Even though most states found themselves creating massive cuts in the last year, the budget gap is still too much for some to handle, leading them to decrease spending further. States such as Indiana and California have already announced a dramatic decrease in education budgets for the next year. Both states, especially California, had a hard year in 2009 trying to fill the debt gap. While California inflicted dramatic tuition increases that led to student protests and media scrutiny to make up for the budget, Indiana cut programs and limited faculty travel as a way of spending less, promisin... view article details

'Why would anyone want to put savings somewhere unsafe? But the fact remains that a large percentage of popular saving and investing vehicles provide no guarantee of earnings, nor even assurance that the original capital will be preserved.'     Saving your money in a safe place may seem like an obvious priority. Why would anyone want to put savings somewhere unsafe? But the fact remains that a large percentage of popular saving and investing vehicles provide no guarantee of earnings, nor even assurance that the original capital will be preserved. Those that do make such a guarantee are conside... view article details

Employees versus independent contractors. Sometimes it's difficult to know what camp you fall into as a worker. But when you consider health benefits, compensation and tax purposes, knowing the differences between the two is an absolute necessity. But what exactly are the differences between employee status and being an independent contractor? Our salary expert, Jack Chapman, has your answers.Question: When am I considered an employee and when am I an independent contractor?Answer: You’re an independent contractor when you have services you sell to a company. The biggest difference concerns wh... view article details

'To be fair, folks who have so much money in the market that they simply don't have enough time to stay on top of investment trends would probably be good candidates for the use of a full-service broker.'  'Full-service' brokers get their name and reputation from the dogged and devoted work they're expected to do to keep clients happy. They carry business cards from distinguished brokerage firms like Salomon Smith Barney and Merrill Lynch. In an ideal world, a broker provides sound, profitable investment ideas, and furnishes up-to-the-minute research to keep you current with market trends, sto... view article details

You - "Reader" - are a up-and-coming professional in a growing business. You work hard and get along well with co-workers, but find the office life to be monotonous and unexciting. Most of the other employees seem to be enthusiastic about something beyond the paycheck. Little do you know, you are about to be visited by three wise co-workers who will help you find your purpose. But first, you receive an annoying email. Prologue: The Passive-Aggressive Email Dear Reader, Hope you’re having a great day. Just to let you know, the carpool spreadsheet for the mid-level professionals’ retreat wa... view article details

How to Set Career & Salary Goals You Can Achieve This Year New Year, New Goals Everyone knows the beginning of the year is the time for setting goals. Lose weight! Get in shape! Spend more time with friends and family! It’s also the time to set goals for your career. If you do, there’s a good chance you’ll become rich. Didn’t you hear about that study on goal setting? In his book What They Don’t Teach You At Harvard Business School, Mark McCormack tells of a study conducted with new graduates from the 1979 Harvard MBA program. In that year, the students were asked, "Have you set clear, writ... view article details

Looking for a Job? There's an App for That Today’s tsunami of technology means savvy job seekers have jumped on the app wagon in an effort to give themselves the leading edge in the job search process. Mobile apps allow job seekers to search discreetly for positions – anytime, anywhere – and respond to postings quickly. There are apps that help with career planning, organize the job search process, alert job seekers to compatible positions, and can even upload and send resumes to recruiters. This article explores the 8 mobile apps (in no particular order) every job seeker should know about. 1.... view article details

First Impressions Matter You’ve made enough of an impression with your resume and job experience to get an interview, and in that first seven seconds when you walk through the door, research suggests the person on the other side of the table is going to size you up.And as we all know, first impressions matter. A lot.What you wear – and, perhaps more importantly, what you choose not to wear to that job interview – could make all the difference in whether you get your foot in the door. “The person should not notice your clothes,” Barry Drexler, an interview coach with Expertinterview.co... view article details

To Apply or Not to Apply... Have you ever been combing the online job boards and stopped dead in your tracks when you run across the perfect job? It’s in your field for a company you’d love to join doing the work you’ve been hoping to get into.But then you scroll down and your enthusiasm dampens.The 4-page job description starts listing some skills you don’t have. Or it asks for 10 years of experience and you’ve only got five. Soon you find yourself on that all-too-familiar fence of “should I apply or not,” and you’re not sure if you should even bother getting your hopes up. So, what’... view article details

Don't Sink Your Own Ship It’s a small world, right? Getting a job is hard enough, so doing something to damage your reputation, or your karma, is probably not a good idea when you desperately want or need a new one. If you think the careless way you have managed your communications with a would-be employer or recruiter hasn’t hurt you, you are very wrong.Ask any recruiting professional or hiring manager whether they remember the candidates who have accepted, then declined, an offer over email or text. Or what about those “failure to show” people who blow off their first day at a new j... view article details