by Jessica Del Curto
Daily Lobo
Having a prestigious college degree might not mean a thing.
In the third season of "The Apprentice," which aired Thursday, Donald Trump and his advisers examine this concept.
For the first time, Trump divided his players into the book-smart versus street-smart categories. Half of the competitors have a college degree, and the others went straight into the business world without going to college.
In the first episode, Trump announces the street-smart team, which is later named Net Worth, has a net worth that is three times higher than the book-smart team, named Magna.
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This notion may leave ivy league graduates wondering if they wasted their money.
"Would you be angry if a team of people without a degree kicked your ass?" Trump asked Magna.
One competitor replied, "I would be angry if anyone kicked my butt."
Well said.
But the concept makes this season of "The Apprentice" that much more appealing.
Last week's task was to run a Burger King restaurant and sell a selected menu item. This proved a difficult task for Magna.
At one point it was clear one of Magna's members never worked in a fast food restaurant. She was told by a regular Burger King employee not to put her hands on her hips while standing behind the counter.
Common sense and a high school job at Papa John's taught me this at 16.
Magna also didn't train enough people on the cash registers. The team succeeded in getting customers in the door but didn't have enough people working the point-of-sale system.
Most customer-service workers know you can have the nicest demeanor, but if you aren't fast on the registers, customers will hate you.
Perhaps they don't teach that in college.
In the end the project manager for Magna was canned by Trump. He was blamed for not being able to control his team.
Overall, Net Worth seems it will likely win the competition. The group developed a marketing idea within minutes and worked well together from the start.
At one point, team leader John pulled together the regular Burger King workers and asked them how many had college degrees. He motivated the group by letting them know they were all in the same boat.
I've always believed a person should have to work as a customer service representative at least once before they graduate.
This sure could have helped Magna.
"The Apprentice"
NBC, Thursdays, 8 p.m.
Grade: A-
