In Episode 34, Nikki welcomes Dr. Kyle Rudick of the University of Northern Iowa. Kyle contrasts undergraduate education as broad “tool gathering” with graduate school as focused development, mentorship, and creating knowledge rather than simply receiving. They discuss personality traits that make for good graduate students: those driven by curiosity and deep interest in their field. Kyle provides advice on the age old question of whether to pursue the degree immediately or to wait. A follow-up episode will cover the value of a master’s during economic downturns and financial support that should be offered to graduate students.

In this episode, Nikki interviews Brett Caviness, a University of Northern Iowa graduate and award-winning real estate agent in California, about forging a path from small-town Iowa to the Silicon Valley. Brett advises students not to overthink relocation, to secure a job before housing, budget carefully for cost-of-living, watch for rental scams, and treat moves as non-permanent decisions.

In this new mini-series, Nikki explores crooked career paths and how individual have used transferable skill sets to sell themselves in a new industry.  The first episode features her husband, Matt Harken, Manager of Safety and Environmental Engagement at GROWMARK. He explains his role in helping promote safe, compliant practices in agriculture services that feed and fuel the world. He recounts a non-linear trajectory: a scholarship football player who started as an accounting major, switched to PE education after struggling in macroeconomics. He taught driver’s ed and coached at his hometown school, then lost his dream of becoming head coach. A new opportunity led him to college football coaching and operations, then to water well drilling, and later into agricultural safety through transferable skills like sales, project management, and leadership. He discusses how he developed his leadership style and urges students heading to college to chase your heart, and advises graduates to say yes and get off the fence.

Nikki welcomes Dr. Danielle McGeough and they discuss the stress seniors feel balancing finals, jobs, internships, memories, and a job search. Danielle shares her trajectory from a communication media degree and speech coaching to earning a PhD, returning to UNI, getting tenure, then reconsidering “what’s next” and returning to speaking. They explore using structure and clear criteria to narrow applications, plus creating systems to make the processes easier. Danielle contrasts habits with intentional ritual, proposing cozy, sensory “RISE” rituals to make applications easier and meaningful, and encourages doing the search with friends, celebrating micro-wins, and building resilience to rejection.

On the Next Step Podcast, Nikki interviews attorney Trynann Utzinger and marketing professional Liv Wendt about key legal documents young adults often overlook after college. The discussion defines three core documents: a living will, a medical power of attorney, and a financial power of attorney. They cover defaults after age 18, including medical next-of-kin and the need for a court conservatorship for finances without a power of attorney, and how to prevent estranged family from controlling decisions. They discuss low-cost access to state/bar forms, notarization, sharing copies with agents/providers, and practical storage and electronic backups.

On this episode Nikki and LInda debunk the myth that earning overtime, bonuses, or raises can reduce take-home pay by “bumping you into a higher tax bracket,” explaining that the U.S. uses graduated marginal rates where only the additional income is taxed at the higher rate, with a noted exception for some Social Security recipients. They discuss deductions: business expenses for the self-employed, itemized deductions, the standard deduction, a new charitable deduction for non-itemizers, specialized deductions, and deductible student-loan interest, stressing the importance of keeping access to needed forms via personal email and a stable address. They end the episode by breaking down paychecks, noting state-filing rules for multi-state work, and advising graduates to start retirement savings immediately, even in small amounts.

In this first of a two-part series, Nikki and Dr. Linda DeBarthe discuss how taxes affect budgeting and common misconceptions about take-home pay. Linda clarifies the key difference between employees and independent contractors, a really important fact for students who are interested in doing side-gigs! Linda also summarizes filing requirements, what it means to be claimed, and dependency rules that are important for graduating students and parents alike!

In the final episode of the series on health insurance, Brennan explains key insurance terms: deductible, copay, coinsurance, out of pocket maximum, open enrollment, and qualifying events.  He also explains all of these terms and how they would impact the cost of a dental crown.  The examples showcases negotiated in-network fees, coverage, annual dental benefit maximums, and higher costs plus balance billing risk out of network. The main takeaway is to enroll thoughtfully and actually use preventive care and benefits.

On the Next Step podcast, host Nikki interviews Brennan Floss of Delta Dental about health, dental, vision, and medical insurance. They discuss why dental and vision are separate from medical, emphasizing preventive care and disease detection. Brennan explains common plan types—HMO, PPO, and high deductible health plans paired with an HSA.

In this final of a two-part series you get to hear more from Megan Schofield about the four key types of insurance for people graduating college: life, property, auto, and commercial.  Key terms for life insurance are discussed and differentiated. When it comes to renters and homeowners policy, Megan explains the difference between liability, structural, and property. For auto insurance, Nikki and Megan discuss  insurance scores, liability, comprehensive, collision, and choosing deductibles. Commercial packages are touched on for those who are interested in entrepreneurship. They conclude that young adults should ask questions, review parents’ policies, and choose a transparent professional who fits their needs.