Being embarrassed of where you graduated or attended

Something about DI that has always played in the back of my mind. I've noticed two things over the years here: 1.) People don't specify (in their signature) where they attended school. 2.) Or I see that someone attended XYZ University and your like "Where or What TF is that?"

Now I will admit, I got my B.S. from a lesser known college with the worst name ever, so I'm not throwing stones. (Check my signature line if you think I'm lying. I had to shorten it for vanity reasons)

UI&U

 

Unless it is very well known (Yale), has the name of a state or well known city in the name of the school (University of Alabama, University of Chicago), or plays major college sports (Baylor, Wake Forest, Duke) most folks will have no idea where a school is.

 

I wouldn't care where I got a degree from as long as it gets me where I need to go in my learning process and career. I'm enrolled at Azteca University / UCN (University of Central Nicaragua) inter-university program where when I finish my PhD, I will earn a twin PhD with one being propio from Azteca and the other being official from UCN. Many foreign evaluators have blacklisted these universities because of the relationships they had developed with other businesses that resulted in questionable and sometimes too many awards associated with them. There has been much debate about Azteca and UCN over the years but I decided to enroll anyway for personal development more so and because I wanted a doctorate at a low cost. Once I finish this degree, I will gladly put it on all of my professional profiles and CV.

 

I don't even think Union Institute & University sounds bad, but the way it's named seems like it draws questions often because it's not common.

 

I'm very proud of all the schools I attended except for Fort Hays State. I think this is because I don't have a personal connection with the school. I did the full degree online and from 1500 miles away. The only time I went to campus was for graduation. My degree from Franklin Pierce and my soon to be degree from Miami are both online as well, but I have a connection with the campuses since I worked on both of them at one point. I'm sure very few people have heard of Kean or Franklin Pierce, but I'm would proudly talk about those schools and Miami as well, not something I can say for Fort Hays State. I suppose there are just some things, at least for me, that you can't get unless you have a connection with the campus.

 

I don't like it one little bit. It sounds contrived and, ironically, it no longer applies.

Union started out as a consortium, the Union for Research and Experimentation in Higher Education in 1964. It became the Union for Experimenting Colleges and Universities in 1969. In the early 1970s it created the University Without Walls (experimental bachelor's degree programs for adults, each hosted at a member school--all of whom were regionally accredited. They also created the Union Graduate School as a stand-alone degree-granting institution, which is where the PhD program emerged.

Eventually, the consortium was no longer necessary. The UWW programs were absorbed by their schools and the Union Graduate School became The Union Institute. This is the name under which it (finally) emerged from candidacy status to full accreditation (in 1985).

Later, the Union acquired Vermont College and changed its name to account for that. I don't know anyone who likes it.

When the school was still UECU, it was common for learners and graduates to list their PhD degrees as coming from UGS--Union Graduate School. (The diplomas issued indicated the degree was awarded by UECU, which was technically accurate.)

When I started my PhD it was The Union Institute. When I graduated, however, it had adopted its current name. I hate it. In writing I refer to it by its proper name. But casually, I normally tell people I graduated from the Union or the Union Institute. Both are so much better, and raise zero questions.

But here's the thing: no one really cares. At all. Ever. They don't know what it is and don't really care. This is normal. People hear the names of universities they don't know all the time. They don't ask, they don't even think about it. Unless.....the unknown school evokes a geography that makes them curious. I get that way more often.

 

"Messenger RNA is genetic material, so in that sense, the vaccines are genetically based therapy." - WebMD, 2021

I never knew of mRNA to be any sort of gene therapy, but I think--giving the benefit of the doubt--the FDA is being properly cautious with how they're treating it (as they absolutely should be) and with what Moderna is doing with it (as they absolutely should be), because as something being developed and given to the entire general population for COVID for the first time, there are uncertainties as there would be with any other drug if it were in a similar situation. Otherwise, there would be no reason for the FDA to take the approach they're taking.

So since the government filing states the FDA considers it as such by saying "Currently, mRNA is considered a gene therapy product by the FDA", and as long as the FDA considers it as such for whatever purposes they see fit, it's fair for it to be considered as such by others.

 

I'm not embarrassed by the unknown schools I graduated from, but I have noticed more interest after putting a big name school on my application and LinkedIn page. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't happy that I didn't attend University of Phoenix.

 

For me personally, the name of a school doesn't really matter to me and I would never feel embarrassed when someone or an employer asked me about my school I explain it to them. I am proud to be a distance learning student as it works with my "adult" schedule now. Sometimes weird school names help you stand out more. I feel employers really just care about the school's accreditation and your experience/background in the field and how it will pertain to the job duties. In the United States alone there are so many educational institutions it is hard to keep up with every name, most of the time local regions will know their schools unless as stated earlier they are well-known schools or participate in sports. We all know what we signed up for when we applied to these schools and the degree worked for us in one way or another as these degrees could be a stepping stone towards another or its the end of our education journey but the school even with a weird or unknown name did the intended purpose for us so there is no need to be embarrassed over the school's name or if anyone inquires more information because they are unfamiliar.

 

I'm surprised that UoP offers Associate degrees.

Note that I added my degree info to my sig so that I could post to this thread. I have an Associate degree in addition to my BA, should I add that also?

 

I wouldn't touch it with a barge pole. I can't possibly speak for the entire community about what they should call it. But I can express disdain over the name without suggesting a particular replacement.

But if I did have a name, it would be the Fairfield Institute.

 

Somehow, she became a civilian cybersecurity specialist for the Coast Guard in 1999. I figured those jobs were easier to get back then, but something tells me that she's not mentioning the positions that led up to that.

Edit: It appears that she was enlisted in the Coast Guard, so she probably received training in the military. Or, the one website could be wrong. She doesn't mention serving in the military on her website. She simply says that she was a cybersecurity specialist for the Department of Homeland Security, which is weird. People rarely work for DHS; they work for an agency under DHS. She worked for the Coast Guard and TSA.

 

UoP used to not offer associate degrees. After Western International University closed, UoP absorbed Axia College.

 

I know Franklin Pierce because I grew up in New Hampshire and attended a weekend enrichment program that they offered!