations or solve onsite problems. Some engineers travel extensively to plants or worksites here and abroad. Many engineers work a standard 40-hour week.

If you would like to earn an engineering degree, you should enroll in an engineering program at an accredited college, university, or technical school. Some of the top accrediting agencies are:

-The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB)
-The Association of Collegiate Business Schools and Programs (ACBSP)
-Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA)
-Accrediting Commission for Career Schools and Colleges of Technology (ACCSCT)
-Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools (ACICS)
-Distance Education Training Council (DETC)
-Council on Occupational Education (COE)

The top regional accrediting agencies include:

-Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools
-New England Association of Schools and Colleges
-North Central Association of Colleges and Schools
-Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities
-Southern Association of Colleges and Schools
-Western Association of Schools and Colleges

Before enrolling in any engineering degree program, whether traditional or online, make sure the accrediting agency is recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.

IT ENGINEER

If you’re curious about what it takes to earn an engineering degree, below is a partial list of required courses for most engineering programs.

-Analysis Tools for Engineers
-Applied Chemistry for Biomedical Engineering
-Biological Foundations
-Calculus
-Cell and Molecular Biology
-Chemical Engineering Thermodynamics
-Electrical Circuits
-Engineering Design
-Engineering Mechanics
-General Chemistry
-General Physics
-Linear Algebra and Vector Analysis for Engineers
-Mechanics of Materials
-Methods of Differential Equations
-Physiological Processes
-Transport Phenomena

For more information about engineering careers, visit the Bureau of Labor Statistics at Bls.gov. For information about top engineering programs in the U.S. and abroad, visit The Princeton Review at Princetonreview.com.

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Game Technology and Career Night at Google

March 8, 2011 / Michelle Burton

Computer Gaming

The Silicon Valley Chapter of the International Game Developers Association (SV IGDA) will host a night of career talks, new technology demonstrations, and match-ups with potential employers at Google. According to Mercury News, the event is for game industry professionals and technology professionals (web clients/server and mobile and console developers). So,

If you are interested in looking at new technologies, platforms and talking directly to companies developing and in some cases looking for new team members, then this event is crafted for you.

Speakers, presenters, and sponsors include:

A Bit Lucky
Arrival Games
Be-Rad Entertainment
Bioroid Studios
D2SGames
Dragon Age Legends
Electronic Arts will be presenting
Fancy Pants Adventures
Gamebuilder Studio
Google Game Developer Liason Ian Ni-Lewis
Great Big Enterprise
Huggy Hearts
Idle Games
Jump Core Productions
Kabam
Lolapps
Mary-Margaret Walker: Career Visionary and CEO, Mary-Margaret Network
Misfits AtticsOpen Feint
Paypal
Radium One
YoXi123 founder Shirly Lin

The event is free and will take place on Wednesday March 16, 2011 from 6:30-9:30 p.m. PST at Google, 1400 Crittenden Lane, Mountain View, CA, 94043. You have to register online in order to attend. The fastest way to register is through Eventbrite.com. For email inquiries, try caughtthinking@gmail.com.

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Understanding Direct Loans

March 7, 2011 / Michelle Burton

DIRECT LOANS

For the 2007-2008 academic year, 65.6 percent of al undergraduates received some form of financial aid. Of the 65.6 percent, nearly 40 percent received student loans. Although students may receive grants, which do not have to be paid back, they might not be enough to cover tuition costs, books, housing, and day-to-day living expenses. Student loan programs, such as the William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan Program, can help fill the gap.

Direct Loans are low-interest loans for students and parents. Direct Subsidized Loans for undergraduates with a first disbursement date between July 1, 2010 and June 30, 2011 have an interest rate of 4.5 percent. For graduate students Direct Subsidized Loans (no interest payments until after the grace period ends) have an interest rate of 6.8 percent and Direct Unsubsidized Loans (interest must be paid while enrolled) for all students have an interest rate of 6.8 percent. Direct Plus Loans have an interest rate of 7.9 percent.

Although the U.S. Department of Education is the Direct Loan Lender, the loan servicer is usually a private entity that is responsible for collecting, monitoring, and reporting loan payments. One such entity is American Education Services (AES) which was established by the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency (PHEAA) to guarantee and service student loans for millions of borrowers across the U.S.

Direct Loans have loan limits and the limit depends on the year of study and whether the student is a graduate, undergraduate, dependent or independent. Direct Loan limits are as follows:

Dependent Student
1st-year undergraduate: $5,500 (maximum $3,500 subsidized)
2nd-year undergraduate: $6,500 (maximum $4,500 subsidized)
3rd- and 4th-year undergraduate: $7,500 (maximum $5,500 subsidized)

Independent Student
1st-year undergraduate: $9,500 (maximum $3,500 subsidized)
2nd-year undergraduate: $10,500 (maximum $4,500 subsidized)
3rd- and 4th-year undergraduate: $12,500 (maximum $5,500 subsidized)

Graduate Student
$20,500 (maximum $8,500 subsidized)
*All graduate and professional students are considered independent

To apply for a Direct Loan, you must fill out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). To complete your application, use FAFSA on the Web. Once your application has been processed, you will receive an award package that contains information about which grants and loans you will receive and the amounts. Direct Loans are awarded as part of this package. Direct Loans are not based on credit or employment history, so unless you are independently wealthy, you are almost guaranteed approval.

For more information about the Direct Loan Program, please visit the official Department of Education Federal Student Aid website at www.direct.ed.gov.

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Secretary of Labor Unveils Online Tool for Job Seekers

March 4, 2011 / Michelle Burton

Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis has unveiled an new online tool that offers information on more than 900 occupations in a simple format that just about anyone can use. The tool, called My Next Move, is a supplement to the labor departments “mySkills myfuture” website, which helps seasoned job seekers find occupations that match their skill set. My Next Move is especially useful for first-time job seekers, students, and young adults interested in finding careers that match their interests. According to Solis, the department created the tool for a number of reasons.

“This administration is committed to expanding opportunities for all Americans,” Solis said. “That includes ensuring all workers — those with years of experience and those just entering the work force — have the information they need to make informed career decisions and get good jobs.”
“By leveraging technology in a user-friendly tool, My Next Move will help those seeking career guidance learn more about work opportunities in fields that are of interest to them and that are likely to have job openings today and well into the future.”

The tool streamlines the department’s Occupational Information Network (O.NET) Interest Profiler, which, since 2001, consisted of 180 questions in order to match a users interests with possible occupations. The streamlined version requires answers to 60 questions. In addition to the using the interest profiler to find job matches, users can search for jobs by industry and occupation. The streamlined version of O.NET is available for the first time as part of My Next Move.

Users can also search for jobs in three categories:

-Careers with a “bright outlook” in growing industries
-Jobs that are part of the “green” economy
-Occupations that have a Registered Apprenticeship program

According to a U.S. Department of Labor News Release about My Next Move, each occupation that a user selects has an easy-to-read, one-page profile, including information about what knowledge, skills and abilities are needed; the occupation’s outlook; the level of education required; technologies used within the occupation; and other, similar jobs. In addition, each occupation page includes direct links to local salary information, training opportunities and relevant job openings.

To access My Next Move, visit: http://mynextmove.dol.gov.

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