Post WGU graduation experiences

Hey all,

Have you been received well by potential hiring managers and people who have viewed your resume with WGU on it??

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aderon

Yes. Never had any issues.

N7Valiant

I would expect it to be well received so long as they have accreditation. HR only cares that you have a Bachelor's at all no matter what the major is. I would expect hiring managers to only care about your skills and whether you can articulate them.

Danielm7

No issues, my current job had one of the managers working on a degree there too so they were aware of what it was. I had 10+ years in IT already so it was more of a check the box kind of thing and they asked me more about certs, but I've never gotten a raised eyebrow over it.

Blucodex

Danielm7 wrote: »

No issues, my current job had one of the managers working on a degree there too so they were aware of what it was. I had 10+ years in IT already so it was more of a check the box kind of thing and they asked me more about certs, but I've never gotten a raised eyebrow over it.

I suspect I'll be in the same boat.

Iristheangel

No real issues here. I think at one point years ago, I had some manager at A10 Networks make a weird comment about it but the other 6 managers who interviewed me overruled him and I ended up getting offered the job. *shrug* It's great for adult learners who are already in the field looking to knock some certs and the degree out but it's not supposed to be an MIT or Stanford degree. Thankfully, most jobs in IT aren't requiring degrees from thost types of institutions so you should be fine in most cases.

mzx380

Iristheangel wrote: »

No real issues here. I think at one point years ago, I had some manager at A10 Networks make a weird comment about it but the other 6 managers who interviewed me overruled him and I ended up getting offered the job. *shrug* It's great for adult learners who are already in the field looking to knock some certs and the degree out but it's not supposed to be an MIT or Stanford degree. Thankfully, most jobs in IT aren't requiring degrees from thost types of institutions so you should be fine in most cases.

Agreed
It's not fair to compare WGU with degrees from elite institutions like those. They are well reputed because of the time and money the student puts in to achieve them. The purpose on an accredited university like WGU is to get your resume passed the degree hiring filter where you can wow them with what you know

StevenP2013

I hate to be the Debbie Downer but... I received the MSISA in July 2013, complete with CEH, CHFI, Giac ISO 2700 Specialist, and Network+. My Mentor told me most graduates with that degree and certs are getting jobs on the east cost in Maryland, Virginia, and Washington. He told me to apply on usajobs.gov. I spent six months applying and did not get one reply. I will concede I didnt have much experience at the time. But I was applying for entry level jobs and jobs for recent college grads.

After that, I applied for local jobs, just trying to get my foot in the door and work my way up. The usual response was... Do you really want this job since you have a Master's Degree? At least they called it a Master's Degree. But it seems they thought I was just buying my time until something better came along.

denis92

StevenP2013 wrote: »

I hate to be the Debbie Downer but... I received the MSISA in July 2013, complete with CEH, CHFI, Giac ISO 2700 Specialist, and Network+. My Mentor told me most graduates with that degree and certs are getting jobs on the east cost in Maryland, Virginia, and Washington. He told me to apply on usajobs.gov. I spent six months applying and did not get one reply. I will concede I didnt have much experience at the time. But I was applying for entry level jobs and jobs for recent college grads.

After that, I applied for local jobs, just trying to get my foot in the door and work my way up. The usual response was... Do you really want this job since you have a Master's Degree? At least they called it a Master's Degree. But it seems they thought I was just buying my time until something better came along.

Have you paid your dues and worked in a help desk position or desktop support before applying for security positions?

N7Valiant

denis92 wrote: »

Have you paid your dues and worked in a help desk position or desktop support before applying for security positions?

The second paragraph would suggest that's the case.

devilbones

StevenP2013 wrote: »

I hate to be the Debbie Downer but... I received the MSISA in July 2013, complete with CEH, CHFI, Giac ISO 2700 Specialist, and Network+. My Mentor told me most graduates with that degree and certs are getting jobs on the east cost in Maryland, Virginia, and Washington. He told me to apply on usajobs.gov. I spent six months applying and did not get one reply. I will concede I didnt have much experience at the time. But I was applying for entry level jobs and jobs for recent college grads.

After that, I applied for local jobs, just trying to get my foot in the door and work my way up. The usual response was... Do you really want this job since you have a Master's Degree? At least they called it a Master's Degree. But it seems they thought I was just buying my time until something better came along.

How did things end up?

Nyblizzard

That's a Master's with little experience problem more than a WGU one

N7Valiant

Nyblizzard wrote: »

That's a Master's with little experience problem more than a WGU one

I suppose that's one little caveat. My local community college requires you to intern as a graduation requirement(plus they force you to sign up for and pay for a dedicated class for that purpose that you'll only be going to class for 4 days out of the semester) for the AS, and I believe the local University requires it as well for the Bachelor's. I'd imagine it be much harder to try and verify that your internship is legitimate with an online University program.

So it would probably be safe to say that WGU is best suited for people who already have their entry level work experience.

YuckTheFankees

I have had my degree for more than 5 years and I have never had anyone ask about my degree...I may have had potential employers ask if I have a bachelor degree but no one has ever made a comment about it. I have held networking, security, and DevOp positions.

StevenP2013

Experience at that point.

6 months as a Dell Field Service Technician.
6 months tax software internship for Thomson Reuters.
2 years and 9 moths Level 1 help desk at a true call center from hell. (See one of my previous posts for the specifics of that.)
2 months lead technician, short term contract, bank refresh project.
6 months and counting, Level II Tech for 500 end users spread across 50 remote office.

Also, I wasn't applying for security jobs. As stated "But I was applying for entry level jobs and jobs for recent college grads."

EANx

StevenP2013 wrote: »

My Mentor told me most graduates with that degree and certs are getting jobs on the east cost in Maryland, Virginia, and Washington. He told me to apply on usajobs.gov. I spent six months applying and did not get one reply. I will concede I didnt have much experience at the time. But I was applying for entry level jobs and jobs for recent college grads.

There's a system you have to work with jobs on USAJobs. You really need to focus on the requirements in the job description and parrot them back. Once you do that, you need to be sure you're answering the job questions well. The job questions get you through the automated system (run by Monster) and HR. I've known people who applied for the exact same position they were doing but at a higher grade and they were 100% qualified but they didn't pass the screening because they didn't answer things the right way to get through.

"This guy says he has an CCNP but the requirement is for a CCNA. Get rid of him." The proper response for the job seeker is "Yes, I have a CCNA." Don't assume the person evaluating understand that what you're listing is better. Show you have exactly what they're looking for.

DatabaseHead

StevenP2013 wrote: »

I hate to be the Debbie Downer but... I received the MSISA in July 2013, complete with CEH, CHFI, Giac ISO 2700 Specialist, and Network+. My Mentor told me most graduates with that degree and certs are getting jobs on the east cost in Maryland, Virginia, and Washington. He told me to apply on usajobs.gov. I spent six months applying and did not get one reply. I will concede I didnt have much experience at the time. But I was applying for entry level jobs and jobs for recent college grads.

After that, I applied for local jobs, just trying to get my foot in the door and work my way up. The usual response was... Do you really want this job since you have a Master's Degree? At least they called it a Master's Degree. But it seems they thought I was just buying my time until something better came along.

Not sure what to make of this.

We hire students that go straight through their bachelors and masters, but usually from brick and mortar Universities.

We recently hired 3 new "kids" and listed below are the schools they graduated from.

Texas A&M Bachelors and Masters Engineering
Illinois State University Masters Marketing Science
University of Florida. Bachelors and Masters CS

denis92

DatabaseHead wrote: »

Not sure what to make of this.

We hire students that go straight through their bachelors and masters, but usually from brick and mortar Universities.

We recently hired 3 new "kids" and listed below are the schools they graduated from.

Texas A&M Bachelors and Masters Engineering
Illinois State University Masters Marketing Science
University of Florida. Bachelors and Masters CS

For entry level jobs or security?

Iristheangel

StevenP2013 wrote: »

Experience at that point.

6 months as a Dell Field Service Technician.
6 months tax software internship for Thomson Reuters.
2 years and 9 moths Level 1 help desk at a true call center from hell. (See one of my previous posts for the specifics of that.)
2 months lead technician, short term contract, bank refresh project.
6 months and counting, Level II Tech for 500 end users spread across 50 remote office.

Also, I wasn't applying for security jobs. As stated "But I was applying for entry level jobs and jobs for recent college grads."

If you have that much experience, I would say why are you still applying for entry level jobs? You've had enough experience and now education to move to the next level at this point and you just have to choose what that next step is. If I was a hiring manager, I would be confused why a person with a CEH, CHFI, MCSA, BS, and MS are applying for my entry-level job. I would wonder if you're just really stunted or your just looking to park at a job for a short amount of time.

Also, there are a lot of internships and jobs out there in both the government and outside the government for fresh college and graduate school grads. In one of these recent "why isn't my MS getting me a foot in the door in entry level jobs" post from a few months back, I listed out quite a few. I'll see if I can dig it up.

Also, try posting your resume with personal information redacted in a separate thread (so this one isn't derailed). It always helps to have a lot of eyes on your resume to spot what could be changed.

Edit: Here you go -

Some other good resources:
- https://www.fbijobs.gov/students/grad-students
- http://blog.online.saintleo.edu/degr...rk-for-the-fbi
- https://www.cia.gov/careers/student-...-students.html
- http://www.disa.mil/careers/pathways...rograms#recent
- https://www.cisco.com/c/dam/en_us/ab...JobDesc_US.pdf
- http://godefense.cpms.osd.mil/entry_level.aspx
- https://www.dhs.gov/homeland-securit...-cybersecurity

DatabaseHead

denis92 wrote: »

For entry level jobs or security?

Entry level positions for our department. SQL Devs, BA's, Dashboard designers.

Not security, BI.

snokerpoker

I've never had any issues. People have asked me where it is, etc.

With that being said, there has been a recent uptick in advertising with WGU on television. Not necessarily a bad thing but I do worry that long term people may see it as a diploma mill.

I am currently looking at doing a Master's program at either Central Washington University or Fort Hays State. I feel like if anyone ever does feel one way or the other about WGU, having a MS degree from a traditional institution will squash that. Of course this is not my primary motivation for getting a Master's but honestly I have thought about it.

Nightflier101BL

Honestly, in my experience, WGU has raised more questions than not. I transferred from an AAS program into a Bachelor at WGU, which a later dropped out of and returned to finish my AAS. I've never met a single person, whether in an interview or anywhere else that has heard of WGU.

I live in the metro Northern VA area and have never had a problem getting interviews with only my AAS degree. For my particular situation, I found the time, cost and the energy trying to explain WGU was not worth the effort for me.

I will also say that USAJobs is a load of s**t and I don't even bother applying for those jobs. I've watched my wife go through hell and back applying on that site, never getting a response. She has tons of experience, degree, certs and is well known with many connections in her field. I don't believe the majority of jobs posted are even legit jobs. There is a network job about a mile from me posted on that site that I've seen advertised for over 3 years now.

Forgot to mention, in regard to USAJobs, there is a federal hiring freeze still in effect except for certain positions such as public safety, military, etc.

scaredoftests

I am not too thrilled with USAJobs either. I get emails stating 'I have been selected for an interview', but I don't hear anything else. At least the website is better to navigate than previous years.

McxRisley

scaredoftests wrote: »

I am not too thrilled with USAJobs either. I get emails stating 'I have been selected for an interview', but I don't hear anything else. At least the website is better to navigate than previous years.

Ya the problem with USAjobs is the process that EANx mentioned above, its called the "cert". If your resume and info that you enter does not pass the cert then no one ever even sees your resume. Also if you have been selected for an interview and don't hear anything back this could be because the job posting has not reached its end date yet. Applying for Gov jobs is a pain in the rear and the entire process needs an overhaul. If USAjobs doesn't work out for you then I would suggest another route, which is working for a DoD contractor until you find a Gov opening where you are working. The benefit to this is sometimes they will do a direct hire or hire on a by name basis and you can give your resume to the manager directly. Basically this means that the jobs are not advertised and you have to be in the know to get them. It happens here all the time.

Legacy User

boxerboy1168 wrote: »

Hey all,

Have you been received well by potential hiring managers and people who have viewed your resume with WGU on it??

No one really cared. It was a checkbox for HR requirement. I was only asked once about it once by a voice engineer who wasn't ready to conduct an interview so he asked random questions. He asked about it and said what is it like university of phoenix which I replied and said not really and well nowadays most well known schools like (NYU) offers a degree online. He said oh ok then moved on.

beads

I often drop my high powered MBA but keep my MS in CS on my resume when and where it makes sense. Yeah, you can become over certified, over educated and looking for another position ASAP types. Really, been on both sides of that argument if not deskspace on that one. Particularly having recently separated from the service (leadership and that above MBA) during a recession and little IT experience. Wasn't a winning combo till I dropped the MBA for a while.

No, its not duplicitous.

- b/eads

Iristheangel

Nightflier101BL wrote: »

Honestly, in my experience, WGU has raised more questions than not. I transferred from an AAS program into a Bachelor at WGU, which a later dropped out of and returned to finish my AAS. I've never met a single person, whether in an interview or anywhere else that has heard of WGU.

I live in the metro Northern VA area and have never had a problem getting interviews with only my AAS degree. For my particular situation, I found the time, cost and the energy trying to explain WGU was not worth the effort for me.

So you never graduated? This wouldn't probably be a "post graduation experience" by definition. As far as them not knowing WGU, that happens all the time. Like dmarcisco said in his post, you just say that most schools have distance learning and people move on quickly from it. It's not that big of a deal anymore.

StevenP2013

Iristheangel wrote: »

If you have that much experience, I would say why are you still applying for entry level jobs? You've had enough experience and now education to move to the next level at this point and you just have to choose what that next step is. If I was a hiring manager, I would be confused why a person with a CEH, CHFI, MCSA, BS, and MS are applying for my entry-level job. I would wonder if you're just really stunted or your just looking to park at a job for a short amount of time.

Also, there are a lot of internships and jobs out there in both the government and outside the government for fresh college and graduate school grads. In one of these recent "why isn't my MS getting me a foot in the door in entry level jobs" post from a few months back, I listed out quite a few. I'll see if I can dig it up.

Also, try posting your resume with personal information redacted in a separate thread (so this one isn't derailed). It always helps to have a lot of eyes on your resume to spot what could be changed.

Edit: Here you go -

Some other good resources:
- https://www.fbijobs.gov/students/grad-students
- http://blog.online.saintleo.edu/degr...rk-for-the-fbi
- https://www.cia.gov/careers/student-...-students.html
- http://www.disa.mil/careers/pathways...rograms#recent
- https://www.cisco.com/c/dam/en_us/ab...JobDesc_US.pdf
- http://godefense.cpms.osd.mil/entry_level.aspx
- https://www.dhs.gov/homeland-securit...-cybersecurity

Thank you very much, Katherine.