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bobbybigfoot
Joined: 05 May 2007
Location: Seoul
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 Posted: Sat Dec 25, 2010 4:28 pm Post subject: |
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| olsanairbase wrote: |
| bobbybigfoot wrote: |
I'd go for a PhD before I'd do a second MA.
G'luck to you. |
I'd have to agree with that.
I never understood why people did otherwise. I had a friend who had a PhD in Nuerology who just went back to get an MA in Chemistry. I asked him why he did that and he said that the program covered areas not addressed in his 1st MA.
There is also the debt game. As long as you are in school taking so many classes you can use an in-school deferment on paying back any loans that you owe. |
Some people get addicted to schooling. |
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happiness
Joined: 04 Sep 2010
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| Posted: Sat Dec 25, 2010 4:38 pm Post subject: |
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ive always wanted to get a doctorate in linguistics. Ive studied 8 foreign langauges and I love the nuts and bolts of it all, so to say. However, I just dont see the benefit of it, financially, at least for now, esp now that I feel gov'ts are using the higher tuitions to try to fix their debts from the various wars and the global crisis. I read and study stuff on my own for my own benefit all the time! My amazom bill isnt bad, but importing it, whew!
I saw a picture of a young businessman holding a sign stating he had degrees in business and adminstration (whew, the debt of those!) and all this experience and he was ready to interview. Kind of made me realize, doesnt matterso much (at least for now), best to try to keep the debt down.
I think its double or triple the cost to graduate since I went grad (Hawaiian slang). Its a shame. |
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bobbybigfoot
Joined: 05 May 2007
Location: Seoul
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| Posted: Sat Dec 25, 2010 4:49 pm Post subject: |
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Education is a commodity being sold, and, foolishly, people eat that sh*t up, racking up huge debt in the process.
Think about it: a four year degree can easily cost 150K (tuition plus expenses). PLUS four years of not saving any money AND four years of no experience on your resume.
Assuming you could save 1K per month, that's 48K. With interest, let's just call it 50K.
The new grad is now 200K and 4 years experience behind the "uneducated" bumpkin. Also, for alot of people, university is NOT an enjoyable experience.
Now add interest payments onto the 150K plus interest not being earned on the 50K. As the "grad" pays back the debt, the "bumpkin" is adding 1K per month, and get interest on all of it.
Unless the "grad" chooses his degree wisely, the "bumpkin" will be far better off in the long run.
A smart bumpkin can climb the ladder too. Can open up a business. Can make investments.
Point: Education is fast becoming the #1 World Wide Scam. |
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olsanairbase
Joined: 30 Aug 2010
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| Posted: Wed Dec 29, 2010 2:45 pm Post subject: |
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| bobbybigfoot wrote: |
Education is a commodity being sold, and, foolishly, people eat that sh*t up, racking up huge debt in the process.
Think about it: a four year degree can easily cost 150K (tuition plus expenses). PLUS four years of not saving any money AND four years of no experience on your resume.
Assuming you could save 1K per month, that's 48K. With interest, let's just call it 50K.
The new grad is now 200K and 4 years experience behind the "uneducated" bumpkin. Also, for alot of people, university is NOT an enjoyable experience.
Now add interest payments onto the 150K plus interest not being earned on the 50K. As the "grad" pays back the debt, the "bumpkin" is adding 1K per month, and get interest on all of it.
Unless the "grad" chooses his degree wisely, the "bumpkin" will be far better off in the long run.
A smart bumpkin can climb the ladder too. Can open up a business. Can make investments.
Point: Education is fast becoming the #1 World Wide Scam. |
8 out of 10 new business fail in the first 3 years. And guess how many of those that fail are opened by "bumpkins". My money is on the college grad being part of that 2 that succeeds.
As for the cost of the degree. You can get grants, scholarships, fellowships, so long as you do well and don't go there to party. Going to a community college for the first two years (if you can't get one of those) also cuts that 150K down considerably. Going to a state school rather than some preppy overpriced rich kids school.
If you can handle living among Mormons BYU is one of the best "subsidized" deals around. The cost only 8K a year and 18K with books and everything added in.
All those options added in don't even come close to the 150K you claim.
I have to admit though I do find it funny that you as an "educator" are against those continuing on in education- that's kind of like being a government teacher who doesn't vote. |
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jackson7
Joined: 01 Aug 2006
Location: Kim Jong Il's Future Fireball
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| Posted: Wed Dec 29, 2010 3:52 pm Post subject: |
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Actually, as educators it is precisely our responsibility to question the service we're providing, and to advise our students accordingly. The days of "get a college degree, get a good job, have a good life" are gone. Even the days of "get a graduate degree..." are fading very quickly. There have been some excellent articles in The Chronicle of Higher Education online edition recently that approach this topic.
J7 |
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olsanairbase
Joined: 30 Aug 2010
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| Posted: Sun Jan 02, 2011 9:51 pm Post subject: |
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| jackson7 wrote: |
Actually, as educators it is precisely our responsibility to question the service we're providing, and to advise our students accordingly. The days of "get a college degree, get a good job, have a good life" are gone. Even the days of "get a graduate degree..." are fading very quickly. There have been some excellent articles in The Chronicle of Higher Education online edition recently that approach this topic.
J7 |
If you didn't even have a college degree you wouldn't be teaching. My brother-in-law has made a gazillion dollars in sales but he doesn't have any real degree. If he couldn't sell anything tomorrow all he would have left is his money.
No matter what you do today, tomorrow or what happens to you, you will never lose your degree or degrees that you earned those you get to take with you for life. And all the money that my brother-in-law has in the world won't buy him one of those that is worth print on the paper that mine is worth.
I'd rather be debt a more educated person than be rich without any education.
Like I said above if cost is an issue go to BYU where the cost per year is only about 5K. That or get a grant, scholarship or fellowship.
I remember considering going to this other Ivy League school and I told the chair I was concerned about the cost to go there. He laughed. He told me that the school had an enormous endowment and that if I chose to go there the degree would be paid for by this endowment fund.
Also, you can also be a graduate assitant and make a reasonable income just teaching classes for professor who are busy writing their next book.
There are lots of ways to go to school without getting enormously into debt if you bother to look. |
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naturegirl321
Joined: 18 Jul 2006
Location: Home sweet home
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| Posted: Mon Jan 03, 2011 3:03 am Post subject: |
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| bobbybigfoot wrote: |
I'd go for a PhD before I'd do a second MA.
G'luck to you. |
I'm doing a second MA. My first was from Spain and an MA in TEFL. My second is going to be from Australia and will be in Professional Education and Training (admin)
Why am I doing a second MA? Couple reasons.
1. Getting an apostillised copy of my MA took 9 months and cost 700 euros. for one apostillised copy. ONE!
2. It's only a matter of time before degrees from non-English countries won't be accepted, despite the fact that my 16 course with thesis degree was all in English. The degree itself isn't.
3. I want to get into admin.
4. I have absolutely no desire whatsoever do to a PhD
5. Ever! |
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languistic
Joined: 25 Nov 2009
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| Posted: Mon Jan 03, 2011 3:14 am Post subject: |
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| bobbybigfoot wrote: |
Education is a commodity being sold, and, foolishly, people eat that sh*t up, racking up huge debt in the process.
Think about it: a four year degree can easily cost 150K (tuition plus expenses). PLUS four years of not saving any money AND four years of no experience on your resume.
Assuming you could save 1K per month, that's 48K. With interest, let's just call it 50K.
The new grad is now 200K and 4 years experience behind the "uneducated" bumpkin. Also, for alot of people, university is NOT an enjoyable experience.
Now add interest payments onto the 150K plus interest not being earned on the 50K. As the "grad" pays back the debt, the "bumpkin" is adding 1K per month, and get interest on all of it.
Unless the "grad" chooses his degree wisely, the "bumpkin" will be far better off in the long run.
A smart bumpkin can climb the ladder too. Can open up a business. Can make investments.
Point: Education is fast becoming the #1 World Wide Scam. |
Har! How many years employment to date has the scam gotten you? Anyhow, it isn't always about money. I did my undergrad in music composition, knowing full well there wasn't much waiting on the other side. I wanted to do it and wouldn't change a thing, even if I could. |
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Bollocks
Joined: 12 Feb 2009
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| Posted: Mon Jan 03, 2011 4:16 am Post subject: |
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I would like to add to the discussion, Online MAs in Education or TESOL.
I currently teach at a Chinese University. At the end of my contract, I plan to return to Korea. My hope is that a year's of University experience will look good on my resume.
I also think that a MA would look good on my resume. But I'm unwilling to take a year or three off to obtain one. So I would like to go the online route. I know there's some experience with online MAs on the forums, but the pertinent stickies are all rather old; the most recent post is from February of this year - an unanswered question about MATEFL programs. So I ask in this active thread:
How "bad" are Australian degrees these days? The most recent postings indicate they're regarded as little more than degree mills. But those postings are largely 5+years old. Is that still the case. Secondly, is that a bad thing? If a job "requires" an MA, is an Australian degree-mill degree sufficient to fulfill that requirement?
Finally, to the Canadians out there: Are online courses sufficient to qualify for student assistance? I'm currently looking at Trinity Western University's course, as it's the only Canadian one that's online (that I've found. I don't much like that one of their admission requirements is an essay on how christianity influences my teaching style, but I'll take what I can get if it's subsidized.
Anyway, what are my options? I'm really just interested in adding a note to my resume. I don't want to work hard or spend a lot of money. You may deride me for being lazy, but that's honestly all I'm interested in. |
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naturegirl321
Joined: 18 Jul 2006
Location: Home sweet home
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| Posted: Mon Jan 03, 2011 4:20 am Post subject: |
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| Bollocks wrote: |
| How "bad" are Australian degrees these days? The most recent postings indicate they're regarded as little more than degree mills. But those postings are largely 5+years old. Is that still the case. Secondly, is that a bad thing? If a job "requires" an MA, is an Australian degree-mill degree sufficient to fulfill that requirement? |
Depends. I was accepted into USQ within hours, that was a red flag to me. I applied to Deakin, and it took nearly two months, including getting my Spanish MA transcripts evaluated by a foreign degree accrediation, stuff apostillised, and scanned, etc.
i'm happy with Deakin, but wouldn't go with USQ. I've heard UTAS is iffy as well, but don't know first hand. |
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sigmundsmith
Joined: 22 Nov 2007
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| Posted: Mon Jan 03, 2011 4:45 am Post subject: |
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| naturegirl321 wrote: |
| Bollocks wrote: |
| How "bad" are Australian degrees these days? The most recent postings indicate they're regarded as little more than degree mills. But those postings are largely 5+years old. Is that still the case. Secondly, is that a bad thing? If a job "requires" an MA, is an Australian degree-mill degree sufficient to fulfill that requirement? |
Depends. I was accepted into USQ within hours, that was a red flag to me. I applied to Deakin, and it took nearly two months, including getting my Spanish MA transcripts evaluated by a foreign degree accrediation, stuff apostillised, and scanned, etc.
i'm happy with Deakin, but wouldn't go with USQ. I've heard UTAS is iffy as well, but don't know first hand. |
USQ and others have just become another degree mill.
About Deakin. Well I have seen what their program has to offer. And again it falls way behind what I am doing. THat is my opinion and my professor.
But many of these online mills are not offering what you can truly accomplish in regard to an MA.
But to get the better position in Korea it doesnt matter does it. As long as you have MA next to your name.
Wow. I got rejected for a great position with years of experience and a TESOL graduate (not MA) certificate over someone who has a psych ma. with no experience. Thats ok but I found out that the same person they employed over me they fired after 6 months.
So you should ask just having any masters does not give you the long term understanding and knowledge in this profession. You need to think of the quality. |
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naturegirl321
Joined: 18 Jul 2006
Location: Home sweet home
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| Posted: Mon Jan 03, 2011 5:00 am Post subject: |
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| sigmundsmith wrote: |
About Deakin. Well I have seen what their program has to offer. And again it falls way behind what I am doing. THat is my opinion and my professor.
So you should ask just having any masters does not give you the long term understanding and knowledge in this profession. You need to think of the quality. |
I'm not getting the TEFL or Applied Linguistics one. It DOES go with quality and will help me. I work in one of the top unis in kOrea. 
As for long term, we're getting into property. |
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Bollocks
Joined: 12 Feb 2009
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| Posted: Mon Jan 03, 2011 6:11 am Post subject: |
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Ok, you've convinced me that quality is irrelevent as far as getting my foot in the door is concerned.
That being the case, what's the cheapest, fastest, most degree-milliest place out there? I want to start tomorrow. |
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naturegirl321
Joined: 18 Jul 2006
Location: Home sweet home
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| Posted: Mon Jan 03, 2011 6:16 am Post subject: |
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| Bollocks wrote: |
Ok, you've convinced me that quality is irrelevent as far as getting my foot in the door is concerned.
That being the case, what's the cheapest, fastest, most degree-milliest place out there? I want to start tomorrow. |
U of Phoenix
www.ace.edu
USQ, maybe |
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zappadelta
Joined: 31 Aug 2004
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| Posted: Mon Jan 03, 2011 3:56 pm Post subject: |
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| naturegirl321 wrote: |
| sigmundsmith wrote: |
About Deakin. Well I have seen what their program has to offer. And again it falls way behind what I am doing. THat is my opinion and my professor.
So you should ask just having any masters does not give you the long term understanding and knowledge in this profession. You need to think of the quality. |
I'm not getting the TEFL or Applied Linguistics one. It DOES go with quality and will help me. I work in one of the top unis in kOrea.
As for long term, we're getting into property. |
One of the top unis in Korea is in Suwon? Didn't know that. |
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