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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,pleaseemailKyleBakeratkyle05@ksu.eduorRebeccaTokachatrtokach@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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Spring 2007

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.”