do you think you are successful and did you have to have the degree to get you where you are(if not, did it help with the starting salary)?

Dec will be 4 years, I think I have been successful, first job was 6 months, still on the second and it looks like this will be where I stay. Didnt have to have a degree but it did help with my starting salary(about 20% more than those without a degree).

10/24/2007 5:51:04 PM

7 years
no
yes

10/24/2007 6:15:02 PM

4 years in december

I am successful b/c I like what I do and I impact people's lives daily.

I am unsuccessful in making a lot of money for myself.

I had to have a degree to get to where I am (not in English but needed a 4 year bach) and I need a new degree to move on ... BLAH

10/24/2007 11:16:01 PM

Graduated about 1.3 years ago, now getting my MBA.

I consider myself successful but still feel that I'm nowhere near being in a job / career that I want to stay in for more than a year or two.

I work in 2 industries -- one the degree was a requirement, the other it technically wasn't but I'm sure I wouldn't have landed it w/o learning what I did in college.

EDIT: And ^ is very successful in my eyes -- she hooked me up with tons of help in getting into my current MBA program

[Edited on October 24, 2007 at 11:21 PM. Reason : .]

10/24/2007 11:20:37 PM

3 years
depends on your definition of successful. I have a house and income, but this job has little room for climbing, but then it's in research at a university, so good benefits.
yes

10/24/2007 11:35:41 PM

lets not pretend here...

success=big fucking salary

10/24/2007 11:48:56 PM

going on 2 years for me

a degree is required for my job

i consider myself successful. i'm happy to get out of bed every morning and go to work. i enjoy strong relationships with my friends and family and there is food in the belly, clothes on my back and a roof over my head. i also have a little extra after all is said and done to do whatever i want.

i can't imagine myself in a better situation. yay life

10/25/2007 12:13:50 AM

I am approaching 3 years graduated in December...and 2.5 at my current job.

I think I'm very successful overall. Could be making more money, but I have an incredible life/work balance. I work for the top public IT consulting company in the world, I make more money than my friends (for the most part), my hours are tolerable, I am active in sports, go to the gym, see my friends on a regular basis, own a condo and have lost 70lbs since graduating.

This next year will be an interesting one as I decide to continue on my current path or take at turn. I'm thinking about getting my MBA but not sure at the current moment. Within my company, I should have opportunity to travel in the near future based on my promotion, and I'm looking at spending some extended time in Australia.

10/25/2007 12:37:11 AM

I graduated 6 years ago. Ended up getting a Masters in Computer Science to compliment my undergrad, but the job I took ended up in finance (ie. my CS degrees went out the window). The degrees did help me with my starting salary; I made more than any of my peers starting.

Yeah, I'd say I've been successful.

10/25/2007 2:11:48 AM

3 years and some change
yes
yes

10/25/2007 9:00:54 AM

I graduated 3 years ago.

I've made enough money in the previous 2 years to put myself through graduate school with no loands (mucho important) and save enough to be able to move the area of my choosing to settle and start my career job without settling because I need to pay rent... so yeah, I've been succesful to this point.

I needed A degree to get my current job but not necessarily a degree in the field I got it in... the MBA is an absolute must if I want to continue up the corporate ladder though.

10/25/2007 1:38:56 PM

graduated 3.5 years ago. i've had 4 promotions since i graduated and make 3x my starting salary now. i pretty much got to the top of where i wanted to go in my first job. 2 months ago i took a new job in a different field so i feel like i'm starting all over again, but i think it's a good thing. needed a degree for both jobs, though the job i'm at now i'm pretty sure i got b/c of my physics background, not my csc degree, even though it's software development

10/25/2007 1:50:32 PM

Wasn't this same thread made a few months back?

2+ yrs
yes
yes

10/25/2007 2:02:15 PM

3+ years
degree is required for my job, but i don't use anything i learned in school (defense contractor)

10/25/2007 8:37:06 PM

[Edited on October 25, 2007 at 11:16 PM. Reason : ...]

10/25/2007 11:13:43 PM

2 years in dec... no didn't do my major which was EE...and yes college degree was needed...basically i would say engineering degree is the most versatile cause employers know you can be taught and work hard and thats all that really matters....IMO

I'm an Naval flight officer...well still in school for it....lol.....3k a month isn't the end of the world plus free medical....



[Edited on October 25, 2007 at 11:17 PM. Reason : ...]

10/25/2007 11:13:48 PM

and a masters in business is kinda of a joke.....like engineers who go back from business masters is cause they don't want to really work for it and put forth the effort for a masters in their degree....that way you can get a masters and basically not accomplished anything except...getting a masters...lol its like getting a bs in business...thats what you do when you failed out of the rest of the majors....lol

[Edited on October 25, 2007 at 11:21 PM. Reason : ...]

10/25/2007 11:20:53 PM

that's one of the dumbest things I've read. I would suggest staying in government work. In general, MBAs have far more earning potential than engineers -- but you gotta get that MBA from a good program.

10/26/2007 5:52:57 AM

It's been three years since I got my undergraduate degrees, and for the past 1.5 years I've had a "real" job that is also serving as my research for an advanced degree (PhD, EE). For my position, a degree was a huge requirement, and obviously helped with the salary.

I'll probably work on getting an MBA in the future, mainly because most people who have had my position in the past have ended up leading projects and have taken on management positions.

10/26/2007 10:06:16 AM

Quote :

"that's one of the dumbest things I've read."

10/26/2007 2:28:56 PM

graduated in may 02 so 5 years.

I do consider myself to be successful as I have a career that I wanted, am happy in and make a difference and I can pay the bills.

Financially I could be better off but that's the life of a public servant! I mean I'm not dirt poor, we're ok but I mean of course it could be better, that's a given in most careers.

As for the degree it didn't help at all. It may in the future, but I'm back in school to get a degree in a related field, which will help in the long run more so.

10/26/2007 2:50:46 PM

2 years, not necessarily but a bachelors in general and my certification definitely helps...and with this new job i've accepted i can say that i officially feel successful. it's a great move for me this early on as far as my career goes.

10/26/2007 11:24:44 PM

2 years
yes
no, i'm not using my degree at all
yes, it did help with my salary

10/27/2007 10:31:12 AM

5 years
did i make a ton of $, no. but it has set me up for a potentially successful career
yes

as for the MBA debate....I am currently getting my MBA now. Leveraging this degree will nearly double my salary from my pre-MBA life, increase my earning potential exponentially, and remove the glass ceiling/narrow pyramid that I was facing before getting this degree. Waste of time? Not a chance.

10/28/2007 8:28:05 PM

5 years. A bachelor's degree was necessary to gain admission to law school, but the subject was unimportant. I think I'm very successful, but I believe I owe my success more to my law degree more than to my econ degree. I think my starting salary had more to do with my success in school than where I got my degree (although the "where" certainly helped).

10/29/2007 9:14:11 AM