Burbuja's "I'm Done" Post

[rvm]

CONGRATULATIONS!!! I'm so proud of how to set your goal and stuck to even though you have many other commitments, esp little kids! I'm so glad to hear you're staying (on the forum) as well!

[PonyGirl93]

You are a rockstar, and that graduate program sounds amazing, good luck and don't ever leave us!

[Storyteller]

Your completion message was a welcome sight indeed! Thank you for keeping us informed of your progress and your continued energetic support of continuing education. I always looked forward to reading your messages and getting your "take" on so many diverse subjects.
Continued success with your Masters program...
And keep us apprized of your progress!
Congratulations a thousand times over!!!!!!!!!

[Lindagerr]

CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!!!!

cheersmate cheersmate Well done you have been a dynamo. Let us know what happens with the MBA, you sound like a shoe in.

[LaceyLady]

[SIZE="4"]Congratulations!!![/SIZE]

You have worked hard and completed your goal! It is amazing how you are able to work full time, take care of 5 kids, homeschool, and get a college degree so quickly! You really are an inspiration.

Best wishes for your masters!

:hurray:

[Sunshine]

[SIZE="5"]Congrats!! [/SIZE]cheersmate

Sounds like the perfect grad program, too! Please let us know how it goes. :coolgleam:

[bkahuna]

First and foremost, let me tell you. YOU ROCK!!!!! Congratulations!!!!! HUGE!!!

Thank you so much for your contributions to this site which were a personal help to me, I really can't thank you enough!

It really made me sad, and I have to admit that I had a huge chip on my shoulder, feeling like even though I am very successful at work, that somehow I was inferior to my colleagues because I didn't have a degree.

I too share this feeling. Not so much because I feel inferior, but its when I go looking for a new job I am confronted with close minded HR policies and recruiters. 'We'd love to submit you for this job and you are clearly an A player with A+ results, but you dont have a degree and the hiring company is insistent on that'. Well I finally heard that FOR THE LAST TIME and then got started.

However, as time went by and my career luckily went well, I found myself not only surrounded by people with graduate degrees, but even HIRING people with master's degrees. It made me feel even more inadequate. After all, what if my direct reports found out that I didn't have even my undergrad! I became really discouraged and decided to give the "CLEP thing" a try. After all.. I wasn't going to finish college without doing anything, right?

I've also been both good and lucky (though I think "luck" is really preparation meeting opportunity). One advantage I've had is having reviewed 750+ resumes and interviewing over 100 people in my career. Whats stunning is the amount of material people with advanced degrees dont know if they've had no work experience. EXPERIENCE is everything. I have been very open at this job with regard to not having it though, The transparency and honesty was freeing and lessened the chip on my shoulder.

I find that here the degree is a door opener for opportunities, more than in New York City or San Francisco. Most companies in the major cities are focused on what you can do, not what you've done.

If I can do this, everyone here can. You just really need to take the leap of faith and move forward. The single most important piece of advice I could give is to take things one test at a time. Move slowly if you have to, but MOVE. If you don't set small goals, the big goal will never happen. Schedule your next test NOW!!

TRUER WORDS HAVE NEVER BEEN SPOKEN! I remember getting my transcript 18 months ago from my B&M which showed 41 credits and a pathetic GPA. I put the transcript in the filing cabinet and didnt look at it again. Then I discovered the same resources you did and When I kicked off my degree odyssey this time, only 21 of my 41 credits transferred to EC. I remember looking at the remaining 94 credits and it seemed so daunting. But I put one foot in front of the other and in 3 months exactly, I had completed 91 credits! I even remember the first 2 weeks of testing, looking at the remaining number and thinking 'When will this be done? I dont have many 6 credit CLEPS left!'. So I put a plan in place, stepped up and did 2 or 3 CLEP/DSST at a time once or twice a week.

I would have done this sooner, but I've come to the realization that 1. I probably wasn't ready back in 1997 and 2. they didnt have DSST back then. What CLEP's my B&M did have weren't well advertised and they only accepted a few anyway.

I will be the absolute proudest graduate at the COSC ceremony next month and I am not even sure how I'll make it without sobbing the entire time!

When I tell people I basically completed my undergrad in 3 months I think they're impressed. My mentor told me
"You dont have a masters degree? I thought you did! It never even crossed my mind." and colleagues here at work say "It doesn't suprise me, of course you did, its YOU". I think that if you share your experience with others I bet you will get the same feedback.


S!!! YOU ROCK!!!! And I still cant get over the fact that you have both a full time career and 5 kids! YOU'RE AN INSPIRATION.

P.s. I still havent told my family other than my wife. I'm waiting until the capstone is done and then I'm going to drop the bomb! My brother has more credits at the same B&M and still hasn't graduated so I'm gonna SCORE BOARD him hehe Maybe he will get inspired to finish!

[HorseManiac]

[SIZE="5"]WAY TO GO!!![/SIZE] That is a great accomplishment!! I really appreciate all the help you've given to me and all the others on this forum! Good luck with your MBA program!!

[burbuja0512]

You guys are way too nice. I love this forum - everyone on here is always willing to lend a hand.

@BKahuna.. your bro is going to be SHOCKED!! Be prepared in case he doesn't believe you or questions the legitimacy of a test degree. It can make even the closest of friends or family upset that they spent so much time and money on a degree and you whiz through it quickly and (relatively) cheaply.

Also - I know what you mean about the HR roadblock. I have a theory about this. Most HR people I've met in the larger companies I've worked at have masters degrees. I'm not sure if the HR field is really competitive or what, but they all seem to have advanced education. I've always thought that since their education got them their job that they're not willing to put someone through the hiring process unless the candidate has also done the same. Lol.. I'll just use LinkedIn and find out who the hiring manager is and give them a call. Who needs the recruiter?

[costic]

[SIZE="5"]CONGRATULATIONS!![/SIZE]

:hurray: :hurray:

Your posts have inspired me over the months Burbuja. I wish you well and best wishes on the MBA track!