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Sure, the Golden Globe nominations are grabbing most of this morning’s headlines but in the world of college sports, “Mad Men” and “The Social Network” are riding the pine while what’s going on in the Big Ten takes the field.

Among the changes is a new logo. First off, the logo. It’s not a huge departure from the previous design by any means – it’s still blue and white and incorporates numbers as well as letters – and logo co-designer Michael Gericke tells ESPN, “The new Big Ten logo was developed to symbolize the conference’s future, as well as its rich heritage, strong tradition of competition, academic leadership, and passionate alumni. Its contemporary collegiate lettering includes an embedded numeral ‘10’ in the word ‘BIG,’ which allows fans to see ‘BIG’ and ‘10’ in a single word. Memorable and distinctive, the new logo evolved from the previous logo’s use of negative space and is built on the conference’s iconic name, without reference to the number of member institutions.” Fans aren’t buying it, though: It’s been less than one day since the logo was unveiled but the new design is already receiving some pushback a la Facebook and the Gap.

Next, the new divisions of Legends and Leaders – a change which makes sense in a way since the number of teams in the Big Ten exceeds the conference’s name – and 18 trophies. Now, Michigan, Michigan State, Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska and Northwestern are in the Legends division while Illinois, Indiana, Ohio State, Penn State, Purdue and Wisconsin represent the Leaders division. As for the trophies, there are 18 new ones, many of which honor past players and coaches. “Our foundation is our history, and so we want to honor that history and tradition. Our goal, if we are to sustain this enterprise, is to continue to focus on the building of future leadership through education and competition,” said Big Ten commissioner Jim Delany.

It’s my guess these changes won’t impact the players – who should be more concerned with maintaining the grades to keep their athletic scholarships – but sports writers, reporters and fans are certainly making their voices heard. What do you think of the Big Ten’s changes? Are they worth all the ruffled feathers?

They may not agree on politics, health care or Scarlett Johansson and Ryan Reynolds’ divorce but the consensus among recent college graduates is almost unanimous about one thing: Eighty-nine percent say they are happy they earned a college degree.

This statistic, found in a new report by the American Council on Education is surprising considering the economic climate but the 800 young alumni surveyed were more than pleased with their post-secondary educations. Close to 9 out of 10 respondents said undergrad was worth the time and money spent, and 85 percent reported their educations prepared them for their current jobs. The Chronicle of Higher Education and University of Wisconsin president Kevin P. Reilly both agree the findings will help combat the higher education budget slashing proposed by some government officials.

Some of the survey’s findings aren’t as overwhelming – only 62 percent of national respondents believed college generally prepared grads for working life – but the overall alumni satisfaction considerably strengthens the case for greater access to and increased quality of higher education. And as for the students who said they left college unprepared for the real world, an extra internship or semester abroad could have easily provided the experience they craved. College IS what you make of it, after all!

Two students from two schools majored in the same subject and obtained degrees in the same field. They took equivalent classes, received identical grades, won similar scholarships and are now both being considered for the same job. Who is the better candidate? Put it this way: You don’t want to be the hiring manager.

In fields like nursing and accounting, there are licensure examinations in place to determine which graduates studied smart and have the greatest understanding of the material they have learned in school. The results are cut, dry and conclusive here but for those organizations hiring graduates from fields without these tests, finding the perfect candidate isn’t easy. In his recent Chronicle of Higher Education article, Forrest Hinton states that the disparity in grades and academic standards is so significant between institutions, departments and instructors that comparing applicants’ transcripts is often just as useless as offering someone a job because of their connections, alma mater or the hiring manager’s gut instinct. Hinton argues that the only way to mend this ailing hiring system is for academia and industry to work together to conclude which skills and knowledge students need to master most. Just because a candidate went to a less-selective college doesn’t necessarily mean they are any less qualified than a graduate of a more competitive institution and the same goes for students who are first-generation, low-income or minorities. Hinton suggests common and field-based assessments should be implemented to separate the candidates who thrive from the ones who will do just enough but, unfortunately, that’s not the world we live in…yet.

Though assessments across a wider variety of fields may be difficult to implement, I think they would make a huge difference in the quality of candidates employers hire and, in turn, the quality of work they produce. What about you, readers? Should someone get the job based simply on where they graduated from or their fluency in the field they seek to work in? What DOES a degree really mean these days and, more importantly, what SHOULD it mean?

I met many people during my undergraduate years that, upon hearing my major, had a good chuckle before informing me I was never going to make any money doing what I loved – writing. Their majors? Usually something involving business. I still giggle a little thinking of that irony: They not only picked the wrong field but the wrong school if they were concerned with raking in a hefty salary.

According to a new survey from PayScale.com, Harvey Mudd College's 2011 graduates are have the highest salary potential, beating out Princeton, Dartmouth, Harvard and Caltech. The college's potential starting median salary is $68,900 while its midcareer median salary is $126,000 yet a campus official said the school does not plan its curriculum based on salary potential. Thyra L. Briggs, vice president of admissions and financial aid, said Harvey Mudd students receive a strong math and science education wrapped in a liberal arts context, meaning students can “solve even the most demanding technical problems, but they also know how to work collaboratively, present their ideas to a broad range of audiences, and write well - traits that may distinguish them from other high-level math and science graduates." Instead of being pigeonholed into only one discipline, she said, Harvey Mudd grads leave school with an adaptability that's an asset in the working world or graduate study. Not bad!

Briggs agrees that the number one ranking is impressive but she’s more excited that more people are looking at Harvey Mudd – especially prospective students and their parents. Future college students, does this news change your opinion about Harvey Mudd? What’s more attractive to you about a college – higher earning potential upon graduation or a higher quality of education as a whole?

Did you spend your Sunday distraught over Jay Cutler and the Bears or horrified by the atrocity that was Mean Girls 2? I know I’m not completely alone here but, being the diligent students you are, many of you were probably holed up in the library preparing for your first exam of the spring semester and quizzing yourself on key pieces of information. Good thing, as a new study says self-testing while studying is the best way to retain facts and figures.

The study, "Retrieval Practice Produces More Learning than Elaborative Studying with Concept Mapping," was conducted by Purdue’s Jeffrey Karpicke and Janell R. Blunt and found that since learning is fundamentally about retrieving, practicing retrieval while studying is crucial to learning. The study focused on two groups of students (200 altogether) who were asked to read several paragraphs about differing scientific topics but one group was instructed to use the information to create a concept map and the other was told to put away their articles and spend 10 minutes writing what they recalled. When the students were tested on the same material one week later, the group that practiced retrieval retained 50 percent more information than those who engaged in concept mapping. Strangely, researchers also found that despite learning less, the students who engaged in concept mapping were more confident that they would remember the material than those who practiced retrieval while studying.

What’s your preferred study method? Is it producing the results you want? Will you employ the retrieval method given this study’s findings?

Three grand can come in pretty handy for a lot of things but it’s especially vital for someone trying to figure out how to pay for college. If you’re a high school or home school senior, check out our Scholarship of the Week – the Sam Walton Community Scholarship – to ease three thousand financial worries.

• Be a graduating high school senior home school senior
• Have at least a 2.5 cumulative high school GPA, and have taken either the ACT or SAT standardized tests
• Be a U.S. citizen or permanent legal resident of the United States
• Not be a Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. employee or dependent of an employee
• Demonstrate financial need by required documents
• Plan to enroll in a two- or four-year U.S. college or university full-time undergraduate course of study (at least 12 college credit hours) in the fall semester. (The institution must be accredited and listed on the official website of the U.S. Department of Education with the exception of military academies; all school transfers are subject to accreditation approval.)

For more information on this college scholarship and countless others, try our free scholarship search today!

Can you remember the first time someone asked you to think outside the box? Whether it was for a homework assignment, a science fair project or college admissions essay, you probably noticed taking this creative approach was appreciated – and earned you an A, a medal or admission – but sometimes, unfortunately, the status quo wins.

This scenario was recently echoed by the Common Application’s board when it rejected a proposal to add optional questions on sexual orientation and gender identity. The organization – which recently added a LGBT category in the activities section for students who participate in gay-straight alliances in high school – said the questions could "pose problems" now and though it left the possibility of addition open in the future, advocates are none too pleased with the message that’s being sent to the students applying to the 414 colleges that accept the Common App…especially Shane L. Windmeyer.

Windmeyer, the founder of Campus Pride, a national group that works on behalf of gay students and sponsors college fairs at which gay students can meet college representatives, believes the Common App organization is "acting like a parent of the 1950s" because the proposed questions would not be an issue: Since they would be optional, any applicant uncomfortable with them could elect not to answer; he also said a second gender question following birth certificate information would allow colleges to meet reporting requirements while accommodating all gender identities.

You can read more from both sides here but the fact of the matter is this: Many students go to college to find themselves but when they can’t even find a way to identify themselves on the application, is that school really where they want to be?

Ophiuchus, schmophiuchus. If you’re considering applying to law school, this next story will take precedence over what moon is in your house.

In the wake of many undergraduate programs making the SAT and ACT optional, the American Bar Association is considering ending the requirement that law schools use the Law School Admissions Test (LSAT). Will the elimination of the LSAT create an influx of underqualified applicants? Just the opposite: This shift is expected to create more diverse applicant pools without leading to any loss in academic performance.

If the ABA approves the change – Donald J. Polden, dean of the law school at Santa Clara University and chair of the ABA committee studying the standards, said a "substantial majority" indicated that they would like to drop the LSAT requirement – all law schools will have the option to dismiss LSAT requirements but will not be forced to. Polden went on to say that while there are "good arguments" for the change, he was not endorsing it and didn’t expect Santa Clara to alter its admissions policy.

Standardized testing is the norm but I believe it’s not the only way students should be measured. Do you think this proposed change is a step in the right direction in law school admissions or think the current system is fine as is? Our scholarship search and law scholarships page will be useful to you either way!

Applying for scholarships requires hard work, creativity and time...not boatloads of cash, frustration and empty promises. Each year, however, students are duped into ponying up exorbitant application fees for scholarships they aren’t even guaranteed to win. This is just plain WRONG, people – scholarships are supposed to be free money for college! – and while we’re betting you’ve already checked out our pages on scholarship scam prevention, the Washington Post recently published some refresher info:

• Filling out the FAFSA is 100-percent free and you can do it either online or on paper. If you would like to fill it out online, be sure your search terms are correct: A seemingly small typo like "FASFA" can direct you to sites that ask you to pay to file...and the forms they have are sometimes the wrong ones.
• It's legal for for-profit companies to charge for providing scholarship information but it's illegal for them to collect fees but never provide the information, misrepresent themselves as government officials or guarantee they'll get the student full funding for college.
• Voice any concerns about an organization to a high school or college counselor; they've been there and done that and can point you to the truth.
• If you are alerted that you're a finalist for a contest you've never entered or if credit card/banking information is requested online, go no further unless you are positive the organization is legit.
• Don't give in to anything branded as a "limited time offer" or "exclusive opportunity." They're just high-pressure sales tactics.
• Investigate the success stories presented at seminars. These so-called "satisfied customers" could have been paid to give glowing recommendations so ask for a list of at least three local families who used the service and contact them directly to make sure the organization delivered on its promises.
• If you do find a legitimate organization that requires payment, get in writing how much the service costs, what exactly the company will do and the refund policy.

College is expensive enough so save those application fees for books and other college expenses: All Scholarships.com’s services – from the scholarship search and college matchmaker to financial aid information and college preparation tips – are available completely free of charge. You’re welcome!

It may seem counterintuitive to work hard throughout high school, score well on your standardized tests, get accepted to your first-choice college and wrangle enough financial aid to pay for your education only to drop out before graduation but it does happen. What causes this academic 180? That’s what researchers at Michigan State University revealed in a new study.

The team, led by MSU assistant professor of psychology Tim Pleskac, used a mathematical model to analyze surveys from 1,158 freshmen at 10 U.S. colleges and universities. The surveys listed 21 "critical events" and students were asked whether any of the events happened to them in the previous semester; later, the students surveyed were asked whether or not they planned to drop out. Among the top risk factors reported were depression, loss of financial aid, tuition increases, unexpected poor marks and roommate issues. Other "critical events" like family deaths, failure to get into a specific program of study, significant bodily injury and addiction, however, were less likely to impact a student’s decision to leave school. "Prior to this work, little was known about what factors in a student’s everyday life prompt them to think about withdrawing from college," Pleskac said. "We are now better suited to think about what students we should target in terms of counseling or other assistance to help them work through these issues."

Would any of the factors listed above effect your choice to drop out of college? If they did, do you think you would eventually return to obtain your degree?