What is your educational status?

[cornflake]

I'm curious as well.

When did higher education become shameful rather than an accomplishment?

Around the time people who were educated became referred to derisively as 'the elite,' as opposed to "real" people. Yet, bizarrely, in polls, nearly every American wants their kids to attend college. Go figure.

 

[DVCJones]

I have a AS, BFA, M.Ed. and a professional teacher's license (preK-12)

That is it for me. I don't plan on going back to school. However, I do continue to take classes so I can advance at work.

 

[DVCJones]

....and my grandmother would have probably responded by saying "get over it."

She didn't even finish elementary school, she was not ashamed to admit it, and was still the smartest woman I've known.

Sorry that level of education strikes a nerve with a few people. It's a harmless question, not a brag fest or a pity party.

 

[ClarabelleCowFan]

I'm pretty boring - just regular college here although I have thought about going back to school in another field.

DH, on the other hand, is working on his 3rd Master's Degree and has done some work on his PhD all while serving in the Army. He loves to learn and take classes. He did say that after this Master's (MBA) that he is done for awhile.

 

[Boston Tea Party]

I have a Master's Degree in Library Science.

Me, too!

 

[kmedina]

Around the time people who were educated became referred to derisively as 'the elite,' as opposed to "real" people. Yet, bizarrely, in polls, nearly every American wants their kids to attend college. Go figure.

Based on the poll results, it looks like education is no longer elite. The vast majority of people who responded have a college degree of higher. This means one of three things to me:

1. The people of the DISboards are more educated than the average Joe.
2. Many people are not answering this poll truthfully.
3. National polls are not accurate in the number of people who graduate college.

I am guessing it is number one. Many of the posters I have come into contact with think they are smarter (or more educated, since they are different things) than everyone else. The lady who repeatedly "corrected" your writing on a thread when yours was far better than hers is who comes to mind at the moment.

 

[PaulaSB12]

I have o levels and cse's to my name, and three nvq's (ordinary levels, certificate of secondary education and national vocational qualifications). You don't graduate with a diploma over here you take (now) gsce's and a'levels. Also the number of kids going to university is probably going to drop as more are becoming interested in apprenticeships (you can become a chartered accountant and even a lawyer via an apprenticeship) the cost of going to university is jumping next year from £3000 to £9000 per year and there are not the scholorships that you have for college kids so for a doctor there is going to be £54000 loan and that is not considering costs of books and accomadation so how we are going to get new doctors I don't know. As for me I am a technical operator in a food factory I could get an office job but couldn't afford the pay cut. This drive to insist so many kids go to college has effectively devalued the degree to the point that a masters or phd is now needed where once a bsc/ba would have done, and considering the drop out rate does need to be reconsidered.

 

[cornflake]

Based on the poll results, it looks like education is no longer elite. The vast majority of people who responded have a college degree of higher. This means one of three things to me:

1. The people of the DISboards are more educated than the average Joe.
2. Many people are not answering this poll truthfully.
3. National polls are not accurate in the number of people who graduate college.

I am guessing it is number one. Many of the posters I have come into contact with think they are smarter (or more educated, since they are different things) than everyone else. The lady who repeatedly "corrected" your writing on a thread when yours was far better than hers is who comes to mind at the moment.

Also possible that the people who chose to answer the poll are the more educated and those less formally educated are choosing to abstain. I have no idea if that's correct, just another option to explain the discrepancy between the poll here and national, scientific poll results.

As for the latter, qhat you describe may be attributable to the Dunning-Kruger effect. - from the Wiki link (the actual paper with their findings is online too, I think it's fascinating) -

The Dunning–Kruger effect is a cognitive bias in which unskilled people make poor decisions and reach erroneous conclusions, but their incompetence denies them the metacognitive ability to recognize their mistakes. The unskilled therefore suffer from illusory superiority, rating their ability as above average, much higher than it actually is, while the highly skilled underrate their own abilities, suffering from illusory inferiority.

 

[kmedina]

Also possible that the people who chose to answer the poll are the more educated and those less formally educated are choosing to abstain. I have no idea if that's correct, just another option to explain the discrepancy between the poll here and national, scientific poll results.

As for the latter, qhat you describe may be attributable to the Dunning-Kruger effect. - from the Wiki link (the actual paper with their findings is online too, I think it's fascinating) -

I did not even think of the fourth possibility. Now that you've brought it up, I am going with that one. It is obvious that this thread touched a nerve in some people based on the ones who posted. Others probably saw it and refused to answer. Methinks the Dunning-Kruger Effect is prevalent on this board.

 

[lacrosse_lady72]

I'm 24 and still in college. I got a late start due to things out of my control. I put 22 and still in college, because I assume that age is essentially negligible in this, if it's not then sue me.

 

[PaulaSB12]

I did not even think of the fourth possibility. Now that you've brought it up, I am going with that one. It is obvious that this thread touched a nerve in some people based on the ones who posted. Others probably saw it and refused to answer. Methinks the Dunning-Kruger Effect is prevalent on this board.

From the sounds of it the Dunning-Kruger effect came out of the back end of a bull. If it has touched a nerve in some people it probably has more to do with the office job good (or equivalent) manual work=thick attitude that is prevalent, for example I have a cousin who went to college and became a secretary, she has made it quite clear that her secretarial job is good but my factory job=thicko, yet my job is important we have to check quality to ensure that the best and safest product reaches the customer, the paper work we do is as much if not more than hers and yes her job pays about half of what mine does. It really is about time that the its only a factory job mentality is got rid of we each perform our part to help keep our country going by providing the medical assistance to keep people alive or providing the food people need to keep living. I know the two sorts of job are not equal but they are both equally valid.

 

[cornflake]

From the sounds of it the Dunning-Kruger effect came out of the back end of a bull.

Why do you say that?

I think it's one of those things most people have observed but they proved it exists.

 

[kmedina]

From the sounds of it the Dunning-Kruger effect came out of the back end of a bull.

That is actually a funny statement. I obviously disagree with your use of the statement, but it was funny nonetheless. Unless you get a tag for it, I may steal it. Beware how much you argue with Cornflake or you just may help him prove his point.

 

[NewmanFamily6]

I am currently an RN, BSN. I am attending a MSN program now but trying to switch to a DNP program so I can become a Doctor of Nursing Practice that is a family nurse practitioner

 

[kmedina]

From the sounds of it the Dunning-Kruger effect came out of the back end of a bull. If it has touched a nerve in some people it probably has more to do with the office job good (or equivalent) manual work=thick attitude that is prevalent, for example I have a cousin who went to college and became a secretary, she has made it quite clear that her secretarial job is good but my factory job=thicko, yet my job is impotant we have to check quality to ensure that the best and safest product reaches the customer, the paper work we do is as much if not more than hers and yes her job pays about half of what mine does. It really is about time that the its only a factory job mentality is got rid of we each perform our part to help keep our country going by providing the medical assistance to keep people alive or providing the food people need to keep living. I know the two sorts of job are not equal but they are both equally valid.

Now that you've edited your post, I must say that I do not think that is what Cornflake was saying at all. I do not have a job, so yours is better than mine. You could be more intelligent than someone in a professional position. I always say that education and intelligence are not the same thing. You can always have one without the other. The job you hold has nothing to do with your intelligence or education level (unless of course you have to have a specific requirement for the job like a lawyer needing a JD.

A human beings worth has nothing to do with how intelligent he/she is. Asking how much education one has does not offend me at all, so the thread does not bother me. The only thing I found odd about the poll (as I previously mentioned) is there is no JD listed as an option. People often think of Attorneys when they list professionals or education.

 

[1001 Ghosts]

I'm not being sarcastic in the slightest just have a question:

What is causing the negativity on this thread? I know how hard I worked to finally finish my degrees and the sacrifices my family made to help me make it happen.

I'm curious as well.

When did higher education become shameful rather than an accomplishment?

I'll answer that.

I'm extremely proud of the effort I put into the acquisition of the plaques that adorn my office.

I hope I never become so crass as to pull them off the wall and without provocation beat someone over the head with them, as some have done in this thread.

Early in my career, one of the best pieces of advice I ever got was; "Just because you have a black belt in Karate doesn't mean that you should beat up every person you see with it. Instead, merely have the confidence that on the rare occasions you actually need to beat someone up that you are able to do so."

One either understands the meaning behind those words or they don't.

 

[A_Princess'_Daddy]

In many settings, degrees are relevant and should be included in one's e-mail signature, in introductions, etc. and I don't begrudge that. In my position and field, they are not relevant, so I do not reference them. I don't understand the resentment of those who do, however, but chalk it up to the bizarre wave of anti-intellectualism that swept the country earlier this century and has taken root in many parts to this day.

I have a B.A., an MBA and a PhD. I enjoy learning for the sake of learning.

I don't use or reference the PhD. at all, and in fact 99.9% of people who know me in real life most likely don't know I have one. Since I don't work in an academic setting, I've never been referred to as Doctor a single time in my professional career and have never had a reason or desire to bring it up. It was something to get because I was lucky enough to receive the funds to pay for it.

I don't hang my diplomas on my wall (in fact, I cannot find two of them and think they may have been lost in our last move). I'd attribute about 99.3% of my professional success to a combination of my parents' efforts to make me a good person, academic content that I learned in high school, and the alumni network of my first University ensuring that we all hire each other, even in tough economic times.

ETA: As my wife (who introduced me to this board and apparently like to read my posts) pointed out, I also have a J.D. The Ph.D./J.D. were a sort of two-fer program that I took because I received a scholarship to pay for post-graduate education and I enjoy learning, but if I don't use the PhD, I truly don't use the law degree! I'm not even admitted to the bar in the state we moved to a few years ago.

 

[phorsenuf]

I hold a B.S from the school of hard knocks.

Actually though, I did hold a Real Estate license once upon a time but I quit that industry. We also owned our own business where I was in charge of all the marketing and advertising for 8 years and did a damn good job. I also do a very technical job on the side reading and documenting fiber optic paths and splicing then analyzing the results. It's a very specialized niche within the fiber community that truthfully not a whole lot of people do, which is why I will sometimes contract myself out. Neither of those jobs do I hold a degree or certificate in, just learned as I went along. I think there is a lot of value in learning that way.
When I think back on various jobs I've held there are many that are degree related I suppose but just weren't necessary to have to get the job. Or maybe I'm just lucky that way.

 

[addicted_to_WDW]

Why does this type of thread irritate me? Do you think the thread would have started this way:

"I'm curious as to the educational status of those on this board. I'll start. I dropped out of 10th grade and feel fortunate to have my Walmart job."

Of course not.

When I was young I was taught modesty. You don't discuss things like status or money because it's boorish. I'm not ashamed of my education and accomplishments, but I also can't think of many situations outside of work where it's relevant.

I think the internet in general has made over sharing more acceptable to some people, but I try to talk on the internet only about things I'd discuss in person, and in real life I wouldn't introduce myself to someone then list my academic credentials.

 

[Goofyluver]

This thread began as a poll. People answered said poll.

Starting on page 1, here come the folks calling this thread a "brag thread" and see posters who have simply listed their types of degrees as rude.

It is equally as rude to enter a thread and chastise those that have shared. Many people have said things along the lines of, "Well, my grandma told me it ain't nice to brag." Yea, well it also ain't nice to crap on others' accomplishments in order to get across your message of, "Just because you have a degree, doesn't mean you're better than me"...which, correct me if I'm wrong, no one here has said to begin with.

Color me confused.