october visits and the degree challenged
A couple of my friends, mom, sister, aunt and family friend made the journey to Floyd for a visit this past weekend. Things are finally in order around here and it was nice to have visitors over who appreciate my decorating efforts :) thanks for coming!
I'm also pleased that they all gave Floyd a stamp of approval, not that I was worried. I think making a move from NYC to a small town could make some people ask "why?" but this isn't like other small towns. There is a community of people here that care about creating something meaningful and it shows.
We took a tour through the parkway, ate at every local restaurant and went to the pumpkin festival near Christiansburg. Took a hayride, ate pumpkin fudge, and laughed. Despite the distance its really nice to have a small group of friends that get you, and your bad jokes.
What else? oh yeah, remember my dollar request for baby questions? I have a new one! One dollar for every "when are you going to finish college?" question. gah, seriously I don't have an answer for that. I think about college and I think about the 4, almost 5 years that I spent there and really cannot picture myself going back.
I get school and degrees and why its so important for so many people. I respect that. My mom is going back to school to become an RN and she is in her early 50's and my aunt is doing the same thing. I think its really cool, however, I just can't get on the degree's-are-important-for-everyone bandwagon.
I was getting a degree in graphic design, which is really laughable that you need to spend five years to learn design. I don't know everything about design, not even close, but you don't need four years of college to learn how to do it. You could learn everything you need to know in six months or less at an internship. I take issue with the amount of money people spend to get a degree and then they graduate and a) they make crap money b) can't find a job c) spend most of their lives paying back student loans d) realizing they hate doing what they majored in.
I'll be honest, I'm not passionate about studying graphic design. Sure, I love aspects of design:web graphics, craft design, product design, interior design, illustration and photography. If I had graduated and gotten a job at one of the two major design firms in WV (highly unlikely, btw) I would have barely made 25k a year. I then would have to spend all my time working on someone else's projects while climbing some invisible latter to get a promotion.
I'm still paying off student loans, I owe about 12k and I'm not upset about that. I had a really good time in college and I highly recommend living in dorms and living the college life. Thinking about going back, right now, just seems silly for me. There anything I would even want a degree in. The idea of working hard for someone else's gain doesn't appeal to me.
I'm lucky that my parents don't ask me this question and are really supportive of my pursuits. Occasionally my mom suggests jobs that I might like, but other than that she seems to be cool with it. Thanks parents!
Another thing that pisses me off about degrees is that they are seemingly mandatory for most jobs that don't require a lot of skill. But, if someone has work experience and are intelligent they should get a chance for training. Maybe I'm naive in thinking this.
For example I know someone who is working at a hospital making an o-kay salary. They should be making about 15k more a year (according to the national average) for their workload and experience. They have been working in their position for over ten years and they are the only ones with that position and the knowledge for the job in the entire hospital.
They got tired of the situation and went elsewhere for a job, but the hospital asked them to stay with promises of a new environment, which they fulfilled. Said person is now getting a degree not in the field that are working in and the hospital is now offering them a managerial position in their current area to oversee new employees that will take on some of their workload. They will finally see a pay increase. All of this happens once the degree is earned.
They are not gaining new information towards their work through this degree. Basically, because they now have a degree they can move forward. The logics behind this is mind boggling and the employer isn't footing the bill for the year of school it will take to earn the degree.
I understand why employers hold better paying jobs for those with degrees, but I can't help but feel like most jobs can be done very well with training instead of degrees. I read recently that most self-employed people do not have degrees which I think is really interesting. I love that. It shows that you can make your own way without paper or permission even if it means sacrifice.
When I first met Josh he said something that I will never forget: I don't want to spend the whole week waiting for the weekend to come.
Before leaving college I picked up a booked title Rich and Happy? Don't Go to School by Robert Kiyosaki, author of Rich Dad, Poor Dad. His points were amazing and really hit home with the flaws in the educational system. After reading that book I never doubted my decision to leave.
I know what I believe doesn't work for everyone, but I guess I just like the idea of this discussion. Another thing that I find interesting about degrees and career paths is that idea of working on someone else's time. I have yet to master my own workload for myself without a boss hanging over my head, but I know that for most people eight hours of work is not necessary.
I don't understand spending eight hours at a job with only 3 hours of work to do. If you ask most people they will say that they spend so many hours online shopping, chatting, phone talking, or making up games to fill the time gaps. I defiantly mastered the task of looking busy while the boss was around, which basically meant opening up outlooking and pretending to be frustrated.
I also think it is really ridiculous to expect eighteen year olds to know what they want to spend their lives doing. I'm twenty five and I still don't know. I figure I will change my mind several times, but I think sometimes people get stuck doing something they don't enjoy just because they spent a lot of time and money towards it. With that said, most people never find jobs in their degree field, the paper simply opens doors for them.
In new york I made decent money as an assistant which I was pretty good at. Event planning and scheduling, but I'm not sure how much skill you need for that outside of multitasking and dealing with stress. Moving here, we knew that the job market would be zero. Where do people even work here? Its a mystery to me, and I assume a lot of people are doing their own thing too or driving thirty minutes to work.
I would like to take concentrated classes sometime soon. Not a course load of classes I don't need. I'm interested in leaning more about digital photography, web design and the adobe creative suite programs, but I know that most of these things can be self-taught.
Maybe one day I'll change my mind, and want to do something totally different, until then I'm happy being a renaissance lady.
I'm also pleased that they all gave Floyd a stamp of approval, not that I was worried. I think making a move from NYC to a small town could make some people ask "why?" but this isn't like other small towns. There is a community of people here that care about creating something meaningful and it shows.
We took a tour through the parkway, ate at every local restaurant and went to the pumpkin festival near Christiansburg. Took a hayride, ate pumpkin fudge, and laughed. Despite the distance its really nice to have a small group of friends that get you, and your bad jokes.
What else? oh yeah, remember my dollar request for baby questions? I have a new one! One dollar for every "when are you going to finish college?" question. gah, seriously I don't have an answer for that. I think about college and I think about the 4, almost 5 years that I spent there and really cannot picture myself going back.
I get school and degrees and why its so important for so many people. I respect that. My mom is going back to school to become an RN and she is in her early 50's and my aunt is doing the same thing. I think its really cool, however, I just can't get on the degree's-are-important-for-everyone bandwagon.
I was getting a degree in graphic design, which is really laughable that you need to spend five years to learn design. I don't know everything about design, not even close, but you don't need four years of college to learn how to do it. You could learn everything you need to know in six months or less at an internship. I take issue with the amount of money people spend to get a degree and then they graduate and a) they make crap money b) can't find a job c) spend most of their lives paying back student loans d) realizing they hate doing what they majored in.
I'll be honest, I'm not passionate about studying graphic design. Sure, I love aspects of design:web graphics, craft design, product design, interior design, illustration and photography. If I had graduated and gotten a job at one of the two major design firms in WV (highly unlikely, btw) I would have barely made 25k a year. I then would have to spend all my time working on someone else's projects while climbing some invisible latter to get a promotion.
I'm still paying off student loans, I owe about 12k and I'm not upset about that. I had a really good time in college and I highly recommend living in dorms and living the college life. Thinking about going back, right now, just seems silly for me. There anything I would even want a degree in. The idea of working hard for someone else's gain doesn't appeal to me.
I'm lucky that my parents don't ask me this question and are really supportive of my pursuits. Occasionally my mom suggests jobs that I might like, but other than that she seems to be cool with it. Thanks parents!
Another thing that pisses me off about degrees is that they are seemingly mandatory for most jobs that don't require a lot of skill. But, if someone has work experience and are intelligent they should get a chance for training. Maybe I'm naive in thinking this.
For example I know someone who is working at a hospital making an o-kay salary. They should be making about 15k more a year (according to the national average) for their workload and experience. They have been working in their position for over ten years and they are the only ones with that position and the knowledge for the job in the entire hospital.
They got tired of the situation and went elsewhere for a job, but the hospital asked them to stay with promises of a new environment, which they fulfilled. Said person is now getting a degree not in the field that are working in and the hospital is now offering them a managerial position in their current area to oversee new employees that will take on some of their workload. They will finally see a pay increase. All of this happens once the degree is earned.
They are not gaining new information towards their work through this degree. Basically, because they now have a degree they can move forward. The logics behind this is mind boggling and the employer isn't footing the bill for the year of school it will take to earn the degree.
I understand why employers hold better paying jobs for those with degrees, but I can't help but feel like most jobs can be done very well with training instead of degrees. I read recently that most self-employed people do not have degrees which I think is really interesting. I love that. It shows that you can make your own way without paper or permission even if it means sacrifice.
When I first met Josh he said something that I will never forget: I don't want to spend the whole week waiting for the weekend to come.
Before leaving college I picked up a booked title Rich and Happy? Don't Go to School by Robert Kiyosaki, author of Rich Dad, Poor Dad. His points were amazing and really hit home with the flaws in the educational system. After reading that book I never doubted my decision to leave.
I know what I believe doesn't work for everyone, but I guess I just like the idea of this discussion. Another thing that I find interesting about degrees and career paths is that idea of working on someone else's time. I have yet to master my own workload for myself without a boss hanging over my head, but I know that for most people eight hours of work is not necessary.
I don't understand spending eight hours at a job with only 3 hours of work to do. If you ask most people they will say that they spend so many hours online shopping, chatting, phone talking, or making up games to fill the time gaps. I defiantly mastered the task of looking busy while the boss was around, which basically meant opening up outlooking and pretending to be frustrated.
I also think it is really ridiculous to expect eighteen year olds to know what they want to spend their lives doing. I'm twenty five and I still don't know. I figure I will change my mind several times, but I think sometimes people get stuck doing something they don't enjoy just because they spent a lot of time and money towards it. With that said, most people never find jobs in their degree field, the paper simply opens doors for them.
In new york I made decent money as an assistant which I was pretty good at. Event planning and scheduling, but I'm not sure how much skill you need for that outside of multitasking and dealing with stress. Moving here, we knew that the job market would be zero. Where do people even work here? Its a mystery to me, and I assume a lot of people are doing their own thing too or driving thirty minutes to work.
I would like to take concentrated classes sometime soon. Not a course load of classes I don't need. I'm interested in leaning more about digital photography, web design and the adobe creative suite programs, but I know that most of these things can be self-taught.
Maybe one day I'll change my mind, and want to do something totally different, until then I'm happy being a renaissance lady.
posted by Lorrie at 2:50 PM
2 Comments:
You go girl!!! As someone in retirement years, I'd say you have hit the nail on the head. I could never stay interested in the 'required' classes long enough to get to the good part. I taught myself... and REALLY enjoyed creating the job I wanted in a corporate world during the other 6 hours of a ten hour day. Josh has the right idea!
You definitely have a good understanding of the corporate world. I agree wholeheartedly that our education system sucks. Instead of sticking folks in colleges to come out book smart, work dumb, we need to go back to Technical education. Hands on learning. Too much time is spent in the classroom on unnecessary stuff when that time could be better spent actually learning the skills you need for the type of work you want to do. I agree a lot of folks aren't given opportunities to grow because they don't have a degree, what is wrong with apprenticeships where you learn from the Masters along with book knowledge. Hmm, you have to remember colleges need students in order to keep their doors open and I think sometimes they look for ways to keep students enrolled as long as possible. I obviously see things from different angles because I went to vocational school in high school for Nursing assistant and then I went to college. Then back to Vocational school for LPN and now back in college. My Vocational experience in high school put my College nursing program to shame and didn't cost me a dime!!! Needless to say, I only lasted a year after being very disillusioned by college and cost my mom $5000.00 which really bummed me out because I felt like I had wasted her hard earned money. Then I went back to vocational school for my LPN and Coding. Now I'm back in college to get that dang degree so I can get paid more to do the same thing I have been doing for 30 years...Oh and now the glass ceiling is there again cause now Associate degree don't carry as much weight as BS degree!!! A nurse is a nurse is a nurse shouldn't matter the degree what is more important once again is that hands on experience and ability do you have. Yes, degrees are important however there is more to learning than just in a college setting. There are a lot of very smart people out there that do not have college degrees. Bill Gates left Harvard to pursue his passion for computers and look how far he has come. I don't think a degree from Harvard would have given him the skills he needed to create Microsoft. Another very smart fellow that didn't even graduate from high school was Peter Jennings.
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