What have you guys done with your degrees?

[richie021501]

Ok So I'm graduating in the spring with my associate degree in accounting from a community college. I'm thinking of pursuing my bachelors in accounting from TESC. However, I'm not sure this degree will be respected in the business world and that I won't be able to get a decent job with this degree.

For those of you out there who have a degree from TESC or a similar school (such as one of the other Big 3), what have you done with your degree? as in, have you gotten a job or job offers or anything like that? How much has it helped you in your career?

Any other info is appreciated, thank you

[ryoder]

I finished my BSBA CIS at TESC this year and it allowed me to enroll in the Northcentral University | Online Degree Programs | Online Learning MBA program. I finished that and now I am beginning my PhD.
The completion of my degree and MBA helped me in my review this year at work. It shows that I am dedicated to personal growth and learning. Having an MBA also makes it easier to make a case for my promotion.

[Ace_King]

The big three is at least more respected than the for profit schools. Two being state schools, I don't see much of a problem. I don't think they'll discriminate if you completed it online... this is 2012 not 1998 again. Majority of state schools offer online courses and programs now a days... and if your still not sure you can always go for a master's degree which majority on here are doing as well. I'm pretty sure a Masters will over ride any kind of stigma with your big three degree undergrad.

[tausend]

I wouldn't worry so much about school prestige with accounting as the CPA exam serves as a standard of competency. If you get high scores on the various sections of the CPA exam, does it really matter where your undergraduate degree is from? The one thing to watch out for however is to check if your state's accounting board recognizes the credit earned from the big three.

[dcan]

FYI look into your state's CPA licensing requirements. There have been issues w/ testing out of a majority of credits because some states require a minimum number of in-seat credits. Just don't want you taken by surprise.

[burbuja0512]

My COSC degree allowed me to get into an amazing masters program - see my signature-, which has lead to my recent move into an international business position. Is a Big 3 degree the best out there? No.. if you can go Ivy League, then do so. Even a big State U can lead to great opportunities, especially when you reside in that state and everyone (including the hiring manager) is loyal to the local school.

Other than that, I would put the Big 3 in the same category as a lesser known or smaller state school. I would put it above for-profit schools such as U of Phoenix. Not that there's anything wrong with UoP or other famous for-profits, but let's face it they do have a stigma in some places.

So, the Big 3 degree is a neutral thing... it's not exciting or enticing to employers like a well known schools, but it also isn't a negative. It fulfills the degree requirement without being either glamorous or offensive. However, it's a quicker, cheaper way to get to a masters program and you'll find that the ROI on a Big 3 degree is much better than many other choices.

Regarding the online versus B&M comments, I have still seen some hiring managers express a strong preference, but that's the beauty of the Big 3! They're not well known! I can honestly tell people that my degree is from a small state college in CT. Yes, this is true and it's also true that my degree is a mix of online and B&M credits! No my credits didn't all come from the same school, but who cares? I have done both and COSC isn't known as an online school because no one has heard of it. It doesn't scream "I am an online degree."

[ryoder]

I am extremely proud of my TESC degrees.

[irnbru]

From the position of someone fortunate to already be working, it's a strong tick in the box. It's not something that comes up in normal conversation often but when it does, it's usually goes something like:

-Do you have a degree?
+Yes, I just finished this year.
-Oh, what did you study?
+Psychology.
-Oh, I've always been interested in that. I studied x, etc

US college in New York, military partnerships, distance learning for three years while working all carry a little bit of glamour in the UK. I also tell people who ask the truth is that I did it because it's better to have a degree than not, distance-learning meant I could fit the exams around work and the funny thing about psychology is that people who don't know much about the social sciences think a bachelor's degree means you can read minds and whatnot.

The liberal arts system is different to the British system, so I usually relate the major to US movies "you know when the kids say they've been in college for two years but haven't chosen their major yet, the liberal arts system is a 120 credits, with about half for general education - humanities, science and so on, with just over 30 credits being the concentration which makes up the major."

Meeting colleagues from the US, it's a straightforward liberal arts college. The funny thing is, some of them already know about Excelsior, which is great.

Apart from adding to a good write up at work and the potential to be streamed to what a lot of people consider the better jobs, I'm glad to have done it and it's something for my mum to hang on the wall.

Meanwhile, it's opened up access to masters programmes at universities back in the UK so I'm starting international relations in September. Distance learning, of course.

Graduating isn't some kind of golden ticket but it's helped more than not doing it at all.

[taylor]

I got a sales position with a Fortune 100 company with a TESC degree in Liberal Arts, no less. That was the litmus test for me. I don't work there anymore because I found out working for a Fortune 100 company isn't for me at this point in my life. But if you're wondering can you get hired with a TESC degree, that's a resounding yes.