My Ashford University Experience : certification

Tonight I have applied to LSU

Cajun — Thu, 15 May 2008 03:36:00 GMT

I’ve been talking about it for a while now and tonight I finally put my money where my mouth is. I paid the $50 application fee and applied to the LSU post graduate Certificate of Accounting program offered through the distance learning portion of the Ourso College of Business in Baton Rogue, Louisiana. I will be working on this as I complete these last 3 classes of my MBA program. The thing that makes this possible is the fact that these courses are completely self paced. One downer is that I will have to take the mids and finals at a proctored testing center, the kind that you have to pay between $25 and $50 per test at but other than that it looks almost perfect for me.

The certificate requires a bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited college…check. It also requires at least 6 intermediate accounting classes…um…check…sort of. I took Managerial Finance and Managerial Accounting in my MBA program so I’m hoping that this will do. Otherwise I may have to remediate by taking 3 to 6 hours of intermediate accounting which would really stink, but at least I wouldn’t be getting in over my head.

I really haven’t decided to go into finance or accounting as a profession, but I do have a significant hole in my managerial skill set and I think this will fix that and give me something to show for my efforts. That plus the certificate program is dirt cheap and gets me half way to a CPA in Texas if I ever decide to go that route.

Lastly there is the nostalgia. As a kid I was a hard core, dyed in the wool Tiger fan, still am. I was raised in and near Baton Rogue, a town that bleeds purple and gold. Every kid from that area wants to grow up to go to LSU and my grandmother always wanted that for me and my brothers so this kind of fulfills that desire. Every member of my family on my dad’s side with the exception of the few who attended Tulane, attended LSU. So there you have it, how could I ask for anything else right?

Geaux Tigers!!!

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10 Quick Study Tips and Tricks

Cajun — Sat, 03 May 2008 19:08:00 GMT

I sometimes get asked “how do you remember all of that stuff” when talking about tests I’ve taken for computer certifications such as the Comptia A+, Network+ and a bunch of stuff I’ve learned throughout earning my BS and MBA. Honestly there is no one trick or tip that works for everything but there are some that will work for most things.

1.) Set time limits on your reading. I find that I can usually give about 100% for the first 30 minutes or so of reading and then I need a 10 to 15 minute break in order to retain the most amount of information. Last minute “cramming” this ain’t. You have to carefully schedule your study times based upon your retention and attention span. Me? I can take even the most dry topic for 30 minutes. If it is an interesting topic I MAY be able to stretch things to an hour so I try to be flexible.

2.) Do not schedule studying either early in the morning or late at night unless you are normally alert at that time. I don’t know why, but many people study around the edges of sleep time. This is not an effective way to remember things. Instead pick a time when you are usually at your most alert and do it then. Here’s a hint, if you are yawning, you may not be getting the most out of your time.

3.) Take notes. Summarize what you read in sections and paraphrase things. This forces you to comprehend what you’ve read and makes for a super handy last minute study guide.

4.) Stick to the curriculum provided by the instructor and set a schedule by it. If they tell you to read pages 10 – 90 then read 10 – 90. Sometimes you get tempted to flip through the book looking for something more interesting to look at. This isn’t a magazine, it’s a textbook and you need to focus upon what you should be learning, not reading ahead or behind looking for something more entertaining as this can be a severe time waster.

5.) Turn off the TV.

6.) Try not to answer the phone or do anything that can break a chain of thought.

7.) Study one subject at a time. Don’t flip back and forth between 2 subjects as this can get confusing, messy and eventually you’ll retain less of both subjects rather than if you study each independent and exclusive to one another. In other words, don’t flip between biology and algebra in the same study session if possible without a good long break in between after finishing on one or the other.

8.) Learn how to skim through a text for the important stuff while skipping the fluff. Sometimes chapter outlines and table of contents can help you in this. You’re doing well if you can look at the table of contents and be able to tell something about everything listed there without referencing your notes or the text.

9.) Take naps when you need them without oversleeping.

10.)Don’t wear pajamas or bedtime clothes when studying or lay in bed unless you can do so without causing your psyche to think it is bedtime and therefore diminish your attentiveness.

There, well I hope these help.

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10 Traps, Pitfalls and Shortcomings of Earning a Degree Online Part II (6-10)

Cajun — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 01:56:00 GMT

This is part II of a two part series. (Click to view part I.)

6.) Technology. Technology is an inevitable part of being an online student. Using new, unfamiliar software and mastering the art of using it skillfully will become essential. If you are still carrying a pager, use a rotary phone, are afraid of a fax machine and believe scientific calculators are still over $100.00 you may need to reassess your ability to adapt quickly enough to learning via an online format.

7.) Will power. Also called grit, guts, stamina or courage. You must have the ability to get knocked down and get back up. You have to be able to motivate yourself, likely nobody else will do it for you. If you get an “F” on an assignment you really worked hard on, it’ll knock the wind out of you. But you have to get tough, work harder, be objective and keep slugging away. Nobody is likely going to be cheering you on, nobody will beg you to do the work, nobody will care if you drop out or fail other than you and possibly close relatives. It’s up to you to get it done. You have to be able to accept failure and move on. You have to be able to overcome your shortcomings and keep growing. You have to accept the fact that you are nowhere near perfect and get over yourself enough to get better. You have to have will power. Campus based students will have to have some of this but they will also have the support of a peer group and the knowledge that their friends are sharing their experience. You on the other hand are going to go it very much alone by comparison.

8.) Self -discipline. Self-discipline is not will power, but it is a close cousin. The difference between will power and self discipline is that will power is what motivates you. Will power is the voice in your head that tells you go get up and keep going when you’ve been knocked down, the thing that keeps your feet moving underneath you when you don’t think you can run anymore. Self-discipline is the fore knowledge of what you need to do, making a plan and sticking to that plan no matter what. Self-discipline is the ability to delay pleasure in the knowledge that the sacrifice will pay in the long run. Will power is the drive where self-discipline is the map. One without the other is useless. You have to be self-disciplined. You will not have the peer support or pressure to show up to class every day like your campus-based peers will have. You will not be meeting friends in study groups at night motivating you to do so. Your success and reaching goals will depend 100% on your ability to envision what needs to happen and stick to the plan.

9.) Reading comprehension. You will have to read everything you learn likely. Where your peers can sit through lectures and hear the information, you will have to read it. Where your peers can reinforce the knowledge imparted to the class through discussions, you will have to read and write about what you are learning. It is likely that you will be required to have a higher level of reading comprehension than your campus based peers because it is the primary if not the only means of communication in online learning. You likely will not have auditory reinforcement of the information like sitting through a lecture. You will not likely have the visual of seeing the information being demonstrated on a chalkboard. With rare exception all the information relayed to you will be via text and graphics, nothing more. You will have to learn to comprehend what you read. This will include skillful note taking, learning your reading comprehension limits (we all have them) and develop a means of overcoming your shortcomings. For example, I find it hard to concentrate on a text for over 30 straight minutes without a break. Otherwise I am reading, but not comprehending the text. The more precise and dry the material, the shorter my attention span is. As such I take careful, easily referenced notes and take a break of 5 to 10 minutes at least once every half-hour without fail. That is what works for me, you will have to develop a plan that works for you.

10.) Communication through writing. This is a shortcoming for many, many people. I revise reports daily as part of my official duties in the workplace and I continually see people who struggle in the area of communicating effectively in written word. You would not be alone in this struggle. I too have spent and continue to spend minutes upon hours upon years developing my writing skills. It is an art form that few people if any, ever perfect, yet one that must be mastered to a high level of competence in online learning as this will be your primary if not only means of expressing your thoughts and engaging in the communication process. You may have a way with words and wit in person, but translating this onto the page is a struggle I believe most people, myself included engage in.

Well there you have it. I hope this post does not scare you off of attempting a degree online, but there are things you need to be aware of before committing your time and money to such a momentous undertaking as earning a degree online.

I welcome any comments, questions or suggestions you may have here or email if you prefer.

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The Professional Certificate: Part III of III

Cajun — Sat, 27 Oct 2007 18:35:00 GMT

We have already discussed the differences between academic certificates, professional certificates and professional certificates for licensure at http://community.elearners.com/blogs/ashford_university_blog/archive/2007/10/24/what-is-the-difference-between-various-certificates-academic-vs-professional-vs-licensure.aspx.

On this post we will discuss the professional and professional licensure certificates in a little more detail. As stated previously a professional certificate can be:

1.) A license or "certification" necessary to work within a given profession, like a Certified Public Accountant.
2.) A certification which while not necessary to work within a given profession, it may be required by some employers and at the least will demonstrate a certain level of skill within a specific area. Like the Project Management Institute's "PMP" certification.
3.) A certificate which will prepare one for a professional certification like the PMP or other standardized test by meeting a required amount of "clock hours" of training. This particular kind of certificate has more in common with academic certificates than with certifications per se, but since a transcript is not generally supplied denoting semester hours, I lump it into the professional certificate area. A good example is Rutgers University http://onlinetraining.rutgers.edu/ various online management certificates.

These types of certificates and certifications will occasionally have a minimum educational requirement, such as a requirement by a Board of Public Accountancy requiring a Bachelor of Science with a minimum of 30 upper division credit hours to even sit for the CPA exam. At other times there is no minimum education requirement, even though it may be advised by the testing agency, such as CompTIA. At other times the education requirements may even be another certificate or certification such as Cisco Systems requiring a CCNA before you sit for the CCIE exam. Honestly there are as many differing types of requirements or lack thereof that I couldn't even begin to cover them all. Just be aware that frequently a certification will have some prerequisites which must be met prior to sitting for the exam.

Generally a professional certificate is to be used to augment a degree and in my opinion is not a substitute for a degree in any way. For example, if I were to earn a CPA and had a BS in Accounting I would list both but I would list the CPA under "professional licenses" on my resume like thus:

Education:

Boston University (2006)

Bachelor of Science

Major in Accounting

Professional Licenses:

Certified Public Accountant (CPA)

Licensed in the State of Texas in 1996 valid through January 2008

Frequently the license will have a "valid through" date. I would disclose this on my resume but I wouldn't say it's a requirement unless called for by a potential employer. They will see the valid through dates once proof of licensure is sought anyways.

Some certificates will require continuing education certificates which I generally never list on my resume unless they are substantially pertinent to the job for which I am applying. For example, I was required to go to a 1 month on campus training at the School of Police Supervision in order to gain my promotion, but since this is neither a license nor academic certificate I generally leave it out of my resume unless I were to apply for a police supervision position at another agency. In this case I would probably list it under "Professional Certificates and Certifications" where I would also list my peace officer license and valid through dates. As thus:

Education:

Northcentral University (2002)

Bachelor of Science

Major in Psychology

Professional Certificates and Licenses:

TCLEOSE Certified Texas Peace Officer (2002)

International Law Enforcement Administration (2004)

Graduate of the Police School of Supervision

Class number 90

As far as non-licensure certificates, like the Rutgers University certificates above I would list these either under certificates and licenses if I had a professional license as well or other professional certificates, otherwise I'd just stick it at the bottom of my education column. For example:

Education:

Columbia University (1998)

Bachelor of Science

Major in Project Management

Professional Certificates and Licenses:

Project Management Institute (2004)

Certified Project Management Professional (PMP)

Rutgers University (2003)

Certificate in Project Management

Or if you have no other professional licenses or certificates you can list it under education as thus:

Education:

Columbia University (1998)

Bachelor of Science

Major in Business Administration

Rutgers University (2003)

Certificate in Project Management

Although this sort of implies that this is an academic certificate but at least it allows for a nice tidy resume.

Generally non-licensure certificates are great to both gain skills in a given area of study and to demonstrate to current and/or potential employers that you have these skills rapidly. They are at times much quicker to earn than an academic certificate and allow for you to develop and represent these skills in only a fraction of the time. The problem is that these types of certificates will generally not be nearly as in depth as an academic certificate and many recruiters will know this. If transcripts are required it will become immediately evident that this is not an academic certificate and as such there are of course limitations. They are almost never designed to be taken in lieu of a degree but rather to augment or prepare one for a degree. Take for example Tulane University's Master Certificate in Business Management http://www.elearners.com/college/uatu/ which is a first rate MBA preparation, but not a substitution by any means.

Well I suppose that about wraps it up. Hopefully you now have a better understanding of professional certificates and certifications.

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The Academic Certificate: Part II of a III Part Series

Cajun — Fri, 26 Oct 2007 05:37:00 GMT

In my last post I compared the three different types of certificates as I saw them. They were:

1.) Professional
2.) Professional Licensure
3.) Academic

This post will focus a little more on the academic certificate and the types of academic certificates that I have seen. As a brief recap, an academic certificate is any certificate or certificate of completion in any academic major area which consists of credit hours assigned to each course (as opposed to clock hours), of which the school will provide transcripts upon completion and which are generally made up of the same courses a degree seeking student in the same major would have to take in order to gain a degree but on a smaller level, ie, not as many courses required, no core or general education requirements, etc.

Some of the things an academic certificate can be used for are:

1.) A resume booster until a degree in that discipline is earned such as those offered at Peru State College.
2.) In lieu of a degree for some entry level type of positions but which are still quasi-professional. Like IT tech support for instance.
3.) In addition to a degree that you have already earned but in a different discipline than the career field that you would like to enter or are currently working in. For example, I have a BS in Criminal Justice but would like to work as a computer programmer, I may add a certificate in that field to my BS and play down my degree major a little. I'll demonstrate how in a moment.
4.) To meet the basic academic requirements for some type of professional licensure which requires a specific amount of course credit hours to sit for whatever license it is that suits your fancy. For example if the CPA exam in your state required 30 upper division credit hours in Accounting, a 30 hour certificate or two 15 hour certificates may just be the thing.
5.) To qualify you for a certain type of job which has a credit hour minimum to be met. For example if you would like to become an adjunct instructor for your favorite online school in Criminal Justice but you do not want to get another masters degree, you may wish to meet their minimum 18 graduate credit hour requirement with something like Northcentral University's Certificate of Advanced Graduate Studies. This is of course assuming your favorite school/potential employer only requires 18 graduate hours (which is common in community colleges).

So does it matter where you get your certificate? Of course! Things like accreditation, price, prestige, etc. come into play just like getting your degree, but on a smaller level. For example, to be eligible to teach at my local community college I need a minimum of 18 graduate hours within the area I would like to teach (at a minimum) and the credits must all be from a regionally accredited college or university. Another one is if this really hot recruiter is soooo impressed with Harvard and I want to impress her to get her "digits" (phone number), perhaps I would consider a certificate from Harvard. What I'm trying to say is that the right school for your certificate will be determined upon factors that are as unique as your needs, wants and desires.

Okay so just as an example of how I might see a certificate listed on a resume for a police position within my department, this would be a good example:

2004 Southwestern College Winfield, KS

Bachelor of Science (BS)

2006 University of Texas Austin, TX

Certificate of Completion in Criminal Justice

One thing to remember however is not to be redundant, for example if you have a BS in Criminal Justice, you don't need to list your AS in Criminal Justice or Certificate in Criminal Justice. Of course not everyone agrees with me on this, but I like a tidy resume.

If you notice on my BS degree I did not list the major, this could be done for a couple of reasons. First if my major was in something akin to Liberal Studies or General Studies I wouldn't list it, just the degree itself. The second reason would be if my major was not necessarily applicable to the position for which I am applying, like Accounting. Not to be deceptive but because the major may only distract from the point I am trying to make in my resume. If asked however I would be honest and upfront about it, at least this way I have a chance to sell myself and/or explain my value to their organization. The certificate will then demonstrate that I have the skills required for the position that I have applied for.

I'll post part III later. I welcome any other questions, observations or comments you guys may have.

Until then...

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