If you’ve recently graduated from college, congratulations to you! All of your hard work and studying has paid off and you are standing at an important crossroad in your life: work awaits or you will continue your education in an effort to obtain an advanced degree.

Regardless of the path you choose there are some hidden benefits you may not be aware of for graduating from college: many automakers will sweeten their deals and offer to you an extra rebate over and above the best price you get for your new wheels. That’s right, even after negotiating your best deal and applying all other incentives (low rate financing or manufacturer’s rebate) you could save an additional $400 or so on your purchase.

These programs are offered by most automakers, but have different names and requirements. Though your local dealership should tell you about the rebate, they may forget or not be aware that you recently graduated. So, to help you cull through the offers, the following information with links to some of the available programs currently available can help you out:

Hyundai — The 2008 HMFC College Graduate Program offers $400 rebates to recent grads (within the last 24 months) and people who will receive their degree within the next six months.

Honda/Acura — The Honda and Acura Graduate Programs will leave you guessing what your discount is until you speak with the dealer.

Ford — Ford’s College Student Purchase Program offers rebates of $500 on Ford, Lincoln, and Mercury vehicles. Ford’s program is open to current students as well as to graduates of trade schools.

Mitsubishi — With Mitsubishi, you won’t get a special grad rebate but you could be eligible for your choice of four financing plans. Unfortunately, you’re locked in to what Mitsubishi has to offer to you even if you find an automotive financing plan elsewhere that is better for you.

Toyota — With Toyota, recent grads can get a $500 rebate on a new ’09 Corolla or Matrix; $400 rebates are applied to any other new Toyota through the automaker’s Recent College Graduate program.

Scion — As to be expected, Toyota’s youth brand offers a Scion College Graduate Finance Program giving eligible grads $400 back on the purchase of a new car.

General Motors — GM is aggressively courting recent grads, having set up a dedicated website targeting former students. Instead of offering a rebate, GM sells cars to eligible drivers at the supplier rate, which is below the sticker price.

Volkswagen — Not as clear as some other programs, VW’s college grad rebate deal seems to vary from dealer to dealer. One dealer is offering a $400 rebate, another $500, while yet another says that their rebate is $1000. VW does have a first time owner’s program which could offer special savings to you whether you are a recent grad or not.

Nissan — Running through June 30, 2008, the $500 SignatureGRADUATE® Nissan Cash Back program is on select 2008 models. You must have proof of graduation within 6 months (or past 2 years) from an accredited US two or four year university, college, graduate school or nursing school.

Most programs require that you have a job offer in hand or are currently working. Therefore, for the person attending school and not working, these restrictions may keep you from getting the rebate. You could still be eligible for other financing deals, but the extra grad rebate may not be available to you.

Was your favorite car not mentioned? The absence of their information here doesn’t mean that special offers aren’t available to recent grads. Visit the manufacturer’s website for current offers and ask your dealer what else is available to you.

Tags: auto financing, grad program, new car, recent grad

Possible connections in the “accidental drowning” deaths of more than 40 college-aged men over the past several years has some thinking that serial killers are at work. Smiley Face killers may be stalking college men by drugging them at bars and disposing their bodies in nearby rivers and lakes.

At six of the locations where bodies were recovered, “smiley faces” were found painted on trees nearby, suggesting that some sort of pattern is at work. Until recently, no connection had been made in the cases as the deaths were scattered across twelve states. However, in the small town of LaCrosse, Wisconsin eight deaths which were originally labeled as accidental, are now considered to be homicides.

Investigators, led by a pair of New York crime fighters, have pieced together a pattern going back several years. At first, their investigation was of several men who died in the state of New York, but when they learned that a similar event also took place in Minnesota, they began to connect the dots.

As their investigation deepened, the pair — retired NYPD detective Kevin Gannon and NYPD officer Anthony Duarte — saw that similar deaths along the I-94 corridor bridging Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Iowa had also taken place. In each situation the men were young, attending college, and were considered to have died from drinking too much, falling in the water, and drowning.

The FBI, which has jurisdiction over criminal acts which have crossed state lines, isn’t sure that the cases are connected, nor are they certain that every death ruled as accidental is a homicide.

Gannon and Duarte are disappointed that the FBI hasn’t recognized what they see as a pattern and are concerned that other men are now being stalked. In some cases the men are being held for some time before being killed, with one student’s body turning up several months after he went missing.

Further Reading

Detectives: 40 Drowning Victims May Have Been Murdered by ‘Smiley Face Gang’

FBI Statement Regarding Midwest River Deaths

Tags: accidental drownings, alcohol deaths, college crime, college murders, homicide, murder, serial killers, Smiley Face gang, suicide