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Spring 2007 Topic focus: Are you preparing for your career?
In ThIS ISSue
1 NegotiatingAJobOffer
2 RSSFeedsforResearch
3 IsGradSchoolForYou?
4 ProfessorPetPeeves
MarkYourCalendar1/11SpringSemesterBegins
1/17LastDaytoDrop/Addon
KATS
1/30Agri-IndustryCareerFair
1/31LastDayfor100%refund
2/7Lastdayfor50%refund
2/8ApplicationsforMaygradua-tionduetoWA135
2/15Lastdaytodropwithouta“W”
3/19Lastdaytodropacourse
3/19-23SpringBreak
3/26EnrollmentforFall/Summer
2007begins
4/14K-StateOpenHouse
5/4LastdayforSpring07
semester
5/7-11Finalexams
5/12Graduation-residencehallsclose
OrderedBusinessHelpsBowserManageActivitiesWhen you talk with Jarrod Bowser, junior in agricultural economics, the list ofactivitieshe’sparticipatedin isabitoverwhelming,especiallywhenyouknowhe’senrolledinnineteencredithours.Onewonderswhenhesleeps.
“MymomthinksIshouldrelaxabitmore.Myparentsaregladtoseemeinvolvedand happy with what I’m doing, but they think I really push myself,” Bowsersaid.
Since coming to K-State Bowser has held positions as Ag Council President,AgSenator,NationalAgronomyParliamentarian,andhasbeen involved in theWheatStateAgronomyClubandtheAgEcon/AgribusinessClub.
However, his current position as Faculty Senate Parliamentarian might be themostrelevanttohisfuturecareeraspirationsonthefamilyfarm.
“Myplanistogobacktothefarmrightaway.I’mhopingthereisroomforme.AstheyoungestinthefamilyIknownegotiatingthebusinesswillhavealearningcurve.”
As Parliamentarian, Bowser attends monthly Faculty Senate meetings. If thereareanyparliamentaryprocedurequestionsBowseradvisesthefacultyofwhatRobert’sRulesstateandhowtheywork.
“Idon’tsaythingsarewrongallthetime.Myconcerniswhetherornotthemeet-ingisrunningwell.Imakesurenoone’srightareviolatedandthatthemeetingisheldinanefficientmanner,”Bowsersaid.
ItisthisperspectiveBowserhopestoutilizeonthefarm.Althoughhisfamilyhasagreat relationship,“Itmightbemoreefficient ifmy familyusedtheseproce-dures,”Bowserjokes.
Bowser’s involvement with Faculty Senate began after Dr. Mickey Ransom re-ferredhimtotheSenateChair.
“Dr.RansomthoughtIwouldbeagoodcandidate.IhopeI’veprovedhimright,”Bowsersaid.
Bowser’shighlevelofactivitiesthroughoutcollegewasabigchangefromhighschool.“Iwasn’tveryinvolvedinhighschoolactivities.IknewcomingtoK-StateIwantedtodevelopstrongfriendshipsandsocialize.Plus,I’mneverbored,there’salwayssomethingtodo.”
Bowser says students who want to get involved should start with departmentclubs thenaddmoreactivities.“Themost funhappens in theseclubsandyoubuildthestrongestfriendshipthere.Theyalsoopendoorstootheractivities.”
POSITIvEBEHAvIORS
Herearethethingscollegeprofessorslove:
•Studentswhotakeresponsibilityfortheireducation
•Studentswhohavereadtheassignedreadingandactive-lyparticipateinclassdiscussion
•Studentswhocompleteallassignedworkontime
•Studentswhosittowardthefrontoftheclassroom
•Studentswhovisitprofessorsduringofficehours
Spring 2007
CollegeProfessorPetPeevesandPositiveStudentBehaviorsProfessorslovehavingstudentsintheirclasseswhoaretheretoactively,learn,participate,anddemonstratetheircom-mitmenttolearning.
Andthentherearecertainbehaviorsbestavoidedbystudentsincollege.Thesebehaviorsdrivefacultycrazyandwillleadtoyoubeingseenaslessthantheidealstudent.Someoftheseactivi-tiesaredisrespectfultotheprofessor--aswellastoyourfellowstudents.
Partofearninganacademicdegreeincludeslearningsociallyappropriatebehavior.Takethefollowingquiztofindoutifyou’rebuggingyourprofessorsandpeers.Ifyoucheckfiveormore,resolvetochangethebehaviorforthebetter.Checkeachboxthatdescribesyourbehaviorthispastsemester.
PETPEEvES
q Failingtocometoclassregularly
q Arrivingtoclasslate(andespe-ciallymakingabigentrance),andworse,makingahabitofit
q Shufflingpapers,puttingbooksaway,andother“end-of-class”behaviorsbeforetheprofessorhasendedclass
q Questioningwhethersomeofthehomeworkfortheclassisjust“busywork.”
q Askingif“we’redoinganythingimportantinclass”wheninformingtheprofessorthatyoumayhavetomissaclass
q Askingaboutwhatishappeninginclasswhenitisclearlymarkedonthesyllabus
q Allowingyourcellphonetoringinclass
q Textmessagingwhileinclass
q Holdingaprivatediscussionwithsomeoneduringclass
Pet Peeve FYI:
Theater-style class-rooms amplify personal conversations. Even whispers can be heard clearly by faculty at the front of the room.
q Askinginaneoroff-topicquestions
q Eatingamealinclass
q Tellingtheprofessoryouwenttohis/herofficeforhelp,butthathe/sheisneverthere
q Claimingyoudidnotknowanexercisewasdue,thattherewasatest,oranyotherclassworkthatisclearlyiden-tifiedontheclasscalendar
q Tellingtheprofessoryoudeserveabreakbecauseofwhoyouare
q Notcompletingtheassignedreadingbeforeclass
q Goingtotherestroominthemiddleofclass(unlessit’sanemergency)
q Sleepingduringclass
q Complainingabouttheworkloadinclass,stating“youknow,thisisn’ttheonlyclassI’mtaking”
q Wearinginappropriateclothing(orthelackofit)toclass
q Askingto“borrow”astaplertostapleahomeworkassignmentfortheclass.(Wouldyouaskyourbossforastaplertostapleareport?)
q Turninginassignmentsthatdonotfollowtheclassprocedure(andeveryprofessorhasdifferentguidelines;knowthem!)
q Makingexcusesformissedexams,classassignments.(Especiallydon’tusethetime-worndeadgrandparentex-cuse,orthatyouhavetopicksomeoneupattheairport)
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Spring 2007
ofyourdreamjobs--orevensimplyajobyoureallywant--youshouldconsidermovingintothenegotiationphasebymakingacounterproposaltotheemployer.
1.Delaysalaryandbenefitnego-tiationsforaslongaspossibleintheinterviewprocess.You’llhavemorepowertonegotiatewhenthefieldofcandidateshasbeenreducedtojustyou--whentheemployeriscomplete-lysoldonyouasthebestcandidatefortheposition.
2.Rememberthatyou’llhaveyourgreatestnegotiationleveragebetweenthetimetheemployermakestheorigi-
WhatToDoWhenYouAreWorthMoreThanTheyOfferHere’sanidealscenario:Afteragruelingnumberofjobinterviewswithaprospectiveemployerwhoishiringsomeoneforthejobofyourdreams,you’reagainmeetingwiththehiringmanagerwhensheturnstofaceyouandgivesyouthejoboffer,butatasalarybelowwhatyouhadexpected.Youarestillexcited,elatedactually,butwhatyoudonextcouldhaveconsequencesforyearstocome.
Evenifthejobofferisacceptabletoyou,mostcareerexpertsagreethatyoushouldtakethetimetoclearyourheadandconsidertheoffer--awayfromthepressureofaninterview.So,makesuretothanktheinterviewerforthejobofferandexpressyourinterestinthejobandthecompany,butaskforsometimetoconsiderallthedetails.
Butwhatiftheofferisunacceptabletoyou?Ifitreallyisone
NegotiableElementsofaJobOffer•Salary
•Non-salary Compensation: signingbonus;performancebonus;profit-sharing,deferredcompensation;severancepack-age,stockoptions
•Relocation Expenses: house-hunting,temporarylivingal-lowance,closingcosts,travelexpenses,spousejob-hunting/re-employmentexpenses
•Benefits: vacationdays(number,amountpaid,timing),personaldays,sickdays,insurance(medi-cal,dental,vision,life,disability),automobile(orothertranspor-tation)allowance,professionaltraining/conferenceattendance,continuingeducation(tuitionreimbursement),professionalmemberships,club(countryorathletic)memberships,productdiscounts,clothingallowance,short-termloans
•Job-Specific: frequencyofper-formancereviews,jobtitle/role/duties,location/office,telecom-muting,workhoursandflexibil-ity,startingdate,performancestandards/goals
Cellular telephone technology has come a long way in the last five years.
Average salary of De-partment of Agricultural Economics graduates is $38,000. Some recieve offers near $57,000 others return home to family farms and start at $20,000.
conTInuTed on pAge 6
Spring 2007
AreYouThinkingAboutGradSchool?
Decidingtoseekoneormoregraduatedegreesisamajorcommitmentoftimeandmoney;adecisionnottotakelightly.Youwillfaceseveralyearsofintenseworkandresearch--amuchmoredemandingcourseloadthaninyourundergraduateprogram.Beforedecidingyournextstep,youshouldtakethetimetohonestlyanswerthesefivequestions.
Why are you considering a graduate degree?
CareerGoal:Youneedtohaveaclearunderstandingofwhatyouwanttodowithyourcareer--andhowearn-ingagraduatedegreewillhelpyoureachthatgoal.Ifyouhaveanydoubtatallaboutyourprofessionalgoals,considerputtingoffgraduateschooland,instead,spendsometimeworkingonsomeself-assessmentandcareerplanning.Ifyougotograduateschoolwithoutacleargoal,youwillprobablyendupwastingbothtimeandmoney.
Whilecertaincareersdefinitelyrequireanadvanceddegree--doctorsandlawyers,forexample--manyothercareersofferplentyofjobopportunitiesforjob-seekerswithjustanundergraduatedegree.Infact,insomesitua-tionshavinganadvanceddegreecanactuallyhurtyouinajobsearchifyoualsohavelittleornojobexperience.
Compensation:Moststudiesshowthatpeoplewithad-vanceddegreesearnmoreonaveragethanpeoplewithbachelor’sdegrees.AccordingtotheU.S.CensusBureau,in1998theaverageworkerwithabachelor’sdegreeearned$40,478,whileaworkerwithamaster’sdegreeearned$51,183,andaworkerwithadoctorateearned$77,445.
When should you consider obtaining a graduate de-gree?
Oneofthequestionsmostoftendebatediswhenisthebesttimetoconsideragraduatedegree.Isitbettertoattendgraduateschoolrightafteryoucompleteyour
bachelor’sdegree,orisitbettertowaitafewyearsandgainsomework/lifeexperiencefirst.Asmentionedabove,certainlydonotconsidergoingimme-diatelytograduateschoolasadefaultmove--ortoavoidgettingajob.
Thereasonsforgoingstraighttograduateschoolafterearningyourbachelor’sdegree:
•youareaccustomedtobeingastu-dent--andhavemomentum;
•yourstudyskillsaresharp;
•youhavefewobligations;
•someoccupationsrequireanad-vanceddegreeevenfor“entry-level”positions.
Thereasonsforworkingforafewyearsbeforegoingtograduateschool:
•youcanbetterknowyourcareergoalsbyworkinginthefieldforafewyears;
•somegraduateprogramsrequireworkexperience;
•youbringabroaderworldviewtoyourstudies;
•youhaveamorematureoutlookonschoolandwork;
•manyemployerswillpaysomeorall
Nathan Hendricks, Hannah Berns, and Alena Bosse all chose the Department of Agricultural Economics at K-State as the place to pursue their master’s degrees.
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Spring 2007
ofyourgraduateschoolexpenses;
•youcangainsolidfinancialfooting;
•youcanimproveyourchancesforacceptancetograduateprograms--especiallyifyouwerenotthebeststudentinyourundergraduateprogram.
What is the best graduate degree for you?
Therearetwotraditionalcategoriesofgraduatedegrees--master’sanddoctoral--althoughtherearealsonumeroushybridcombined-degreeandcertificateprogramsatmanyuniversities.
Master’s:Master’sdegreeprogramsaregrowingandevolving,withdegreesofferedinjustaboutallfields.Master’sdegreescanbeprofessionaloracademic.Professionaldegrees,suchasaMasterofBusinessAdministration(MBA),aredesignedforemploymentoradvancementwithinagivenfield.Aca-demicdegrees,suchasaMasterofScience,aredesignedforintellectualgrowthand(sometimes)aprerequisitefordoc-toralworkwithinagivenfield.Master’sdegreesmaytakeonetothreeyearstocomplete.
Doctorate:Doctoraldegrees,thehighestpossibleearnedaca-demicdegree,canalsobeprofessionaloracademic.Profes-sionaldoctoraldegrees,suchastheDoctorofMedicine(MD)andtheJurisDoctor(JD),stressthepracticalapplicationofknowledgeandskills.Academicdoctoraldegrees,theDoctorofPhilosophy(Ph.D.),focusonadvancingknowledgethroughoriginalresearchinagivenacademicfield.Doctoratesmaytakethreetosixyearstocomplete.
What is the best graduate school/program for you?
Justasimportantadecisionaswhethertogotograduateschoolisthedecisionofwheretogotograduateschool.Infact,someexpertssayyourchoiceofagraduateschoolismuchmoreimportantthanyourchoiceofanundergraduateschool.
TheDepartmentofAgriculturalEconomicshasdevelopedanacceleratedmaster’sdegreefordistinguishedscholars.Forthosewhoqualify,itispossibletocompleteabachelor’sandamaster’sdegreeatthesametime.FormoreinformationaboutthisprogramseeCherieHodgsoninWaters343.
Finally, can you afford graduate school?
Justaswithyourundergraduatecollege,itiscrucialtolookatthecostsofthevariousgraduateprogramsthatinterestyouanddeterminewhatmixoffinancialaidwillmakeattendingtheprogramsfeasible.It’sbesttostudytheliteratureeachschoolsendsyouandthentalkwithafinancialaidadviseratthoseschoolsthatinterestyou.Besidessomeofthesametypesoffinancialaidofferedattheundergraduatelevel,mostgraduateprogramsalsoofferfellowships(forteachingorresearchassistance).Andifyou’recurrentlyemployed,don’tforgettoseeifyouremployerhasantuitionreimbursementprogram.
TelefundSign-UpDoyouwanttohavefun?Wouldyoulikefreefood?Doyouliketoraisemoney?Well,ifyousaidyestoanyofthesequestions,thenitistimeforyoutosignupfortheCollegeofAgTelefund.Thisyear’sTelefundwillbeheldJanuary28th-February1st.Eachnightwillbeginat5:30pmattheKSUFoundationCenter.Throughouttheevening,callerswillberewardedforhowmuchmoneytheyraise.Inaddition,everycallerwillreceivefreefoodandprizes.Ifyouwouldliketosignup,[email protected]@ksu.edu.Seeyouthere!
Spring 2007
nalofferandthetimeyouacceptthefinaloffer.Onceyouacceptanoffer,youhavelittletonoroomtonegotiate.
3.Don’tnegotiateatthetimetheinitialjobofferismade.Thanktheemployerfortheofferandex-pressyourstronginterestandenthusiasminthejob,butstatethatyou’llneedtimetoevaluatetheentirecompensationpackage.Mostemployersarewillingtogiveyouafairamountoftimetoreview--andifyourunacrossanemployerwhowantsadecisionimmediately,considerlongandhardwhetheryouwanttoworkforsuchacompany.
4.Doyourresearch.Thegreatesttoolinanynegotiationisinformation.Makesureyouhavedoneathoroughjobofdeterminingyourfairmarketvalueforthejobyouareseeking,thesal-aryrangeofthejobforthisspecificemployer,andgeographic,economic,industry,andcompany-specificfactorsthatmightaffectthegivensalary.Alsotrytoobtaininformationontheemployer’sstandardbenefitspackagesothatyouhaveinfor-mationbeyondsalary.
5.Justdoit.Whilealargepercentageofcorporaterecruitersarewillingtonegotiatecompensation,onlyasmallpercentageofjob-seekersactuallydoso.Youdon’thavetobeanexpertnegotiatortogetasweeterdeal;youjustneedtoknowtherulesandstrategiesofnegotiation.
6.Negotiatetoyourstrength.Ifyouareasmoothtalker(anextravert),calltheemployerandaskforafollow-upmeetingtodiscussacounterpropos-al.Ifyoucommunicatebetterinwriting,prepareacounterproposalletter.
7.Alwaysaskforahighersalary(withinaccept-ablelimits)thanyouarewillingtoacceptsothatwhentheemployercountersyourproposal,thesalaryshouldbenearyouroriginalgoal.Andwhenpossible,tryandshowhowyouractions(onceonboard)willrecouptheextraamount(ormore)thatyouareseeking--throughcostsavingsorincreasedsalesrevenue,productivity,efficien-cies.
8.Ifthesalaryyou’reofferedisonthelowend--andtheemployerhasstatedthatsalaryisnotnegotiable(probablyduetocorporatesalaryrangesorpaygradelevels),considernegotiatingforasigningbonus,higherperformancebonuses,orashortertimeframeforaperformancereviewandraise.Alwaysnegotiatebasesalaryfirst,andthenmoveontootherelementsofthejoboffer.
9.Whenpresentingacounterproposaltotheem-ployer,besureandincludeafewbenefitsthatare
expendablesothatyoucandroptheminacon-cessiontotheemployerasnegotiationscontinue.
10.Rememberthatevenifallsalaryissuesare“offthetable,”therearestillnumerousotherbenefitsyoucannegotiate,suchasmovingexpenses,paidvacationorpersonaldays,professionaltraining,andmore.Seethesidebarfortheentirelistofnegotiableitems.
11.Neverstopsellingyourselfthroughoutthenegotiationprocess.Keepremindingtheem-ployeroftheimpactyouwillmake,theproblemsyouwillsolve,therevenueyouwillgenerate.Andcontinueexpressinginterestandenthusiasmforthejobandthecompany.
12.Ifyouhavenointentionofacceptingthecompany’soffer,don’twasteyourtimeorthecompany’sbyenteringintonegotiation.Negotia-tionisaprocessdesignedtofindcommongroundbetweentwoormoreparties.
13.Don’tenternegotiationswiththewrongat-titude.Alwayshaveinthebackofyourmindthatyourgoalwiththesenegotiationsisawin-winsituation.Youwanttogetabetterdeal,butyoualsoneedtolettheemployerfeelasthoughtheygotagooddealaswell.
14.Nevermakedemands.Instead,raisequestionsandmakerequestsduringnegotiations.Keepthetoneconversational,notconfrontational.
15.Bepreparedforanyofanumberofpossiblereactionstoyourcounterproposal,fromcompleteacceptancetoagreeingtosomeconcessionstorefusaltonegotiate.
16.Youhavetobewillingtowalkawayfromnegotiations.Ifyoudon’thaveastrongposition(agoodcurrentjoboroneormorecurrentorpotentialjoboffers),itwillbeharderforyoutonegotiate.Ifyoureallyneedorwantthejob,bemorecarefulinyournegotiations.
17.Oncetheemployeragreestoyourcompen-sationrequests,thenegotiationsareover.Youcannotaskforanythingmore--orriskappearingimmatureorgreedyandhavingtheemployer’sofferwithdrawnorrescinded.
18.Alwaysbesuretogetthefinalofferinwrit-ing.Beextremelywaryofcompaniesthatarenotwillingtodoso.Note:oneadvantageofwritingacounterproposalletteristhatyoulistthetermsoftheofferinyourletter.
negoTIATIng A Job oFFer conTInued
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More and more students are finding RSS feeds take the work out of tracking down relevant research publications.
LilangiEdiriwickrema,21,perusessummariesofthelatestarticlesaboutstemcellresearch.Shequicklydismissesthefirstthreearticlesbutpausesonthefourthbeforeclickingtoreadtheentirestory.
Atimestamponthecornerrevealsthearticlewaspostedjusttwomin-utesearlier.
“Itsavesmealotoftimeandenergy,”saysEdiriwickrema,anundergraduateattheUniversityofPennsylvania.“IcanquicklyfindwhatI’mlookingforwithouthavingtogofromWebsitetoWebsite,andIgetthemostup-to-dateinformation.”
Ediriwickremaispartofthegrowingnumberofon-the-go,sleep-deprivedstudentswhorecognizethevalueofanInternettechnologycalledRSSandaremilkingitsbenefitsforuseintheclassroom.
ShortforReallySimpleSyndica-tion,RSSisawaytoreceiveconstant
updatesfromnewssites,onlinecatalogsandblogswithoutthelaboriousprocessofvisitingindividualsites,wadingthroughoutdatedcontentandmanagingannoyingpop-upads.
“It’slikeasubscriptionorclippingservice,”saysPaulJones,aprofessorattheUniversityofNorthCarolinaatChapelHillandthedirectorofibiblio.org,anonlinepubliclibraryofWebinformation(www.ibiblio.org).“YoucandraganyWebsiteyouwanttowatch,fromBBCtopersonalblogs,anditwillletyouknowifyouhavenewstuff.”
Studentsusesoftwarecallednewsreadersoronlinesites,suchasBloglines(www.bloglines.com)orTopix.net(www.topix.net),toviewtheirRSSsubscriptions,whicharealsocalledfeeds.NewsreadersandRSSsitescandisplaysub-scriptionsfromhundredsofdifferentsitesonasinglepageasshortsummaries.Studentsthencanscanthemquicklyanddecidewhethertheyshouldclicksummaryorheadlinelinkstoreadcompletearticlesorreports.
Thesingle-pageformatgivesuserstheaddedbenefitoftrackingalargenumberofsourcesinoneplace,makingiteasytocomparetheusefulnessandcredibilityofdifferentsources.
ForSaraKnechtel,astudentattheUniversityofNorthCaro-linaatChapelHill,RSScomesasarelieffromtheproliferat-ingseaofbogusinformationontheWeb.
“RunningsearchesonGoogleorYahoo!willbringbacksomanyirrelevantsources,”Knechtelsays.“There’stheissueofmakingsurethesourcesyoudofindarecredible.”
RSSfeedscollegestudents’dietforresearch
ByAnhLy,GannettNewsService
WhilestudentsarepickinguptheRSShabit,itspopularityisgrowingwithallInternetusers.
AsurveyconductedbythePewInternet&AmericanLifeProjectin2004foundthatsixmillionAmericansgetnewsandinformationfromRSSreaders.FivepercentfollowtheirfavoritesourcesthroughRSSsyndication.
ForstudentslikeEdiriwickremawhobalanceaheavyaca-demiccourseloadandanactivesociallife,thethreeinitialstranslateintoonetaskthatshecancrossoffherto-dolist.
“I’malreadybusyandstressedenoughasitis,”Ediriwick-remasays.“Anythingthatgivesmemoretimeandlessheadaches—thenI’mallaboutit.”
