Getting an education can take time and money. But for many careers, it is necessary in order to earn promotions or even find an entry level position. Many people each year enroll in degree programs at colleges, tech schools, apprenticeship programs, and online classes in order to better themselves and get the most from their careers. There are many degree programs to choose from when trying to earn an education. Some people may try two or three programs before deciding what they want to do when they graduate. Many times people will return to college to further their education by earning an advanced degree in their field or one that is closely related.

It is important to consider what one’s interests are before deciding to invest time and money in the costs of an education. Another important factor is where to go to college. Some people stay at home with their parents in order to save money, while others go away to college to learn how to be independent. There are additional costs to going to away to college such as travel expenses, dorm room expenses, and every day expenses. Some students get jobs, while some find scholarships and grants to pay for their education.

Once a college has been selected and travel arrangements have been made, many students will have to leave their families. This can be devastating at first, but eventually, learning how to be a responsible adult becomes easier. Students who decide to take online classes may not have to travel, but they will still have to find time to devote to their studies. Either way, getting an education is not always easy. Changing time schedules to meet the needs of study time, leaving familiar people and places to go to a new place, and learning a new skill that will shape a person’s career are big steps to take.

Even those who are returning to school after being absent from it for a while will have to make adjustments in their lives. This can take a few months and may require the help of family members and friends. Returning to school can be just as frightening sometimes. But deciding to get an education is the best goal to achieve. Learning more about the world, learning about a new or familiar field, and meeting new people are all part of the college experience. People who have college degrees will usually earn more in their career than those who don’t, they will be able to solve problems in life much easier, and they will be able to meet people easier than those who do not have a college degree.

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Recently, I was driving to Atlanta from St. Louis. Anyone who has traveled the route knows that along Highway 57, in a town called Ina, there is a Prison on one side of the highway and a college on the other side. The Big Muddy River Correctional Center stands directly across the highway from Rend Lake College. For years, I never really saw the college. The prison is much more visible with its large barbed wire fence and tall watch tower. The scene made it easy to envision the life of the inmates.

It was not until this trip that I noticed the college across the highway. There is a beautiful sign competing for the attention of highway travelers, but it loses easily to the potential sighting of armed prison workers across the highway. As I traveled the highway, I paralleled my driving experience to high school. For many students, their travels through high school are as much about preparing for prison as it is about preparing for college. Today’s schools are transforming into prison-prep programs for students and the potential college students are becoming victims to the transformation.

Schools prepare students for the future that await them. Educators, and the entire school community, identify their students potential and go to work preparing them for the future. We groom out students to become scientist, writers, mothers, fathers, and the responsible community members we envision them becoming.

It is with this vision that we mold these pliable minds and prepare them for the future that awaits them. It is the belief in the students’ potential that inspires educators to action. We provide them with the tools we know they will need to perform their roles in society. We are literally helping them get into character, as a director would a stage performer.

There’s a young man I know who shows every sign of becoming a newscaster or something closely related. He has expressed a strong interest in the profession; and it helps that he looks like a 10 year old version of Ed Bradley, former CBS news correspondent. Therefore, his teachers’ natural response has been to put this kid in front of an audience with a microphone at every opportunity. He is encouraged to express his ideas and speak freely and openly, for these are the successful habits of writers, news reporters, lawyers and politicians. We want him to be prepared for the future that awaits him. School for this child is a college prep experience

There is another group of student whom we are grooming for their future also. There are other children who do not show the same potential of young “Ed Bradley.” These are the children who show up at our doors with less than admirable career paths. It appears that they have been preprogrammed for an alternative lifestyle. Everything about their attitude says that they are not interested in becoming responsible citizen or a part of a community. The worst of these kids disrespect their teachers, fight other students, and tell us that they don’t want to be at school.

This message is a clear communication that we have to do something different. As we look at this child, we do not see a contributing members of society. It is difficult for us to image this child fitting into any profession or community. We know where this kind of attitude leads. We understand where these kinds of characters are found. So, we change our strategies for this student. We know exactly where this child is headed. We will never say it aloud but in our actions our vision becomes clear.

We install medal detectors at the entrance of the school and hire a stern disciplinarian or security guard to keep the peace. The child is patted down before entering school to check for weapons. He is subjected to random searches for contraband in his locker or on his person. He is instructed to walk in a straight line with his fellow classmates in the hall. Silence is a perfected practice and is reinforced with harsh reprimands. This child is often separated from his peers. There is a scheduled time for talking, eating, sharing and laughing. School for this student is a prison prep experience.

The most unfortunate result of this practice is that our young “Ed” attends to the same school. The responsible citizens are subjected to the same restrictive school environment. Their expression is stifled also and their joy of learning is suppressed by the new order of schools. Our successful prison-prep program results in the elimination of college-prep for the rest of the children.

It is with this understanding that I urge us to reconsider our reaction to this defiant bunch. Even though several of our children arrive at our doors determined to practice behaviors that lead to poverty and crime, we must commit ourselves to seeing a bigger, brighter future for them. We must see more in them than they can see of themselves. Yes, we must lie to them. We have to tell them that we see them as responsible citizens, before we see it. We must treat them better than they deserve. We must give them praise and positive feedback before they truly earn it, so they begin to want it legitimately for themselves. We must resist the tendency to transform the school into a prison prep program. It is vitally important that we preserve the learning environment in its intended state. Great schools today treat all kids like they were destined for college and ignore the place across the highway.

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A good college makes a good career. The process of choosing a college or university is often difficult if you don’t have any idea of what you want to do with your life. If you aren’t sure what you want to major in when you take off toward a school, then consider some of the following before you ask your parents to fork over the cash for college life.

o What college or university offer the majors you think you will be interested in?

o What activities do you like and does the school you consider to attend offer those activities?

o Is the student life on campus at this particular school something you would enjoy?

o Do you know anyone who has attended the schools you consider attending. I this is the case, do you think they would be interested in showing you around and/or answer some questions if they are still on campus?

o Make a pro and con list of the schools you would consider to attend.

o Figure out the costs of the schools you consider to attend. Which college is the most expensive and which one is the least expensive?

o What result or outcome do you want from your college education?

o Are the schools you consider to attend located in a city where you might remain after graduation?

o Which school is the closest to where you live?

o Do your parents agree with your possible school choices?

Something to be aware of when trying to decide on an appropriate college is the cost factor. If you are undetermined on what you want your major to be then you might be doing your parents a great favor by attending a community college until you decide.

Although it’s highly advisable to choose where you want to go to college and stay there for the entire four years, if you are undecided on a major, you can usually get your core class requirements out of the way at a local community college. However, if you choose to do this, then you may want to approach the school where you will end up and ask about transferring so that you will be knowledgeable about the courses which will transfer to your intended college.

College is never an easy decision and if you aren’t sure what you really want to do then try to be considerate of your parents and either pay your own way until you decide or choose a local college. Local community colleges are about 25% of the cost of larger colleges and private colleges and universities are mostly too expensive to expect your parents to pay for if you don’t know what you want to be when you grow up.

Part of growing up is learning how to make up your mind and following through on intelligent decisions. If you aren’t able to do this yet then decide where you want to go to school until you are ready to make a mature and conscious decision regarding your future.

A majority of the universities and colleges also offer some superior career planning services. If you are not sure what direction you need to pursue, then consider to take advantage of these options for planning your future. You should take your time to ask questions and seek answers about chosen fields you are considering. Go online and find career path guidelines and assistance as well as through the occupational handbook which can give you an idea of careers which college students are pursuing because of the upcoming anticipated demand in the labor market.

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The problem of college kids cheating on their term papers is reaching epic proportions. Even though the penalties are high at the top colleges and Universities kids still cheat. Faculty and staff work hard to combat this problem and some schools have deployed massive software to scour the Internet to check against the term papers turned in, all term papers every where and the entire Internet.

Term Paper Plagiarism is well known and Research Report Fraud in Colleges and Universities is a serious problem indeed. It seems to be worse than the nation’s drug problem. If you catch one student cheating, there are more to replace them. Rather than make it illegal some people want to Tax the Term Papers and use that money to pay teachers more and provide better tools to teach these toddler true techniques of learning. But the Devil has a plan for this Too!

Everything is good in moderation they say and students who do not study justify their thievery only participating in the plagiarism part-time. Rather than crucify the crafty incompetent parents, we are causing those who fill the market niche with product. If the kids were more honest then they would not be buying their term papers.

The Devil in the White Term Paper is to be Terminated! Ah ha ha ha ha! It will never work, humans will always cheat, lie and commit acts of deception and deceit while in denial. Ah ha ha ha ha. The Devil Makes them Do It!

I certainly hope this article is of interest and that is has propelled thought. The goal is simple; to help you in your quest to be the best in 2007. I thank you for reading my many articles on diverse subjects, which interest you.

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I have worked at one business or another, since I turned 16. I worked for both private and nonprofit businesses, for big corporations and small professional firms. I still remember the excitement, as well as the culture shock, of my very first job. Because of my own experience, I made both of my children get part-time jobs as soon as they turned 16. It was not for the money, though they enjoyed that aspect of working. It was for the experience of being a part of the workplace.

While our children are in school, they lead a totally different life than when they graduate and enter the workforce. Whether they enter after they graduate from one of the Philadelphia schools or after college graduation, the culture shock is there. Children, who have worked in non-neighborhood, part-time jobs during their adolescence, have an edge over those who have not. They have been exposed to the expectations that will be placed on them by an employer. They have experienced the “office politics” that even exist at a neighborhood McDonalds®. They not only know what to expect, but they have learned how to live up to those expectations.

The United Way of Southeastern Pennsylvania teamed up with 165 other businesses and organizations in January to sponsor Shadowing Day for Philadelphia schools’ ninth graders. Over 1,552 students spent a workday with a mentor at his/her workplace, giving the Philadelphia schools’ students a first-hand experience of the “real world” workplace.

Each Philadelphia schools’ participant was paired with an employee from a host business or organization. The student literally shadowed their mentor for an entire workday to see what they actually do in their job, what expectations they must meet, the interrelationships within that particular workplace, and how the employee handles his workload, coworkers and supervisors. The experience reduces the future culture shock, when these Philadelphia schools’ students enter the workforce.

The United Way campaign for mentors of Philadelphia schools’ teens first began in 1990. They work year round to provide an adult mentor for every adolescent in the Philadelphia schools’ region who needs one. There are well over 100,000 Philadelphia schools’ students, who have the potential of experiencing teen pregnancy and/or violence, as well as so many who live in poverty. The United Way believes a positive adult role model now is more important than ever in the Philadelphia schools’ area. They currently provide mentors for nearly 5,000 youth annually, training hundreds of new mentors and program leaders each year.

Studies prove that youth with a positive, adult role model are more likely to: