College again

[wraiths_crono]

So.. I have decided to spend money, go back to school, and get a certification card. Cisco Networking, sad that my company wont give me a promotion without one, even tho I have 3 years on the job experience DOING that work. bleh.

[Pixilated]

Congrats on your decision! Even though it was made somewhat under duress. How long is your program?

A former coworker at my last newspaper left to head up the journalism department at the college in that town. The college laid him off because he doesn't have a degree and suddenly it's very important for them that all their teachers have degrees. Please note: the college itself does not offer degrees in most of its programs (it offers certificates), and certainly not in journalism. So what they are basically telling their students is, "We'll take your money but don't expect us to hire you."

I had little use for my former CW but I did think he got shafted in this transaction. He'd had at least 2 decades actually working in journalism, for crying out loud.

[bhskittykatt]

Our company's parent sold us and we are being acquired by a new one. I've been aiming for a promotion to GM at the property. Currently, our company has it's own manager's school where they ship you off to Corporate HQ for a month and train you up there. I'm not too concerned about the new acquisition, but one fear lingering in the back of my mind is that they'll start to want a degree in hospitality management for GMs. (Currently, I'm going back to school to be a Physical Therapy Assistant.)

One weird thing about going back to college after being in the workforce is that you work your butt off. In high school and post-HS college, it's like you get a C or a B on a paper, and it's more of an oh well, do better next time kinda deal. But after being in the workforce, if I see a C or a B, it's like I failed. Even though it's not work, there's still a sense that there's some sort of paycheck somewhere riding on it. Even though you're the one paying them, that sense of urgency and importance is there. You just have that work ethic that translates back to school. One of the first classes I took going back was biology, and I actually finished the class with over 100% (thanks to extra credit) because I just absorbed that class! My younger lab partners (some of whom were still in high school) thought I was nuts! You just feel that there's so much more riding on it.

Dad has decades of experience as a systems administrator and no degree. So far, so good....

[Sapphire Silk]

So.. I have decided to spend money, go back to school, and get a certification card. Cisco Networking, sad that my company wont give me a promotion without one, even tho I have 3 years on the job experience DOING that work. bleh.

Congrats! It's a shame employers sometimes put more of an emphasis on papers than experience, but that's the nature of the beast. In the long run, though, I'm sure it will be worth the effort.

A former coworker at my last newspaper left to head up the journalism department at the college in that town. The college laid him off because he doesn't have a degree and suddenly it's very important for them that all their teachers have degrees. Please note: the college itself does not offer degrees in most of its programs (it offers certificates), and certainly not in journalism. So what they are basically telling their students is, "We'll take your money but don't expect us to hire you.".

Most adult education programs want instructors who have college degrees. It is necessary for accreditation purposes. In my field, you cannot teach without a Master's. It's not a show of no confidence in their journalism program; it's the realities of the education world.

One weird thing about going back to college after being in the workforce is that you work your butt off. <snip> Even though you're the one paying them, that sense of urgency and importance is there. You just have that work ethic that translates back to school. One of the first classes I took going back was biology, and I actually finished the class with over 100% (thanks to extra credit) because I just absorbed that class! My younger lab partners (some of whom were still in high school) thought I was nuts! You just feel that there's so much more riding on it.

I see this a lot with my nursing students as well. It's actually a good sign; it means you're committed. I think that once people realize how tough it is to make it in the real world, without the safety net of parents, they take their futures a little more seriously and realize at some level it is really up to them to make their own success.

You really want to improve your life, so you are putting the effort into it. Kudos to you! That will take you where you want to go in the long run. It will be worth the agony, believe me!