Ed4Career Blog

Bring More Happiness into Your Daily Life

By Kris Powers | June 18th 2013

Stress

We all know that stress can affect our bodies and our health, and research suggests that stress can negatively impact chemical reactions in the brain’s learning and memory region.

The challenge then is to introduce new ways to reduce levels of stress in our lives while increasing levels of happiness. Sounds easy, right?

Try these simple tips to bring more happiness into your daily life:

  • Laugh. Whether it’s watching a funny video, reading a funny story or even telling a joke; find time to add a bit of humor to your day.

  • Set small, attainable goals for yourself. The sense of accomplishment will feel great and will provide motivation. 



Group of business people smiling

Thank you to everybody who participated in our recent Graduate Student Outcome survey.  We had great results and loved reading everyone’s comments!  We will use the information to better improve our curriculum and course offerings.

Some highlights from the survey included:

Most of the students who completed the survey felt that passing their online courses gave them increased self-confidence in looking for and finding a job in any field.  Many of the respondents felt "quite a bit" to "very much prepared" for their future career or education goals as a result of taking their online courses.  And finally, in a large show of confidence in and support of Ed4Career's curriculum, a large percentage of respondents wish to learn more about other courses offered by Ed4Career.  We're working hard to get the news out about additional courses that we offer that might be of interest - so stay tuned!



From time to time, Ed4Career polls our connections to get their viewpoint on a variety of topics. Please click on the link below to answer our one question survey. 

In your opinion, what's the BEST way to measure the success of higher education?

https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/N6FPPZ7

As always, we thank you for sharing your professional opinion with us!



Internship Externship Poll Results Graph

In our recent poll, we took the opportunity to ask, “In your opinion, how helpful are internships / externships to students in getting a job?”.  Results indciate that 51% of respondents felt that internships/externships were "extremely helpful", 31% felt “very helpful”, 13% indicated “somewhat helpful” while 4% felt that they were “not at all helpful”.

Thank you to everyone who participated!

If you'd like to see the complete results and read the accompanying comments, please click on the link below:

http://linkd.in/147LAi0

 

 

 


Why We Should Keep Learning

By Kris Powers | June 11th 2013

Smiling Girl

Each day learn something new, and just as important, relearn something old.  ~Robert Brault

For me personally, there is nothing quite like the thrill of learning something new.  Whether it’s reading an article, taking a course, or attending a webinar; as soon as I finish, I am always thinking of whom I might share my new knowledge with, or how I might apply the information I’ve learned to my daily life.  I also find that when I stretch myself to learn a new technique, I have an amazing sense of accomplishment once I’ve mastered the new task.   However, I also understand that things are constantly changing and that one is never completely finished.  You may master something today, and very well need to brush up your skills tomorrow.



Pie chart

We had a tremendous response to our recent “In your opinion, can online learning be as effective as classroom learning?” poll with well over 200 people taking the time to cast their vote.  The results showed that 62% of respondents felt that online learning can be as effective as classroom learning, while 38% felt that it could not.  Thank you to everyone who voted and/or left a comment.  We truly enjoyed reading everyone's responses! 

If you’d like to see the complete results and read voter’s comments, please click on the link below:

http://linkd.in/ZQo4Yl

 

 

 


Tips to Reduce Stress

By Kris Powers | June 4th 2013

Man on Stairs

Some really great articles have come across my desk recently about how to deal with and reduce the amount of stress in our lives.  Stress in and of itself can take a toll on our health, and let’s face it - when we are stressed we may not make the healthiest decisions for ourselves (in the food and drinks we consume, etc.). While most of us are familiar in dealing with the normal day-to-day stressors, there are moments where stress can challenge us beyond our normal coping ability – and we are left feeling anxious, irritable, and overwhelmed.

After recounting a recent stress-filled moment in her blog, (http://madelinelemon.com/how-to-easily-reduce-stress/), Madeline Lemon states, “What I learned from this is that we must take time to care for ourselves.”



Book with glasses

Ed4Career is proud to announce the latest in our series of "In Your Opinion" polls; where your opinion counts and your voice can be heard.

We will be posting an occassional poll on our social media sites and would love to gather feedback from everyone who is interested. This week's question is, "If you were to take an online course, what type of textbook would you prefer?  Physical Textbook or eTextbook (i.e. eBook or Kindle)?". Please follow the link below to cast your vote and share your opinions:

http://linkd.in/11gAd4A

We look forward to hearing your comments!

Thank you!


Do You Have the Entrepreneurial Spirit?

By Kris Powers | May 28th 2013

Opportunity Sign

Have you ever looked at an existing product or service and thought to yourself, “I can do this better?”  Do you have a skill or talent that can fill a need in the marketplace?  In today’s ever-changing economy; the idea of being your own boss may be very appealing.  You can follow your passion while building something that you can call your own. But before you take the plunge, think about why you want to start a business and what you want the business to provide for you.  The truth is, owning your own business is hard work.  You’ll probably work harder than ever – but the benefit is that you will challenge yourself to grow in ways you might never have thought possible.

Payscale.com asked members of The Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC),”What is the biggest perk of owing your own business?”  Below are a few of my favorite responses:


Added Regulations Strengthen HIPAA

By Allison Kibler M.Ed. | May 28th 2013

The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) was passed by Congress in 1996 to make healthcare providers have safeguards in place to protect the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of patients’ private health information (PHI). In 2013 after much technical and digital growth, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has introduced additional compliance requirements that providers and their business associates will need to implement by the September 23rd, 2013 deadline. The new rules move HIPAA enforcement away from the voluntary compliance framework and toward a penalty-based system with a maximum fine of $1.5 million per violation.