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courtesy of Marty Springer

Upon graduation many UW-Stout students find themselves ill-prepared to face the trials and tribulations of real life.

A recent University of Wisconsin-Stout graduate might be able to design a new car or build a new house, but will they have any idea how to insure their car or pay for their house?

"There's a lot of little things that slip through the cracks," said Andy Ferguson of Cap and Compass, a Branford, Conn. based company that gives seminars for students on practical knowledge needed after college.

The company's seminars cover subjects including getting insurance, setting up loans and doing taxes, things seniors graduating in May should have in mind.

"College tends to be geared towards academics rather than practical knowledge," said Ferguson. He added that studies have found that 73 percent of college seniors feel unprepared for life after college.

Cap and Compass seminars aim to present an hour long "interactive, fun experience," said Ferguson. Seminar titles range from "The Least You Need To Know About Taxes" to "Love Your Money" on managing credit cards.

The company also publishes the book "Life After School Explained." (available from their web site capandcompass.com), a compilation of the five seminars they have given at 25 colleges throughout the country.

One firsthand way to gain practical knowledge in the so-called real world is a semester or summer co-op or internship.

"The biggest preparation is a co-op," said LaMont Meinen, director of placement and co-op services at UW- Stout.

"Outside college, no one programs you; the whole culture changes," said Meinen.

Co-op is an abbreviation for Cooperative Education, "a nationwide college and university program that integrates career-related work experience with academic course work," according to the Placement and Co-op Services web site (www.uwstout.edu/place).

Co-ops, generally synonymous with internship, let students earn credits while receiving a salary for actual work experience at a firm related to their major.

With many services available entirely online, Co-op Services helps students find and participate in co-op experiences. At the co-op services web site, students may get an account where they can keep on file, among other information, up to four resumes which can be made automatically available to employers.

Meinen emphasized that many students don't realize these services are extended free of charge for up to six months after graduation, and may be re-activated or maintained for a small fee through alumni services .

Meinen also described a new program called "The Senior Year Experience" currently being developed based on a book of the same name.

"[The program] focuses on efforts to help seniors make meaning of the senior experience, bring closure, connectedness, integration and reflection to the diverse set of activities they have experienced as undergraduates," according to the book.

"The Senior Year Experience aims to ensure a successful four years of college," said Ray Rivera, counselor at co-op services and member of the committee developing the program.

The current evaluation of preparations for seniors before graduation focuses on senior capstone courses. These courses, which are not available in all majors, try to tie together the material taught in the past four or more years.

The Senior Year Experience committee will evaluate the availability and effectiveness of these classes and other senior year preparations. Then it will choose what courses, seminars or other services are needed to help "make the transition out of college as smooth as possible," said Rivera.
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