September 2010

Transferring Colleges: A Waste of Time?

September 30, 2010

Even though Michelle likes her school, she feels like transferring to another one. She suspects her business-degree program isn’t delivering the goods, and has her eye on Northeastern University. Hi Judge Josh, is it too late to transfer schools, as a junior? No! But let’s have more detail. I am in a minor dilemma and [...]

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Too Sick For School. Online Degree?

September 29, 2010

Casey has some health problems & needs a transplant. And although she’s still plugging away at her college classes, things would be a lot easier on her if she could switch to an online degree. Hi Josh, I really love your website, and enjoy reading your advice everyday, so thank you for that. Thanks, and [...]

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Ready To Give Up

September 28, 2010

Darius is a little beaten down and, IM-not-so-HO, dangerously close to making a decision he’ll regret for a long time. And since I’ve dispensed with any suspense about what my response is gonna be, I hope you’ll read and give him your advice, too. Firstly, I want to say that your blog is very informative/helpful/interesting. [...]

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Early Childhood Education vs. Teaching Degree

September 27, 2010

Amanda dropped out of high school, realized the error of her ways and clawed herself back into the college game. But when she missed that senior year of high school, she missed some key college advice that I’m trying to fill in today. Feel free to read along and help! Dear Judge Josh, I have [...]

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Hate My School. Should I Transfer?

September 24, 2010

Mary Jane’s in a spot that millions of current and former college students can identify with: She hates her school and wants out. For an unfortunately large chunk of first-year students, college life ends up sucking once you get to campus. That super-awesome orgy of intellectual, cultural and social stimulation promised in your campus tour [...]

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Should You Go To Grad School Somewhere Else?

September 23, 2010

Jeeves is not a butler. He’s a pretty accomplished undergrad at Illinois who isn’t sure whether to trust the traditional wisdom that says you oughta go to grad school somewhere different from where you did undergrad. After all, what if your undergrad school has an absolutely phenomenal, world-renowned grad program? Hello! As everyone has already [...]

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Retake SAT after a 2090?

September 22, 2010

Erica must know how conflicted I feel about parents who want certain things for their kids, seemingly independent of what those kids actually want for themselves. My gut reaction is to get pissy with the mom or dad and tell them to quit trying to impose their will on their adult (or nearly adult) children, [...]

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Are There Scholarships To Pay Off Student Loans?

September 20, 2010

There are scholarships you can get while you’re still in high school, and of course there are scholarships for undergraduate school and graduate degrees. But what about money for life AFTER college? That’s what Olga wants to know. Hello, I have $26,000 in student loans for bachelors in org. behavior and leadership. I graduated Dec. [...]

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Use Grants To Repay Student Loans?

September 17, 2010

Kara’s done pretty well by herself. Good grades, community service, grants, and now admission to grad school at one of the best universities in the world. Yes, the entire world. But even the most accomplished among us can rarely escape student loans, and she’s no exception. Up rises the question once again, then, about how [...]

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Rejected From Colleges, Part 2: The Italian Job

September 16, 2010

Chiara is Italian. And not the kind of Italian where the family has been here in the U.S. for five generations but still calls themselves “Italian” — I mean, she’s from Italy. She has an email address that ends with “.it” — that kind of Italian. Apparently she’s had a rough go of it with [...]

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Flunked Out of College. Can I Get Into Grad School?

September 15, 2010

A few days ago, we talked about whether you can get into grad school with a GPA of under 3.0. Conclusion: Yes, but it’s hard, and you’re going to have to make up for it with other strengths (experience, recommendations, research, etc.). But now Kelsey has upped the ante. A low GPA is one thing, [...]

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Should You Mention Your Disorders?

September 14, 2010

Scott’s in a jam! He’s good enough to excel at Harvard grad school if he can get in, but he’s got some black marks on his resume (black marks for Harvard, anyway). But there are good explanations for them. Problem is, the explanation may create new problems. I’ll let him tell it. Hello Judge Josh, [...]

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Grad School & Low GPA: Can You Get In?

September 9, 2010

Eleanor is a very succinct lady. She’s now the current champion in the Outlaw Student Shortest Email Ever category. Is there a way to enter grad school with a low GPA? That’s it. Now, if was as much of a smartass as my friends think I am, I’d just answer “No” and hit save and [...]

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Financial Aid For Americans in Canada?

September 8, 2010

I gotta be honest, I’m a huge fan of Canada. Canada has always reminded me of a giant version of America with a lot more breathing room and a lot less anger. Personally, I’ve been dying to visit Toronto for 10 years and still haven’t. Not to mention wonderful exports like Rachel McAdams, Will Arnett [...]

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Isaac Nkrumah (4th Quarter, 2009)

September 8, 2010

4th Quarter, 2009 Teacher Scholarship Winner Isaac Nyrumah My name is Isaac Nkrumah. I come from Agona Nyakrom in the central region, Ghana West African. I am 32 years old. Having the passion to teach, I enrolled in the Komenda Teacher Training College, currently College of Education and was awarded Teachers Certificate “A” after I [...]

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Should I Move Back Home?

September 7, 2010

I’m sure I’ll regret writing this one 12 years from now when my daughter inevitably decides to go off to college in Uzbekistan or somewhere equally far-flung just to get away from her overprotective father, but today it feels like good advice. Hi! I’m Kris. (feminine form of the word ) I actually heard about [...]

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Too Shy To Be a Teacher?

September 3, 2010

It must really stink to know exactly what you want to do in life, but be held back by some extraneous detail that isn’t substantively related to the job, really. Like Amanda, who wants to teach, but isn’t sure about the ability to stand in front of people and talk. I am a sophomore in [...]

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Early College High Schools: Advantage or Disadvantage?

September 2, 2010

Breanna and her sister are the first in their family to go to college, and if you’re in the same boat, you probably understand what it’s like to have very little college guidance under your own roof. Your folks are proud of you and supportive and all that, but they just don’t actually KNOW much [...]

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Use Subsidized Stafford To Pay Unsubsidized Stafford? Does Your Education “Expire”?

September 1, 2010

Sierra is our official Outlaw Student of the Day (light bulb?). She wants to strike out on her own and go to Germany, she’s getting timid and bad advice from people close to her, and she’s creatively trying to solve her own financial problems. LOVE HER ALREADY. Hey Judge Josh, I have two questions for [...]

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