Pacific Standard July-August 2013 Cover

The Highest Paid People on the Pentagon’s Budget: 3 Football Coaches

June 18, 2013 • By • Leave a Comment
Army Football Media Day

According to Chicago Life magazine, yes, that is true. The three highest-paid employees on the Pentagon budget are the head football coaches at Air Force (Troy Calhoun), Navy (Ken Niumatalolo), and Army (Rich Ellerson), which is not totally shocking. Especially after Deadspin released that chart last month, listing the highest-paid public employees in every state, most of which were basketball or football coaches. Plus, a sizable portion of the Department of Defense's budget is spent on outside contractors, who, though they may be vulnerable to upcoming cuts, tend to make more than ... Read More

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Why MOOCs Are Bad for Science Education

June 7, 2013 • By • Leave a Comment
E-LEARNING

A college education today is ridiculously expensive, and tomorrow it will be even more so. Can the Internet change that? Some people are hoping it will. They argue that online courses, or more specifically, massively open online courses (MOOCs) will make “the best courses, from the best professors, and the best schools” available to the masses at a fraction of the cost of a brick-and-mortar education. MOOCs would solve the problem of a hefty college price tag while improving everyone’s educational experience to boot. But far from overturning the staid and overpriced traditional lecture ... Read More

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In Rankings Race, Colleges Giving Low-Income Students Less Aid Than Better Off Ones

June 6, 2013 • By • Leave a Comment
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Low-income students are increasingly bypassed when colleges offer applicants financial aid, as schools compete for wealthier students who can afford rising tuition and fees, according to a public policy institute's analysis of U.S. Department of Education data. The study by The New America Foundation said that colleges, in their quest to advance their U.S. News & World Report rankings, are directing more financial aid to high-achieving applicants in a bid to elevate the profile of their student population. "A lot of them (colleges) go for the same students from the rich suburban ... Read More

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How to Receive a World-Class College Education on the Cheap

May 22, 2013 • By • Leave a Comment
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Looking for a low-cost college option? Consider learning German. Patrick Finger, a high school senior from Southern California, did just that. He applied to a dozen or so colleges this year, including several state schools. In the end, he chose a less conventional path, opting to perfect his German language skills over the next year and then enroll at the University of Cologne. Tuition at German universities proved irresistible—it's free. "State campuses here can cost as much as $35,000 per year and private colleges more," Finger says. Even with the extra year of study plus living and ... Read More

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The 5 Top Host Countries for American Students Studying Abroad

May 22, 2013 • By • Leave a Comment
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The number of U.S. students enrolled in full-degree programs at universities outside the United States grew four percent to about 46,000 last year, according to a report by the Institute of International Education's Project Atlas. Shaving thousands of dollars off their tuition bills is a prime motivation for many Americans studying abroad. Below is a more in-depth look at each of the five top host countries for American undergraduates enrolled in degree programs outside the United States, according to the report. UNITED KINGDOM Annual tuition: From $6,000 to $40,000. What to know before ... Read More

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University Presidents Get Richer, Students Pay More

May 13, 2013 • By • Leave a Comment
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The Chronicle of Higher Education just released a report outlining the salaries of the top-earning university executives across the country. And guys, we did it! There are now four presidents—well three, actually—making over a million dollars per year. I say "three" because the top-earning university president was Graham Spanier, who was fired as a result of a widespread, multi-year sexual abuse scandal at Penn State. His compensation, though, was pretty nice. The top 10: 01. Graham B. Spanier, Free Agent, $2,906,271 02. Jay Gogue, Auburn University, $2,542,865 03. E. Gordon ... Read More

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Is College Worth It?

May 13, 2013 • By • Leave a Comment
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The message that everyone should go to college does a disservice to the 60 percent of students who do not finish their degrees within six years, according to new research from Brookings Center on Children and Families, a non-partisan research center in Washington. These students end up with debt that is not recouped by higher salaries later in life. And for low-income families, the impact is even worse. "On average, getting a college degree is a good decision, but it isn't good for everyone. It's whether you finish, where you go, what you major in it, and what you do," said Isabel Sawhill, ... Read More

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Stephen Joel Trachtenberg Pokes at the Foundations of the Ivory Tower

May 8, 2013 • By • Leave a Comment
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Stephen Joel Trachtenberg, president emeritus of Washington, D.C.’s The George Washington University, has spent most of his life thinking about higher education, either as a student—he has an undergraduate degree from Columbia, a law degree from Yale, and a master’s in public administration from Harvard—or as an administrator. He retired in 2007 as president of George Washington after 19 years on the job, and has written The Art of Hiring In America’s Colleges & Universities, Thinking Out Loud, and Reflections on Higher Education. Would you reprise what you said about ... Read More

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Talent Retention Subsidies

May 2, 2013 • By • Leave a Comment
brain-drain

Brain drain is a positive indicator. When an individual leaves her hometown, she benefits. The community did an excellent job educating its children. The best and brightest migrate. Michigan has decided to put a stop to all of this economic development: Michigan is working to keep college graduates in the state, and new legislation seeks to slow the "brain drain" with an additional incentive: A tax credit for student loan payments. "For me, it's kind of a first step in talent retention," said sponsoring state Rep. Andy Schor, D-Lansing, "We have some of the best colleges and universities ... Read More

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Coming to a Campus Near You: College Hookups Gone Digital

April 25, 2013 • By • Leave a Comment
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When you think of Internet hookup sites, you might imagine an older crowd too busy for dating; college students, with opportunities for interaction everywhere from the classroom to the local pub, are not likely the first demographic that comes to mind. Co-eds, however, aren’t willing to be left out of the action as the recent proliferation of college hookup sites attests. Titillated at the prospect of “no strings attached” sexual encounters, students across the country are increasingly joining college hookup networks, the majority of which are modeled after the original site, ... Read More

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