What do you guys think of graduate certificates?

[leland.kirk]

I only recently even found out they existed, and was considering finding one in creative writing for fun

[Ideas]

I think there are some really good ones offered. I like how many have a very specific topic.

However, have you looked at the costs? Unfortunately a lot of them cost a lot, which makes sense, since they are basically 1/4 to 1/2 of a Masters degree. They are often 9-18 credits. I see some that are more or less credits.

[dfrecore]

Depends. I think on this forum in particular, people are very gung-ho for continued education where they can show some kind of "proof" that they learned something. If I was going to do something for "fun" I wouldn't need a piece of paper to tell anyone about it. I would just do it, probably fairly cheaply (MOOC's or something like that), and happily educate myself without paying a school a bunch of money for the privilege. But that's just me, and I'm cheap. And don't care much about credentials, as far as just having them - if you need them for a job, then by all means, get them.

[Ideas]

That's true, at many schools you could take the same exact classes, but pay little or nothing if you don't want college/grad credit.

Sometimes you find a certificate for under $350 a credit, and sometimes they are lower numbers of credit.

[leland.kirk]

My local university is pretty far, otherwise non-credit versions of a class or two would be brilliant. And you guys are right, the price on all the certificates I'm seeing are a little too high to be 'worth it', at least for me. I'll probably just take some time off for NaNoWriMo when it comes up, haha

[Ideas]

There are some non-credit online versions. I wish there were more with good prices

[dfrecore]

If you're a creative writer, wouldn't it be far more practical to just start writing? I think the thing you could show someone, if ever asked, is actual samples of your writing. "Here's my blog, here's some articles I wrote for XYZ publication, here's my book that I wrote." That's a hell of a lot more impressive than a certificate!

[armstrongsubero]

If I could afford it I would do some grad certs at Harvard.

[DavidHume]

If you're a creative writer, wouldn't it be far more practical to just start writing? I think the thing you could show someone, if ever asked, is actual samples of your writing. "Here's my blog, here's some articles I wrote for XYZ publication, here's my book that I wrote." That's a hell of a lot more impressive than a certificate!

I started freelance writing a little over a year ago. This was before I had finished my degree from TESU. You're right, no one cared about credentials, only that I could produce the desired product in a specified time range. The only certificate I would recommend for this route would be SEO practices, as many businesses ask for SEO skills in freelancers and it's not always obviously proven with samples.
If what the OP is after is more creative writing, I'd suggest finding a local writing group through the library or Meetup as many of those are set up a lot like the workshop sessions in MFA programs.

[leland.kirk]

Right on, I think a workshop or group would be great if I could find one. The main thing for me is accountability if that makes sense. Though I suppose I could have a friend give me a deadline of sorts