Was the cost of your college degree worth the outcome?

The final outcome may take a lifetime to measure.

I began the pursuit of higher education without any thoughts of higher income or greater reward, as strange as that may sound. I simply felt inadequate or incomplete or nekked without the higher degrees. Now that I've achieved them, it isn't what I thought it would be, nor is it cracked up to be what many claim it to be. In many cases, it is simply a management tool that is used to weed-out those who don't have degrees or to narrow-down the applicant pile. While I don't think that higher education is cracked-up to be what it's supposed to be, I nonetheless have no regrets about getting the degrees. The educational journey was long, interesting, esoteric and informative.

Having the education opened the door for teaching, which was not my goal. Teaching is the last thing that I would have considered pursuing, yet I now find myself doing it part-time. It is interesting where we find ourselves in life. The future continues to unfold.

 

Damn Me!

I see that you have just a few more credits than I have.

I have been to Laney College, College of Alameda, Merritt, Chabot, Los Medanos, Ohlone, Cogswell College, UoP, CSU-Hayward (not East Bay - that new name blows!) and now CSU-DH. It seems it never ends. Last count: 260 semester hours. (or something like that). That is what happens when you have poor Counselors who can't decide what classes you need for a given degree. (the only good thing about UoP is that they tell you upfront exactly what classes you need to take to get the degree, and you tend to stick to that format).

 

"I Attending State Universities"

Rich,

Oops...good catch....those cheap store-bought walnuts always make me a bit woozy. Gotta stick to the real thing...

 

For me it has been absolutely worth it. The Bachelor's degree was under $5000 and the job I have now never would have been a possibility without the degree.

 

Considering all of my degrees have been free:

Nova-Academic Sholarship
Longwood- Baseball Scholarship
UOP-I work here

I would say they are worth the investment, but since I am rather young, I have yet to realize the full ROI.

 

Harder still, given the salary structure of your employer! (Spoken by someone who knows, man.)

 

There was no cost to me - my M.Phil. was paid for by the Church while I was in seminary.

There is also no financial gain - clergy pay here in Ireland is based on the size of the parish, not the degrees held - my boss doesn't have a degree, but he has become rector of one of the largest parishes in the Church.

I'm hoping to go on to further study, but all for purely personal pleasure rather than for promotion/ financial gain.

Maybe that makes me odd?

P

 

I don't look at my degree having value. I prefer to think of the education having the most value. Therefore, I believe you cannot put a pricetag on the wealth of education I have gained in college, seminary and grad school. Worth a whole lot more than any degree

 

Hi Rich,

Yeah really, the salary leaves a lot to be desired, especially for the amount of work required for the job.

 

Associate's degree - About $3500, got me a 10% raise.

Bachelor's degree - Another $5000, another 10% raise.

Master's degree - Free (tuition waived for Vets) except for books, probably $800-1000 total, a 5% raise.

So, for around $10,000 I got a 25% raise, which paid itself back in less than a year, so yes, it was definitely worth it in the end.

 

The opportunities!

I am currently working on my MFA in creative writing...a terminal degree...which will prepare me for some of the finest jobs not only in the food service industry but the service industry as a whole. "Would you like fries with that?"

 

That made me laugh so hard I fell out my chair

 

Thanks!

Of course you realize, I'm only half joking...

 

My degre in englich were definitly werth it.

 

Bruce,

I'm working on my MPA right now and am probably going to be completing a graduate degree in CJ as well. I saw your comment about UMass-Lowell waiving tuition for Veterans. Was that for the on-campus or online program, and is it restricted to those individuals living in-state only?

Do you have a link or any other info regarding the Veteran's tuition waiver at UMass-Lowell?

Thanks,

abnrgr275

 

My kids seeing their father complete college makes it all worth it to me.

 

That's only for MA residents, on-campus. I did the program before the online version came out, but back then they did extend the tuition waiver to MA residents using the off-campus sites in Boston and other locations, which is where I took classes.

The off-campus program has been eliminated with the introduction of the online version, so if you want the tuition waiver, you now have to go to the main campus in Lowell.

 

That wasn't the response I was hoping to hear from you Bruce, but thanks for the info nonetheless!

abnrgr275

 

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