Post-secondary graduation ceremonies are always both emotional and thoughtprovoking events. They are moving, of course, for the sight of that special someone stepping forward for congratulations - seemingly just a day or two after you first heard them cry out their entry into your world. But en masse they put a lump in most throats as well: It is the very future, as it were, crossing the stage into the unknown wearing those exalted smiles of hope and pride. More...

It will now be a little easier for international graduates to settle in Nova Scotia after their studies in Canada are finished. The province announced today that any international graduate from a Canadian college or university can apply for permanent residency if they have a job offer from a Nova Scotia employer. More...

By Alice C. Elwell. James Ryan is ready to take the first step toward his goal of becoming a brain surgeon. The 18-year-old Marine recruit will ship out Monday to Parris Island, S.C., for basic training, just eight days after graduating from Beverly High School. More...

By Josh Lederman. Up to 5 million Americans struggling to make their monthly student loan payments could find relief under a program President Barack Obama expanded Monday, part of an election-year push by Democrats to paint Republicans as blocking common-sense steps that could help the middle class.
Dubbing it a "no-brainer," Obama also threw his support behind legislation to let some of those same borrowers refinance their student loans at lower rates, in a move the administration said could save 25 million borrowers up to $2,000 over the life of their loans. More...