The Mytonomy Blog

Why Contribute Videos to Mytonomy?

Whenever people make decisions, one of the first steps one takes is to talk to those who have had to make similar decisions. It is a natural reaction to seek people with more experience than you have. Mytonomy is built upon the belief that learning from others and sharing one’s own experience are the critical pieces in the decision making cycles. One may wonder what drives advice contributors to take the time to share their story, advice, and experience to people they will likely never meet?

We strongly believe that giving back is as natural as seeking advice. In years past, these cycles played out in playgrounds, backyards, college and high school campuses and neighborhoods as teenagers and young adults talked about life. With the shift in the use of the internet, these types of experiences are happening more and more online. Mytonomy is a platform that gives this natural cycle of sharing and receiving a well organized and structured home. Those who contribute by sharing their experiences understand the importance of such exchanges.

A benefit that advice givers might not consider is how Mytonomy testimonials can become a positive part of their digital footprint. It’s well publicized that employers often screen potential employees by searching for their online profiles, but much of the coverage tends to focus on avoiding a negative online presence rather than cultivating a positive one. A well thought out testimonial shows an employer the person that corresponds to the résumé.

One recent college graduate shared with me that his new boss had watched his videos on Mytonomy before hiring him. In his videos he speaks intelligently about his college experience and shows that he is interested in helping out students who might want to follow in his footsteps. The videos are not heavily edited and he is not dressed formally, but by giving clear and concise advice he humanized his application and impressed his employer.

An important caveat is that Mytonomy videos shouldn’t be vehicles for blatant self-promotion or the integrity of the format is lost. Both the Mytonomy curation staff and potential employers can see the difference between fluff and good advice.

Talented Low Income Students Need Help to Expand their Horizons

David Leonhardt’s piece in the New York Times Education section discusses a study looking at why most high-achieving low income high school students do not make it to elite colleges.

A major reason, according to to the research, is that low-income high school students have far fewer resources for learning about the breadth of college options available than to their more affluent peers. This information gap causes talented first generation college applicants to restrict their college options to what their support network can share with them.

This information gap is crucial for talented students because, as the study stresses, success isn’t just about going to college, but rather going to the right college:

“If they make it to top colleges, high-achieving, low-income students tend to thrive there… 89 percent of such students at selective colleges had graduated or were on pace to do so, compared with only 50 percent of top low-income students at nonselective colleges.”

Mytonomy is a solution to this information gap. With voices from colleges all over the country, a student is able to expand massively beyond their immediate support network. Testimonials come from every economic class and demographic group so the user can find their near-peers’ answers to their questions, effectively demystifying the process.  From how to explore schools to the financial aid process and to the social life, all students can make more informed decisions about the future.

For example, a talented low income high school student from Southern California might only be exposed to community colleges and brand name schools. With Mytonomy that student can watch videos from college students of similar backgrounds at schools like Union College, Middlebury College, and Denison University to gain a broader perspective.

While this study looks at the most talented students, choosing the right college, from community to Ivy, is critical for every student’s future.

Overcoming Income Inequality at Top Colleges

Derek Thompson of The Atlantic wrote a great article last week titled “Why Smart Poor Students Don’t Apply to Selective Colleges (and How to Fix It)” which looks at one problem in higher education that we at Mytonomy are keenly aware of.

According to a study by Caroline Hoxby and Christopher Avery that Thompson cites, one main reason that the students in question are not making it to top colleges is environmental. Thompson notes: “They aren’t surrounded by a network of teachers and college counselors who know what advice to give a top-flight student.” 

We’ve mentioned in previous blog posts that many schools view college counseling as important but not urgent. The impact of this is more pronounced in predominantly poor rural schools.  

Having diagnosed the problem Thompson asks: “If the antidote is more information and more encouragement for poor smart students, how do we reach them with more information and encouragement?”

Mytonomy fills this need by supplementing the work that parents, teachers, and counselors do to prepare their students for college. The researchers that Thompson cites even go on to suggest “turning alum networks into a proxy army of admissions officers” as Mytonomy does. 

At Mytonomy we’re working to increase the availability of relevant first hand insights on the college process so that every student has a fair chance in college and in life.

College Knowledge: The Academic Evidence for Video Interventions

Derek Thompson’s recent article in the Atlantic, “The Real College Crisis Isn’t High Costs, It’s Low Information”,  lays out the problem facing low income students as they consider college:  a lack of knowledge around the true costs of attending, and the potential benefits over a lifetime in terms of greater earning power.

What brought smiles to our faces here at Mytonomy, was the reference to a University of Toronto study, which asked low-income high schoolers to take a survey on the benefits of college. The researchers behind the study are Philip Oreopoulos of the University of Toronto and Ryan Dunn, of Higher Education Strategy Associates.

The study used a video intervention to test whether attitudes around higher education could be influenced with a simple tactic. Half of the students were shown this video below stating the positive benefits of college:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=kFFj791C_rw

When taking the second part of the survey three weeks later after watching the video, the video watchers recorded meaningful reductions in their uncertainty about going to college and being able to afford it. In other words, this “advertisement” worked to communicate the benefits of higher ed.

Thompson with New America researcher  Kevin Carey, come up with this compelling infographic highlighting the media’s obsession with news about elite schools, at the expense of educating the 21yr olds NOT in college about the potential benefits.

More details and analysis about the study can be found in Doug Lederman’s article on the same topic, in InsideHigherEd.

Mytonomy’s authentic video testimonials on the financial aid process can be a compelling “intervention” for counselors seeking to inspire, motivate, and educate high school students. 

Top College Communities

As the end of the year approaches, we want to thank everyone who contributed videos this year and recognize the most active college communities!

Here are college communities that have contributed video testimonials:

1.     University of Virginia

2.     The College of William and Mary

3.     Cornell University

4.     Washington University in St. Louis

5.     Duke University

6.     New York University

7.     Virginia Tech

8.     James Madison University

9.     University of South Carolina

10.   University of Notre Dame 

Thanks again to everyone at those schools and elsewhere who have made videos! We hope to grow these communities and others in the coming year.

Scaling Role Models to Inspire Disenchanted Youth

A recent McKinsey survey looked at the reasons why high school students choose to forego college. It found that in America, 34% of those surveyed chose not to attend college because they did not think it was worth it. The survey found that there was a major disconnect between the educational systems and employers.

Within the high-tech community, some successful entrepreneurs like Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg, and Steve Jobs have been held up as examples of how unnecessary a college degree is. Tech icons aside, for the vast majority of people, a college degree improves their salary and likelihood of employment.

In order to remedy the thinking that “college educations are not valuable”, we need to both demonstrate to students how make college affordable, and to show them what skills and careers fit them best. For students, planning for the future is important but not urgent and made more difficult by how abstract the concept is. Students need role models, ideally people that look like them and come from similar backgrounds. Historically, role models were limited by local availability and narrow personal networks.

However, the ease and low cost of video capture, makes it possible for students to access snippets about hundreds of potential careers. Mytonomy seeks to intervene in the lives of otherwise disengaged students, to show them how to make their abstract plans more concrete.

Students interested in working at a non-profit can learn more here:

http://mytonomy.com/videos/what-steps-to-take-if-you-want-to-work-at-a-non-profit

Students who want to learn about the military can check out this video:

http://mytonomy.com/videos/my-navy-seal-experience-advice-to-current-military-personnel-on-transitioning-to-the-civilian-world

Video clips from credible advice givers have a huge potential to help students decide on what careers are right for them and how to best pursue those careers.

Read more about the McKinsey Survey in the Huffington Post:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/12/04/skipping-college-too-cool-for-school_n_2240040.html

College Counseling: The Consequences of Triage & “Being Important But Not Urgent”

Recently, I had the chance to speak to an administrator at a larger urban school district on the topic of college counseling. She said that counseling departments are so overwhelmed that they often triage. When a counseling department makes choices about devoting resources to (1) academic counseling, (2) social work, and (3) college counseling, college counseling is what falls off the plate.

College counseling is important but not urgent, for a counseling department. School counselors are often the first responders to emotional and social issues as well as supporting students who are struggling academically. It is an increasingly difficult battle as student/counselor ratios increase and high school budgets shrink. Counselors and counseling departments are often asked to do more with less, year after year. It is often viewed as a success to keep students on the path to high school graduation. For counselors, this leaves very little time for questions like “Is this college right for me?”, “How can I afford college?”, “Where do I find scholarships?” and “Am I prepared for this major?”

This is not an exaggeration but a quick glance into the daily challenges counselors face. It’s a difficult job and they are stretched thin, but we need a way to fill the need for more college counseling. Helping students graduate and get accepted into college is only part of the process. This conversation underscored the importance of one part of the vision of Mytonomy: to help high school and college students make the right choices and to succeed in school and in life.

Of course, it is impossible to replace the wisdom and personal touch of a counselor at any level, but technology can be an effective supplement. Call it “Blended Counseling”. My co-founder Sean Burke, a high school counselor, uses the Mytonomy platform to supplement his everyday work with college counseling videos that can be accessed by anyone on the site:http://mytonomy.com/profiles/847

We believe Mytonomy has the potential to level the playing field for students in school districts where college counseling falls through the cracks, and in doing so improve their outcomes in college and beyond.

Best,

Vinay Bhargava

Computer Science Education Week (CSEdWeek)

This week Computing in Core Curriculum (CINC) presents Computer Science Education Week (CSEdWeek) to promote computer science in K-12 education.

This coincides with Mytonomy’s focus on informing students about STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics).

Hear from a University of Maryland grad working in the WaPoLabs division of the Washington Post. She found out about this position from a craigslist ad and uses technology to change how people consume news.

http://mytonomy.com/videos/working-as-a-computer-engineer-at-wapolabs

Learn about product management at Facebook from a Cornell alum and former McKinsey consultant. Product management is a dynamic hybrid of engineering and business. In some ways you are a mini-CEO who must bring together the product, sales, marketing, finance, legal, and customer service to have a successful launch. 

http://mytonomy.com/videos/from-facebook-google-microsoft-alum-what-is-product-management

For more videos about computer science check out this page: 

http://mytonomy.com/majors/computer-science

To learn more about CSEdWeek go to their website:

http://www.csedweek.org/

New Spanish Videos on Mytonomy

It’s really exciting to see the Spanish videos that have been posted recently! Our mission at Mytonomy is to help everyone succeed in college and beyond, and that includes the growing number of Spanish speakers in America.

Transitioning to college can be difficult, but becoming comfortable with one’s environment and establishing good habits can help ensure college success. In these two videos students offer advice and insights in Spanish about their experiences transitioning to college.

http://mytonomy.com/videos/what-helped-me-in-my-transition-to-collegespanish

http://mytonomy.com/videos/biggest-surprises-in-transitioning-into-collegespanish—5

Mytonomy visits the Bay Area

Cofounders Vinay and Sean had an awesome trip to the San Francisco Bay Area to meet with the producers of First Generation (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m9DSHLc08Oc).

While they were there they recorded some videos with former Thomas Jefferson School of Science and Technology Students who currently attend Stanford.

http://mytonomy.com/videos/applying-to-stanford-what-to-expect-also-general-advice-on-essays

If you’re applying to Stanford you will have to complete 13 short response questions along with three longer essays. The earlier you get the essays done, the better. Her history of science teacher said it best: “well-begun is half done.” Even if you don’t write all your essays as soon as the prompts are released, you should get your ideas flowing with short brainstorming paragraphs.

Another tip, if you are writing about an experience it helps to talk it over with someone who you shared the experience with.

Be sure to check out www.mytonomy.com and see more new videos from our trip.