GMATPREPNOW!

Just going through SC lessons on http://www.gmatprepnow.com

Brent did a great job in explaining the concepts. Check out if you are having some problems at solving SC questions!

Will finish this module tonight for sure and will start MGMAT SC guide tomorrow!

How Does Public Administration Differ from Business Administration?

Are you thinking about getting an online masters degree in public administration? If so, it may serve you well. However, it’s important you understand the difference between public administration and business administration. Understanding the distinction between the two will help prepare you for the type of education that will most benefit your desired career path. 

Career Path Distinctions

Public administration is primarily suited for individuals seeking a career aligned with public and/or government service. Interestingly, public administration covers a broad scope of career paths. For example, someone with masters degree in public administration can assume many different titles including a Human Resource (HR) Coordinator, Energy Consultant, or even an Agricultural Marketing Specialist and work in school systems.

In contrast, business administration is primarily suited for individuals seeking a career aligned with private sector administration or management. A business administration background is not industry specific. However, many career-oriented employees focus on either industry specific specialties or administration specialties. Some of the jobs you can qualify for with a business administration degree include a Managing Director, Financial Analyst, CEO, CIO, or Public Relations. It is also a basic background for entrepreneurship.

While it’s not guaranteed that a certain degree type will yield specific job roles, more often than not experience and relevant educational credentials will increase your potential to fill the role you desire. Imagine for a second you were applying for an engineering position with a non-engineering degree. This dramatic difference in terms of position and educational background may raise a red flag for an employer who is seeking an employee competent in a specific duty or field. This is why it’s so important to be mindful about your career path and how that falls in line with your chosen degree or educational program.

Educational Background Distinctions

When considering the educational distinctions of public or business administration several components including objectivity, audience, decision-making, and regulatory components play a substantial role in educational variances. For example, course work for an online master of public administration will focus largely on governmental decision-making processes and public accountability. Consequently, course objectives like Finance and Accounting will focus more on government budgeting processes, fund allocations or fund pools. Business administration will focus on revenue generation, working capital, receivables, and profits. As you can see the educational differences focus on the context or environment where administration will occur. Those working in public administration fields are more likely to deal with government budgets and legislative processes. Whereas, those working in the business administration field are more likely to work with revenue generation, 10k’s, quarterly statements, and a board of directors. Understanding these differences is very important to your future because it will help you be prepared to successfully fulfill your role within any organization.

Why Choosing the Right Online Degree is Important

Choosing the right online degree for your future career path is essential because acquiring and developing the appropriate skill sets necessary to successfully pursue and fill specific roles in organizations is essential. For example, becoming an accountant and becoming an accounting professor requires two similar yet distinctive educational credentials. Accountants interested in sitting for the CPA exam should focus on courses that prepare them for the exam and meet the credit hours criteria for their specific regions. In contrast, accounting professors should ensure they have not only the required levels of education but also the necessary instructional credentials required to teach at a specific college or university. In the same way government accountants seeking employment in high level government positions, agencies, or departments may benefit from an online masters in public administration in addition to their credentials in accounting and public finance.

Tips For a Successful Online Education

Currently there is emphasis on higher education. People are furthering their studies and getting a master’s degree and even pursuing doctoral studies.

There is a broad variety of online degrees available and several of the most popular are in the human resources field. Availability of online master’s in human resources for those who want to further their studies has made things much easier for people with busy schedules. The obvious benefits that come with online studies are that you do not have to attend classes physically, it is usually cheaper and it offers flexibility for those who want it – even if they’re not busy.

Despite many advantages associated with online masters in human resources, getting a degree online requires self-discipline and self-motivation. No one will follow up on you to determine if you “attend” classes. Below are some essential tips about having a successful online education that students should know in order to manage their online studies.

Managing Time
Time is of the essence and you need to manage your time properly in order to be successful in everything you are doing. You need to establish the time of day that you are most focused and likely to study well without much interruption. Some people may study well early in the morning, while others may prefer late into the night. After you establish the time of day that you can be focused and study well, you then allocate appropriate time for your course.

Location, Location, Location

One of the greatest things about online masters in human resources is that you can attend classes online from any location. Since an individual can study from any place, you may have to determine the most suitable place to study.

Some people prefer absolute silence and no interruptions hence such individuals can consider studying at the library or a particularly studious coffee shop nearby. If you do not mind interruptions within the house, then you can simply study anywhere or set up a work study room. To avoid any inconveniences, it is essential that when you determine that optimal time for you to study; you do that while having in mind the place you will do your studies.

Can You Be Flexible?

Most people who take online courses do so because of the flexibility it provides to manage personal obligations and still pursue a career. If you cannot balance these and need the structure of a physical classroom, you need to realize that, as well.

It’s an understatement to say, the internet has been helpful since you can get almost any information there. When you take an online course, you have a wide range of resources you can access over the internet. Additionally you can participate in various group discussions through video conferencing with other students who are pursuing a similar career. You are likely to virtually meet various students from all over the world and thus exchange ideas, share information and learn a lot from each other.

Pursuing an online degree is beneficial only if you are self- disciplined, motivated and willing to interact with students from various parts of the world and learn from them.

Student loan

Future Impossible Tense!!

I get this in the email today and I must say it is hilarious but true for every country, especially my home country – India!!

The NCIDQ: What it is and How to Prepare

When aspiring interior designers begin exploring education programs, one thing that they may notice is that most programs refer to the NCIDQ, or National Council for Interior Design Qualification, exam. Most programs tout the fact that their coursework is geared toward successfully passing the exam – but many prospective students aren’t exactly sure what the exam is, or what it means for their careers.

Essentially, the NCIDQ is the objective standard by which interior designers can prove that they have the required knowledge and experience. However, it’s not a test of whether a designer has the taste or ability to create an attractive room. Instead, the NCIDQ is devoted entirely to ensuring that designers know what needs to be done to ensure the health, safety and welfare of the people using and living in the spaces they design.

Qualifying for the Exam

Like many examinations that lead to a credential, the NCIDQ exam is limited to those who meet the requirements for education and experience in the field, who can demonstrate their knowledge of the subject area.

There are six paths to meeting the eligibility requirements for the NCIDQ exams, each with varying combinations of education and experience. For example, those who hold four-year degrees from Council of Interior Design-accredited interior design schools can qualify for the exam after 3,520 hours, or about two years of full-time paid work experience. Those who hold degrees from non-CIDA accredited schools, or hold degrees in other fields, can also qualify with more work experience and additional approved coursework.

It’s important to note that the work experience requirements are very specific. For example, if you received academic credit for the experience, such as through an internship, then those hours cannot count toward meeting the testing qualifications. However, it is possible to start fulfilling the work experience hours while you are still in school, once you have completed at least 96 hours of formal design training. In addition, you can only receive 100 percent credit for the hours you’ve worked if your supervisor is NCIDQ-certified. If your supervisor holds other credentials – or none at all – the experience is then evaluated and rate accordingly.

You will need to provide proof of both your education and work experience when you apply for the exam; however, the exam board doesn’t review portfolios, client lists or other evidence to prove your eligibility, or make exceptions to the rules.

The Exam

Once you qualify, the NCQDQ exam itself is a comprehensive exam covering several subject areas. It’s not a test of your knowledge of facts, but instead, how you would apply your knowledge to real life situations. It’s divided into three sections.

• The first section covers your knowledge and skill in codes, building systems, construction standards and contracts.
• The second section tests your knowledge of design application, practices and project coordination.
• Finally, the third section is more practice-based; you’ll receive a series of design challenges in several areas, including lighting, space planning and restroom design, and need to come up with solutions that follow the established guidelines.

The NCIDQ exam takes place over two days and is broken into four sections that last four hours each. It’s offered twice a year, usually in a major city. You’ll need to apply to take the exam at least four months in advance.

Why Take the NCIDQ?

In some states, the NCIDQ designation is actually a requirement for anyone who wants to work as a licensed interior designer in that state. Not all states license interior design professionals, but for those that do, the NCIDQ is the standard for determining license eligibility.

In addition, holding this credential indicates to potential employers and clients that you have at least a basic understanding and competency of interior design principles. You can have all the talent in the world when it comes to creating attractive spaces, but if it is not safe or healthy for inhabitants, then the design could be considered unsuccessful.

While the requirements are stringent, and the exam itself challenging, earning the NCIDQ credential is a worthwhile endeavor. It demonstrated your commitment to the field of interior design, and helps you earn more assignments, and eventually, more money. Look for an interior design college that will prepare you for this important exam and you’ll be on your way to a successful career from the start.

Image from Flickr’s Creative Commons

Paula Willette is an NCIDQ-certified interior designer. She works for a large architectural firm, designing interior spaces for office buildings. She enjoys creating hip, functional and sleek spaces that inspire people and make them happy to come to work. 

The Top Degrees in Healthcare Administration

The healthcare industry is seeing massive growth. As long as there are people, there will be a need for healthcare. There is no way to change the simple fact that people get sick and injured every day. They need help in order to get better. These people are the doctors and nurses that we rely on, but there is an entirely different population of the healthcare industry; the healthcare administrators. These jobs do not require a medical or nurse related degree, but they will require a specialty healthcare administration degree. Choosing which degree is the best for these job positions can be confusing. Each degree is unique, and because each degree is unique, they all have different requirements. These requirements are typically the amount of time it takes to earn the degree.

How Much Time Do You Want to Invest?

Any career path is a huge decision. Part of that decision will be determining how much time you want to invest in your education. Degrees are usually categorized by the amount of time that is needed to earn them. Deciding how much time you want to devote to your education will make it much easier to choose the right degree for you.

Many people will choose an entry level degree that will grant them an entry level position into the job market. This will allow them to get a taste of what the career choice is really like without having to devote a lot of time towards their education. You can always choose to further your education if you really enjoy the career path that you have chosen. Researching healthcare management online will give you a better understanding of the different types of jobs available in this industry.

Associate Degree

This is an entry level degree that is perfect for anyone that might not be 100% certain that a career path in healthcare administration is right for the individual. This degree typically takes 12 months to earn. Many students are choosing to enroll in online courses that allow them to learn at their own pace. Some students are earning their Associate degree online in less than 12 months. This might not be the best opportunity for everyone. Earning a degree online grants a student a lot of freedom. It is easy to abuse this freedom. Earning a degree online takes a lot of hard work, dedication and self-discipline.

Many jobs in healthcare administration can be obtained with an Associate degree. If this career path is something you enjoy, you can always further your education by earning one of the other two degrees mentioned below.

Bachelor’s Degree

This is the next level of healthcare administration degree. It will open more doors simply because it requires a longer period of time to obtain. This specialized degree will provide students with a better understanding of health services. It will also give students the chance to work in many different areas of healthcare. It touches on some of the fundamentals of marketing, financing and leadership within the healthcare industry. This degree can take anywhere from 2-5 years to earn. If you already have an Associate degree, many schools will allow you to apply the credits that you already earned from your Associate degree towards your Bachelor’s degree.

There are also many great Bachelor’s degree programs available online. This makes it easy for anyone who is currently working a full time job to further his or her education and their career at the same time.

Master’s Degree

This is usually the highest degree that a person obtains in healthcare administration and management. If you already have an Associate degree, or a Bachelor’s degree, then obtaining your Master’s degree will be much easier. Every school is different, but the average amount of time needed to earn a Master’s degree in healthcare management is anywhere from 2-5 years. Just like the other two degrees, students have the opportunity to earn their Master’s degree online.

Healthcare management jobs are predicted to grow by as much as 16% in the next few years. It is an industry that is in high demand, and every job position within this industry earns a competitive salary.

Jane Steward recently completed her BA in healthcare management. She has worked for a private healthcare clinic near Mt. Hood, OR for the last 2 years.

 

 

 

Engineer Your Resume To Stand Out From the Crowd!

Your resume is your first impression with a prospective employer. Resumes must highlight your accomplishments, illustrate your strengths and persuade employers to bring you in for an interview – all on one page. Larry Maier, president of Peerless Precision, a manufacturing plant, states that it takes no longer than 30 seconds to review a resume.

Glenn Shagena, the director of human resources at the Chrysler Group, says that they receive 10 to 50 resumes for every job posting. Both of these statements mean that it is crucial you engineer your resume to stand out from the rest if you wish to earn an interview. Below are strategies for crafting a resume that will stand out and give hiring managers exactly what they are looking for.

Strategies for Resume Success

These are time-honored strategies that will help you create a resume that informs hiring managers of exactly what they want to know – with no pointless information.

Craft A Job-Specific Resume – Perhaps you have a number of degrees, talents and qualifications that allow you to pursue a number of careers. Do not try to cram all of that information into one resume. Create multiple resumes for each of your specialties. Larry Maier stated that when he receives resumes from technical applicants, all he wants to see is highlighted technical training and relevant work experience – nothing more.

Use Direct Language – Be direct in every area of your resume. Your resume is your time to brag about yourself. There is no need to try to rely on implications or be modest. According to Peter Kistler, contributing writer for Brand Yourself, be very specific about your accomplishments. For example, instead of saying, “Responsible for making collection calls”, say, “Called customers who were late on payments and generated a 50 percent call-to-payment ratio.” Simply stating you were responsible for something does not say how successful you were at it.

Highlight Recent Accomplishments – John Challenger, executive at the consulting firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas, advises resume creators to focus on accomplishments and relevant work experience within the past 10 years. Do not treat every job you’ve held equally, and completely leave off irrelevant information.

The one exception to this rule is education – always detail formal education received. For example, if you are applying for a job in the public health industry, mention that you have completed public health masters programs. Additionally, if you received your degree online, explain that it was an online degree. To an employer, there is essentially little to no difference between an online degree and a traditional degree.

Edit, Edit, Edit! – Editing is the most important step in engineering your resume. The quickest route to losing a job prospect is to have spelling or grammar errors in your resume. Read your resume multiple times aloud to yourself. Run it through online proofreading tools. Kistler suggests sending your resume to two or more friends and having them proofread your resume. Additionally, ensure that you edit your resume down to a single page. It is fine if it goes beyond one page when initially writing it, but it must be refined to fit on a single page.

Use Proper File Names and Types – Now that your resume is ready to send, ensure that it is saved properly. According to Kistler, the preferred file extension is .PDF. Most word processors will allow you to save your document as a PDF. This file type saves all of your formatting and avoids aesthetic or functional issues that can arise from different versions of word processors. Lastly, the file name should be FIRSTNAME_LASTNAME_Resume.pdf. Imagine you are a hiring manager who received 50 emails each containing a resume. You save them in a special folder. If they are all named “resume” you may end up deleting them, accidentally (or on purpose). Having a personal file name helps the hiring manager keep them organized – something they will appreciate.

Engineer Your Resume to Meet Success

The above strategies can be successfully employed to tailor a stellar resume that helps you stand out from the crowd. Even though many of these tips and strategies have been around for a while, hiring managers still appreciate them. You may be surprised how many applicants employ distasteful and time-wasting practices. These strategies are designed with the hiring manager in mind and assure them that you are a professional that is worthy of their time.

William Miller is a masters-level student on in an online human services degree program who also works as a consultant when he’s not busy studying or writing papers.

Three Common Misconceptions about Online Colleges

Whenever I’m at a social event and start talking about higher education, I always see people’s faces light up. For one reason or another, people love to talk about their education and what they have done with it throughout their life. Education is something that runs deep with people; in fact, it almost becomes part of their identity.

I know a lot about online colleges. Not only am I an online college graduate, but I have also spent much of career writing about them. Unfortunately, one thing that never fails to surprise me is the look of dismay that appears on people’s faces whenever I start talking about online colleges. It’s almost as if all the blood has rushed from their face and they’ve lost complete interest in what I’m saying. I find this to be most troubling, given the fact that I’ve always known online colleges to be a viable, worthwhile alternative to any brick-and-mortar university. In all of my discussions with people, I’ve discovered there are three highly common misconceptions about online colleges.

You can’t get a job if you go to an online college

This is probably the most ridiculous misconception about online colleges. I think the main reason people are afraid they won’t get a job with an online college degree is simply because they don’t know enough about online colleges and their job placements, given that online colleges have only been around for a few years. In fact, people with online degrees are obtaining many of the jobs in the current job market, since most online college degrees focus on core career skills, as opposed to a smorgasbord of nonsensical classes. As is the case with any college degree, however, it isn’t the degree that matters so much as what you do with it.

Everything you learn is through the computer

When I explain to people that online colleges aren’t solely based on the Internet, they usually look confused. Sure, the name “online college” might be misleading in some way, but, yes, it’s true that you’ll often find yourself working off the computer during your courses. Many of my online college classes had me attending educational seminars, community discussions, group study sessions, and several informal classes as part of their curriculum. I found that all of these events helped contribute to a more well-rounded experience to my online education, and better yet, I wasn’t stuck staring at a computer screen all day.

You can only get an associate’s degree at an online college

Believe it or not, there are a number of different degrees you can obtain at an online college, and they come in all shapes and sizes: associate degrees, technical degrees, business degrees, nursing degrees, doctorate degrees, master’s degrees, etc. Keep in mind, not everybody has the funds necessary to go to traditional universities whenever they want to get a new degree. In fact, I got my bachelor’s degree at the University of Texas, but then chose to get my business degree online. As long as the program suits your personal lifestyle and financial budget, that’s all that matters.

It’s easy to jump to conclusions about online colleges when you don’t know all the facts. Lucky for you, these are three factual bits of information you can take to heart!

Mary Crum is a freelance blogger who writes about education topics, college trends, student lives, and online colleges in Alabama. Feel free to leave any questions or comments below.

Related articles

• Choosing the Best Online College Programs to Further Your Education

FREE Webinar: Polish Your MBA Essays with the “Editing Funnel”

What does a funnel have to do with editing essays, you ask? Lots if you’re using Accepted.com’s unique MBA essay editing tool, the “editing funnel.”

During this hour-long webinar, Accepted.com founder and CEO, Linda Abraham, will guide you through the editing funnel. Armed with these tips and tools, you will be able to edit and proof your MBA essays so they shine.

The MBA Essay Editing Funnel webinar will air live on Thursday, September 20th at 10:00 AM PT / 1:00 PM ET.

It’s free, but registration is required. Reserve your space for The MBA Essay Editing Funnel now!

Oh, and if you want to know about future Accepted.com events and chats, bookmark Accepted’s events page at http://www.accepted.com/chat/schedule.aspx.