Pilgrim
One Too Many
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Undertow said:Were you fortunate enough to attend a college or university? When did you attend and at what age? Where was the school located? What was your major/minor? If you finished a graduate program, what was your field? Are you working in your field of study?
I was born in Ames, IA (home of Iowa State, mentioned by the original poster) and moved to Pullman, WA (home of Washington State University) when I was 10.
I earned my bachelor's in Broadcasting at WSU in 1973 - went out and worked a few years - came back to the area and earned a Master's in Adult Education in 1979. That got me into a faculty position and a career in higher education.
In 1985 I moved to Bryan/College Station, TX (Texas A&M University) where I supervised a Radio/TV unit and soon decided that I needed a Ph.D. if I was going to stay in the university "biz". I finished that degree in 1997. It was a busy time because my wife and I had two kids during that time and I was working all over the state of Texas while chipping away at my Ph.D. coursework and research. I have been enrolled in college earning one degree or another for a total of 17 years since age 18. My last degree was earned at age 47.
Unfortunately I was rather badly out of place culturally at A&M, but fortunately the doctorate was my ticket to my current position in Fort Collins, CO at Colorado State University. my wife says I am MUCH easier to live with now that I've escaped the frustrations I encountered in Aggieland. At CSU I run distance education programs - an outgrowth of the interest I developed in distance education while producing national satellite teleconferences at A&M. So my current position is directly connected to my undergraduate study through a series of steps.
And I'm President of the WSU Alumni Association this year; it's the fastest growing alumni association in the entire United States, and I'm having a great deal of fun in the position. Those of you in the Pacific NW know that there IS something special about being a Coug - and we never let others forget it.
So to me, higher education isn't just a great advantage my parents helped give me - it's something I've pursued on my own, and it has become my life's work. My thinking may be highly skewed by my choice of career, but it's clear to me that a college degree IS a necessity for most good jobs, and will become even more badly needed as our economy keeps shifting from manufacturing to knowledge-based jobs. I have two daughters in college and they're both maintaining GPAs in the 3.5 to 3.8 range...making mom and dad proud.
Certainly, a college degree is not a reflection of anyone's intelligence or capability - just look at some of the wonderful people on this forum who don't have degrees. However, having that credential does constitute a step up - or even a basic qualification - in many fields. That's one of the major reasons that my current work - distance education - has exploded in popularity over the past couple of decades. Most of those engaged in distance ed are working adults who are earning a degree for a step up at work, or as a tool for career change. They aren't about to leave their home and go to campus, but they can still earn a degree or get professional training.