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How much college do you need?

I am a junior in high school #college #college-advice #high-school #money #college-selection #BLM2

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Subject: Career question for you

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Gloria’s Answer

Hi Swole,

How much college you need depends on what you want to do for a living. Do you have something in mind what what you want to do as a job? If not, I think that college can be a great place to discover what you are passionate about. Most college degrees are a four-year program for your Bachelor's degree. In my job as an Instructional Designer, I found that I most benefited from continuing on to get a Master's Degree in my job field. That was mostly related to the level of detail that was covered in that program in regard to my field. My Master's program was actually about doing the work in the job that I do. I would add that it was important for me to go to college while I was working. It really helped me value my Master's experience. College is an expensive proposition. If you can work for a company that offers tuition reimbursement, that helps alleviate the money worries. It is, however, a lot more stressful to work and go to college. It is very much like having two jobs. I think that if you are passionate about what you want to do, college is not as stressful since you are doing something that you want to do and learn more about.

Good luck on your college search.
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Gianna’s Answer

Hello Swole,

For most degrees, you will need to go to college for 4 years. This will allow you to have more job opportunities in various fields. If you are unsure on what you'd like to pursue, it might be best to start at a 2 year school, like a community college to save money and try to figure out what interests you.
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Sarah’s Answer

This question is dependent on what you want to do after high school or college in terms of career. An Associate's degree can be obtained in as little as two years, Bachelor's is typically four years, and any additional schooling for a Master's and beyond would require further studies. Other careers can require only small courses to obtain certifications or can even be done with little to no schooling. Once you find out what you want to do after high school you can more easily make the determination on requirements for college.

Sarah recommends the following next steps:

Identify a career path
Determine the level of schooling/certification typically required
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Aaron’s Answer

Yes - really depends on career path and your personal interests. Additional suggestions from above maybe to explore some job postings and pay attention to the required skills/minimum requirements. Some list some desired skills for higher education but those may not be required.

Aaron recommends the following next steps:

Review job postings for career interests.
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Michael’s Answer

It depends on the career path you want to take. College isn't for everyone and sometimes trade school is the right choice. Typically, a 2 year trade school is needed for trad jobs (electrician, plumber, etc.) and additional time as an apprentice. Most career opportunities involve a 4-year bachelor degree and then specialist careers such as accounting, actuary, lawyer, doctor require additional school after the 4-year program. It may take a while and may cost a lot in student loans, but it is like an investment in yourself - it will be worth it in the long run.

Good luck with your future!
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Kimberly’s Answer

Hi Swole,

Great question! I would say 4 years is the average time spent in college to earn your undergraduate degree. If you are unsure what profession you want to get into, then I would suggest selecting a major that can be applied to many fields and something that you find of interest. Even if your future career only requires a 2 year degree or less, it never hurts to have more education under your belt. Aside from academics, college is a great time to experience life on your own, figure out who you are, and the chance to meet new people. My college years were some of my favorite years and if I could do it all again, I would do so in a heartbeat!
Good luck!
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Richard’s Answer

This all depends on what job you want to have in the future. Many colleges offer three types of schooling -- a four year degree, a two year degree, or a work-based certificate.

The certificates usually require the least schooling, but only qualify you for entry level jobs that are more based on work-experience in that field. There is typically the least opportunity for advancement with these, but a lot of great jobs require these certificates.

Two-year degrees and four-year degrees are similar in that they have more schooling and also prepare you more for higher-paying jobs. Four-year degrees prepare the way for graduate education plans for the most advanced jobs.
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Rachel’s Answer

I needed a bachelor's degree and all of the pre-med requirements. These took me 4 years to complete.
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Carolyn’s Answer

Hi Swole,

That is a good question. It all depends on what your interests are. Depending on what you are interested in, you might not even need to go to college you might just need to get a certification or go to a tech school. I have a bachelor's degree in psychology currently and it has opened a lot of doors for me that I never even expected. Such as a career in emergency management or even joining the FBI to become a Special Agent. I would recommend if you want to take the college route, to get a bachelor's degree because most jobs require a bachelor's degree or some sort of education at least and then go from there. I think that if you go to college and get involved, you will find a career path that is right for you.
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Ryan’s Answer

This depends what you would like to do as an occupation in the future. Many jobs require a 4 year degree and any additional degrees or years of college can help better your career. There are also jobs that don't require a college degree at all, but again this varies on what you would like to do.
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Kathryne’s Answer

Hi, Swole!

I think any sort of degree is good. I say degree because you can get certifications or go into higher education after getting a degree (usually a bachelors degree, which is 4 years).

I think having a degree shows some things: it shows that you learned about something more in-depth than you learned about other things (ex. you went to college for math, so you learned more about math than literature). This, whatever "this" is for you, is a skill or a knowledge base for you. There are also peripheral skills that you get from a degree. For example, let's say, again, that you went to college for math. You probably learned how to show your work to get to an answer, or you learned how to be efficient about doing your work (ex. you learned how to be good at time management because let's say your math problems/homework took a very long time to complete).

The other thing that it shows is that you learned how to think critically about something and you were dedicated to academics. You were excited to learn and about learning in general. You will never stop learning in life, so having a degree teaches you how to learn (what is the best way that you learn) and it shows others (ex. employers) that you are capable of learning (ex. learning whatever it is that the employer is hiring you to do).



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