Associates Degree. Was it worth it?

Videodrome

Videodrome

Truckinator
Sep 12, 2013
12,892
9,956
3,730
BBQ Belt
banhammer.us
My parents offered to help me out if I tried college again. So I became a full-time student and finished an Associates in Cyber Security. I also participated in a Cyber-Defense team. You get no grade for it, but it's an opportunity to compete against other colleges.

During this time, I became interested in Linux or Unix(BSD) based systems and studied those a lot for Hacking purposes in Cyber-Defense. I think they have a strong application for security, servers, or personal use. My Netbook is on Arch Linux and so much faster now.

Strangely, I don't feel like I'm well positioned to get an IT job with my degree. I really wish now I had switched to a concentrated Linux/Unix degree, but I only started learning about that stuff later in my program. I also feel like I lack hands-on hardware experience and people ask me how much I've used Windows 8 which I've barely touched.

I just wondered if anyone has had a similar experience. I'm thinking of trying a few staffing agencies next week for entry level IT stuff. If I don't feel like I'm getting a response, I might just get any reasonable job in the area then I would try to develop my skills on the side. Maybe post accomplishments on a Blog site and also go for Certifications.

I dunno. People are trying to encourage me on the job search as a recent grad, and I just have this nagging feeling that finishing college usually doesn't work like that anymore. I feel like I should basically get web-space and configure a secured server so anyone can plainly see what I can setup.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Oblong
Dude, I know a girl with a Masters who's stuck working at a library. A lot of people are having trouble finding work, even with degrees out the ass. And I think it's only going to get worse.
 
I know a woman that went to a community college on a 2 year degree as a paralegal and got a job with a lawyer locally. She makes 5 figures ayear. I know that doesnt seem like much, but atleast shes not in a factory making 20 grand a year on an assembly line.
 
Freezasaurus said:
Dude, I know a girl with a Masters who's stuck working at a library. A lot of people are having trouble finding work, even with degrees out the ass. And I think it's only going to get worse.
Click to expand...

Yeah. It seems to me that it's all about luck as well. Trying to find a job that is related to your degree is all about "right-timing" and "luck". I got Associates Degree as well (graphic designer) and I did struggled to find a job for more than a year. I ended up working at Amazon.com and I loved every moment of it. I felt like I went to college for nothing. But it is what it is. That is only my personal experience.
 
From what I've seen lately, experience hold alot more weight than degrees right now. Grab the real world experience anyway you can. You may not get the high paying jobs at first but once your experience builds, that plus your degree will make you a much sought after candidate in the future for high paying, more lucrative positions.
 
lol thanks for the feedback. I've just been thinking about this a lot as I read the requirements for different jobs. For example, I've studied up on Linux, but I have no clue what it really means to be a Linux Server Administrator. I also see jobs requiring familiarity with programs I've never heard of.

Regarding what wshowers says, I've also been wondering if I need to create my own experience while doing a more regular mundane job to support myself. Even something like running a Minecraft server.

The strange thing is I've built up an unusual skillset. I'm somewhat acquainted with network security and some computer hacking. I need to attain a high level of trust and credibility to do that stuff professionally as a "White Hat Hacker".
 
Soda Jack said:
I know a woman that went to a community college on a 2 year degree as a paralegal and got a job with a lawyer locally. She makes 5 figures ayear. I know that doesnt seem like much, but atleast shes not in a factory making 20 grand a year on an assembly line.
Click to expand...
20 grad is 5 figures...
10 grand is 5 figures, lol.
 
  • Like
Reactions: morfeeis
Videodrome said:
lol thanks for the feedback. I've just been thinking about this a lot as I read the requirements for different jobs. For example, I've studied up on Linux, but I have no clue what it really means to be a Linux Server Administrator. I also see jobs requiring familiarity with programs I've never heard of.

Regarding what wshowers says, I've also been wondering if I need to create my own experience while doing a more regular mundane job to support myself. Even something like running a Minecraft server.

The strange thing is I've built up an unusual skillset. I'm somewhat acquainted with network security and some computer hacking. I need to attain a high level of trust and credibility to do that stuff professionally as a "White Hat Hacker".
Click to expand...
Experience is definitely key. The hard part of course is getting experience because everyone expects you to have experience.

Also, it's who you know. Try to know people.
 
Z A C K said:
Experience is definitely key. The hard part of course is getting experience because everyone expects you to have experience.

Also, it's who you know. Try to know people.
Click to expand...

Very True. I'm old school so I network with people alot face to face. While I appreciate facebook, linkedin and the like, I find I make better connections in person than online.
 
I think it's good to view education as an end in itself, not necessarily as a gateway to a specific career.

Having said that, I know next to nothing about IT, but it seems quite black and white in that you either know something (software, language etc.) or you don't know it. It's not like with a lot of jobs where you can just blag your way through until you find your feet.

Good luck out there.
 
Freezasaurus said:
Dude, I know a girl with a Masters who's stuck working at a library. A lot of people are having trouble finding work, even with degrees out the ass. And I think it's only going to get worse.
Click to expand...

Dude library workers can make f***ing insane god damn money. you ever ask her what she makes?

The issue with jobs unless your a doctor or doing some rare s*** you have to many workers and not enough jobs right now. I do IT or I want to but one job I went for and had an interview for the guy said he got over 300 apps for it. I did not get the job but the guy called me and said I really liked you and I think you'd do a fine job but I have to go with the person with the most exp.

Unless you know someone who get you into the well paying jobs you're pretty f***ed right now. I got sick of it and just made my own company and I'm doing home PC repair. The story's I could tell about interviews man people are f***ing ass holes.
 
Last edited:
I wish I could say an ass degree was worth more than your standard HS diploma, but unfortunately the only difference is the ass degree will cost you money and lots of it.
 
Videodrome said:
My parents offered to help me out if I tried college again. So I became a full-time student and finished an Associates in Cyber Security. I also participated in a Cyber-Defense team. You get no grade for it, but it's an opportunity to compete against other colleges.

During this time, I became interested in Linux or Unix(BSD) based systems and studied those a lot for Hacking purposes in Cyber-Defense. I think they have a strong application for security, servers, or personal use. My Netbook is on Arch Linux and so much faster now.

Strangely, I don't feel like I'm well positioned to get an IT job with my degree. I really wish now I had switched to a concentrated Linux/Unix degree, but I only started learning about that stuff later in my program. I also feel like I lack hands-on hardware experience and people ask me how much I've used Windows 8 which I've barely touched.

I just wondered if anyone has had a similar experience. I'm thinking of trying a few staffing agencies next week for entry level IT stuff. If I don't feel like I'm getting a response, I might just get any reasonable job in the area then I would try to develop my skills on the side. Maybe post accomplishments on a Blog site and also go for Certifications.

I dunno. People are trying to encourage me on the job search as a recent grad, and I just have this nagging feeling that finishing college usually doesn't work like that anymore. I feel like I should basically get web-space and configure a secured server so anyone can plainly see what I can setup.
Click to expand...

Congratulations! You received a degree from a degree mill. There is no job called "sits around and operates a computer." All real life jobs use computers as a tool to enhance something else that they do. For example, Accountants, Doctors, Nurses, Lawyers, are all examples of professions that use computers.

Here in 2014 computers are no longer mysterious things. There is no longer an IT department. It has all been farmed out to the Cloud, which is a thing that has eradicated IT in the last 10 years while internet know it all's kept doubting that it was a real thing.

All of those professions... when they have an issue with their computer, they just throw it in the trash, get a new computer, and sign onto their web app thingie. They can no longer afford to pay an IT guy $30 an hour to sit around and mess with your computer until it works, in a world where they can buy a new computer and have it going in 30 minutes themselves.

Small business IT guys, the guys with the little store. They serve poor people who don't have enough money to do that. While the ranks of the poor are increasing, I don't think you want to start your career here. It is a dead end.

Getting a degree in Unix/linux wouldn't have helped, because no one even uses servers anymore. They overwhelmingly now use cloud services for these basic tasks as well. And good luck getting into one of those server rooms with merely an associates. (thanks Snowden!)

I would say your best bet is to go to a real university, get a real degree in a real field.
 
The Cloud doesn't run on Servers?

Anyway, my aim was at Cyber Security and trying to be more sophisticated in the long run than just a Help Desk guy resetting passwords. I mean I see organizations like Target getting hit and many other security issues on the news.

It seems like a big deal and thought I had a reasonable expectation there is a demand for it. There probably is, but I would need to work really hard to prove to an employer I have those skills. Also, I honestly still need to develop those skills further, so I'm looking for any job in the mean time.

It's also possible I might be in a different situation if I continued to a Bachelors, but it just worked out this way. I was staying at my parents' place to save money and go to college full time and they moved. I stayed with other people a few months until I wrapped up my Associates program.

Who knows.... if I get any kind of job and push down my debt, I might bring my Associates to another college and try to build on it with 2 more years. I would hope to find a place that has more opportunity for Hands-On Practical experience. I have a severe lack of hardware experience which after going to college is a joke. If I had opened up PCs, Laptops, or Tablets and got my hands dirty, I think I could get a job at a small PC repair shop. I had an interview and I'm sure I didn't get a call back due to lack of practical experience.

Actually, if I got a crap job somewhere, but asked if I could Job Shadow on the side for free at the place that didn't hire me, I could probably have a more valuable experience than I got from most college classes.
 
Last edited:
Videodrome said:
The Cloud doesn't run on Servers?
Click to expand...

Not as a thing that a system administrator with an associates degree sits around and tinkers with to try and get a web service up and running on, they do not. Servers are now deployed by the shipping crate load. They truck the shipping crate into the server center, hook up cooling, electric, and network. Done. You just deployed 50,000 servers.

Look 10 years ago there was a lot of business setting up shopping carts for small businesses. Even that area has been bowled over by the cloud. Now you just go to Amazon or who ever, order your shopping cart for $30-$250 a month, type in your products, and the orders start rolling in. (well assuming you have a product) No network engineer is needed.

As recently as five years ago, hospitals were still writing their internal websites for their own record keeping. Now there are literally giant software packages that entire hospital systems use.

Now maybe you could get a gig at one of the largish companies doing these things, but they don't even seem interested in people with bachelors degrees anymore. They all want people with at least a masters.
 
Well.... I am thinking of applying to The Geek Squad. I think that is a fair entry level position for an Associates Degree. I certainly don't expect to walk into IBM or AT&T and get a high level. I don't even expect to Pen-Test until I build up experience and credibility.

I guess I was mostly venting that I think my college did a lousy job providing students with practical experience to get into the field. They followed this pervasive Teach-To-The-Test model prepping us for Certification Exams that most full-time students are to broke to afford.

BraddersTheDog

I thought the Baron was just into politics. I didn't realize he was big in IT unless he just sets policy standards for techs to follow and implement.
 
Call around your local temporary agencies. Its really the only way to get a job now a days.
It sucks but they do have benefits. You cab quit a job after work. If your unhappy where they placed you, and you have employment while looking for the job you want.
Around here temp agencies have work to hire for EVERYTHING.
The only thing that really sucks us you make (my example actually in thus situation right now) $11 while they make $21. You do get your foot in the door though.
 
Is there an IT equivalent of the casting couch? Whore yourself out. Suck as much dick possible. Kill if necessary. It's how I broke into Hollywood and eventually won an Oscar for my performance in The Goodbye Girl.
 
  • Like
Reactions: morfeeis
I'm not all that clued up on these associate degrees, but aren;t they supposed to be a stepping stone to a bachelor's degree, and not really in itself a full educational degree ?
 
Degrees are always worth it (excluding PHDs). Can you succeed in this world without hat little tidbit on your resume? Of course. However the day will come when you will want as much education as possible.

I hire for IT jobs, and when I get a big stack of resumes, what do I do? I hand them off to a secretary and tell them to filter out all the people who don't have a bachelors degree. Is it fair? Heck no. That's how it works though. I mean, am I going to interview 100 people? Uhhhh...... no. I'm going to look for a way to thin the herd.
 
Kerosene31 said:
Degrees are always worth it (excluding PHDs). Can you succeed in this world without hat little tidbit on your resume? Of course. However the day will come when you will want as much education as possible.

I hire for IT jobs, and when I get a big stack of resumes, what do I do? I hand them off to a secretary and tell them to filter out all the people who don't have a bachelors degree. Is it fair? Heck no. That's how it works though. I mean, am I going to interview 100 people? Uhhhh...... no. I'm going to look for a way to thin the herd.
Click to expand...
Next time you have a job opening just give 10 people who don't have 1 an interview. You'd be surprised what people learn when they have real world experience instead of a piece of paper.
Not everyone has the opportunity to go to college.
 
David said:
Next time you have a job opening just give 10 people who don't have 1 an interview. You'd be surprised what people learn when they have real world experience instead of a piece of paper.
Not everyone has the opportunity to go to college.
Click to expand...

I don't doubt it. A higher education gives you very little when it comes to jobs I do and hire for. That's the way the world works though. There should be a better way to measure people, but we rely on things like this.

Plus, what happens when they hire someone under you who has more education than you? I've had many bosses who didn't have degrees... they never lasted very long.

There's an expected level of education as you advance through most companies. It is not fair, but if you plan on working for others, get a degree.
 
Z A C K said:
20 grad is 5 figures...
10 grand is 5 figures, lol.
Click to expand...
Maybe he is on 6 figure or more, hence see not much distinction of range in 5 figure. LOL.

I am also 6 figure salary, before the government take half of it away....


Anyway, Degree, while not 100% need, does help. At worst, you do not use the skill you learn, or the degree, but it give you more possibilities.

If I have a degree, I can be a pop start of I wanted, but if I fail, I can always fall back to a job at the desk.

Also, if you choose to work outside USA, some European countries required you to have a degree before a work Visa is given for professional Job. Exception do apply though.
 
Last edited:
Degrees help resumes; simple as that. The higher the degree, the more it'll help the resume.
 
Get an entry level job with your Associates and stay there until you can get tuition reimbursement. Then do a couple classes a semester online (including summers) until you get your Bachelors with your company paying for it. Keeps your student loans down plus you are getting experience. By the time you are ready to move up, you'll have your degree and experience. Then you can be a successful corporate whore like the rest of us. :)
 
XBoxNeo said:
Congratulations! You received a degree from a degree mill. There is no job called "sits around and operates a computer." All real life jobs use computers as a tool to enhance something else that they do. For example, Accountants, Doctors, Nurses, Lawyers, are all examples of professions that use computers.

Here in 2014 computers are no longer mysterious things. There is no longer an IT department. It has all been farmed out to the Cloud, which is a thing that has eradicated IT in the last 10 years while internet know it all's kept doubting that it was a real thing.

All of those professions... when they have an issue with their computer, they just throw it in the trash, get a new computer, and sign onto their web app thingie. They can no longer afford to pay an IT guy $30 an hour to sit around and mess with your computer until it works, in a world where they can buy a new computer and have it going in 30 minutes themselves.

Small business IT guys, the guys with the little store. They serve poor people who don't have enough money to do that. While the ranks of the poor are increasing, I don't think you want to start your career here. It is a dead end.

Getting a degree in Unix/linux wouldn't have helped, because no one even uses servers anymore. They overwhelmingly now use cloud services for these basic tasks as well. And good luck getting into one of those server rooms with merely an associates. (thanks Snowden!)

I would say your best bet is to go to a real university, get a real degree in a real field.
Click to expand...

Are you trolling or are you really this f***ing dumb? This post is so f***ing r******d it had to take the short bus from your brain to your keyboard so you could post this dumb s***. IT jobs are alive and well and you can make mad bank doing them. Are there as many jobs in the sector as years ago no just like everything else times are tough but most small to medium to large company's have in house IT.
 
Videodrome said:
Well.... I am thinking of applying to The Geek Squad. I think that is a fair entry level position for an Associates Degree. I certainly don't expect to walk into IBM or AT&T and get a high level. I don't even expect to Pen-Test until I build up experience and credibility.

I guess I was mostly venting that I think my college did a lousy job providing students with practical experience to get into the field. They followed this pervasive Teach-To-The-Test model prepping us for Certification Exams that most full-time students are to broke to afford.

BraddersTheDog

I thought the Baron was just into politics. I didn't realize he was big in IT unless he just sets policy standards for techs to follow and implement.
Click to expand...

No geek squad is for f***ing morons trust me I did it myself for like 3 months. All it takes to work there is the ability to turn on a a computer and you have to have or earn your A+. All they give a s*** is about sales and such BS. It will at most help you build up a work history but that is it. you won't learn s*** about computers you don't already know and one great thing is you can work there 10 years and be a modal worker and best buy won't give you a reference. The only reference you could get is from a boss who really likes you and is willing to be a personal reference.
 
TOPDAWG said:
No geek squad is for f***ing morons trust me I did it myself for like 3 months. All it takes to work there is the ability to turn on a a computer and you have to have or earn your A+. All they give a s*** is about sales and such BS. It will at most help you build up a work history but that is it. you won't learn s*** about computers you don't already know and one great thing is you can work there 10 years and be a modal worker and best buy won't give you a reference. The only reference you could get is from a boss who really likes you and is willing to be a personal reference.
Click to expand...


Just sayin Geek Squad is something to do while I continue my education getting Certs and I want to study Python. Also, I'm not exactly excited about working in Geek Squad. I think it's the IT equivalent of being a car salesman.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top Bottom
Back