Liberal Arts, Social Sciences, or Child Development. I'm stuck on which one...lol. ;(

[Christopher]

So I’m still looking at all options although I have into only Janurary 11th to really decide so that I can unroll and re-enroll with other classes at my CC. Excelsior College is my main school Im looking because of their Liberal Arts / Social Sciences area and I'll be transfering it at least 70 or more credits. I won’t register for classes with them into at least next fall as I have to do some GE and lower division classes to meet the BA requirements that weren't needed for my AA at the CC first. So, which is better? Liberal Arts or Social Sciences. Or better yet, can one double major and do both if you as I have a lot of art courses in Theater Arts but will be taking sociology classes if I go that road (I love sociology and social issues.) It comes down to what looks better down the road if I have to use it on a job application. I always hear “Liberal Arts” is somewhat shun upon. Right now I do have an AA in Liberal Arts, and if I do two more classes and the new math requirement I’ll get another AA in Social and Behavior Sciences. S&BS wasn’t around when I originally went to CC. It was added as an option in 2010 and it just happens the course I take will automatically meet he requirements for the degree. Our community college actually did away with the Liberal Arts option and only offers the Social an Behavior Sciences and Natural Sciences options for “General Studies” without major degree.

Right now I’m signed up to take 24 credits over two semester of Child Development and get my AS in Child Development, but that alone will take me a year to do just that ALONE, and automatically get my pre-school teaching certification. Most of it is on the mental and physical development of children from birth to about age 8 and teaching in a classroom to kids five years old or younger. But, I hear the pay is non-existing in this field. Literally pretty low, and if you move to another state the whole degree or certification can be a waste as they might have completely different requirements on required student-teaching practicum. In California you only need an AA to teach pre-school but in Arizona you have to have a BA in Early Childhood Educaiton for example and I find almost NO majors at the BA for Child Development. All you need to full-time sub teach is a BA in any subject and to pass the CBEST in California. Anyone who can get a BA can pass the CBEST. CBEST is nothing more than a glorified CLEP exam. CBEST is where you take a four hour test either all at once or seperated with one hour focused on basic algebra math, one hour on reading comprehensive, and two hours on writing essays so that the state knowns you can read, write, and do basic math to sub-teach in a classroom. But, I have a decent job now, so that’s not even needed. I’m thinking it’s pretty much a waste of time the Child Development and going into that field. I don’t know. I like working around kids, but all the pre-schools are private here and they pay no more than $10.00 an hour it seems. It seems like a lot of work, class time, and money spent into a degree that might not have any meaning. Plus if I later want to get into a different area saying I majored in “Child Development” might not help me but saying I majored in Social Sciences looks pretty decent...plus I always loved social issue topics - i'd fit in perfect talking about social problems or social behaviors/politics/religion. Right now I’m a part time Teachers Assistant and part time Office Clerk/Manager at our local school teacher. Comes down to finding a degree that I can enjoy doing that’s not a waste in the end. I thought about Speech Communications but I hear outside of advertising they're not a lot of career options with that one. You know, when you're 35 you don't have room to make mistakes like when you're 20 years old. The days of being 19 years old and taking taking a semester and saying "this major isn't for me" are far over when you get older and want to get a degree without wasting time.

This is what my community college site said about Child Development which REALLY concerns me.

“11. I have been told that if I work in a preschool I will only make $8.00 an hour. Is this true?

Private preschools pay their staff based on parent fees and therefore they cannot always offer high pay; however, most private preschools salaries average between $12-15/hour. This rate may be higher or lower depending upon the school and on the position. Your pay will also be determined by your educational background and experience working with children. Corporate employers, such as Bright Horizons, offer benefits packages as well. Public Preschools: On the LAUSD Early Childhood Education Division website you can access teaching requirements and current salary scale. LAUSD is implementing Pre-K programs on many of their campuses. These are high salary, with benefits, positions, LAUP also has many Pre-K positions available. You can go to the Moorpark College Child Development Center to look at their job board as well as directly contacting LAUSD, LAUP, Bright Horizons, etc.”

Most of our public school districts don't offer pre-school. Seems like A LOT of work for a class/major that might not have much return especially if someone ends up going into a different field. Especially since we have to raise a virtual child from birth to teenagehood and write endless papers on our interactiin with this fake child (yep, I have to actually raise a computer virtual reality child) But, it does show how our online program works at our CC lol. Our fastfood people here get paid more then $8.00 an hour starting. Why so little pay for such a high end science degree baffles me. lol I make more then $15.00 an hour now at our school district in the areas that I work in. With a BA itll allow me to move up to the higher levels of pay that require a BA which is the main reason for a BA. I had always wanted to be a teacher was originally aiming for that out of high school, but now at my age, and looking at the time and end pay, it might not be worth it in the end.

Im also thinking now Social Sciences over LIberal Arts. I know that most jobs want specific major though, but I'm not a business person. Im only fair at math past Algebra 1 and 2 probably when I get done. And I'm not a business type of person. Argh.

[sanantone]

The liberal arts include the natural sciences, mathematics, social sciences, and humanities. I don't know why one would want both a social science and liberal arts degree. TESC and COSC have liberal studies programs, which are pretty much the same as Excelsior's liberal arts program. TESC and COSC will be cheaper than Excelsior. TESC also has human services, social science, psychology, and sociology programs. COSC has psychology and sociology concentrations. Excelsior has BA in Liberal Arts, BA/BS in Psychology, and BS in Social Science. COSC (individualized studies) and TESC (learner designed area of study) also let you design your own programs. I really don't see how Excelsior has the upper-hand here.

Almost anything is better than having a degree in liberal arts, liberal studies, general studies, multidisciplinary studies, interdisciplinary studies, etc. It's almost always better to have a more focused degree even if it's something that is still kind of broad i.e. social science, natural science, or humanities. The social sciences are economics, political science, psychology, sociology (including some criminal justice courses that are closely-related), anthropology/archaeology, and sometimes history. If you're just interested in those subjects, then there is no need to get a liberal arts or liberal studies degree. COSC offers bachelor's degrees in general studies with concentrations related to child development or early childhood education. COSC's concentrations are almost the equivalent of majors, but their child-related concentrations are not test friendly. One can completely test out of a BA in Social Science at TESC with the exception of the capstone. One could probably do it for well under $5,000 under the Per Credit Tuition Plan.

A degree in social science will have more flexibility than a degree in child development. Many, if not most, states have alternative teacher certification programs. Commonly, those who want to teach get degrees in education that include the teacher training. In Texas, we do not have undergraduate degrees in education. Aspiring teachers choose a regular college major and take some education courses and complete the practicum on an education track. Alternative teacher certification programs allow people to earn their certifications after having graduated from a non-teaching degree program.

I wouldn't call child development a high-end science degree. It's a fairly easy, applied degree program that combines the easy to understand parts psychology, sociology, education, and biology. It takes a lot of patience and creativity to teach young children, but it doesn't require a lot of intelligence. The salaries are affected by supply and demand and the amount of training/education required. A lot of people who work in private preschools only have a high school diploma or GED plus the CDA credential or an associate's degree.

[Christopher]

Thank you. I actually talked to COSC last month about the Child Studies. They actually told me they don’t know how it would work with transferring in with that from an out of state AS in Child Development/ECE from California. They would have to see my coursework done when Im done with the whole program, my college’s catalog, state requirements, and how many hours of student teaching Ive done and how that can work with their higher level requirements in trasnfering student teaching with them, and not even sure how they can factor in the student-teaching practicum into the course work at all. Even the “Human Development” class might be different than the one they require to take to meet their state /degree standards. I have the e-mail..it’s basically a big “we don’t know how or if it can work” lol. Most that take concentrate at COSC in Child Studies live in Connecticut and it's pretty much designed for Connecticut or local residents going into licensed teaching so they cover all the state requirements for Connecticut. They can offer me the GE: Child Studies basic concentration but can’t guarantee it would satisfy state requirements as some states (like California even) require certain classes to be taken (like Human Development.) Since California only requires an AA in Child Development (which covers all the required “8 core” courses and required student-teaching time) a BS in ECE isn’t even needed. But, move to another state, and it can be a whole different ballgame. In fact in Arizona the ECE requirements would require a licensed ECE in California to spend another whole year in school to take their required coursework for licensing since their ECE goes up to the 3rd grade and ours is only Pre-School while Kindergarten to 3rd is considered regular elementary school education. University of Phoneix turned me down (I was only interested and requested more info - I wasn't much into that college) saying they only offer online degrees in ECE for Arizona residents only.

I also hear ya about “studies.” I went to CC and do have an AA already. I remember the administrators, even still in our H.S. today, being very clear. Anything with the word “studies” especially stand alone isn’t good. Unless it’s going into teaching, you have a set job and just want a BA/BS, or transferring to university with major to be declared later, otherwise it lacks merit. I was told the word "science" has pull though. I hear it all the time which is why I’m trying to stay away from “General Studies in General Studies.” General Studies, Liberal Studies, Women Studies, Ethnic Studies, in S.F. the colleges actually offer a degree in “Gay and Lesbian Studies.” Not much you can do on a job interview when you say “I have a degree in Gay and Lesbian Studies.” Art History Studies. Not going to land you that big job in the business field lol. I know some degrees outside of their field won’t work.

Actually in CA you can have a BA in anything to teach. Liberal Studies is the main area because it covers certain require student teaching requirements and classes. But to take and pass the CSET (after taking/passing the CBEST and some other exams) and taking on a state required internship, there’s no set major requirement unless going into high school teaching which requires a “single subject” certification. Actually, I don’t have desire to full time teach in public elementary school. I work in a public school district now in non-teaching classifications, and teaching is an unstable field. We’re laying off more elementary teachers then bringing on each year with state budget cuts, school closings, and classroom combinations being implicated. California is a mess. Our District already sent out notifications that three schools might be shut down at year end (July 1st) because of low enrollment with half of those teachers at those schools not tendered enough to be retained next year. LAUSD has laid off something like 1,000+ teachers over the last five years. You have more stability as a sub teacher or secondary teacher then elementary. The janitor has more job safety then a teacher here. Private school teaching is a whole different area and don’t require most of the required credentials and degrees like you said since they’re not state funded so dont require state credential standards which is why I was/am interested in Child Studies, but the pay is SO LOW that it seems almost non-survivable on unless you have second income or a spouse income. This is the reason not to get into teaching in California unless you live in a small district or have a back up plan: Hearings Begin for LAUSD Employees Who Received Layoff Notices | NBC Southern California

My AA Liberal Arts covered the above. I had to take various of courses in NS, BS, SS, Humanities, and Fine Arts (like Theater, Art History, Philosophy, etc). I shouldn’t have any trouble transferring in those courses. They had to be evenly done from all areas. I'd just have to do the upper division requirements on top of the few BS GE requirements. I'll take those at the CC since it's cheap and I perfer class over CLEP if I can.

Im guessing Excelsior is more expensive then the others. I didn't know that. I just know they have a very liberal transfer in policy of credits which is why I was interested. I started basic email communication with them and from what I got they take just about anything, no matter how old. CCSC I like but everything seems to be "General Studies in..."

So, yeah, I’m looking at all options. Like I said…my concern is if I move to another state (it’s come up)or decide maybe I just want to go back into working in the office (I was trained to be an office manager at our district if I wanted that job) that “Child Development” or “Child Studies” isn’t going to look so good and send the message I only know about the study of Children. Heck, why couldn’t I be smart enough to just be another Business or STEM major lololol. I’m bad at math especially higher end math. I was an A student in English and English Lit! lol. Truth is Los Angeles is filled with unemployed Art History and English Lit majors. Actually...Theater Arts is the biggest one. Because of Hollywood we have a lot of people (Im guilty too...lol) that started their major in Theater or Cinema Arts that most of them end up with an AA or BA in Theater Arts but unemployeed. So Im leaning towards "science" at the end and not Studies or Art. Thinking about it...liberal arts seems to be moving to my out category and social sciences or something else...or even still possibly CD is still in.

[sanantone]

The only way you can tell which of the Big 3 will accept most of your credits and apply them favorably is by applying to all three schools. Everyone is different. Excelsior gave me the least favorable evaluation, but it might be the best option for others. None of the Big 3 are going to give you upper level credits for community college courses. This is where TESC has the advantage; they generally require less UL credits. Child development courses will usually end up in free electives outside of a child development-related degree. Any courses that you took with a sociology or psychology prefix can be used as gen ed or toward a social science or liberal arts major. Anything with an education or child development prefix will most likely be treated as applied; therefore, it won't be allowed in gen ed or one of the liberal arts major areas of study.

My list wasn't necessarily about "studies" degrees. It was covering degrees that don't really have a focus letting you complete courses in a wide variety of unrelated disciplines. Having "studies" in the name is not really the issue. A degree in Mexican American History is not going to have more utility than a degree in Mexican American Studies. In contrast, there are degrees in computer studies and engineering studies that can have a lot of utility. Having "science" in the degree name is not a ticket to high pay and massive job opportunities. For example, while better than a general degree in liberal arts, a degree in social science is not going to lead to an abundance of job opportunities. A degree in police science is really just a more applied form of criminal justice. As a matter of fact, a degree in police science will have less flexibility than a degree in criminal justice or criminology.

[UptonSinclair]

Before deciding on a major, it helps to decide what you intend to do with the degree. At that point, you can jump on a site like indeed.com and see what degree titles the job descriptions are requesting. I agree with Sanantone that the content of a degree is going to be far more important than the title of the degree. In today's economy, the social science fields are typically not a path to good pay. Personally, I wouldn't touch a Social Science degree without the intention of pursuing a Master's degree and even then I wouldn't do it expecting to make a good living. I tend to view the Social Sciences as those fields where people are willing to accept horrible pay out of a desire to help others.

I have a great respect for people who become teachers, but our society doesn't seem to have the same respect. The starting pay for teachers here in Colorado is in the $32k range NEA - 2011-2012 Average Starting Teacher Salaries by State and the last opening I know of in our town had over 200 applicants.

It seems like there are an abundance of people entering college and pursuing the degrees that don't require a bunch of math or science. Unfortunately, there are not enough jobs for these folks when they graduate.

[KayV]

I thought I had posted this in another thread, but whoops it looks like I didn't. Here is what a BA in Communications from TESC would look like, just so you can get an idea. If you took some business credits (Intro to Business, Principles of Supervision, that sort of thing) to fill up your free electives, you would be able to put a business communications spin on your rÃsumÃ.

(And as a teacher with 24 years of experience, I can only say that if you are looking for a job to support a family, Early Childhood Education is not the field for you.)

TESC BA Communications

I. General Education Requirements
1. ENGL 01A: English Composition. 4.00C
2. ENGL 02: Intro to College Writing. 3.00C
3. Need ALEKS Intermediate Algebra 3
4. CIS 28: Microsoft Office. 3.00C
5. Need TECEP/SL Intro to Computers 3
6. THA 02A: Beginning Acting 3.50C
7. History 05: United States History 3.00C
8. AST 01: Intro to Astronomy. 3.00C
9. ANTA 01: Physical Anthropology 3.00C
10. History 02: History of the Freedom and Civil Rights Movement. 3.00C
11. Humanities 18: Images of Women in Film / History of Women in Film 3.00C
12. ANTH 02: Cultural Anthropology 3.00C
13. Need Straighterline Business Ethics and Society 3
14. Need Straighterline Intro to Sociology 3
15. THA 09: Acting for Film and TV 3.00C
16. THA 02B - Intermediate Acting. 3.50C
17. THA 24: Theater Costume/Make-Up 3.00C
18. PSY 01: Intro to Psychology. 3.00C
19. THA 20: Theater Stagecrafts 3.00C
20. Health 10H,M,N: Domestic Violence, Healthful Eating, Men’s Health. – 1.50C.

II. Area of Study: Communications (33 hours)
1. Speech 01 (AKA Communications 101): Intro to Speech. 3.00C
2. Need Penn Foster Interpersonal Communication (COM-330) 3UL
3. Journalism 02: News Reporting & Writing (JOU-110) 3.00C
4. CNSE 10 Intro to Telecommunications (CAP-299) 3.00C
5. Need TECEP Technical Writing (ENG-201) 3
6. Need TECEP Public Relations Thought & Practice (COM-210) 3
7. Need TECEP Managerial Communications (COM-373) 3UL
8. Need Straighterline Business Communications (COM-300) 3UL
9. Need TECEP Marketing Communications (MAR-321) 3UL
10. Need LSU Independent Study CMST 2063 Argumentation and Debate (COM-380) 3UL
11. Need LIB-495 Liberal Arts Capstone 3UL

III. Free Electives (27 hours, need 25)
1. PE 02B: Body Conditioning/Free Weights. 1.50C
2. HE 10A – Alcohol Awareness. 0.50C
3. Need at least 9 hours/ 3 of any TECEPs to qualify for Pay Per Credit tuition plan
4. Need 16 more hours of Anything (no-cost Kaplan PLA 3, NFA 3, TEEX Cybersecurity 6; more TECEP/SL/Saylor/ Anything)

[Christopher]

Thank you for posting that. Yes, I already decided this morning I’m going to drop the CD/ECE. The pay is nothing and the courses do not apply to anything outside the major. I make more money now at my job, and I have a stable public employee job. I’m “tendered” so I’m fine at my job. A BA will give me higher opportunities to test for the higher jobs which is my focus (with a nice major like you posted with Communications or even Business Communications lol) but I don’t need to get into a whole separate field that lacks proper pay. Plus, I need a degree I can carry with me. I saw the course outline for two of the CD/ECE classes that were pre-sent out, and pretty much is a lot of California code stuff. It seems more of a nanny day care emphasis then teaching. If I move to say Nevada, the whole degree and coursework is a waste as the certification process is different that California. At least with Sociology 101 or Communications 101 or “Business Management” it can always be used in some place and with any field or towards various of options. Child Development like one of the previous posters said just falls into “free electives”. CD 05 – Children at Play doesn’t fit into anything outside of ECE. Even the CD courses listed for the major at my college are not listed as applicable to fill any of the GE requirements (like Humanities, Natural/Social Sciences, Language, Math) at the CC or CSUN system. I already dropped the classes this morning. With a BA all I have to do is pass the CBEST and I can sub teach benefited if I want as I'm already livescanned with the state (fingerprinted) and processed into a school district already. Sub teaching in California and Nevada is designed to be done regularly so I’m not going to waste a year getting a Pre-School Teaching Permit only at the AA when I can get a 30 Day or 60 Day (per Teacher) Substitute Permit with my BA and work at my BA. I pass the CSET and I can sub teacher indefinitely for any teacher for up to five years. And of course still hang on a bit to the business side. My work resume is pretty strong working for a s school district now as a part time Instructional Assistant and Part Time Office Admin (Clerk / Office Manager). I love school so I should have no problem with any courses outside of the math ones. I was one of those types that took no more than two or three days a year off from school in high school. Im almost 35, but I'm single independent (outside of a girlfriend here or there that comes up sometimes.) I just support myself. I'm not married and I have no kids, so outside of work, I can focus on school. I don’t have to worry about splitting time and/or money between school and family financials. Outside of work I pretty much have nothing to do.

I have the Intermediate Math course taken care of. That will be done at the community college summer semester. I already know the professor to take, talked with her already, and the class is designed for adult students returning to school or a little “ancient” in math with tutoring and working with other students in the class. It starts off as a review of Elementary Algebra and then works into Intermediate Algebra with a little spin on STEM. Its designed to teach and understand math so we can learn and apply math that will work into College Algebra instead of "lecture, homework, and take a blind weekly tests and either pass or fail." (if that makes sense). What I still like about the building campus colleges. Still those classes/professors you can take designed to help differnet indivdiual groups of students as not everyone is a math whiz (or up to being the next Ernest Hemingway with English courses.)

I can’t believe you found a use for my Theater Art classes haha. That’s awesome. I always thought outside of Theater Arts or free electives they were a waste. I use to say “what good can ‘Theater Costume/Make-Up’ fit into any serious degree major program out of theater.” Communications will work because it’s a prerequisite to the Speech Pathologist Specialist Assistant program at our District. Behavior Sciences also work because our local Districts listed AS/BS Social/Behavior Sciences as needed for some of the jobs (they train for) working with autistic kids. Basically everything works accept Child Development. Funny how its called “Communications” now. I remember the courses/major use to be called “Speech” or “Speech Communications” back in the 1990s. Okay than you. I'm heavily thinking of taking the Intro to Business course. Especially since it' applys to everything. I'll post the course below. Thanks!

I thought I had posted this in another thread, but whoops it looks like I didn't. Here is what a BA in Communications from TESC would look like, just so you can get an idea. If you took some business credits (Intro to Business, Principles of Supervision, that sort of thing) to fill up your free electives, you would be able to put a business communications spin on your rÃsumÃ.

(And as a teacher with 24 years of experience, I can only say that if you are looking for a job to support a family, Early Childhood Education is not the field for you.)

TESC BA Communications

I. General Education Requirements
1. ENGL 01A: English Composition. 4.00C
2. ENGL 02: Intro to College Writing. 3.00C
3. Need ALEKS Intermediate Algebra 3
4. CIS 28: Microsoft Office. 3.00C
5. Need TECEP/SL Intro to Computers 3
6. THA 02A: Beginning Acting 3.50C
7. History 05: United States History 3.00C
8. AST 01: Intro to Astronomy. 3.00C
9. ANTA 01: Physical Anthropology 3.00C
10. History 02: History of the Freedom and Civil Rights Movement. 3.00C
11. Humanities 18: Images of Women in Film / History of Women in Film 3.00C
12. ANTH 02: Cultural Anthropology 3.00C
13. Need Straighterline Business Ethics and Society 3
14. Need Straighterline Intro to Sociology 3
15. THA 09: Acting for Film and TV 3.00C
16. THA 02B - Intermediate Acting. 3.50C
17. THA 24: Theater Costume/Make-Up 3.00C
18. PSY 01: Intro to Psychology. 3.00C
19. THA 20: Theater Stagecrafts 3.00C
20. Health 10H,M,N: Domestic Violence, Healthful Eating, Men’s Health. – 1.50C.

II. Area of Study: Communications (33 hours)
1. Speech 01 (AKA Communications 101): Intro to Speech. 3.00C
2. Need Penn Foster Interpersonal Communication (COM-330) 3UL
3. Journalism 02: News Reporting & Writing (JOU-110) 3.00C
4. CNSE 10 Intro to Telecommunications (CAP-299) 3.00C
5. Need TECEP Technical Writing (ENG-201) 3
6. Need TECEP Public Relations Thought & Practice (COM-210) 3
7. Need TECEP Managerial Communications (COM-373) 3UL
8. Need Straighterline Business Communications (COM-300) 3UL
9. Need TECEP Marketing Communications (MAR-321) 3UL
10. Need LSU Independent Study CMST 2063 Argumentation and Debate (COM-380) 3UL
11. Need LIB-495 Liberal Arts Capstone 3UL

III. Free Electives (27 hours, need 25)
1. PE 02B: Body Conditioning/Free Weights. 1.50C
2. HE 10A – Alcohol Awareness. 0.50C
3. Need at least 9 hours/ 3 of any TECEPs to qualify for Pay Per Credit tuition plan
4. Need 16 more hours of Anything (no-cost Kaplan PLA 3, NFA 3, TEEX Cybersecurity 6; more TECEP/SL/Saylor/ Anything)

[Christopher]

BUS 30 – Introduction to Business - 3 Units
Prerequisites: None
Recommended Prep: ENGL 02
Class Hours: 3 lecture
C-ID: BUS 110

Provides a multidisciplinary examination of how culture, society, economic
systems, legal, international, political, financial institutions, and human
behavior interact to affect a business organization’s policy and practices
within the U.S. and a global society. Focuses on how these influences
impact the primary areas of business including: organizational structure
and design; leadership; human resource management; organized labor
practices; marketing; organizational communication; technology;
entrepreneurship; legal, accounting, and financial practices; the stock
and securities market; and therefore how they affect a business’ ability to
achieve its organizational goals. Applies to Associate Degree. Applies to Bachelors Degree. Transfer
credit: CSU; UC

(Seems like a nice class. It even fits in under "Social and Behavior Sciences" GE option of our colleges. They also have "Business Communications" which teaches on communication methods in the business world.) The rest of my reponse post (to KayV, et al) is below this one. Thanks .

[sanantone]

Are you sure you're not confusing a communications degree with a communication disorder degree? These are California's requirements for becoming a speech language pathology assistant.

To qualify for a registration as a speech-language pathology assistant, an applicant must:

Must submit to fingerprinting.
Hold a bachelor's degree in Speech-Language Pathology or Communicative Disorders from an accredited educational institution OR hold an Associate of Arts or Sciences Degree in Speech-Language Pathology Assistant from a Board approved SLPA program.
The Board's Approved Programs.
Must have 70 hours of fieldwork experience OR nine months of full-time work experience performing the duties of an SLPA in a public school setting OR nine months of full-time work as an SLPA in another state with the appropriate authorization to practice.

Speech-Language Pathology Assistant - Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology and Hearing Aid Dispensers Board

[cookderosa]

You've already gotten tons of good advice, I'll just share my experience. My closest friend completed her associate degree in child development about a year or two before I started at TESC. Her degree is an AAS (are you sure yours will be an AS?) and unfortunately she took out a hefty student loan and the whole process took her 4 years. She has held the same job since graduation (10 years or so) and earns $12.00/hour. She is the highest paid aid in the K-5 district, and since the district only uses aids in special ed, she has occasionally been moved to different schools based on where the new year's needs are. She is on a 9 month contract (unlike teachers) which means "technically" they could end her employment each school year, but so far, funding has allowed her to be rehired each year. Summers she works daycare for about $9/hr and has done that since she was in school- so probably 12 years with them, and barely gets 40 hrs per week.

When she went to CC, I didn't know what I know now, but since then I've tried to help her look for a path for more income. Of course she has spent a decade in special ed, and I have encouraged her repeatedly to earn her bachelor's degree and run her own classroom. She certainly has the ability- her trouble is that only 12 of her child development credits are general ed, the rest are in child development, so essentially there is no transfer into an education degree without tons of work, and that mountain isn't one she's up for just now.

So, my suggestion to you is if you're even remotely considering that you'd like to be the teacher instead of the aid some day, don't waste your time chasing liberal arts or social science at TESC- do directly into a teacher ed program. Of course, if your plans don't include k-12 education, it is probably best to do whatever is fastest so you can start working. Anyway, just tossing that into the mix.