Mark Kantrowitz, a nationally recognized financial expert, has been honored by the California Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (CASFAA) with the 2011 Creative Leadership Award. This award is given to an individual who has demonstrated, through significant leadership, innovation in the student financial aid profession. The presentation was made at CASFAA's annual conference on Sunday, December 11, 2011 in Sacramento, ...

Who can forget that iconic moment in Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory when Charlie opens his Wonka Bar to find the last, remaining Golden Ticket? Or, from the film, the tune “I’ve Got a Golden Ticket” – the celebratory song led by Charlie’s grandfather who hasn’t gotten out of bed in 20 years? These moments are providing a great comparison ...

With the year coming to a close, we wanted to highlight the top ten internships for this year, according to Vault.com. The top 10 are always hard to usurp and are typically featured on this list annually. That’s why you’re guaranteed a great internship at one of the following institutions in 2012 as well. [gate] The editors at Vault base their ...

As college students leave home for the first time and set up their college dorm rooms, their fears are reinforced by gentle prods from funny uncles, cousins and friends about the dreaded “Freshmen 15.” For years now, college-bound students have been wrestling with an urban legend that they will gain at least 15 pounds during their freshmen year at college. [gate] ...

Jersey Shore has been a pop culture phenomenon since its debut on MTV in December 2009. The show has exposed the world to the Jersey Shore definition of “guido/guidette” and converted more than just Italian Americans to the lifestyle. It has taught us catch phrases like “GTL” – gym, tan, laundry. And now, the show has transpired from the television set ...

A disturbing new trend is rearing its head at many college campuses across the country. It’s referred to as “drunkorexia” and its name aptly defines the condition. The term first surfaced in 2008, and a recent study from the University of Missouri claims that college women are succumbing to drunkorexia more than ever. [gate] In a New York Times article in ...

On October 5, students from at least 100 colleges across the country walked out of their classrooms at noon, according to The Huffington Post. This signaled the start to a series of student protests concerning the rising cost of tuition, increase in student debt figures and a failing job market. According to Occupy Colleges’ Facebook page, the student activist group will ...

How much would you pay for a near perfect score on the SAT? $100? $500? How about $2,500? On Tuesday, seven students in Great Neck, New York were arrested amid allegations that they cheated on the SAT, according to the Associated Press. Former and current students at the Great Neck North High School, one of the most prestigious high schools in ...

The American dream: a high-paying job, a beautiful home and a hefty retirement fund. All made possible by the Bachelor’s degree you completed in four years. There’s a reason it’s called a dream, and unfortunately, it’s not the reality. In fact, the most recent data from the National Center for Education Statistics suggests that even obtaining a college degree in four ...

This is the time of year that makes upperclassmen, especially seniors, tremble—the beginning of standardized testing. Although the scores you receive on these assessments are compared with all the other information on your resume such as your class rank, activities and awards as well as your transcript, admissions essays and letters of recommendation, the number of tiny circles you bubble in ...

In January of this year, the International Business Times reported that the average job search was taking roughly eight months. For those of you that graduated in May, it could mean that you don’t necessarily land your first “official” job until January. But if you want to speed up the job search, you may want to look in one of the ...

It’s the Groupon deal that has everyone buzzing. On Wednesday, Chicago area shoppers were presented with a deal that was drastically different from the typical 50% off coupons for teeth whitening or sushi dinners. Instead, Groupon buyers had the opportunity to purchase a master’s level education course for 57% off the actual price. The course, Introduction to the Profession and the ...

Earlier this month, CNN contributor and national columnist Ruben Navarrette, Jr. wrote an opinion piece on millennials in the job market, saying, “millennials are tech-savvy, highly educated and have incredibly high self-esteem even if they haven't done much to deserve it.” And he’s not alone. Needless to say, Navarette’s assessment was a bit controversial to both millennials and non-millennials. But is ...

President Obama has made it clear that he hopes one of the staples of his administration is an increase in college completion rates. By 2020, he hopes that the U.S. will regain its position as the country in the world with the greatest proportion of college graduates. However, recent budget cuts to financial aid and educational programs leaves plenty of room ...

Last week, the Princeton Review released its annual rankings lists, and while the lists attempt a well-rounded approach to ranking schools based on everything from academics to political sway, the only list that draws any real publicity is the Top Party School list. College presidents despise this list. Parents fear it. And students use the list to further tout their school’s ...

If you think you’ve got a lot of summer reading to do think again, five university students in the Dominican Republic have been reading for 300 hours, straight. According to huffingtonpost.com the students are reading aloud in an effort to not only break the previously set Guinness World Record of 240 hours but also raise awareness about books in a country ...

Textbooks and classroom materials are one of those college costs that are out of sight, out of mind until you’re precariously balancing 10 different hardcover books through the narrow aisles of your campus bookstore. And those textbooks signify an altogether different burden when the cashier asks you to fork over roughly $1,000. According to CollegeBoard, the average amount that college students ...

This summer, a number of states and colleges have slashed grant funding and raised tuition prices, giving students and their families little time to prepare for the hikes that will go into effect soon. According to Smart Money, Texas and New Hampshire announced tuition increases from 6 – 10% at some public universities. California just proposed to continue to drive tuition ...

It started out as a free-throw contest to unite a community despite its negative stereotypes. But it delivered a much bigger message when the free-throw contest winner forfeited all his glory and gave the winnings to the rest of the contestants. It sounds like something from a movie, and in a way, it is. According to the LA Times, Court Crandall, ...

In the upcoming movie, Larry Crowne, Tom Hanks stars as an everyday guy who reinvents himself after some tough knocks from today’s economy. In the movie, also starring Julia Roberts, Larry goes back to school and learns an all important lesson: when life leaves you feeling like you have no options, that’s just when you may find your life’s calling. The ...