Predicament with earning or skipping my Associate's degree on the way to Bachelor's

psaechao

I am in a Bachelor's program in Networking, but I have one more class to meet the graduation requirements for the Associate's degree in Network Admin. If I want to earn the Associate's, I would have to disenroll in my Bachelor's program and enroll in the Associate's program. Besides all the headache and paperwork, upon enrolling into the Associate's program, I would only be allowed to take that one class, as opposed to taking full-time units (if enrolled in the AS program, you can only take AS courses and nothing above). This would set me back an entire semester!

I'd really like to put on my resume that I have a college degree, but is it really worth it to postpone my Bachelor's? If I skip it, I wonder if there's a way to word it in my resume that I have 60+ credit units, which is equivalent to the Associate's, but skipped it to pursue my Bachelor's.

What are your thoughts, TE?

alias454

Put the Bachelor degree on your resume with an "expected" graduation date. Ultimately, the associates doesn't matter since you are enrolled in the BS program.

NicWhite

Just stay in the bachelors program. It is not worth it to add to the length of time you have to stay in school.

dhay13

agreed with the above. i have 2 A.A.S. degrees and a B.S., all in IT, and nobody cares about the A.A.S. degrees when i apply or interview

markulous

I agree. An associates is better than just a diploma/ged but it's not going to make your resume shine a ton either. I'd just stay in the bachelor's program. That's going to be what helps you out the most.

v1ral

Get the bachelors only get the associates if you're having financial issues.

tpatt100

If the associates degree wouldn't change progress towards your bachelors then I would say get your associates degree first.

I ran into many problems while going to school at night and wish I had the option to get an associates along the way towards a bachelors.

AverageJoe

I'm with the majority saying do not worry about the associate's degree at this point. You can certainly say on your resume that you have 62 (or whatever) credit towards your bachelor's degree if you want. I used to do that, and I'd list the more technical classes I'd completed. You can give your expected graduation year too.

Another consideration is that if you disenroll from your bachelor's degree, when you re-enroll you'll probably fall under the current catalog at the time of your re-enrollment. Maybe that won't make a difference, but if they add or change requirements you'll probably have to meet the new catalog requirements.

I had a similar issue for a master's degree... I was one class from graduation but was deploying (I'm military). I wanted to change my master's to a graduate certificate so I'd have something to show for my work before leaving, and I thought I'd just re-enroll in the master's program when I got back. My counselor convinced me not to go that route and now I'm glad because they changed the program. If I would have re-enrolled I would have needed 3 classes instead of 1 to finish. It wouldn't have been the end of the world, but I usually only take one class a term, so that would have added almost a year.

Just my 2 cents.

Plantwiz

psaechao wrote:

I am in a Bachelor's program in Networking, but I have one more class to meet the graduation requirements for the Associate's degree in Network Admin. If I want to earn the Associate's, I would have to disenroll in my Bachelor's program and enroll in the Associate's program. Besides all the headache and paperwork, upon enrolling into the Associate's program, I would only be allowed to take that one class, as opposed to taking full-time units (if enrolled in the AS program, you can only take AS courses and nothing above). This would set me back an entire semester!

I am not doubting you, but this makes no sense to me. Why (talking out loud) does it matter if one is enrolled in one program or not? I do not understand the logic behind requiring someone to unenroll from one program to enroll in another and prohibit overlapping of programs?

Being one class shy of an AA at this point, I agree, a difficult position. However, you are already looking at completing a BA or BS, so I would also recommend skipping the AA and using your 'college' level education as the BA you will soon earn.

HOWEVER,
This sounds so strange to me that I would challenge the college about this, threaten to finish my AA (or simply transfer everything to another school) and put my money on a better degree from WGU or some other IT recognized university.

My guess, you need to do some leg work and start asking around to see if one of the Administrators is able to help guide you in this endeavor, because they will make money from you if they let you complete the first degree and continue to be enrolled and finish the second degree. In all fairness, AA's just don't carry the weight they once did, so if you do not want to dig further into their rules, go for the BA/BS and do not look back.

PCTechLinc

I have 4 AAS Degrees in multiple areas of Computer/Network repair. They all became fairly useless once I obtained my BS in Network Administration. That compounded with the certifications I earned while doing my Bachelor's, I don't even put my AAS degrees on my Resume anymore.

Dakinggamer87

Stick with the Bachelor's degree if possible. You will have many more possibilities.

psaechao

That one class (Career Development CARD 205)is a required class for all Associate's programs. I was thinking I'd be able to take it so I tried registering for it online, only to tell me that I am not allowed because I am enrolled in the Bachelor's program.

I've only talked to one "student advisor", but I'll bring it up to the school's admissions staff and see what they can do. Thanks for all the great replies, TE.

aspiringsoul

Based upon my experience, I recommend that you go for the Bachelor degree and don't worry about the Associate degree. It immediately becomes superfluous as soon as you obtain the Bachelor degree. As others have recommended, you should list your expected completion date on your resume.

Now with that being said, as a student of Devry (a For profit college), you deserve to know some things.

http://www.republicreport.org/2016/federal-trade-commission-sues-for-profit-devry-for-deceiving-students/

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission today filed a lawsuit against one of the largest for-profit colleges, DeVry University, for allegedly misleading students about job placement rates and salaries for the school’s graduates. The FTC complaint, filed in federal court in Los Angeles, alleges, “Through the use of English and Spanish-language advertisements and other marketing materials, and during sales pitches with prospective students [DeVry has] made deceptive representations about the benefits of obtaining a degree.”DeVry last year received $1.47 billion in taxpayer dollars from federal student grants and loans.
“The FTC’s charges of deception against DeVry University are the latest chapter in the shameful story of so many for-profit colleges. It is time to clean up for-profit colleges and stand up for the students and taxpaying families who are the real victims of their pathetic practices.” Durbin’s statement says that DeVry students cumulatively hold $8.3 billion in student debt – the fourth highest debt volume of any higher education institution in America – and have a 2009 five-year cohort default rate of 43%. He also noted that Devry CEO Daniel Hamburger received $5.7 million in total compensation in 2014.

I am very critical of For-Profit schools....not necessarily because of my experience with one, but because of the experiences of many students that I have observed. If you do research on the industry, you will quickly become disgusted of them. You can read about how the For-Profit sector targets Veterans because of the G.I. bill, and how they (APSCU) spends millions of dollars lobbying each year to prevent any change from taking place. Now with all that being said, are there good For-Profit schools out there that provide a good return on investment for their students? Sure, absolutely!

I have a few points that I would like to make to you, and I will be perfectly honest with you.

I know many successful individuals who are working in IT who have degrees from For-Profit colleges (a few of which who are far more successful than myself). These individuals include graduates of ECPI, Devry, University of Phoenix, ITT Tech, Strayer.....the list goes on and on....However, a few of those same individuals have confided to me that they wish they had selected a Non-Profit school....because they are still paying on their loans years after attending (which would already be paid off had they attended a non-profit)

Now, outside of IT though, I know of far too many people who have pursued degrees at For-Profit (Nationally accredited) institutions for careers in Healthcare, Accounting, Nutrition, Criminal Justice, etc....only to discover at the end of their degree program that the credential that they were conferred is worthless, not taken seriously by employers, and not able to lead to gainful employment in their field of study. The For-Profit school makes off like a bandit with the Federal financial aid money while the student is saddled with debt and unable to get a job that would allow them to pay off the debt.

There are a lot of troubling statistics and resources that I can provide information to you that support this. However, you're interested in Information Technology, which seems to be an exclusion to the many students who find themselves unemployable after attending some For-Profit colleges.

There are some employers that will always look down upon Online degree program, regardless of whether they are Nationally or Regionally accredited. A VERY successful and qualified techexams member (irisTheAngel) could tell you about the time that she was interviewed and one of her interviewers was extremely skeptical of her because of her online degrees from WGU. Not only was she offered the job, but she declined.

Bottom line, Most Employers care about your ability to prove your competency in your subject matter areas. As long as you are able to prove your competency to your employer, and sell yourself, you can likely land the job. You will always run into a few people who prefer to select applicants who possess a degree from a reputable brick and mortar school.

With all of that being said......There is a lot of scrutiny of For-Profit schools that is well deserved. I think a troubling statistic is this....

For profit schools account for 13% of all students but almost half of all student loan defaults.

For more information on the For-Profit school sector, consider reading these resources. The first link below is to David Halperin's book (Stealing America's Future) which reveals the predatory lending, fraud, and deceptive practices that are all too common in the industry. It's by far the most detailed account of the $30 billion per year+ taxpayer funded industry and I highly recommend reading it (especially since it is a free e-book).

http://www.republicreport.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/D-Halperin-Stealing-Americas-Future-ebook.pdf

Degrees of Inequality: How the Politics of Higher Education Sabotaged the American Dream: Suzanne Mettler: 9780465044962: Amazon.com: Books

This is the investigation on the For-Profit sector conducted by the HELP committee:

http://www.help.senate.gov/imo/media...t/Contents.pdf (Executive summary also attached for your review).

My goal IS NOT to talk you out of a decision that you are committed to, or which you believe is the best program for you. My goal is to inform and educate others who consider enrolling in a program at a "Nationally" accredited or For-Profit school. Attending a Nationally accredited school did impede me from achieving my educational goals. If your goal is only to earn a bachelor degree and you have no interest in pursuing education at a Non-Profit (Regionally) accredited school, then that may not matter to you.

The thing that sickens me though....is that right now....young kids are being convinced into signing up at schools such as ITT Tech.....

They take out loans for $45,000+ for an Associates degree....or around $90,000 for a Bachelor degree...and then find themselves completely unemployable after graduating. Meanwhile, there is currently a lawsuit against ITT Tech from the CFPB and the SEC. Of course, the Recruiters don't tell this while you are enrolling in the school.

http://programinfo.itt-tech.edu/cost.pdf
CFPB Sues For-Profit College Chain ITT For Predatory Lending > Newsroom > Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
https://www.insidehighered.com/news/...-loan-programs
http://www.republicreport.org/2016/blockbuster-lawsuit-claims-abusive-practices-persist-at-itt-tech/

I wish that I could say that ITT Tech was the only For-Profit college with ongoing investigations and lawsuits...but it's not...

Law Enforcement Investigations and Actions Regarding For-Profit Colleges |


After my experience with a For-Profit college (especially one that's nationally accredited), I wouldn't ever consider one again...


I've attached the Senate Help committees review of Devry for you review.

Based on the course catalog, your degree at Devry is going to cost around $80,000: http://www.devry.edu/d/US-Catalog-tuition-chart.pdf

I just want to make sure that you're aware that much more affordable options exist (tuition at WGU is $3,000 for 6 months):

Bachelor Degree in IT Network Administration | WGU College of Information Technology Online

Is Devry worth that insane price for you?

powerfool

Do the bachelors degree. An associates degree only provides value if you intend on stopping school for a while, or permanently. By the time I was half way through my BS, my earning potential skyrocketed (of course, it was also based on my experience).

joelsfood

Stick with the bachelors. Only reason to switch to the AAS is if you're out of cash and can't afford to finish the BS

RoyalRaven

Agree with the others. The bachelors will be used for almost everything once achieved. If you can get an associates without significantly more effort (align it with the progression to a higher degree), then go for it. I found having an associates was great when I was going for full-time work while being a student (do you have a college degree? YES). If job hunting isn't going to be a big deal in that time before you complete a bachelors, then skip it.

Russ5813

alias454 wrote: »

Put the Bachelor degree on your resume with an "expected" graduation date. Ultimately, the associates doesn't matter since you are enrolled in the BS program.

This is the strategy I took. Also, add a section on your resume for "relevant coursework" and list some of your completed courses that would be of value to a potential employer. Customize and update as needed. If you're kicking butt, throw your GPA on there as well

jeremywatts2005

Having worked in Education there is a simple fix. If your AS has an elective then choose the Career Dev class. If not see if there is an exception they can do to allow you to do the course. I used to always start my BS students as AS students that way they could get the Associates on the way to the BS. The reason why the AS would be good to get is that it may open some opportunities up for experience you might not have without any degree. I had several students grad from the AS and then I was able to place them in part time/ full time jobs while they worked for the BS. It was great and I know of several that landed great jobs because of it. If you can I would contact the registrar and get them involved. There is always a way to do this without dropping you to part time.

RoyalRaven

alias454 wrote: »

Put the Bachelor degree on your resume with an "expected" graduation date. Ultimately, the associates doesn't matter since you are enrolled in the BS program.

Just a heads up, I've sat on many hiring committees. This could help you in some places who aren't as particular, but every single time we had a requirement for bachelors, nothing short of having it would keep you from hitting the trash bin, regardless of what you put on the resume. If we set the bar at the associates degree, that person will get a shot, where the person who is only working on a bachelors is not going to get an interview.


I highly advise anyone who can get an associates on the path to the bachelors do so, especially if the programs align.