Todd Richman of Achieve Admissions will be contributing a series of articles on college planning for the clients of Monument Group Wealth Advisors, a registered investment advisory firm based in Concord MA. http://www.monumentgroupwealth.com/blog/2015/nov/jigsaw-puzzle-college-admissions
“Plutarch said the mind is not a vessel to be filled but a fire to be lit." "The Future of College" http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2014/09/the-future-of-college/375071/ What sort of a college experience does that best? Can an online college effectively replace the traditional college experience? Does it provide a better way to fill the vessel in terms of interaction vs. lectures? Without a physical community and face-to-face interaction, can it light a fire? Is college just about gaining knowledge... what about developing social and leadership skills?
Parents’ Fears Confirmed: Liberal Arts Students Earn Less Students at elite liberal arts colleges don’t make as much early in their careers as those who attend highly selective research universities http://www.wsj.com/articles/parents-fears-confirmed-liberal-arts-students-make-less-1446582592 Is this really a fear to be confirmed? Is the ultimate measure of a college’s value the salary level of its graduates? Certainly there's more to the college experience and the choices graduates make. Is it a condemnation of a college if its alumni choose a career in public service, or the arts, or nursing, or teaching, or any number of important and rewarding jobs that don't pay as much?
The New Math of College Rankings More websites let students and parents compare colleges based on financial criteria http://www.wsj.com/articles/the-new-math-of-college-rankings-1446433533 For $60K a year it is reasonable to examine college "return on investment". Is salary the only metric that matters? What about job satisfaction? Ease of finding a job in the first place? And how should we measure factors beyond compensation, like how a college develops young people to contribute to society, community and family? If we're going to measure outcome (salary achieved), the calculation should also include the investment required (student debt incurred). Which is better: earning a high salary but
