Author: Michelle Burton (Page 2 of 26)

America’s Best Graphic Design Programs

September 16, 2011 / Michelle Burton

Graphic designers design art and copy layouts for material to be presented by electronic media and visual communications media such as magazines, newspapers, books, television, and packaging. Graphic designers use a variety of techniques to communicate messages such as animation, illustration, color, type, and photography. Graphic designers work for advertising agencies, newspapers and magazines, the film and video industry, publishing houses, and government agencies, design firms, and public relations firms.

Although graphic design jobs are available in these industries and many others, the biggest employers of graphic designers are marketing and advertising firms. Many graphic designers work on a contract basis. Currently, 25.6 percent of all graphic designers are self-employed.

Depending on factors from the size of the firm to region, graphic designers can earn anywhere from $42,000 per year on the low end to $95,000 or more on the high end. Entry-level graphic designers usually earn the lowest salaries, but in most cases, these designers advance rather quickly—usually within 1-3 years.

Graphic designers are in high demand today, but positions are very competitive. However, most graphic designers will agree that the right position is well worth the effort because not only are these creative positions exciting and rewarding, they are also the most stable positions in the creative sector. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the job outlook for graphic designers is good, based on an impressive 13 percent increase in job growth between now and 2018.

So, what does it take to become a graphic designer? Employers prefer to hire graphic designers with at least an associate degree, but designers with a bachelor’s degree or higher will find more opportunities. They will receive higher starting salaries as well. Currently, more than 50 percent of all graphic designers have an associate degree or higher and more than 20 percent have some college experience, but no degree. More than 6 percent of all graphic designers have a master’s degree.

It is important to note that education alone does not guarantee entry into or success in the field. Creativity, communication skills, and computer skills are a must. Web design and animation experience are also a must for most of the top firms.

Graphic designers come from many different educational backgrounds. Some have a degree in advertising or marketing communications while others may have a degree in fine art, multimedia arts, or even animation. If the focus is graphic design, students can expect to take classes such as flash animation, marketing design, website design, computer graphics, studio art, printing techniques, principles of design, commercial graphics production, history of graphic design and desktop publishing, to name a few.

In the U.S., there are more than 250 accredited postsecondary institutions with programs in art and design. Art & Design schools are twice as likely to offer a degree or certificate in graphic design, but many of the schools on the list below are traditional four-year colleges and universities. The list was complied by U.S. News and World Report. If you decide that the schools on the list aren’t for you or they are just too competitive, remember, many other schools offer graphic design programs. If you come across a school that you aren’t familiar with, just check to make sure the program is accredited by The National Association of Art and Design (NASAD) or other recognized accrediting agency. Visit Ed.gov for a list of recognized agencies.

America’s Best Graphic Design Programs

-Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, RI
-Cranbrook Academy of Art, Bloomfield Hills, MI
-Yale University, New Haven, CT
-Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA
-Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA
-Maryland Institute College of Art, Baltimore, MD
-School of Visual Arts, New York, NY
-California Institute of the Arts, Valencia, CA
-Pratt Institute, Brooklyn, NY
-California College of the Arts, San Francisco, CA
-School of the Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, IL
-New School–Parsons School of Design, New York, NY
-Rochester Institute of Technology, Rochester, NY
-University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH
-Minneapolis College of Art and Design, Minneapolis, MN

Your Career, Your Compensation, Your Education

How to Compare Colleges

September 14, 2011 / Michelle Burton

One of the first things to consider when creating a targeted list of colleges is budget. If you plan to finance your education through loans and/or income from a full or part-time job, this will help narrow your search significantly. Many colleges offer grants and scholarships, so be sure to include these types of schools on your your list—even if the tuition is beyond your budget. If you want to find out about grants and scholarship programs, visit CollegeScholarships.org. Just about every college website also lists grant, loan, and scholarship program information. Go to each website’s financial aid section for details.

After you have considered your budget, price, and the type of financial aid each college on your list offers, it’s time to think about location. Do you plan to live on campus? In state or out of state? Do you prefer to commute? Once you have decided on a location, this should eliminate a good number of schools on your list. At this point, comparing colleges should be somewhat easy, but an even shorter list will make comparing colleges even easier.

To trim the list to just a few, consider your career path. What do you plan to major in? Engineering? Literature? Architecture? Not all schools offer all programs, so this will help shorten your list to just a select few colleges. If you are unsure about your location, major, and price, you can still compare colleges using the comparison criteria below.

Comparing Colleges

Now that you have your shortlist ready, it’s time to compare colleges. A good way to keep things organized is to use the following comparison criteria:

-Admission Procedures and Requirements
-Campus Life
-Cost and Financial Aid
-Location
-Type of School

Admission Procedures and Requirements
The admission procedures and requirements for any given college discusses the percentage of students accepted. This will tell you how competitive the college is. You will also find out whether an interview and/or essay is required, and any SAT and ACT requirements. The school website will usually list the minimum acceptable SAT and ACT scores.

Campus Life
This information is also located on the school’s website and will tell you whether or not the school is in an urban, suburban, or rural setting. This section also includes enrollment figures, so you’ll know what to expect regarding class size, male/female ratio, etc.

Cost and Financial Aid
Cost and financial aid information covers tuition and fee information for both in-state and out-of-state students. It will also list costs for room and board or room only.

Location
Location is all you need to determine whether you’ll have to commute, live on campus, or relocate to another state.

Type of School
The type of school affects price, financial aid, grant offerings, scholarship programs, and more. For example, private colleges cost more than public colleges, and public colleges offer more breaks on tuition than private colleges do.

When comparing colleges, the best place to find the most reliable and up-to-date information about any given college is the school’s official website. For a directory of colleges visit AllCollege.org.

Your Education

college going to college

How to Find a Legitimate Work from Home Job

September 12, 2011 / Michelle Burton

Work from home jobs are the toughest jobs to find, get and keep. Why? For starters, the demand is much higher than the supply. Stay at home moms, students, moonlighters, people with limited physical abilities, and those that prefer not to commute are all competing for these jobs. Some may not mind the commute, but prefer to work in a relaxed and familiar environment. What this adds up to is thousands of workers lining up to compete for the few truly legitimate work from home jobs available.

Next, some of the best work from home jobs actually begin as onsite jobs. A large percentage of workers get to the point in their careers where they can suggest working at home part-time. Eventually, if the boss is satisfied, these part-time situations move into full-time work from home positions.

If you’re fortunate enough to land a work from home job or convince your boss that it will work out better for everyone—great, but you’re still not home free. Stay at home jobs are not for you if you are unorganized, easily distracted, or tend to procrastinate. Many stay at home job seekers mistakenly believe that stay at home workers can work when they feel like it and they only have to answer to themselves. This is not true. In fact, if you work at home for a company, they will monitor you just as much as they would if you were working in an office—maybe even more. Stay at home workers still need to produce and employers will waste no time making sure you do.

Best Work from Home Jobs

The following list of work from home positions includes jobs that are suitable for all skill levels and personality types. Some may sound like fun, while others might sound like, well, work. It is important to remember that no matter how much fun these jobs are (or are not), in order to keep your position you must always remain professional and follow company rules to the letter. If you don’t, there are thousands of stay at home job seekers who are ready and willing to take your place.

Some of the best work from home jobs include: Customer Service Representative, Virtual Assistant, Medical Transcriptionist, Online Tutor, and Travel Agent.

Customer Service Agent – Customer service agents work in just about every industry. They work in travel, telecommunications, retail, insurance, entertainment, and more. True, many companies do outsource, but there are still some that prefer to hire workers right here in the U.S. Just a few examples include wireless cell phone services, auto insurance companies (claims), ticket agencies (concerts, sporting events), and travel agencies. To find a work at home customer service position, contact the company you’re interested in directly.

Virtual Assistant – “Virtual assistant” is a fairly new job title, but it’s growing at a rapid pace. Companies and businesses both small and large, use virtual assistants to do everything from mailings and bookkeeping to marketing and data entry. There are several ways to become a part of this new industry. You can sign up with an agency (simply search through listings online) or you can start your own service. Our advice, to see how it’s done, try working with a service first. Use your favorite search engine to look for virtual assistant agencies online.

Medical Transcriptionist – All transcription jobs require different and specific skills. If you are working for the medical industry, you must have a firm grasp of medical terminology or if you are working in the legal field, you should be familiar with legal terms. You must also be a fast typist. The minimum wpm for most positions is 65. To find medical transcriptionist jobs, use your favorite search engine to locate agencies. One of the most professional and reliable agencies out there is MedQuist (formerly Spheris). Visit www.medquist.com for job listings and information about how to get started.

Online Tutor – Most online tutoring agencies prefer to hire individuals with an associate degree or higher. You should also have excellent grades in the subjects you plan to specialize in. All online tutoring agencies will check your credentials. To locate online tutoring opportunities, just use your favorite search engine or visit www.tutor.com. There are literally hundreds of online tutoring agencies to choose from, so take your time and do your research.

Travel Agent – Online travel agents are much less expensive to hire than operating out of an office. Cruise lines, cruise travel agencies, hotels, and more hire travel agents (also customer service reps.) to help customers find the right travel package or the cheapest flights. You can check for openings for just about any cruise line or hotel by visiting the line’s official website or you can visit Locate A Travel Agency (LATA) for travel agency listings across the U.S., www.locateatravelagency.com.

No matter how polished an agency, company, or business website looks, always do your homework. Check to make sure the company or agency has a physical and verifiable address. And no, PO boxes do not count. Also, make sure the agency or company has a phone number. Call to see if you can get through to a live person. Finally, find out if the company is listed with the Better Business Bureau (BBB) by visiting the BBB at www.bbb.org.

Tips and Warnings: If a company or agency asks you to pay an application fee, to pay for a list or to pay for equipment or software, do think twice. You should never, ever have to pay a fee or otherwise to obtain a position.

Your Career

work from home

How to Get a Federal Government Job

September 7, 2011 / Michelle Burton

Yes, you can still find jobs with the nation’s largest employer—the Federal Government. In fact, federal government departments have seen significant growth year after year, even during the darkest days of the recession. So, how do you do you get a Federal Government job? You can start by earning a bachelor’s degree!

Nearly half of all federal government employees have a bachelor’s degree and the majority of mid to high-level positions require a bachelor’s or master’s degree, especially in fields that involve research, scientific, and professional work, or medical work such as engineering, biology, psychology, medical technology, and accounting. To qualify for positions in these fields, the degree musty also be from a college or university that has obtained accreditation or pre-accreditation status from an accrediting body recognized by the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Education.

High-level federal government positions are generally assigned a letter/number of GS-7 or higher. In these cases, the applicant must have some form of specialized experience. At least one year of the specialized experience must have been equivalent to level of the next lower grade in the Federal Service. So, to qualify for GS-11 you must have had a minimum of one year of specialized experience equivalent to GS-10.

If you do not have a college degree, you can still qualify for certain lower level positions in the Federal Government and you can work your way up. But even for positions that are considered lower level, you should have:

1.) Been in the job market for several years
2.) Accumulated an extensive work history

Starting at the GS-5 grade or equivalent level, positions generally require 1 year of specialized experience equal to the next lower grade. For clerical and assistant positions at the GS-2 level, a high school diploma and some work experience is all that is needed.

How to Apply for Federal Jobs

Potential applicants may find out about job vacancies in the federal government by visiting the Federal Government’s Employment Information System at www.usajobs.com. Here, applicants may utilize the Online Resume Builder feature, which allows job seekers to create on-line resumes specifically designed for applying for Federal jobs. Applicants can use the resume builder to create, print, save, edit for future use, or send by fax or mail to employers. Many of the hiring agencies will accept electronic submissions of resumes created through USAJOBS for vacancies listed on the web site.

The automated phone system is also available 24/7. Here, potential job seekers can access current job vacancies, employment information fact sheets, applications, forms, and apply for some jobs.

Best Places to Work in the Federal Government

The first list of rankings below has been determined based on employee satisfaction. The second list covers rankings based on pay and benefits. Both lists rank federal government departments in order (starting with the best) from 1-30. The last list covers government agencies with the highest employment beginning with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs—home to the nation’s highest number of government employees.

Employee Satisfaction Rankings

1. Nuclear Regulatory Commission
2. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
3. Department of Veteran Affairs
4. National Aeronautics and Space Administration
5. Department of Justice
6. Department of the Army
7. Social Security Administration
8. Securities and Exchange Commission
9. Department of State
10. All Department of Defense
11. Department of the Air Force
12. Department of Agriculture
13. Department of Health and Human Services
14. Department of Labor
15. General Services Administration
16. Department of the Navy
17. Environmental Protection Agency
18. Department of the Interior
19. National Archives and Records Administration
20. Department of Commerce
21. Department of the Treasury
22. Office of Personnel Management
23. Department of Transportation
24. Department of Energy
25. Department of Housing and Urban Development
26. Small Business Administration
27. epartment of Education
28. Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
29. Department of Homeland Security
30. Government Accountability Office

Pay and Benefits Rankings

1. Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
2. Nuclear Regulatory Commission
3. Securities and Exchange Commission
4. National Aeronautics and Space Administration
5. General Services Administration
6. Office of Personnel Management
7. Environmental Protection Agency
8. Department of Housing and Urban Development
9. Department of Education
10. Department of State
11. Social Security Administration
12. mall Business Administration
13. Department of Agriculture
14. epartment of Commerce
15. Department of Energy
16. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
17. Department of Health and Human Services
18. epartment of the Treasury
19. Department of Labor
20. Department of the Interior
21. Department of Justice
22. Department of the Army
23. Department of the Navy
24. All Department of Defense
25. National Archives and Records Administration
26. Department of Transportation
27. Department of the Air Force
28. Department of Veteran Affairs
29. Department of Homeland Security
30. Government Accountability Office

Federal Agencies with the Most Employment

1. U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
2. .S. Army
3. U.S. Navy
4. U.S. Department of Homeland Security
5. U.S. Air Force
6. U.S. Department of Treasury
7. U.S. Department of Agriculture
8. U.S. Department of Justice
9. U.S. Department of Defense
10. U.S. Department of the Interior
11. U.S. Social Security Administration
12. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
13. U.S. Department of Transportation
14. U.S. Department of Commerce
15. U.S. Department of State
16. National Aeronautics and Space Administration
17. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
18. .S. Department of Labor
19. U.S. Department of Energy
20. U.S. General Services Administration
21. U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
22. Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
23. Smithsonian Institution
24. U.S. Department of Education
25. U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission

For more information about government jobs including salaries, projections and more, visit the U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics at www.bls.gov.

Your Career, Your Compensation

Debt after College: Credit Counseling for Students

September 1, 2011 / Michelle Burton

Credit counseling, also called “debt counseling,” is a service provided by organizations that offer professional counseling for consumers in need of assistance in the areas of debt repayment, debt management, and money management. Credit counseling is also a requirement that must be met prior to filing chapter 7 or chapter 13. The types of debt that credit counseling agencies may assist you with include credit cards, personal loans, home loans, car loans and student loans. Credit counseling agencies also assist with utility bill repayment and tax debt.

Getting Started with a Credit Counseling Agency

Credit counseling agencies will require certain documentation to begin the process, so it is important to organize your records before visiting an agency. The credit counseling agency will ask for credit card statements, copies of utility bills, mortgage payment statements or your rental amount/lease. The agency will also expect you to bring a record of spending or a budget that should include household expenses and any miscellaneous expenses. This documentation is needed in order for the credit counselor to create a realistic budget and debt repayment plan.

Benefits of Credit Counseling

A major benefit to credit counseling is that the credit counselor will handle all lenders, collection agencies, and credit card companies for you. This helps to eliminate the stress associated with collection agency and creditor phone calls. Your credit counselor will negotiate a repayment plan that may significantly lower your monthly payments and interest rates.

You may opt to send monthly payments to the credit counseling agency (by check) or you may authorize a monthly electronic funds transfer from your bank account. Depending on the credit counseling agency, they may offer an option called “debt management system.” If you opt for a debt management system, you will pay the credit counseling agency a lump sum. Out of that lump sum, payments will be made on your behalf. This system can be used as a safeguard against skipped or late payments, which can save money on interest, fees, and any penalties associated with the debt.

An additional benefit to credit counseling is, it can educate you on how to better manage your finances and it will eventually help to minimize or prevent future debt.

Disadvantages of Credit Counseling and Protecting Yourself

While there are advantages to credit counseling, there are also disadvantages. Credit counseling could have a negative effect on your credit, initially. In some cases lenders, specifically mortgage lenders, may not want to extend credit to an individual that may be in the process of completing a credit counseling program. Fortunately, credit-counseling notations will be dropped from your credit report, roughly one month after the credit counseling program is complete.

Another disadvantage to credit counseling is the potential for fraud. This means that in some cases a credit counseling agency could turn out to be a scam. Look out for the following red flags:

-Unrealistic promises (“settle for pennies,” or “this won’t affect your credit report”)
-Big upfront fees (fees are typically $10-$15 U.S.)
-Delayed or missing payments
-No accreditation

To protect yourself against fraudulent credit counseling agencies, it’s best to make sure that the agency is approved by the approved by the U.S. Trustee Program of the United States Department of Justice. Locating an approved agency is simple. Just log onto www.usdoj.gov and follow these steps:

-Under “Resources” click “DOJ Agencies”
-Scroll down to “U.S. Trustees Program”
-Under “Bankruptcy Reform” click “Credit Counseling & Debtor Education”
-Under “Credit Counseling for Consumers” click “Approved Credit Counseling Agencies”

The search function allows the user to browse through approved agencies by state. Please follow the link below, which should take you directly to the search page http://www.usdoj.gov/ust/eo/bapcpa/ccde/cc_approved.htm.