January 30, 2012

Is a Master’s Degree Worth It?

masters-degreeAdvanced degrees aren’t all they’re cracked up to be.

They won’t guarantee you your dream job. They won’t ensure happiness in life, either. But they will cost you a lot of money if you’re not careful.

At age 26, I’ve already completed my Bachelor’s and Master’s degree. That’s not me bragging by any means. Actually, I’m not using my two engineering degrees at all right now (although the job I hold would require at least a 4-year degree of some sort).

I always feel weird explaining this situation to people, but the simplest way to put it: I didn’t completely understand what my interests and desires were before going for these degrees, especially for my master’s. This was a mistake and is one that I think others make by blindly moving on to acquire advanced degrees.

I don’t regret my choices. Luckily, I was able to get both degrees with less than $8,000 in loan debt, which I recently paid off. But I wish I would’ve considered the reasons for getting these degrees and what sort of future it would lead me to.

Don’t get me wrong: Advanced degrees are a great thing if you earn them and use them effectively.

But they can be detrimental if you go about it wrong. Here’s my attempt to steer you towards or away from an advanced degree, depending on where you fall.

It’s Not For You If…

You simply don’t like their current job. Going back to school to escape your current job is just a bad idea. The grass always looks greener on the side. You may be lucky in finding another job you like more by adding another degree, but don’t assume that’s going to be the case.

You simply can’t find a job. If you can’t find a job, getting a Master’s degree isn’t an automatic solution. There are still people with advanced degrees out there that don’t have jobs. Adding more debt to the mix makes it less pleasant, too.

You’re already deep in debt. If you’ve already racked up a lot of debt, I would urge you to consider paying off at least some of it before returning to school. Having six figures of debt is a daunting amount to pay off, and it will put the pressure on to take the highest-paying (but maybe less ideal) job after you finish your advanced degree.

You are just seeking a credential. If you’re simply looking to add an MBA to your resume because you think it will look good, that’s poor planning. Don’t just rack up credentials. Learn things because you think you’ll get real value out of them.

You think you can’t do something without a certain degree. If you think that you can’t start a business without a MBA, that’s just wrong. A lot of rich and famous entrepreneurs don’t even have bachelor’s degrees, nevermind something further. For more on this, definitely check out Michael Ellsberg’s The Education of Millionaires.

It May Be For You If…

You’re 99% sure what direction you want to go for a career. You’ve got to have a focus that you know you’re interested in. If you’re hoping to find it in graduate school, you’re in the wrong place. If you’re not that certain, be sure to have a job in your desired field before going to graduate school.

You absolutely need an advanced degree to do your dream job. Obviously, doctors and lawyers fall into this category. There’s no way around it for them. If you don’t need the advanced degree, you should at least have experience working in the field that you wish to enter before going to graduate school on the belief that it’s what you’re meant to do.

You can get employers to pay. Some employers offer to pay for advanced degrees and certificates. This can often be a great deal, but just be aware of stipulations if you choose to leave your job.

 

Even when graduate school seems, attractive, don’t forget there other ways to learn. Since leaving college, I’ve found other ways to educate myself that aren’t nearly as expensive. Free online courses and tutorials (I do pay for online courses, too), books, blogs, and from other people. These can all be just as or more valuable than paying a few thousand dollars for a single college course.

Before you decide that to go for a Master’s degree, just be honest with yourself. Be as objective and realistic as possible about whether or not this degree is really going to get you where you want to go. Realize that simply earning more money won’t solve all of your problems nor necessarily make you like your job any more pleasing.

p. s. – Sorry (again) to my parents and grandparents, who I know have a heart attack every time I write something like this!

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photo by: Sean MacEntee

Filed Under: After College 17 Comments
May 13, 2011

Free Money After College Guide is Here!

Money-After-CollegeMy free new ebook, Money After College: Your Guide to Growing Wealth Right Out of School, has arrived! I’m stoked to finally be able to get this out to any college graduates that will be receiving their diplomas in the next few weeks (I’ll be walking at Tufts Commencement as well).  Of course, even if you’re not a college grad, you can still learn a lot from this guide.

Click here to download your free copy of the Money After College guide

Here’s the introduction Money After College:

I wrote this guide simply because it’s something I wish I had when I graduated college.  If you feel the same way as I did, you may be a little overwhelmed by all the “adult things” that you didn’t learn but are expected to know as you’re forced to “grow up.”  While becoming an expert on everything-adult isn’t necessary right after graduation, there are many important money matters that you need to learn, right away.

I’ve included some of the best info from Money Spruce, and I’ve done my best to link to other books and references that will be helpful to learn more on each of the topics.

Be sure to click here to get access to the guide right away!

Filed Under: After College 6 Comments
May 10, 2011

8 Tactics For Breaking Your Lease Without Losing Money

breaking-your-leaseThis post is part of an “after college” series for the launch of my upcoming free ebook “Money After College.”  You can sign up here to receive your free copy when it’s released later this week.

Signing a lease on an apartment definitely has its pros and cons. With the standard one-year lease, you’re guaranteed a place to live at a fixed rate for that period of time.  Simultaneously, you’re bound to that contract and can’t simply leave without financial repercussions. Fortunately, there are some ways to still have flexibility while under a lease and to limit the financial damage if you want or need to break that lease.  Here are some of the tips I’ve learned after dealing with several landlords.

1. Find out if you’ll be able to sublet your apartment.  Every lease that I’ve signed has said that tenants are not allowed to sublease the apartment, at least not without landlord approval.  However, I’ve found that subleasing is rarely a problem, as most landlords seem to be indifferent as long as they don’t lose any rental income.  If you’re unsure, ask the landlord before moving in what their policy is on subtenants.  If, for some crazy reason, they won’t allow subleases under any circumstances, you might want to consider renting elsewhere.  I don’t think this will be the case for most situations, but it certainly doesn’t hurt to ask the landlord ahead of time.

2. Figure out how sublettable your apartment will be.  I currently pay $400 a month to rent, which is on the low end for the city I live in. Since it’s a decent apartment for a cheap price, I’m confident that I’ll never have a problem subletting if I decide to leave. Subletting can be stressful and difficult, especially in places where there’s an abundance of rooms available.  However, marketing an inexpensive apartment in a highly-desirable neighborhood means that there will be much more interest should I decide to leave.

3. Lower rent to lower liability.  While we all obviously want to pay as little as possible for an apartment, an overlooked advantage of lower rent is that you’ll simply owe less if you move out early.  It merely comes down to simple math that paying rent owed for an apartment you don’t live in that’s $400 a month is much less painful than $800 a month.  If you’re moving somewhere that you’re not certain you will stay, consider a lower rent on a less-fancy apartment for this reason, too.

4. Negotiate the terms of your lease. If you know you want to be in a apartment less than a year, see if the landlord will accept a lease term shorter than 12 months. It never hurts to ask, and you’ll often be surprised how easily you can negotiate with very little time or effort on your part.

Also, try to negotiate as small of a deposit as possible.  I’m not saying this so you can trash the place and have as little money on the hook as possible (plus, you can still be taken to court for further damages).  But if you need to break your lease, for whatever reason, your landlord will have less of your money in their hands already.

5. Give plenty of notice. If you must leave, make sure to give your landlord as much notice as possible.  Many landlords are nice about this and will try to find a replacement to fill your unit.  Giving your landlord more notice gives them more time to advertise the apartment and find someone new.

6. Force landlords to mitigate your loss.  In many states, landlords are required to search for a replacement tenant to mitigate the tenants’ loses.  While some landlords may be good about this, they’re also still entitled to receive rent from you while they are searching.  I haven’t had any experience with this, but I would anticipate that not all landlords are inclined to put 100% effort into their search for a replacement tenant. Still, it’s their responsibility to do something about it and reminding them of law is a good idea for your own sake.

7. Carefully read the terms of your lease (and use them to your advantage).  If your landlord has violated terms of the lease, like invading your privacy, you may have grounds to terminate the contract.  If they’ve failed to properly maintain the property, that could be grounds for breaking a lease, too.  But just because you believe that the landlord has violated the lease doesn’t mean you can simply walk away.  Landlords aren’t likely to give in easily, so prepare for resistance and even legal action if you simply try to move out. At the very least, your security deposit is on the line.

8. Stop paying rent.  This applies only in the worst-case scenario where your landlord is awful and you have no other recourse. You’ll probably be evicted, which is not good when searching for new apartments.  In many states, you are allowed to leave if your apartment has become uninhabitable.  In either case, you’re probably going to have to fight to get your security deposit back.

Before making any choices related to breaking your lease, consider the ethics of your decision. While many of the tactics are favorable for tenants trying to escape a lease, I’m not advocating screwing over your landlord.  Whenever you can, be fair and honor your lease and try to come to an agreement with your landlord if you must leave.

Have you ever had to break a lease? How did you do it?

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photo by: seier+seier

Filed Under: After College, Living Tagged With: , , , , 28 Comments
April 28, 2011

13 Legit Money-Making Skills You Can Learn Online For Free

learn-skills-onlineThis post is part of an “after college” series for the launch of my upcoming free ebook “Money After College.”  You can sign up here to receive your free copy when it’s released in early May.

Last week I wrote about different things to do if you can’t find a job.  Two of my suggestions were to take a class and work on improving other skills. Here’s a list of exactly what I was talking about – courses and skills you can learn online that will help you make money at a job or on your own.  I’ve included just the good stuff – you can put these skills on a resume or even base a freelance career on them.  I didn’t include things like “learn how to get organized” or “learn how to network.” I think we already know those things are floating around on the internet anyway.

The Skills

Business development – MIT offers over 100 free courses from Sloane School of Management.  Some courses even offer assignments with solutions provided!

Programming - This is an area I’ve been interested in improving my knowledge lately.  I came across this free course on learning Python for beginners to coding.  It comes with a lengthy guide and various lessons and drills to test out.  Since there are various programming languages that are open-source, there are tons of other free resources out there, too.

Web Development – The Beginner’s Web Design Tutorial will take you all the way from simple website basics through a 3-part CSS tutorial and advanced HTML. Quackit covers some of the same material, but also includes tutorials on Javascript, PHP, SQL, and XML.  These are the basic foundations you need to know to build websites, so this tutorial should be more than enough to get you started.

Graphic Design – Ideabook.com has 36 free tutorials for all sorts of different applications of graphic design.  Psdtuts+ features an 18-part Photoshop Basix video tutorial series, so be sure to check that out to learn about one of the most popular applications in graphic design.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) – Given that its almost exclusively online, there are a ton of resources to learn search engine optimization.  The best guide I’ve found for beginners is SEO Moz’s Beginner’s Guide to SEO. This will take you through all the basic methodology as well as important concepts and terms to know.  Other great free online guides include SEO 101 from Search Engine Guide and Webconfs SEO Tutorial. I learned all of this, and more, from Sean Ogle’s 48 hour guide to becoming an SEO freelancer.

Languages – One of the best places to learn a language online is through downloadable Podcasts from the iTunes store.  There were at least 24 Podcasts in iTunes for the purpose of learning Spanish (not even counting Podcasts simply spoken in Spanish).  Each of these has hours of content, so it’s safe to say you could never run out of content to listen to. There were other podcasts in French, German, Chinese, Japanese, and more, too.

Aside from Podcasts, there are free websites and content out there to help learn a language.  StudySpanish.com allows you to take 50+ lessons on pronunciation, grammar, and more.

Economics – UC Berkley offers courses in both Micro and Macroeconomics as podcasts through iTunesU, as well as an introduction course.  These aren’t simply some short, introductory material.  Each course offers over 30 hours of classroom content!  If you prefer to read over a course,  MIT again offers a long list of economics courses available for free.

PR/Social Networking - Many companies actually hire employees simply to manage their social networks.  Of course, some of the best resources for learning about building and managing social networks are found online.  Mashable, which is one of the leaders in social media news and tips, offers a Twitter Guide and a Facebook Guidebook. These guidebooks will not only teach you how to use these social media platforms, they will also teach you how to use them to Optimize Your Brand on Facebook or use Twitter for customer service. These are definitely skills you can market to an employer, especially if branding and communicating constantly with customers is a big part of the job.

Law – Stanford offers podcasts that you can listen to through the iTunes store.  You can also take a Law and Society course from MIT or read selected lectures from the Supreme Court, Civil Liberties, and Civil Right course.

Mathematics – If you need to improve your math background, there’s resources out there for that, too.  One of the most useful subjects in mathematics, as it relates to jobs, is statistics.  Carnegie Mellon provides a couple statistics courses that are a great start to improving your knowledge of means, standard deviations, and confidence intervals.

Fine Arts - There are courses in fine arts out there, too.  You can find the Art of Color at MIT to take a look at the use of color in visual arts.  You can also learn about Masterpieces of Western Art in a Columbia University podcast or take in a Yale course on Roman Architecture.

Writing – Since blogging is centered around writing, it’s a natural topic for other bloggers to cover.  The best site that I’ve come across is Copy Blogger.  While it is, in fact, centered around blogging, the authors offer many great writing tips no matter the media. Check out 7 Ways to Improve Your Writing Right Now and 5 Ways to Write Magnificent Copy to get started on Copyblogger’s great content.  If you’d like a more academic angle, MIT has many writing courses available, too.

Other Essential Software - This would be a giant list if I wanted to name all the software you can potentially learn online for free.  Microsoft Office, which is essential for just about any office job, is one that you should know.  Luckily, due to its popularity, there’s tons of free information on the web that will show you how to use any application of Microsoft Office for free. As an example, I’ll use Microsoft Access, since it’s something I’ve been wanting to learn.  I found this About.com guide to Access, which offers a start to finish guide to to build an Access database.  Microsoft offers its own Access guide, too.  The beauty of learning software (or, well, lots of things for that matter) is that Google will often answer any question that you may have about anything! Just from typing in “build a database with Access” on Google yields 243 million results.

Try this with just about any type of software you can imagine, and I’m certain you’ll get results.  Even if you don’t have the license for the software, there are many programs that offer a free trial version that you can get your hands on.

Free isn’t always best

While I love reading stuff for free, I do purchase premium content and courses for a few reasons.  These courses provide information that I can’t get for free online.  While the free content may be out there, it’s not always the easiest to sift through and fine the best free stuff.  Even some of my favorite bloggers out there have loads of free content, but some is buried within the thousands of single posts on their sites.  I’ve learned some things through Chris Guillebeau’s Unconventional Guides, such as solid ideas in “Working for Yourself”, that I simply couldn’t have learned as completely and easily elsewhere.

But I’m okay with paying for these things, too.  Even though I have to pay for something, if I can get multiple times it’s price in value, I’m happy to throw down the money.

This isn’t a complete list of what’s out there by any means, but I hope I at least opened your eyes to what is out there that’s free.  If you have any other skills or free resources to suggest, I’ll love to add them to this post.

Thanks to these sites for some great references: Mission to Learn, Education-Portal, AdavantageEDU, and OpenCulture.

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photo by: el_monstrito

Filed Under: After College Tagged With: , , , , , 13 Comments
April 19, 2011

What To Do If You Can’t Get the Job You Want

what-to-do-can't-get-job-you-wantThis post is part of an “after college” series for the launch of my upcoming free ebook “Money After College.”  You can sign up for my email list to receive your free copy when it’s released in early May.

The job market is still tough right now for college grads, meaning that you may not have your dream job lined up before finishing college. Even if you’re a great candidate, the companies you want to work for still might not be hiring.  But that doesn’t mean you have to sit around and feel miserable while searching for the job you really want. Here are some great (and productive) alternatives to lounging on your parents’ couch while you can’t land the job you want.

1. Take a part time job, even if it’s something you’re not super excited about. You might feel that it’s beneath you to do this if you just earned your degree. But what good is sitting around and doing nothing? At least you’d earn money while continuing to apply to better job opportunities.  There are some decent part time options out there, too (I’m thinking Apple Store or Trader Joe’s). Word of caution: make sure that you still apply to jobs you want.  Don’t get stuck at this part-time job long-term; this is merely some way of earning money while you’re searching for a full-time job.

2. Take a class. I went with “take a class” instead of “attend graduate school” on purpose. Graduate school isn’t the best option if the main reason is difficulty of finding a job. Grad school school is a serious commitment of both time and money, and you should be certain that the graduate degree you’re seeking is something you’re devoted to and truly interested in.

There’s a lot to be said for taking a class in something your interested in or a topic that can increase your marketability as an employee. Community college classes are often inexpensive compared to a year of college tuition.  My local community college charges $450 per class, and costs vary based on where you are.  Perhaps there’s s class you didn’t get to take as an undergraduate that you’re interested in or, even better, something that will help improve your job prospects.  I’m looking into taking a course in computer programming or web design to improve my skills in those areas.  Often times these individual classes can be added to resumes to help bolster your skill set.

3. Work on other skills or interests.  Aside from taking classes there are numerous ways that you can improve your skills or increase your knowledge.  Spend time learning a language using free online resources and podcasts from iTunes. Check out personal finance books so that you know what to do with your money once you start earning it. There are many free sources of education out there that will help to improve your quality of life. Even if there’s no obvious professional benefit from learning these types of things, there can be a big impact on your personal life.

4. Intern at a company your can learn from. You might not be getting paid, but you can still gain a lot of valuable and rewarding experience.  Interning offers a great opportunity to learn valuable skills and make personal connections that pay off in the future.  Also, a barrier that college grads face when job searching is a lack of experience. Interning can definitely help grads overcome this.

5. Volunteer. Volunteering is a great way to help others by giving back to the community.  It can be a resume builder, too, and will show future employers that you have the motivation to go out and do something even when you’re not employed. If there’s an opportunity in your community that you always wanted to get involved in, this is a great time to do it.

6. Start a small side business and find other ways to earn money. You don’t need to launch a Fortune 500 company here. There are a lot of things you can do to with only a small time or money investment to earn a decent amount of cash. With a wide array of freelance opportunities out there, such as writing for a local newspaper or online blog, you shouldn’t have trouble finding work based on your skills and strengths.  If you have a graphic design background, contact local business about designing a logo or other media they can use. You might not earn as much as you would at a full-time job, but freelancers can earn $15 per hour or more, depending on what the work is. Check out Elance or Craigslist for ideas of what freelance work is in demand.

If you can’t find a freelance gig, you can sell your college stuff on eBay and Craigslist.  Selling things is a great way to reduce clutter and earn extra money from things you don’t really need.

7. Travel. It’s a great time to do it if you’re able to afford it, and many college students travel after graduation, job or not. If you’re short on money, find some shorter trips you can take by car or bus. There are cheap ways to find accommodations. Camping is relatively cheap and can be a lot of fun, too. If you want to be a in more populated area, consider Couch Surfing and stay for free with a host.

All of these options can be done while you are simultaneously looking for the job that you really want. Doing unproductive things all day like playing video games or watching YouTube videos are about the worst thing you can be doing for your life. Find the motivation to do something of value while job searching and you’ll be a lot better off for it in life and maybe even for your career.

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photo by: The Consumerist

Filed Under: After College 14 Comments
April 13, 2011

Free ‘Money After College’ Ebook on the Way!

As you may have seen in my post about spending after college on Monday, I will be releasing a new, free ebook in early May.  The working title is “Money After College” and it’s coming together as a nice guide for those graduating this May.  The idea: give grads an easy, introductory guide to follow right out of college. It’s something I wish I had, and I know others wish they did, too.  There will be plenty of great info in the guide for those who’ve been out of college for a few years (like me).

If you haven’t already, subscribe to the Money Spruce email list to get access as soon as it’s released.  I encourage you to share the link for the ebook to anyone that can use it, especially any college grads.  Forget cash and gift cards for graduation gifts this year.  Give the gift of a fianancial future instead by passing on “Money After College” when it’s released :)

Thanks ahead of time for all of your support.  If you have anything you think I should include in the book, please comment below.

Filed Under: After College Leave a Comment
April 11, 2011

After Graduation: Spending Your Newly-Pocketed Money Wisely

After graduationThis post is part of an “after college” series for the launch of my upcoming free ebook “Money After College.”  You can sign up for my email list to receive your free copy when it’s released in early May.

After graduation is an exciting time, emotionally and financially.  You (hopefully) already have a job lined up where you’ll earn more than you ever have in your life.  Perhaps you’ll also receive cash gifts as a graduation present from friends and family, too.  Life is great as you embark on a whole new journey in life. But, let’s come back to earth a bit before you go out right away and grab all the stuff you’ve worked your way through four years of college to get.  After all, you haven’t hit the big time yet.

I’ll admit that I’ve been guilty of going out and spending right after finishing my first four years of college.  I bought a new HDTV and PlayStation 3, which cost me over $1,000 combined.  I also bought some new clothes and other things to “reward” myself.  Before I knew it, most of my graduation gift was gone.  Here’s some tips to avoid the same mistakes that I made.

Resisting big spending mistakes

- Don’t spend money just because you can.  This little blip of income in your life is going to disappear quickly, especially if you start spending money before you’ve earned it.  Before you start spending wildly, realize that just because you’re earning a few hundred bucks a week doesn’t mean that’s all fun money.

- Ask yourself “Would this purchase make sense if I was still in college?” If you were like most college students out there, you probably didn’t have too much money to go around.  You might have eaten ramen or drank Natty Ice (or both, simultaneously) and hope to never have to go down that path again.  Even though you might not want to live like like a pauper any more, you should try to maintain that lifestyle for as long as you can.  It will help greatly in your ability to pay down college debt and save for retirement.

- Plan your purchases wisely. Don’t buy on impulse. I enjoyed my PlayStation for about a year before I got tired of it and ended up selling it (for about half of what I paid originally).  I regret that purchase and would much prefer to have that cash in my savings account right now instead.  If you are planning on making any large purchases (> $100), think about it for at least a few days before buying.

- Don’t go out and buy the brand-new fancy car. Yep, this one gets it’s own section.  I’ve seen it so many times.  If you’re trying to recover from four years of loans (and potentially credit card debt), buying a new car is one of the worst decisions you can make.  If you do need a car, purchase something a few years older that will cost a lot less.  There are lots of benefits of owning a used car.  If you’re living in a metro area where there’s public transportation, Zipcar, or bike access, you might not need to own a car at all.

- Allow yourself a few nice things that you’ve been waiting to buy.  I think all life victories deserve celebration.  Graduating college is probably your biggest accomplishment at age 22, so it’s certainly no exception.  Treat yourself to a nice night out for dinner, a DVD or two, and a book to further help you plan your finances (I recommend Ramit’s I Will Teach You To Be Rich).

- Save some money and start paying down any debt.  Trust me, loan payments are coming at you fast and you’re not going to enjoy it.  If you don’t have loans, there’s going to be a time in the future when you need this money and can use it on something better. Save as much as you can, and you’re making a great decision.

3 Easy Steps to Start

In 3 steps, here’s what I’d do with the first $1,000 after graduation (gifted from family/friends or earned at a job):

1. Have fun with $200.  Do whatever you want with this.

2. Put $300 in the bank in an ING Savings account.  Save this for an emergency or some other important expense in the future.

3. Open a Roth IRA and deposit the final $500 in this account. Research index funds and start investing.

This is a fantastic foundation, which you can build on with a more sophisticated savings and investing strategy.

If you’re about to graduate, how do you plan to spend?  If you’re past graduation (like me), do you have any advice?

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photo by: Werwin15

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Filed Under: After College, Spending Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , 12 Comments