Just out of high school, I went to World Harvest Bible College (a two year school) with the intention of going straight into ministry from there. A lot of things happened while I was in bible college, but when I graduated, the youth Pastor of World Harvest Church asked if I would continue as a volunteer / intern for another year. I was running a drama team with over twenty kids at the time, which is larger than many entire youth groups and I felt there was a lot I could still learn so I agreed. Three months later, the youth pastor was no longer with the church and I was working at Safelite Autoglass as a terminal repair man and printer cleaner.
Here we are, ten years later – I’m still not in full time ministry, but I am ten years into an IT career. Not the path I thought I was destined to take; God’s ways are higher than our ways. I have been blessed in my career but its always bothered me that I never got a four year degree. I went to community college in Ohio, taking a few classes, but to be honest, I realized I was taking out student loans, sacrificing time with my family, and taking time away from learning more specific work related material that could have a more immediate affect on my career. I quit school and focused on IT Certifications. I obtained several certifications including MSCA and MSCE for Windows 2000.
Then my brother-in-law shared with me the online college he was attending, Western Governors University. For just under $3000 a semester, you can work on your degree at your own pace. No traditional classes, no online blackboard classes, no required chat rooms or bulletin boards. The Informational Technology degree they offer has several classes that only require passing an industry certification, many that I already had.
So I signed up. I was able to ‘transfer’ my IT pedigree into my program, eliminating over a year from my schooling! Well, I just finished two more classes in the last two weeks and I hope to finish my four year degree in less than a year. If you want to get your degree, don’t enroll in a program that will costs you tens of thousands of dollars. Go Western!
Don’t just take my word for it; WGU was recently featured in a Time Magazine article. If you think you might go… let me know!