Degree Courses

Pursuing a post-graduate degree is a smart move if you are inspiring to go up the career ladder and occupy a top post in your company. In the face of stiff competition, you need more just brains, hard work and loyalty to reach the peak. Nowadays firm look for individuals who posses the ability to communicate, motivate, persuade, resolve conflicts and handle challenges in an ever-changing corporate world. Getting a master’s degree helps you learn and develop more of the skills.

            Getting master’s degree help boost self-confidence, gain and edge over the competition, expand web of contacts, broaden perspective about work and the world, and improve working relationship with bosses, coworkers and clients.

            If you plan to get it, there are several things you should consider. First, select relevant program. Have a clear-cut idea of what program to enroll in and know your purpose for obtaining it. Are you in it to broaden your knowledge, meet new friends, gain prestige, or simply ear units needed for a promotion? Studying can become complicated of the university you want to enroll in is outside your locality, say, abroad. You have to ask permission from the office to take a leave of absence for months or years. Well and good if your boss is supportive. Some heads of offices, however do not allow employees to go on official leave for one reason or another. This hold true among scholars who are recipient of national or foreign scholarship grants that entail them to be away from work for a long period of time. You need to consider at length your options in cases like this.

            If you are serious-minded about it, getting a master’s degree means the end of those carefree days and start of serious classroom duties. Your professors will swamp you with a bunch of case for reading and analysis. You have to read voluminous references and sometimes stay awake up to the wee hours of the morning to solve assignments. Out-of-town trips will require you to be away from work days. Then there will be sleepless nights reviewing for those dreaded exams. All these means that you will have little or no time at all for those diversions with friends and officemates. There will be times when you have to sacrifice even those weekends normally spent with your family. So learn to manage your time. Once classes start, draw up daily schedule of activities and religiously follow it. Set a specific hour or day of the week for reading, writing papers\, solving cases and assignments. Strictly adhere to this timetable no matter what. Make exemptions only in extremely necessary cases.

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Status of Education in Developing Countries

What is Education?

Education is the process of acquiring knowledge from teachers through their teaching. It is the learning that one gets in schools. It mainly involves activities like imparting knowledge by the teachers in classrooms, presentation of study materials by faculty members, practical training in workshop by the instructor with the aim to train the student in any particular subject matter and to give them practical exposure on the practical aspects of real time situations, imparting him with the necessary technical skills required to face the practical situations.

What is the need for Education?

Education is basic fundamental and an important ingredient required for development of any society. Education of a person improves his social status, his mental status, his knowledge, and his abilities to develop his skills to face practical lie situations. Education is the only weapon with which one can kill ignorance and fight with unawareness. An educated person can perceive things in a better way because he ahs a broad mind with which he can see the things differently. He has a broadened mind with which he is able to understand all the faces of any problem and then he will be able to handle the situation in a better way.

Status of education is high in developed countries but if we talk about developing countries the scene is just opposite. The literacy rate in developing countries like India is very low. Though continuous efforts are being made by the government to achieve the higher literacy rate but still the target is far to achieve and it will take years to achieve the targets that are being set by the UNESCO and the government of these countries.

But why is this so? Why the literacy rate is not up to desired mark despite of continuous efforts? What are the major barriers which prevent spread of education? The reasons can be best described as:

Lack of Education and Infrastructure facilities which prevent the literacy rate from being reaching up to desired mark, poverty in a major segment of population which prevents the parents from sending their children to schools, Gender inequality that means female are not given the same preference as the male which should not be and the traditional caste practices which also plays a major role in preventing the education to reach the light of education to reach all the doors.

If people from developing countries are able to overcome these barriers the education level will definitely rise in these developing countries.

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Distance Learning

Distance learning can be defined as an education program imparted by an university beyond the barriers of its campus and taken by a student outside the walls of an university. Distance learnrng program is a medium that connects students to the universities of the world.

         Distance learning programs are becoming the most popular and viable way of teaching and learning. More and more people are registering for distance learning programs of different universities. Distance learning program gives freedom to a student to learn at his own pace, his own schedule and at his own convenience.

           Distance learning is imparted through the electronic media and study materials supplied by the university for a particular course. It helps people to upgrade their educational qualification even when they are tied up in their working schedule. Some business houses also use distance learning to train their employees as it is less time consuming, less expensive and adds to the human resource enrichment of the business house.

            To enroll for a distance learning course one must be sure as to what kind of specialization one is looking for. An extensive study must then be done to find out in details about the universities that offer the course wanted. The time duration of the course, the fees, the software needed and the time of exam must also be checked. The most important factor that should be checked is that whether the school or university is accredited or not, one should not register in a university which is not accredited.

              Every coin has two sides and distance learning program is not an exception to the rule. While distance learning program is advantageous as it helps people to continue with their education despite of their demanding schedule it also has some disadvantages. It may fail to motivate a student to study resulting in no good for the candidate, this shows registering yourself is not sufficient, you must also have a drive in yourself to continue with the study. The success of distance education also depends on the success of the technology. And without a good support system and infrastructure the distance learning may be a failure.

               Thus we can say that distance learning is a boon for today’s busy and demanding world but it also demands a significant level of maturity from its students.

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School based after-school programs

In an effort to keep children motivated and safe, the U.S. Government sets aside a good amount of fund for financing after school programs every  year. A report by the U.S. Department of Education and Justice points out  that after school programs are very effective and is in the interests of  the society as a whole. Interestingly, it was found that Americans liked  providing school-based after school-programs in their community.

Other than safety, boredom and loneliness, the poor performance of many students also led to the need for after-school programs that are based on  the school curriculum. Children coming from low-income families were found  to lag behind in reading and grammar after a long break in the summer. 

Statistics prove that if school-going children are left unsupervised after  their school, the chances of poor grades and drop out are considerably  higher. The funds provided by the Government will allow rural and  inner-city schools to provide activities during the summer, over the  weekends and after school. These activities will take place in a drug-free, safe and supervised environment.

Positive augmentation of critical skills is the prime focus of these  school-based after school activities. Thus they enhance the skill level of  the child. Most school-based programs offer assistance in math tutoring,  reading, comprehension and problem solving. Many programs provide engaging  activities that seek to prepare the students for college. Hands-on  experience is provided for children who want to invest in a career in  teaching. Access to telecommunication and technology and involvement in  music and art are other benefits of these programs. This becomes invaluable, especially in low-income sectors where such activities are considered to be a luxury. 

As far as children are concerned, the snacks provided in after school programs are an added incentive. School sponsored after school programs  are entitled to receive funds for snacks. The National School Lunch Program is designed to do just this. Free or reduced price snacks will be provided for children from schools that apply for it. The CACFP reimburses  expenditure depending upon the child's income status. But this is  applicable only till the age of 13. The funding that schools get depends  upon the area in which they are situated. A low-income area gets more funding. Supper can be served to children below the age of 19. Longer programs can provide both supper and a snack. With the participation of non-profit private organization, it is possible to feed deserving school children breakfast, supper and a snack.

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Is an Online Education Right for You?

We live in the information age. We have grown so accustomed to information at the speed of light that the prospect of not having immediate access to countless numbers of facts and figures with the mere click of a few buttons for many of us is simply disconcerting. For this reason, it only makes sense that there are many people across the nation and around the world that are embracing the idea of online learning and educational opportunities with every ounce of enthusiasm they can muster.

At the same time there are equal numbers of people around the world who are trying desperately to hold on to traditional methods of dealing with certain things. In fact, some people actually still play solitaire with a deck of playing cards. For people who feel that the information age has left them behind to some degree the chances are quite good that online learning may not be the best available option for you.

Below you will find a few questions that can help you narrow down whether or not you would truly benefit by taking some of the many online courses that are being offered in today's information age of learning.

1) Are you disciplined? This may seem like such an innocuous question because we would all like to think that we are disciplined to some degree. The problem is that when you are in the driver's seat for your own education you need to have a little more than some small degree of discipline. You need to be able to meet deadlines, take the tests, and hold yourself responsible for actually learning the information that you need to learn in order to pass the course. There is no one to blame but yourself if you do not manage to do well in your online classes and some people simply do not like being in the drivers seat when it comes to motivating and pacing themselves and their learning practices. 
2) How do you learn best? We all have different methods of learning for which we retain information better than others. Online courses are reading intensive. If you have difficulties retaining the information you read you may need to find an alternate learning method or seek solutions with the assistance of the course instructor before moving forward in an online learning environment. 
3) Do you have a true desire to succeed? The answer to this question is quite important in determining whether or not online learning is in your best interest. There are many paths you can take in order to achieve the education and degree you desire. This is not the path of the masses, at least not yet. This type of learning, more than any other is easy to give up on through apathy. If you aren't determined to do the assignments, to study the notes, and to really learn the material that is presented to you then you really do not need to waste your time or the instructor's time by continually making up excuses. Online courses are largely self-paced but you do have a limited amount of time in which to learn the material before you need to move on. The teacher is responsible for providing you the information and material but you are responsible for everything that happens from that moment on. Are you ready for that responsibility? 

Whether you are a first time college student or a professional that is returning to school after a long absence online learning can open new doors of opportunity for your learning pleasure. You must be willing to walk through those doors and take the information that is presented to you however in order to be successful. My sincere hope is that everyone reading this will carefully consider whether or not the lack of structure that many online courses provides is going to be conducive to your specific learning and educational needs before taking the plunge.

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Great Reasons to Complete your Degree

A university education is one of the best possible ways to insure your earning power upon graduation. There are all kinds of fields and all kinds of majors, some paying higher than others but as a rule, college graduates will earn more money over the course of their lifetimes than those who do not have a college education or degree. 

We live in a world that increasingly demands more of its citizens. We need to have the ability to hold academic conversations on the corporate level that go well beyond the score in last nights basketball games. Companies' want well-rounded employees that epitomize all the great things that a four-year degree has to offer. For this reason, even those who have labored in order to gain an associate's degree are getting left behind in favor of those who have a more 'complete' education. 

If you have already entered the work force there is still the time to increase your earning potential by seeking higher education. Colleges and universities today are offering more options for students wishing to return to college than ever before. In fact we are seeing an increasing number of college students that are classified as non-traditional students. We are seeing many more adults returning for the education they didn't receive the first time around, which is good news. It also means that more and more options are becoming available at night and on the weekends for those adults.

Even better is the fact that more and more often we are seeing courses being offered online for those who are seeking to complete their education. This allows even more options for those students who are desperately trying to balance careers, family, and education. As more and more opportunities such as these arise we will also see a growing number of graduate studies opportunities being offered in a similar fashion. 

If you are thinking of returning to school after years of absence or perhaps attending for the very first time while managing an existing career there is no time like the present in order to do so. Not only will a college education give you greater earning potential in your lifetime it can also qualify you for promotions within the company for which you currently are employed.

The truth of the matter is that you really can't go wrong when it comes to going back to college and getting or finishing your degree. You can increase your earning potential, your promotion potential, and most importantly your self-image. There is something about having a degree that makes you feel better about yourself and your ability to provide for your family. Even if you never actually use your degree for anything other than a plaque on the wall, you will have the knowledge that you accomplished something that only a small percentage of the population ever gets around to completing.

If nothing else, your college education is worth every penny you will pay in order to have it for the wonderful sense of accomplishment that goes along with getting it. Your college degree won't make you a better person; just give you a better opinion of yourself as a person in many instances. If you need a confidence booster in your professional and your personal life, getting your college degree is often just the bump of confidence you need in order to accomplish many great things.

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Getting Into Law School

How to apply to law school

Once the season for college applications start, you would hardly have the time for yourself amidst all the forms that you need to fill out. Getting into law school is no easy feat. If you decide that you really want to take up law in college, prepare yourself for the time-consuming tasks ahead. 

LSAT stands for Law School Admission Test. This should be your main priority since you cannot get into law school if you fail this test. Register ahead of the deadline. More students apply for law school each year, which would mean more competition. 

Maintain your Grade Point Average or GPA to have better chances of getting into law school. Visit the official web sites of your prospective law schools. Make a list of their deadline for application, the requirements and all other pertinent details for your application to be processed. 

It is a requirement for most law schools to subscribe to the LSDA’s. This stands for Law School Data Assembly Service. This is a service that compiles your student profile and sends it to the schools that you have chosen. The LSDA’s also sends them an update about your scores on tests, as well as your letters of recommendation. 

After securing your LSAT admission ticket, take the exam. Compile all of your paper works, application and acknowledgement forms, test results and letter of recommendations. After taking your tests, the LSDA should do the brunt of your work for you. Give them a couple of weeks to process your letters and record your scores to be sent to the law schools that you have chosen. 

Do not forget to pay all the required fees. Regularly check the official web sites for the status of your application. Then, you can wait and hope for the interviews to come next. Finally, you should apply to more than enough law schools to increase your chances of getting into law school and do not hesitate to retake the LSAT’s if you need to. 

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Finding the Right College Program for You

There are all kinds of college programs that are available today for those seeking higher education and degrees in a wide variety of fields. The problem often lies in finding the type of education that is appropriate for your specific needs. We all learn best through different methods and identifying your learning method is a great way to understand what learning environment will work best for you.

The common learning environments for college level studies are the following: community colleges, universities, and online or distance learning opportunities. Community colleges tend to offer smaller classrooms with more discussion-oriented styles of learning and discourse. Universities tend to be more lecture oriented while distance and online learning opportunities are quite often self-directed learning opportunities that require a great deal of discipline in order to be successful.

When trying to identify the college that will work best for you, you should keep in mind your personal learning style. Beyond that you should also consider the type of environment you expect from your college education and the amount of time you wish to devote to the pursuit of your education and degree. Some people find that university life is far too distracting while others find that the solitude of online and distance learning is a distraction in and of itself. 

You will find all kinds of cultural opportunities at a university that you will not find through home studies or on the community college level. For some students, these opportunities are icing on the cake and an important part of the learning experience as you delve into other cultures, art, music, and history. Others find these opportunities to be far too plentiful and far too distracting for their study needs. Whichever student you tend to be will make a huge difference in the best situation for your learning needs. 

Another important consideration is housing. Most universities have ample on campus housing for their students while a few campuses experience on campus housing shortages and rely on housing that is located in and around the college area in order to fill in the gaps. Some universities will even offer limiting housing opportunities to students who have spouses and children. While housing on community college is seen, particularly in rural areas where there is limited housing available in and around the schools, these are more often the exception rather than the rule. Most community colleges are largely commuter campuses with very limited if any housing opportunities. Online and distance learning programs offer no housing to students. 

Another concern that most also be considered carefully is the distance between classes and any special needs you may have. Universities tend to be large and spread out. It is quite possible to need to get from one end of campus to another (a mile or more in some cases) with a 10-minute window in which to get it done. For students with special needs or physical disabilities this can be quite problematic, especially on days of inclimate weather. Community colleges tend to have smaller campuses, which mean less real estate to cover in between classes. Online and distance learning classes go with you wherever you have access to a computer. This means that they are as portable as you need them to be if you have your own laptop and wireless Internet access.

You must consider all these things and so much more when narrowing down your college choices. Do you really want to take the personal responsibility required in order to succeed in online and distant learning courses? Do you want to be limited by the meager offerings of coursework available at the community college level? Is it worth it to you to pay the high price involved in a university education? These are all questions that you need to consider carefully before making the decision as to which college environment is the most desirable for you.

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Financial Aid Options for Students

When it comes to financial aid for college there are primarily two sources: privately funded financial aid and federally funded financial aid. When applying for or receiving either you need to make sure that you are fully aware of all the fine print involved. Most people find that the expenses of college are much too great to afford without assistance of some sort. If you are a parent chances are that you will some day face the need to pay college tuition along with the worry of how on earth you will manage to accomplish that goal.

The problem is that not every student who wishes to attend college qualifies for either federally funded student aid or the vast majority of scholarships that require either exceptional grades or a specific and exceptional talent in order to receive. For those students thinking outside the box may be necessary in order to receive the much needed educational assistance or financial aid. 

If you do not qualify for federal financial aid for your children, then you may want to consider the benefit of other scholarship options. One common scholarship option that is often overlooked is the ROTC program that most universities offer. There is a price to pay for these scholarships but many find that price provides valuable experience and is well worth the education and the experience received during the process. If your child is interested in the possibility of a military career or becoming a military officer, this is a great way to go. 

As a parent you may want to see what sort of, if any, flexible spending accounts your state has set up that can help you set aside money for college expenses for your children. Many states have these and there are programs such as Upromise that allows you and others to dedicate the spending from a credit card to be used as a 'match' program for your child's college funds. While it isn't a dollar for dollar match of your credit card spending every little bit helps. The real beauty of programs like Upromise is that you can enlist the help of family in friends when saving for your child's college educational expenses. Regardless, it is never too early to begin saving for your child's college education and these expenses seem to be rising exponentially.

There are many programs that exist to help minorities and women pay for their educational expenses. Some of these scholarships are needs based while some of them are solely merit based. On all levels competition is fierce, however, if you qualify for any of these scholarships you would be doing yourself a disservice not to apply for them. You never know when your application might be the one that captures the attention of the scholarship committee. The one thing you should keep in mind is to read all the instructions, make copies of everything, and follow the directions. You'd be amazed at how many worth applicants are denied scholarships each year because they did not follow the directions on the application properly. Another thing you should keep in mind is neatness. You are much more likely to win a scholarship if the committee can actually read your application.

There are many great opportunities for financial assistance when it comes to college. The trick is typically in finding the great sources. Your college's financial aid office is an excellent source of information for financial aid as is your high school counselor. See what your options are before you sacrifice the dream of a college education.

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Community College Disadvantages

While there are many distinct advantages that can be associated with attending a community college there are a few disadvantages that I would be remiss in not mentioning. We all like to look at the positive side of things and the good in my opinion of community colleges, at least as a springboard for university learning far outweigh the bad. However, if you are considering community college as an option whether for your associate's degree alone or have plans to move along to the university level upon completion you should see the big picture and not just the sunshine and flowers.

The first thing you should be aware of, and this applies primarily to those students with plans to transfer, is that you should always consult the college you intend to attend next in order to make sure that the courses you are taking on the community college level are compatible with the core requirements for the university. In many cases they are similar enough to be considered compatible but there are exceptions and it is better to find this out sooner rather than later. If you plan to attend a University that is located near the community college you are attending you should check and see if they have some sort of articulation agreement that will allow associate's degree graduates to transfer seamlessly. 

Many states are stepping in and passing laws that require colleges in their specific states to accept community college credits as transfer credits in an effort to keep qualified workers in the state. Some universities are even offering distance learning programs to associates degree graduates in order to allow access to students who live a greater distance from campus to have access to educational opportunities that would have been denied to them in the past. Of course if you live in one of these states, a former disadvantage may now work in your favor.

Many community colleges do not offer housing opportunities and most of those that do are still largely commuter campuses rather than residence campuses. Rather than spending funds on housing these colleges tend to reserve their spending to assist in academic pursuits. Community colleges in rural areas are much more likely than those in larger cities to offer housing on campus. The lack of on-campus housing makes participation in sports and other activities a little more difficult than colleges that are largely residential in nature. 

If you decide to make a community college your last stop when it comes to your personal educational experience you will be denying yourself a great deal of earning potential over the course of your lifetime. For this reason you should seriously consider the benefits that transferring to a university will present for your educational goals. 

My largest complaint when it comes to community colleges when compared to larger universities was the fact that there are such limited opportunities to take specific classes than when compared to those classes on a university level. You will find that you must remain within your sequence of courses on the community college level or you risk needing an extra semester or year in order to complete the requirements for your associate's degree. Universities tend to offer greater flexibility, especially in lower level courses that are required by all in order to graduate.

My other major complaint when it comes to community college is the fact that they often have much smaller libraries than universities. This seriously limits the ability that students have to do extensive research with the exception of rare cases. Universities simply have deeper pockets than the average community college.  For this reason they will have bigger libraries and far more bells and whistles than the average community college. Hopefully we'll see this change over time as well. Despite the disadvantages that can be associated with community college educations, I feel that they are very much outweighed by the benefits that the community college learning environment offers.

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Associate Degree Vs. Bachelor Degree

There really are few ways to compare a two-year education with a four-year education that would be fair to either degree program. The truth of the matter is that both are excellent for certain things while both also offer serious limitations. When it comes to pros and cons they both have their own set of both that make excellent food for thoughts.

Two-Year Education

Pros

When it comes to a two-year college program there are several things you should consider in its favor before you take the plunge. First of all, you should keep in mind that the degree or certification at the end of your studies doesn't necessarily indicate the end of your education. Two-year degrees are excellent starting points for four-year degrees but also allow you the option to venture out into the workplace with your own skills and knowledge that will allow you greater earning potential than a high school diploma. You will also have the benefit of entering the work place much sooner with an associate's degree than with a bachelor's degree. Most importantly for many who are limited by budgets, two-year colleges offer an affordable alternative for an education or even the first two years of your education.

Cons

The biggest cons that most people find when it comes to getting a two-year degree is the growing competition for limited jobs. In fact, it is difficult to remain competitive in any industry when there are more and more entering the work force with bachelor's degrees. It is simply more difficult to maintain a competitive edge with only a two-year degree though it is not impossible. The other obvious con when it comes to two-year college degrees is that fact that some positions will not even consider anyone with less than a four-year degree. This means that you aren't even in the running required to worry about competition.

Four-Year Degrees

Pros

A bachelor's degree will earn you far greater earning potential in your lifetime than a high school education without a doubt. It will also place you in a position of serious competition within your chosen field or industry. This means that you will often be given preference when seeking jobs over those who do not have degrees or those with lesser degrees regardless of experience. There is also not enough that can be said about the personal confidence that goes along with earning your degree. You will find that you are much more confident on both a personal and a professional level once you've earned your bachelor's degree.

Cons

The single largest con associated with a bachelor's degree is the expense. Both in terms of time and money bachelor's degrees exact a price. You should be certain that you are both willing and able to pay that price before setting out to get your degree.

Regardless of whether a two-year degree or a four-year degree is in your personal best interest at the moment neither are a waste of time or effort. I hope that you will eventually seek a four-year degree, as this will give you a competitive edge in business, however, even the smallest improvement in your education level can mean big changes over the course of your lifetime. Sometimes it helps to improve your education in steps. Take one class at a time until you have your associate's degree then repeat until you have your bachelor's degree. Good luck!

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A College Degree is Nearly a Necessity

Your education is the single greatest gift you can give yourself. While there are educational opportunities all around us, some of them come at a greater cost than others. A college education might require a hefty investment of time and money upfront but the pay off is much better over time than if you used your life experiences in order to achieve the same level of education that you can pack into 2, 4, or 5 years of an undergraduate education on the college level.

In other words, over the course of your lifetime you are likely to pay far less for your college education than you would pay (in earning potential) for not having a college education. At the same time, each level of college education you receive increases your overall earning potential. This means that a one-year degree in a technical field will provide a modest boost from a high school diploma when it comes to earning potential but an associate's degree will provide an even better boost. You will see an even more significant improvement in earning potential when you increase from an associate's degree to a bachelor's degree. The vast majority of students enter the work force upon completion of a bachelor's degree. Those students, however, who remain in school for graduate studies often, find that a master's degree even further improves their lifetime earning potentials. 

The problem for most when it comes to making the jump between degrees and educational levels is cost. There are times in life when we simply need to get out of school and get to work. The good news is that it is gradually becoming easier for those with careers to further their education without sacrificing either their careers or their family during the process. Of course there will be some sacrifices along the way but it isn't an all at once or nothing endeavor. You can work towards your degree by taking online classes, night classes, and Saturday classes. The information age has made it easier than ever before to achieve the educational goals you need to meet in order to satisfy your dreams for the future.

Your level of education will get your foot in the door when it comes to certain jobs and your lack of education will limit you far more than a lack of experience will limit you in many cases. As time grows on, more and more companies are seeking employees that have degrees rather than those who have experience in the field. If you hope to remain competitive in the business world you need to arm yourself with the proper education. Check with your company to see if they offer any sort of incentives for employees continuing their education. You might be surprised to find that your company offers to match your tuition funds or even completely reimburse them if you are working towards a degree that will assist you in your job functions.

There is no wrong reason to get an education. Even if you are applying for a job that won't use your specific degree, you might find that having a degree at all gives you a boost over other applicants for the same position. A college degree is becoming more and more necessary in today's business climate. You need to take every opportunity that is available to you in order to get your college degree.

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