Career Services for Students
When you’re researching colleges, it is important to check out their career services and how they plan to prepare you for the step after college. What we’re asking here is: if a college is ranked in the “top ten” bracket, does that necessarily mean that this college also has a top career service? To research this question, we considered the “top ten” colleges given by the Princeton Review for 2013. We took the top three public colleges and the top three private colleges and compared their career services to those of lower ranked colleges in the US to see if what they offer aligns with their academic standing.
The Princeton Review has rated the following schools as the top ten “Best Value Colleges for 2013” in the United States. They consider “value” to mean that these colleges offer great academics at affordable prices, with financial aid available.
Private:
1. Swarthmore College
2. Harvard College
3. Williams College
4. Princeton University
5. Pomona College
6. Yale University
7. Rice University
8. Hamilton College
9. Claremont McKenna College
10. Grinnell College
Public:
1. University of Virginia
2. The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
3. New College of Florida
4. College of William and Mary
5. U. of California-L.A
6. North Carolina State University
7. University of Wisconsin-Madison
8. State University of N.Y at Binghamton
9.University of Michigan-Ann Arbor
10. University of Georgia
Some of the colleges that didn’t make the top ten include (in no particular order): Clemson, Bucknell, Lafayette, Washington State, and Wake Forest University. Each one of these programs has similar and comparable career centers to those of “top ten” universities.
Upon our research, we found that there is no positive correlation between the ranking of a college or university and how much it can help you find your next step. Even colleges (private or public) that aren’t included in the “top ten” bracket still have very legitimate and helpful career services.
The Princeton Review considered the “top ten” colleges presented above to be of the highest “value”, based on their definition of value: receiving a solid education for an affordable price, with financial aid available. For you, value may mean something different, like paying the least amount of money for a decent education, or receiving the best education despite the cost. In any case, it is key to consider the “top ten” colleges in accordance to your own personal needs and expectations. One desire that is universal, however, is to get a job after college. And although there are a number of ways to approach doing so, a career center can facilitate the task in many ways. For this, it is a good idea to research the school’s career services while also researching their academic standing and financial requirements. Keep in mind, as we just covered, that their career services may not be in line with their academic standing or their reputation. It may be better or it may be worse.
Molly McShea works at StrengthsInsight as a Marketing Strategist. A former varsity athlete at Georgetown University, she has a passion for linguistics, learning new things and discovering more about the world.
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