Posted on Oct 21, 2014
The Importance of an Advanced Degree to Active Duty Military and Veterans
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The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs documented in a 2009 report that there were close to 600,000 veterans enrolled in educational programs. That number increased to slightly more than 900,000 in 2012. In our current political climate, across the board cuts in spending and a reduction in our military forces are inevitable. The sequestration in 2013 had an immediate impact on military students and veterans. The cutbacks required in 2014 (and beyond) are causing members of our military to consider educational options for their future. As the number of people in the general population who possess a bachelor’s degree increases, the requirement for an advanced degree, such as an MBA, has risen significantly.
The Air Force encourages its members to obtain a master’s degree to advance in their military career. Officers entering as military lawyers need a law degree. For commissioned officers, promotions may require a combination of a degree with training and experience.
An MBA can provide numerous opportunities for all military personnel. These opportunities can promote the learning of new concepts and ideas, collaborating with peers, examining new research, and integrating classwork into the workplace. There can be both personal rewards from learning new management practices and professional rewards from bringing new skills and credentials to the workplace.
In introduction forum posts for one of the business courses at AMU, one student pointed out that his main reason for getting an MBA is because it’s required to continue progressing in rank in the Air Force. Another student is anticipating that a balanced background of a bachelor’s degree in engineering, and a master’s degree in business management, may help him prepare for the competitiveness of the aerospace industry.
The MBA program at AMU covers proven business practices, strategic planning, operational management concepts, and budgeting—all useful skills for those who might be transitioning from a military to civilian career. For example, one AMU student will be returning to the private sector after more than 12 years of military service and is planning a new career in the finance field. Another has a few years before he will reach 20 years of military service and is planning a post-service career in business management. A third graduate, retired after more than 30 years of service in the Air Force, shared an interesting reason for returning for an MBA—to motivate his children to never stop achieving and to keep pace with the high-caliber people joining the ranks today. Whether it’s a personal goal or a career requirement, earning an MBA is an important learning experience as you prepare for your future inside the military our out.
As originally posted by In Military Education
By Dr. Kathleen Shriver and Jodi Bouvin
American Military University
http://rly.pt/2kTwX0G
The Air Force encourages its members to obtain a master’s degree to advance in their military career. Officers entering as military lawyers need a law degree. For commissioned officers, promotions may require a combination of a degree with training and experience.
An MBA can provide numerous opportunities for all military personnel. These opportunities can promote the learning of new concepts and ideas, collaborating with peers, examining new research, and integrating classwork into the workplace. There can be both personal rewards from learning new management practices and professional rewards from bringing new skills and credentials to the workplace.
In introduction forum posts for one of the business courses at AMU, one student pointed out that his main reason for getting an MBA is because it’s required to continue progressing in rank in the Air Force. Another student is anticipating that a balanced background of a bachelor’s degree in engineering, and a master’s degree in business management, may help him prepare for the competitiveness of the aerospace industry.
The MBA program at AMU covers proven business practices, strategic planning, operational management concepts, and budgeting—all useful skills for those who might be transitioning from a military to civilian career. For example, one AMU student will be returning to the private sector after more than 12 years of military service and is planning a new career in the finance field. Another has a few years before he will reach 20 years of military service and is planning a post-service career in business management. A third graduate, retired after more than 30 years of service in the Air Force, shared an interesting reason for returning for an MBA—to motivate his children to never stop achieving and to keep pace with the high-caliber people joining the ranks today. Whether it’s a personal goal or a career requirement, earning an MBA is an important learning experience as you prepare for your future inside the military our out.
As originally posted by In Military Education
By Dr. Kathleen Shriver and Jodi Bouvin
American Military University
http://rly.pt/2kTwX0G
MBA
Education
Command Post
Edited 11 y ago
Posted 11 y ago
Responses: 35
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I am totally glad I have a Masters Degree, I can command good pay almost what I am making on active duty as a Procurement Analyst in the contracting world. My future job. I am glad I used my time wisely and respectively using the Army TA. It has allowed me to have superior advantages over the masses and independence to Retire believe it or not. The pay and wisdom is a definite pay off. You always got to be redefining your skills and staying sharp for your skill set acquired (degree). It requires a lot of time researching and staying up to par to reach your goals. (Hooooooooooha)!
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LCDR John Sahlin
Having been on both sides of the interview desk, I would like to offer some thoughts:
1) Having an advanced degree does not guarantee you will find a good job. Nor does it guarantee to an employer that you will be successful. It is merely one of many indicators
2) Having an advanced degree may price you out of some jobs. The fear of being "over-educated" is not unreasonable. If you are unemployed and need any j-o-b to feed yourself and your family, having an advanced degree may scare off potential employers (who fear that you will leave the job they can offer once you get the opportunity you want). When I was unemployed with a Master's Degree, I took it off my resume when applying for jobs that didn't require it. Yes, I was selling myself short, but I needed a job - any job. In fairness, when the right job came along, I did not hesitate to make a move.
3) Anything you can do to improve yourself is worthwhile. This could include paying for a degree but does not have to. MOOCs are widely available to improve your skills.
4) Certifications are also a good option - depending in your chosen industry they may even be more valuable. For some positions, I would much rather hire someone who was working on a Bachelor's degree but had VCP, MSCE, and CCNA certifications than an MBA.
I know that none of this is earth-shattering, but it reflects my own experiences.
1) Having an advanced degree does not guarantee you will find a good job. Nor does it guarantee to an employer that you will be successful. It is merely one of many indicators
2) Having an advanced degree may price you out of some jobs. The fear of being "over-educated" is not unreasonable. If you are unemployed and need any j-o-b to feed yourself and your family, having an advanced degree may scare off potential employers (who fear that you will leave the job they can offer once you get the opportunity you want). When I was unemployed with a Master's Degree, I took it off my resume when applying for jobs that didn't require it. Yes, I was selling myself short, but I needed a job - any job. In fairness, when the right job came along, I did not hesitate to make a move.
3) Anything you can do to improve yourself is worthwhile. This could include paying for a degree but does not have to. MOOCs are widely available to improve your skills.
4) Certifications are also a good option - depending in your chosen industry they may even be more valuable. For some positions, I would much rather hire someone who was working on a Bachelor's degree but had VCP, MSCE, and CCNA certifications than an MBA.
I know that none of this is earth-shattering, but it reflects my own experiences.
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A1C Medrick "Rick" DeVaney
I'm Glad I Told FMC "I Have A Masters In Business Administration With a 3.6 GPA".
They Actually Believed It And Hired Me As An Industrial Purchasing Agent, In The Lansing, Michigan Plant. ~~ About 2 Years Later, It Got Even Better; I Was Promoted Directly, Bypassing Assistant Director To The Position Of Purchasing Department Director And Sent To Head-Up The Department In Indiana....It's Amazing How Far Bull Sh*t Will Get Ya, When Ya Act, Then Preform Like Ya Knew What Ya Were Doing.....Thanks USAF,
Your U.S.A.F.I. Business Programs Educated Me, & My Bull Sh*t Took Over From There.~ LOL... ~~ "Life Passes By Fast When You're Having Flies"
They Actually Believed It And Hired Me As An Industrial Purchasing Agent, In The Lansing, Michigan Plant. ~~ About 2 Years Later, It Got Even Better; I Was Promoted Directly, Bypassing Assistant Director To The Position Of Purchasing Department Director And Sent To Head-Up The Department In Indiana....It's Amazing How Far Bull Sh*t Will Get Ya, When Ya Act, Then Preform Like Ya Knew What Ya Were Doing.....Thanks USAF,
Your U.S.A.F.I. Business Programs Educated Me, & My Bull Sh*t Took Over From There.~ LOL... ~~ "Life Passes By Fast When You're Having Flies"
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SSG (Join to see) made a comment about furthering your education while still in the military to take advantage of tuition assistance. One thing to keep in mind, for those that are separating instead of retiring, is to further you continuum of service by joining a reserve component. Tuition Assistance is available in both the Reserve and Guard and in many cases, a state (if you're in that state's National Guard) will pay for your Bachelor or Master degree.
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SSG (Join to see)
Great Info Sir thanks for this I can pass this on to some of my friends that are getting out in the next few months.
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However, not all MBAs are created equal. Often, practical experience is more important than what is learned at MBA school. My advice to young airmen or officers has been over the years: only get an MBA if that school can open doors for you that you can't open through your military or business experience. My view is that there are only 20 or so MBA schools in the US that can actually do this.
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A1C Medrick "Rick" DeVaney
I've a 50 Which States:
"1 Year Of Experience Will Out Due A 4 Year Degree".
"1 Year Of Experience Will Out Due A 4 Year Degree".
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If I were in the military now I would take advantage of all the educational opportunities that I could handle. As the military is only going to reduce in size its better to be prepared for the civilian side. The civilian side is all about degrees and certifications. Plus you can get fired in a second. It is a much different environment than the military. Very hard to find a mentor, ladder climbers will do any thing to get the promotion and education is often used as a bench marker.
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I can weigh in with an anecdotal story. I enlisted and shipped off to BCT 8 days after high school graduation. Over the course of my 7 years on active duty, I enrolled in a local college (Campbell University near Ft. Bragg,) and took a combo of night, weekend, online courses and CLEP tests. It made for some extremely long days, when I was rolling out of biology at 2100 hours, and missed weekend trips, but tuition assistance paid for about 90% of my Bachelors. The rest I paid out of pocket and was able to claim as a tax deduction. Then, when I ETS'd, I switched over to the Post 9/11 GI Bill, and used it to pay for grad school. I earned a Masters in Medical Science, and am now a Physician Assistant (PA.) I just accepted a job at the Department of Veterans Affairs, and now make more than double what I did as an E-5 with 7 years, along with excellent benefits. School is not for everyone, but if you play your cards right, it can pay off big time, as it is with me now.
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SGM Mikel Dawson
Good for you. You had a goal and completed the mission. Me, I was just the other guy. I got out of high school, did a vo-tec course in mechanics at Boise State University and went to work. I've never had any higher education. I now work as a farrier in Denmark. I have attended the national farrier course here and been certified, also went back to the States and got a certification from there. I got a good life and do great. A higher education is not for everyone, there are a lot of good vo-tec jobs out there and many like me will go this way instead. I think the key is know what you want and where you want to go.
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LCDR John Sahlin
This is excellent. I made a similar comment about the value of certifications in a separate thread. Having a good farrier is like having a good mechanic - when you need one, you REALLY need one now.
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I was never interested in post high school education prior to joining the U.S. Air Force and as far back as I can remember, all I wanted to do was serve my country. Fortunately for me, over the course of my career I had exemplary mentors who pushed me in the right direction and I have earned a few degrees during the past 19 years. Choosing a degree plan that mirrored my career path in the AF not only improved me as a NCO, but I feel it added value to the AF as I was able to apply things learned to what we do. I also believe a college education certainly helped me set the foundation for post-military employment and I credit the knowledge gained (including my military service) in getting my own franchise.
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TSgt (Join to see)
Amen to that SMSgt Suber. I'm set to retire very shortly and I'm bless to say that I've attained my degrees because of a few great mentors.
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In addition to the posting, above, I think it's worthy to mention the 'Million Records Project' compiled by the Student Veterans of America (SVA). The release of information in this project provided great insight to the value veterans place on higher education. It's long been assumed that GI Bill, Veteran payments, were being wasted on an incredibly high and discouraging drop out rate and tax payer dollars were being used inappropriately. Well, the MRP indicates other wise! Pull the results online and give a thorough read to the finding. I think you will be pleased to see how many men and women, utilizing their VA benefits, have actually achieved academic success. More importantly, to me, this is an indication of the value veterans place on higher education and their careers.
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I am currently deployed with the officer in the photo, what a strange coincidence (although we are at different locations). I am also attending AMU working towards my Master's in Homeland Security with an emphasis in Criminal Justice.
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Is there really a correlation between educational attainment and career success? Or is it just that the same traits necessary to attain educational degrees also contribute to career success?
As the demand for degree holding personnel has increased, the difficulty of attaining degrees has decreased in order to fulfill that demand. The rigor required today for a degree is less that it was 40 years ago, and that was less than 40 years before that. There should be no such thing as a remedial course in higher education.
Higher education should remain higher. Once, Greek and Hebrew were taught in high schools and today many have to take remedial English in college.
As the demand for degree holding personnel has increased, the difficulty of attaining degrees has decreased in order to fulfill that demand. The rigor required today for a degree is less that it was 40 years ago, and that was less than 40 years before that. There should be no such thing as a remedial course in higher education.
Higher education should remain higher. Once, Greek and Hebrew were taught in high schools and today many have to take remedial English in college.
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Lt Col (Join to see)
Up until recently in the Air Force, AADs were essentially required for officers to be promoted from captain to major.
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The more educated we as veterans are the more we can control our own destiny.
God Bless ALL!
God Bless ALL!
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