Insights from guiders

Using technology to help our youth create a brighter future The Official EdTech Blog for Lighthouse Guidance Systems

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Career Pathway: Computer Systems Analyst

Computer system analysts incorporate both business and information technology in their work. If you’re interested in utilizing both fields to help design computer systems and processes for clients, check out what it takes to become a computer systems analyst.

Computer systems analysts help clients obtain the best overall computer system (hardware, software, networks) for their business by researching what technologies would help them run more efficiently and effectively. Computer systems analysts oversee system installations, test the upgrades, and train the company/business in them.

High School: Since computer systems analysts are in a technology based career field, it is important for high school students to take challenging STEM courses. Social sciences and business courses are also important since computer systems analysts have to collaborate with others.

Undergraduate Studies: A bachelor’s degree in information sciences would prepare you for this career pathway. In your undergrad, you should take courses dealing with software development and database design, as well as business courses in project management. Majoring in information sciences will give you a background in both business and information technology, but you can major in another related field, such as computer science.

Experience & Graduate School: Although optional, some employers may require a master’s degree in business administration with a concentration in information systems.

For more information, check out U.S. News Best Technology Jobs List

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Career Pathway: Market Research Analyst

Check out our latest featured career pathway. Interested in a career field that requires analytical, communication, and critical-thinking skills? See what it takes to become a Market Research Analyst.

Market Research Analysts use methods such as, surveys and focus groups, to analyze consumer data for clients. Market research analysts help businesses identify a target audience and understand their consumers’ needs.  

High School: A career in market research is heavily research oriented. During high school, students should take AP or advanced courses in mathematics (especially in statistics). Taking courses in psychology would also be beneficial.

Undergraduate Studies: Becoming a market research analyst requires at least a bachelor’s degree. There are several majors to choose from. Statistics, math, computer science, social science, and business administration are ideal majors for a student pursuing this field. 

Experience & Graduate School: Getting hands on experience through an internship or job can help with the familiarization of software and methods used in a market research position. Some positions require a master’s degree; depending on what you decide to pursue will determine if you need to attend graduate school.

Certification: Getting the Professional Research Certification is not required, but is often recommended to show your expertise and professionalism within the field. To become certified analysts must pass the exam, be apart of a professional organization, and have had 3 years working experience in the field.

For more information, check out U.S. News Best Business Jobs list and Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Business and Financial Occupations list

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Career Pathway: Dentist

Whether you are an upcoming freshmen or a graduating senior, conversations always seem to revert back to this question: “What are your plans after high school?” Although planning your future may sound like a daunting task, there are several resources available to you that can help (including guidmii). U.S. News recently published a list of The Best Jobs for 2015. To help you figure out what career path you might be interested in, we’ll be taking an inside look on each of these careers!

Interested in a career in dentistry? The path to becoming a dentist begins in high school!

High School: Students interested should ideally take Advanced Placement courses in chemistry, biology, mathematics, and physics. Majority of dental schools require a bachelor’s degree. So, during your junior year, begin researching colleges, ace your AP exams, and do well on your SAT and/or ACT!

Undergraduate Studies: Research dental schools you are interested in and find out their requirements so that you can stay on track throughout your undergrad. Each dental school has their own list of pre-requisites, but pre-med courses (biology, chemistry, organic chemistry, etc.) are commonly listed. By your junior year, you should take your DAT (Dental Admission Test). Dental school is highly competitive - stellar grades, good letters of recommendation, and a high DAT test score are very important!

Dental School: There are two types of general dental degrees: Doctor of Dental Surgery (DDS) or Doctor of Dental Medicine (DDM). Coursework includes practical and technical training, as well as clinical courses. There are nine different dental specialties that would require additional training, including a residency program.

License Exam: In order to practice dentistry, you have to complete a state and/or national license exam. These exams include real dental procedures on patients.

Want to know more? Click here for more information on becoming a dentist!

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Interning Creates Competitive Advantage

In a 2014 study done by Millennial Branding, 50% of companies were found to be creating high school internship programs, and 60% agreed that students will need to begin focusing on their careers in high school.

So, what exactly is an internship? Internships are basically temporary jobs offered by employers that give interns the opportunity to gain experience in a certain field or career path. Internships can either be paid or unpaid, and the length of time can vary between programs.

High school students can benefit from an internship by:

Gaining connections with experienced professionals,

getting an idea for a college major or career path,

obtaining new skills,

and experiencing hands on work

By becoming an intern, high school students gain a competitive advantage in college admissions and in the job market.

If you’re interested in seeking out an internship program, use your resources!

See your guidance counselor; they can help you not only decide on a career path, but also help you find potential internships or volunteer-work in your desired field (guidmii can help you with this too).

Ask your family or friends; they might have a connection with someone who works in a field that you’re interested in.

Use the internet; research summer internship programs for high school students, there are several online resources for different opportunities.

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The 411: IB/AP/Dual Enrollment – What’s the difference??

So you want to earn college credits in high school, but which type of advanced courses should youtake? IB, AP, DE (PSEO) – what does it all mean and which type of course isbest for you?

Advanced Placement - AP

AP courses are rigorous, college-level courses with a standardized curriculum mandated by the College Board. These courses are offered in almost 14,000 public schools in the United States.

AP  courses are seen as focused on a particular subject with more rote learning and an emphasis on standardized testing.  Students typically take AP courses in their Sophomore, Junior and Senior years. Students receive a letter grade in an AP course, as well as a score on their end-of-the-year AP exam.

The AP exam is graded on a scale of 1 to 5.

                                   5 = extremely well qualified                                    4 = well qualified                                    3 = qualified                                    2 = possibly qualified                                    1 = no recommendation

Students who pass an AP course with a score of 3 or greater might receive college credit for the course, depending on the college’s policy.

IB

IB classes teach students a broader understanding of a particular subject. IB curriculum is mandated by the International Baccalaureate Organization (IB) in Cardiff, Wales

IB assessments tend to involve more research, writing and hands-on evaluation. IB exams are often in essay format, and the exams test the student’s ability to apply an understanding of learned concepts to new information and different scenarios. IB tests are graded alongside the work from other IB students around the world by 6,000 trained international examiners.

IB courses are either standard level or higher level. The IB diploma program is for 11th and 12th grade students. Students in the diploma program must take at least 3 higher level IB courses and must earn at least 24 points (based on exam scores of 1 to 7 and the extended essay) to receive an IB diploma.

Like AP courses, scoring high on an IB exam may result in college credit, depending on the college’s policy.

Dual Enrollment

Dual Enrollment (DE) is when a student is dually enrolled in a high school and a college. With dual enrollment, high school students take college courses offered by a local community or state college. Dual Enrollment credits are also known as PSEO (Post-secondary Education Options) credits.

Most state colleges and universities are likely to accept PSEO credits from another state, as long as the credits are listed on a transcript from an accredited community college or university. Private colleges and more selective colleges, may accept PSEO credits or use the credits for placement purposes, or they may not accept PSEO credits at all.

With that being said, AP, IB and DE are all challenging, college-level courses that post-secondary schools like to see on your high school transcript. So if you’d like to boost your GPA, enhance your transcript and challenge yourself, try these advanced credit options.

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Dev Team at SunshinePHP

This past weekend (February 5th - 7th) our development team traveled to Miami, FL to attend the SunshinePHP Developer Conference hosted by the South Florida PHP community. Consisting of PHP tutorials and workshops, keynote speakers and talks, our team was able to meet other PHP developers and learn about the latest technologies. Our development team had a blast, and can’t wait to attend next year’s conference!

Photo courtesy of Ariel Ferrandini

Photo courtesy of Ariel Ferrandini

Photo courtesy of Adam Culp: Lighthouse Guidance Systems' Pablo Godel (right) co-organizes SunshinePHP Conference with Adam Culp (left), each year.

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Know Before You Accept: Subsidized vs. Unsubsidized

In an earlier post, we discussed what financial aid is and all the different types of aid that come with it, including loans. With loans being the most common form of financial aid given to students, let’s go into more detail on the differences between two types offered through FAFSA: subsidized and unsubsidized.

Direct Subsidized Loans are only available to undergraduate students with financial need. The amount you can borrow is determined by your school and cannot be more than your financial need.

With Direct Subsidized Loans, the U.S. Department of Education pays the interest during certain periods:

while you’re attending school at least half-time,

during a grace period (first six months after you leave school or drop below half-time), and

during a period of deferment (a postponement of loan payments under certain conditions).

Direct Unsubsidized Loans are available to undergraduate AND graduate students with no requirement for financial need. The amount you can borrow is determined by your school and is based off of your cost of attendance and other financial aid you receive.

With Direct Unsubsidized Loans, you are responsible for paying the interest during all periods. Interest not paid while you are in school accumulates and is added to the total amount of your loan.

Now when you receive your financial aid, you will know what exactly you are accepting.

For more information, check out the U.S. Department of Education’s Federal Student Aid website.

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What kind of future will you create with Guidmii? 

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Our Ed Tech software, guidmii, in a nutshell.

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What’s the best college for you?

With almost 5,000 2 to 4-year college institutions in the United States and several thousands more around the world, how do you determine the college that is the best fit for you? While the options can seem nearly limitless, you can quickly narrow your college list by evaluating the following factors and their importance in your college decision process.

Type of college institution: Do you want to go to a 4-year college? Or maybe you’re interested in starting out at a 2-year college and then transferring to a 4-year college? How important is it to you if the institution is private or public?

Location: Do you want to be close to home or far from home? Are you interested in a completely new setting? How important is it if the college is in-state or out-of-state? (Note: Sometimes out-of-state colleges can be less expensive.)

Campus setting: Do you want to go to a school in a small college town or a big city? How important is the size of the campus? Are you interested in a small, medium or large student body?

Small – less than 2,000 students

Medium – 2,000 – 5,000 students

Large – more than 15,000 students

Cost: How important is the cost of tuition and the cost of living in your college search? Do you qualify for financial aid? What about scholarships?

Programs of study: Do you already know exactly what you want to study? If so, narrow your college search by focusing on colleges that offer the majors you’re interested in.

Learning environment: What sort of balance do you want between your social life and study life?  Are you looking for a college that’s academically rigorous or academically comfortable? Do you prefer learning through interactive, small-group discussions or lectures from the professor? Do you want the freedom to choose your own courses or do you prefer to follow a structured program of study?

In addition to evaluating these factors, you can continue to refine your college search by talking to your family and advisors, attending college fairs, scoping out colleges on social media and visiting college campuses.  Find out what you value most in a potential college, do your research and you will discover the best colleges for you in no time! Good luck and happy searching! 

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Staying On Point and Motivated in the New Year

The Dalai Lama was once asked what surprised him most about humanity. "Man," he answered. Why? "Because," said His Holiness, "he sacrifices his health in order to make money. Then he sacrifices money to recuperate his health. And then he is so anxious about the future that he does not enjoy the present; the result being that he does not live in the present or the future; he lives as if he is never to die, and then dies having never really lived."

First and foremost, Happy New Year! It's a new year and you often hear people saying what they plan to do differently, as they look back on the previous year. One of the more common New Year’s resolutions is staying motivated and on task. Just like at the start of the school year or semester, everyone is proactive and organized, and soon, they fall into old habits like laziness and procrastination.

The key to staying active is to not over think it.

1. Stay on task.

2. Write out a to-do list.

3. Come up with a contingency plan if things don't go according to plan. (strongly advised)

4. Stay positive and optimistic.

5. And most importantly, live your best life.

So far this year there have been an abundance of articles focused on how to not make the same mistakes you did last year. Instead of tuning them out, you should take a look at some of them. Not only would it curb your  boredom, but it would also act as a guiding light to actually staying true to your resolutions.

So, to add to the article from which this post stemmed, make this year different, successful, a learning opportunity, and a chance to grow.

For those moving on to the next phase of their education, whether it be high school or college, this is an important year for you. Have fun, but remember the reason why you're in school in the first place: to learn.

Best of luck this year, and stay tuned for more posts from the Guidmii team.

http://www.inc.com/marla-tabaka/7-ways-to-stay-motivated-and-accomplish-anything.html

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Getting to know Guidmii!

Well, it has been a little while since the last time we looked into Guidmii, but now we are going to start highlighting some of the features that Guidmii has to offer students! When students first log in to Guidmii, they are shown an introductory tutorial video which will give students a bit of a foundation to build upon. The video allows students to learn about all of Guidmii's functions, so they can get the most out of the application.

After the brief introduction, it is time to start browsing around Guidmii to see all it has to offer! One of the coolest features of Guidmii is its ability to create tailor-made plans for students with varying interests. These plans will show the student exactly what courses he or she needs to take to be on track for graduation. It will automatically fill the schedule with core courses the student has to take, and the student decides what level of core courses to take (honors, AP, IB). As well, the student has the ability to choose whatever elective courses he or she is interested in. For instance, if a student wants to get into the veterinary sciences, he or she might want to look into taking Vet Assisting. The plan also shows the grade the student received in a course upon completion – nifty!

Stay tuned, as we will be covering more of Guidmii in the future! So long!

P.S. Below is a picture of the plan that we explained today. 

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Education Apps - New Tools for School

Technology has given us access to a vast amount of information just at our fingertips. Mobile devices are no longer used for only texting and calling, your device now offers resources that can assist you in your daily activities - including your education. Need help with a certain subject? Need a new way to study? There are several apps available catered toward your specific needs. Check out these three education apps available to you for free!

Khan Academy (Free: iOS)

Gain access to Khan Academy’s 4,200+ educational videos covering topics under K-12 Math, Science, Economics and Finance, and Arts and Humanities. The Khan Academy app can also be used as a step-by-step guide through the college admissions process with topics ranging from SAT/ACT overviews to paying for college. Offering a mass amount of essential information for students (or for anyone wanting to brush up on a certain topic), Khan Academy is an app you should definitely check out!

Quizlet (Free: iOS & Android)

Quizlet is a flash card app offered in 3 study modes: Cards, Learn, and Match. Students can create their own flash card sets, or search and choose from flash cards created by other users. This app offers a simple solution for studying on the go. 

EasyBib (Free: iOS & Android)

EasyBib makes creating citations even easier and more convenient for students. The EasyBib app offers a bar code scan feature that scans a book’s bar code and creates a citation in either MLA, APA or Chicago style. Students also have the option to create citations through searching by book title. You can build and manage your citations in the app and export them via email. 

We'll be on the look out for more useful apps - stay tuned! 

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Financial Aid and All Its Perks

It's that time of the year, and we're not talking holidays. It's the time for college applications and letters of acceptance, the hunt for scholarships, making sure that 4 in your SAT score wasn't actually a 7, and our personal favorite - financial aid! Fun fact: You can start applying for FAFSA as early as January 1st. Some schools actually encourage you to start getting all that information together now, so you can maximize all that the government has to offer.

So let's break down this thing that is financial aid. We'll discuss: 1. Just what it is exactly? 2. How you can get it and 3. The different types of aid (yes there is more than one). I know, you're jumping for joy right now.

Simply defined, financial aid is money given or lent out from the government and other organizations to eligible students to help you pay for college. It can also come from the college/university you plan on attending, banks, your state government, or private organizations (i.e. a grant or trust fund from a really generous benefactor). Financial aid can range from $50 to the cost of your entire college career (a.k.a. a lot of dough). Whatever the amount it is that you receive, just remember that every cent counts. Don't get upset if you only get $200, at least you can buy part of your textbook with it.

          How can you get this precious gift you ask? Well, for starters you have to be what some people call eligible. In order to be eligible you have to fill out a FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) or applications geared specifically toward what you are applying for. You can even go on to your college website and apply there directly.

There are four types of aid available out there:

1. Grants- the best kind of aid, because you don't have to pay it back. It can be given by the federal or state government or come directly from your intended college or university. Awesome, I know. Be sure to remember that grants are need-based, which means that they will only be given on based upon you or your family's financial standing.

2. Scholarships- scholarships are like grants except they are not always need-based. There are a wealth of scholarships out there to choose from, and almost everyone is eligible for at least one scholarship. There are scholarships for people of a certain height, race, eye color, athletic or academic ability, etc. So never count yourself out, and seek out as many as you can.

3.Loans- the dreaded form of aid, but one of the most common. Loans are given out by banks and the state and federal government. They must be paid back and with the added bonus of interest. Federal loans have low interest rates, but lenders from other organizations won't let you off so easy. Just be careful when you accept it. And remember that subsidized = interest doesn't accrue right away and unsubsidized = interest starts to accrue immediately.

4. Work study programs- are jobs given out by the federal government that allow students to work part-time to pay for their college tuition. These are extremely hard to come by, but if you are lucky enough to receive one, hold onto it for as long as you can.

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BIG news at Lighthouse Guidance Systems

We are excited to announce that we have hired Pablo Godel as our new COO.

Godel is an established expert in the field of PHP development. In 2005, he founded ServerGrove, a PHP Hosting Company used by the likes of Discovery Channel, Pew Charitable Trusts and the University of Pennsylvania.

An active and recognized expert in the PHP & Symfony community, Godel travels around the world speaking at industry conferences. He also volunteers his time to co-organize the South Florida PHP users group and the SunshinePHP developer conference held in Miami every year.

Godel is an advocate for developing improved software to better the world we live in. He believes in using his skills and expertise to promote open source movement with the goal of creating a brighter future.

“I truly believe and share the goals and core values of LGS,” states Godel. “It is an honor to help students be successful by building innovative technology solutions for the US education system."

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Guidmii, Guiding you to Success!

If you have not seen our software or heard anything about it, you are in luck! This first post, under “Our Software”, is entirely dedicated to introducing you to Guidmii! You may ask yourself, what is Guidmii? Our definition of Guidmii is a “multi-functional academic planning and tracking solution that enables school districts and schools of higher learning to provide a purpose-driven academic plan for students and parents, beginning in middle school and transitioning to the college or university they choose.”

So basically Guidmii is your one-stop shop for all the pertinent information you might need while enrolled in high school! It literally has everything and more! From keeping track of various GPAs, to building an entire academic plan, and even keeping track of your standardized test scores – all in one place.

Now you may wonder where Guidmii is available. Well I am here to tell you that Guidmii is currently used in Hillsborough and Pinellas County Schools, with plans on expanding into Orange County in the near future – exciting!!! As someone who went to a Hillsborough District high school, I only wish I could have had this tool when I was a student. At that time, I had not a clue about what went into the various GPAs that were being generated on my report cards and transcript. Everything was paper-based, but no longer! With Guidmii, all elements of high school have been laid out and a student can manage his or her school life far more productively!

Thanks for reading this introductory article! Stay tuned for next time as we will actually delve into Guidmii to start highlighting some of its awesome features…and there will be pictures!

P.S. Meet our helpful little light bulb, Guidmii!

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Office Potluck

This week, LGS got the team together by having an in office potluck for lunch! We're not trying to make you jealous on purpose, but the food was too good not to blog about. Check out some of our dishes below~