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Certification or Graduate Degree
#1
Any Project Managers out there?

Other than the stigma that a degree equates to "smarter," what are the actual benefits of obtaining a degree in a field over being certified (by the agency that essentially started the craze).

I have studied to the PMI Certified Project Managers Exam but recently found a university that offers it as an MBA option. Since Im in the market for a grad degree anyway - I figured "hey"
Obviously there will be more work, and more cost. And then I'll have the MBA to sling wildly on my resume and email signatures...but as far as skills...am I missing something?

Experience, well, although I do it everyday, my job title doesn't truly indicate my actual role. I don't know.

My other option was to try my hand at the TESU MBA in data analytics which would cost more than twice as much (but perhaps an extra BS in data could work too).

Wanna know the truth? I honestly just want to have the best combination of education and skills to ensure that I can work from home and homeschool my kids until I decide to retire. That's the dream. I don't have kids now, but when I do...I don't want to have to go back to work in 6 weeks and only see my kid at night and on the weekends. I know there are a lot of homeschooling parents here that may understand my vision.

My husband is cool with the idea of me staying home but I also don't want him to be the only one providing - I mean, I'm able bodied, I can work. Just don't want to do it in an office. Maybe on a beach. I hear coastal Virginia is beautiful this time of year....
TESU Commencement - Saturday, September 23, 2017!

Goal: TESU, BSBA General Management by September 2017
68/120 credits completed
In Progress This Month
Prin of Mgmt, Org Behavior, Bus Law, Prin of Fin (DSST)


November 2016
TESU Info Session (waived app fee + free breakfast)
Previous B&M - 45 cr. transferred
March 2017
Aleks - Intermediate Alg, College Alg, Intro to Stats
Institutes - Ethics
Guardian Scholarship Awarded 3/23/17
April 2017
Study.com - Personal Finance, Digital Marketing & Advertising
May 2017
World Religions, Pr. of Marketing
Reply
#2
MD_AJIBULU Wrote:My husband is cool with the idea of me staying home but I also don't want him to be the only one providing - I mean, I'm able bodied, I can work. Just don't want to do it in an office. Maybe on a beach. I hear coastal Virginia is beautiful this time of year....

No idea on the MBA vs. cert.

But what I did want to say was that I stopped working when my oldest was born. Haven't earned a dime since then. I am able-bodied, and CAN work, but choose not to. Because we have found that my NOT working is actually allowing my husband to be successful in his career, and difference between what he makes now is more than 4 times what he made when I quit. Meaning, it can't be accounted for in just moving up the ladder over time. He is so able to focus on his career, and not worry about what's going on at home, that he has really excelled, and I could not make enough to compensate for that.

And, BTW - every single successful salesperson that he works with has a stay-at-home wife. Many don't even have kids in the home any longer, and now their wives travel with them a ton (possibly my plan in a few years). And these guys all RAVE about how wonderful their wives are. All of them. They credit them with their success.

Just a thought, from the other side of things. I never thought going into this that my staying home would actually enable us to make MORE money than we could make as a 2-income household.
TESU BSBA/HR 2018 - WVNCC BOG AAS 2017 - GGU Cert in Mgmt 2000
EXAMS: TECEP Tech Wrtg, Comp II, LA Math, PR, Computers  DSST Computers, Pers Fin  CLEP Mgmt, Mktg
COURSES: TESU Capstone  Study.com Pers Fin, Microecon, Stats  Ed4Credit Acct 2  PF Fin Mgmt  ALEKS Int & Coll Alg  Sophia Proj Mgmt The Institutes - Ins Ethics  Kaplan PLA
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#3
TESU has an MS in Management, and one of the specializations is Project Management. Their MBA specializations is more about field of work, rather than type within any given field.

MSM and MBA are typically seen as equivalent to most employers. Unlike the leadership masters, which seem like an MBA on the surface, but deviate quite differently.

What you may want to do is to chart how your BS will transfer into their MBA and MSM w/ PM. Then perhaps see if any of your BS credits will transfer into either program efficiently. Then compare the outcome.

They also have a certificate in PM, but financial aid will not cover it.
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#4
A PMP Certificate with a BSBA will work. There is a simple difference between an MBA and Certifications.
The MBA shows discipline and the ability to follow things through.
The Certification shows your understanding and the ability to do the job.

At the end of the day it will be what the employer is looking for to add to his organization. An MBA with PMP, and PM-ACP will get you far.

Depending on where you live and what you want to do will dictates whether you need IT certs, Healthcare Certs, HR certs. All of them will pay well in the end!

Good luck!
Degrees:
Associate: Pikes Peak Community College - Associate of General Studies 2012
Bachelors: Thomas Edison State College - BSBA (General Management) 2013 ~ Arnold Fletcher Award Recipient
Link to Degree Plan
MBA: Patten University - Master of Business Administration - Information Technology 2017
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#5
dfrecore Wrote:Just a thought, from the other side of things. I never thought going into this that my staying home would actually enable us to make MORE money than we could make as a 2-income household.

I love this dfrecore! Seriously. This gives me so much hope.
TESU Commencement - Saturday, September 23, 2017!

Goal: TESU, BSBA General Management by September 2017
68/120 credits completed
In Progress This Month
Prin of Mgmt, Org Behavior, Bus Law, Prin of Fin (DSST)


November 2016
TESU Info Session (waived app fee + free breakfast)
Previous B&M - 45 cr. transferred
March 2017
Aleks - Intermediate Alg, College Alg, Intro to Stats
Institutes - Ethics
Guardian Scholarship Awarded 3/23/17
April 2017
Study.com - Personal Finance, Digital Marketing & Advertising
May 2017
World Religions, Pr. of Marketing
Reply
#6
armyb77 Wrote:A PMP Certificate with a BSBA will work. There is a simple difference between an MBA and Certifications.
The MBA shows discipline and the ability to follow things through.
The Certification shows your understanding and the ability to do the job.

At the end of the day it will be what the employer is looking for to add to his organization. An MBA with PMP, and PM-ACP will get you far.

Depending on where you live and what you want to do will dictates whether you need IT certs, Healthcare Certs, HR certs. All of them will pay well in the end!

Good luck!

I would looooove to get my MBA with PMP and get something in the data analytics realm. Im thinking of paying for the courses that TESU partners with, Statistics.com and just study along with them slowly while Im doing all this other stuff.
TESU Commencement - Saturday, September 23, 2017!

Goal: TESU, BSBA General Management by September 2017
68/120 credits completed
In Progress This Month
Prin of Mgmt, Org Behavior, Bus Law, Prin of Fin (DSST)


November 2016
TESU Info Session (waived app fee + free breakfast)
Previous B&M - 45 cr. transferred
March 2017
Aleks - Intermediate Alg, College Alg, Intro to Stats
Institutes - Ethics
Guardian Scholarship Awarded 3/23/17
April 2017
Study.com - Personal Finance, Digital Marketing & Advertising
May 2017
World Religions, Pr. of Marketing
Reply
#7
MD_AJIBULU Wrote:I would looooove to get my MBA with PMP and get something in the data analytics realm. Im thinking of paying for the courses that TESU partners with, Statistics.com and just study along with them slowly while Im doing all this other stuff.

That's a lot of goals. If I were you, I would concentrate on the BSBA for now, finish that, and then if you still want the Data Analytics degree, and you have to wait a while for conferral anyway, that would be a good time to study for the PMP cert. Then go back to the DA degree and get that.

Oh yeah, and now that we've heard that the residency waiver is good for 1 year from date of payment, that means that you need to get moving on the DA courses as quickly as possible after you get conferral (or even start the first course before you get conferral, but don't complete it until after you get conferral). You basically have a countdown clock ticking on you, and it's $2500 if you don't beat it!
TESU BSBA/HR 2018 - WVNCC BOG AAS 2017 - GGU Cert in Mgmt 2000
EXAMS: TECEP Tech Wrtg, Comp II, LA Math, PR, Computers  DSST Computers, Pers Fin  CLEP Mgmt, Mktg
COURSES: TESU Capstone  Study.com Pers Fin, Microecon, Stats  Ed4Credit Acct 2  PF Fin Mgmt  ALEKS Int & Coll Alg  Sophia Proj Mgmt The Institutes - Ins Ethics  Kaplan PLA
Reply
#8
dfrecore Wrote:That's a lot of goals. If I were you, I would concentrate on the BSBA for now, finish that, and then if you still want the Data Analytics degree, and you have to wait a while for conferral anyway, that would be a good time to study for the PMP cert. Then go back to the DA degree and get that.

Oh yeah, and now that we've heard that the residency waiver is good for 1 year from date of payment, that means that you need to get moving on the DA courses as quickly as possible after you get conferral (or even start the first course before you get conferral, but don't complete it until after you get conferral). You basically have a countdown clock ticking on you, and it's $2500 if you don't beat it!

Thats pretty much the plan dfrecore - focusing on the BSBA until thats done...then the PMP. But to clarify, if I pay the $1800 res wav to complete the BSBA...it remains in effect for a full year? So any classes I take towards another degree at TESU will fall under those monies? Like getting two degrees for one res wav (if I chose to do that)?

I need to be sure IM understanding this correctly because that's actually a decent plan if I can come up with the money for each class (about $549 each).
TESU Commencement - Saturday, September 23, 2017!

Goal: TESU, BSBA General Management by September 2017
68/120 credits completed
In Progress This Month
Prin of Mgmt, Org Behavior, Bus Law, Prin of Fin (DSST)


November 2016
TESU Info Session (waived app fee + free breakfast)
Previous B&M - 45 cr. transferred
March 2017
Aleks - Intermediate Alg, College Alg, Intro to Stats
Institutes - Ethics
Guardian Scholarship Awarded 3/23/17
April 2017
Study.com - Personal Finance, Digital Marketing & Advertising
May 2017
World Religions, Pr. of Marketing
Reply
#9
That's correct. So it's best paid as late as possible(as long as that $1800 deal is still around) so you could potentially go for another degree without having to pay that fee. You'd still have to pay for the new capstone, other classes that cannot be tested out of and a new graduation fee. But that's still $1800 you would not longer have to pay as long as you are in the time frame.

BTW, on your signature you have July for Principles of marketing and digital marketing, those courses shouldn't take you a whole month(unless you've planned it not to take a whole month Smile )
Started Sept. 2016 -Thomas Edison State Univeristy - BSBA - Marketing 120/120 DONE
ACE/ALT 41 CR
TECEP: 15 CR
ALEKS: Intermediate Algebra l College Algebra l Statistics l
The Institutes: Ethics
Saylor: Principles of Marketing
Straighterline: American Government l Intro to Religion l Principles of Management l English Comp II l
Study.com : Business 308 l History 108 l Principles of Finance l Digital Marketing
CSU CBE: Market Research l
TECEP: Strategic Management l  Public relations l Advertising l Sales Mgmt l Marketing Comm
Community College B&M Courses (2013-2015) 64 CR General Ed. and Business
Short-term Objective: TESU BSBA in Marketing by Sept. 2017 (DONE!) Graduating in June
Long-term Objective: Career in marketing then eventually MBA or MSC in Marketing later on  
Reply
#10
I am in the same boat as you, dfrecore. Staying home with 3 kids after a successful career. Now happily supporting my husband so he can concentrate on the job. All 5 of us happy with our lives, much more so than when I tried to work and juggle kids (sometimes literally Wink
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