Bachelors Degree. Matter or not?

[mwhite44]

I graduated from a private art school in 1997 and have been a designer ever since. The school I went to only offered an Associates degree but has since then changed to a four year Bachelor program. The question I have and maybe some of your are in a similar scenario is do I pay good money to go back for another year or two to take General Education classes to get my bachelors or spend money on classes in webdevelopment and multimedia? There are plenty of software programs I would like to learn and utilize but I can't do both. I really would appreciate some opinions on this topic.

Thanks Ahead of time

[gidgit]

Hi Whitey, and welcome to "TG" [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_biggrin.gif[/img]

Well, this is quite the question you have posed... hmmmm

Though I will not/could not advise you to follow any specific route here, I will provide you with a fictious scenario in perspective...

Person 1.... gained several degrees including honours, was the top percent of the class and thus is now an engineer making a great living, and best of all, didn't even have to look for a job, rather the company scouted said person... [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_biggrin.gif[/img]

Person 2.... barely gained a Bach degree, and now works as a landscaper's helper making just above min wage [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_eek.gif[/img]

Person 3.... no formal advanced eduacation gained but is a fantastic and highly dedicated artist currently working for a very respected CG firm making a cool 50 grand per year and is also very active in many other areas of life.... [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_cool.gif[/img]

Person 4.... no formal education gained, is a very good artist but not very committed to his craft for the long run... currently unemployed and living with his parents... [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_redface.gif[/img]

Person 5.... not an artistic type at all, worked for many years at a low paying job but was smart about finaces and currently owns several properties... very dedicated in the community and, the banks like him as well.... retirement will be good for this person... [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_smile.gif[/img]

Moral of the story... commitment counts for everything [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_biggrin.gif[/img]

[Klaus Nordby]

Here's a dirty skeleton from my closet: I have a B.A. degree in Graphic Design from Cornell. Though I have never even seen the campus, nor any teacher there. All true, and all above board - and even legal. :-)

K
www.xaraxone.com/FeaturedArt/kn/
www.klausnordby.com/xara

[Thomas.Sorrill]

Personally, I've found that my income jumped considerably with each degree I earned. I'd strongly suggest going for the formal degree. At the end of the day, it's just a scrap of paper, but that paper helps to open doors.

Besides, you never know what the future has in store for you. You may need something else to fall back on and having formal degrees gives you more options.

[Ross Macintosh]

looking carefully at your longer-term goals. Your 'associates degree' might well have been a job training type program oriented towards helping you develop marketable skills. I would hope the bachelor's program isn't just more of the same. What does it offer you - hopefully much more than a piece of paper. If going back to school won't change anything in your life after you're finished then why waste your time and money.

I strongly believe it can be a wonderful thing to return to school after working for some years. Those students are usually far better prepared to see through the bullshit and really learn something so long as their motivation isn't just the stupid degree. The degree is nothing, educating yourself is everything.

I write as someone who went to university for eight years and only really feel like I "got it" in my final year. I'd love to go back to school now after years of working.

Regards, Ross

<a href=http://www.designstop.com/>DesignStop.Com</a>

[mwhite44]

I thank everyone for the replies!!!

[ruv]

skhool, whats that?

Reuven -[ ruv.net ]- Cohen
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