Hi everyone -
I am wondering how employers might view this. Basically long story short, I completed my first B.S. degree and felt that I still needed more undergrad… a lot more. So, I decided to immediately begin a second B.S. degree after the first one. Now, I am about to graduate, and I am wondering how employers will view having a second B.S. degree? Will it be something akin to, “Oh that’s weird… don’t see that often”? Something negative, “You should have gone to grad school”? Or, something good, “You have X amount of extra education and education diversity as opposed to the other candidate”?
I intend to begin looking for a new job after December.
So, anyway, in December, my education will look like this:
B.S. major in criminal justice and minor in general business, magna cum laude.
B.S. major in political science and double minors in human resources management and sociology, magna cum laude
(Both degrees are from a regional state university that is respected in the state, but definitely not some tier 1 nationally known school)
I should also say that, immediately after completing the first degree, I obtained a degreed (read: professional, degree required job) position and have held that job continuously during the time I’ve worked on my second B.S… so, I do have decent work experience. (I work overnight in a criminal justice/human services type position partly working with casework/disadvantaged people for a gov agency)
Anyway, would appreciate any feedback on how employers may view this education.
Why would any employers not like that you are more educated than most.
Sounds impressive to me.
Put together a compelling narrative on your education and work and what you want to do with your new degree (I assume), try it out on the mirror on friends and family and any on-campus resources in mock interviews and sell it as a good fit. Use the career counselling services and don’t forget that being employed, you have connections who know you. Government agency might be a perfect fit, law enforcement, politics, etc.
I see the degrees as complimentary, the HR helpful, the magna cum laude from a good regional school as fantastic, working and going to school as showing both drive and dedication …
To put it in perspective, if you are interested in politics and HR and sociology, taking those classes at an undergrad level through to a degree is not just a bit of dabbling, it involved a lot of work, and the classes in junior and senior year were challenging in both programs.
You followed your own drummer … and maybe this took a bit longer than a few night classes … but it worked for you (including working and supporting yourself which everyone understands).
Why did you feel you needed “more undergrad”–especially considering you got and have been working at a job since the completion of your first BS? Generally, having two BS degrees doesn’t help when looking for jobs. Doesn’t necessarily hurt, either, but it would have been a better use of your time and money to get an MS or MA.
I don’t think employers will necessarily care about your educational history except insofar as your academic experience and work experience are relevant to whatever job you happen to be applying for, which brings us to the question: what kinds of jobs are you looking at?
Yeah, I agree that employers are simply not going to care either way. It won’t necessarily hurt you - but it’s not going to help you, either.
Second bachelor’s degrees are largely useless with the exception of a few fields (nursing and engineering are the only ones that come to mind right now). Were I reviewing the resume of someone with your degrees - a BA in criminal justice and a second BA in political science - I would certainly wonder “Why didn’t they just get an MA in political science or criminal justice or human resources management instead of getting a second bachelor’s?” Because I’ve spent a lot of time mentoring undergrads and recent graduates, I’d chalk it up to not knowing any better. But there would be no “bump” or special extra treatment or whatnot because you have a second bachelor’s; it simply doesn’t matter. It functions more or less like taking more than 4 years to finish the BA in the first place. So you took more undergraduate-level classes…that’s fine, I guess, but nothing important.
“Extra education” isn’t a universal good. It has to be targeted towards a specific skill that employers want. The human resources management minor, for example, may be attractive for what it is - not because you got it after your first BA, but simply because HR is a field with openings.
Once u have the qualifying credential, I can’t see why employers would care about add’l education at the same credential level, unless it’s directly applicable to your job.
Seems to me that relevant work experience would count for a heck of a lot more than a second bachelors degree.
If you already have professional work experience, your education won’t be much of a factor unless you’re changing careers. Having “more education” than another candidate isn’t helpful if the other candidate has more work experience with a record of success.
"Why did you feel you needed “more undergrad”–especially considering you got and have been working at a job since the completion of your first BS? "
Essentially, I knew the day I declared my CJ major that CJ majors are viewed as… less than stellar majors. (In other words, I knew I would have to pick up a stronger major at some point) Once I graduated and actually obtained a degreed CJ job, that view was confirmed. Your career options as a CJ major are almost exclusively limited to state/county/local CJ jobs (this almost exclusively includes probation/parole officer, correction officer, jailer, and police officer). No other government agency will touch you for any other non-CJ degreed position. On top of that, the feds won’t even touch you for a CJ related job.
Trust me, everyone who works in the CJ field knows that most other social science majors can run circles over CJ majors both academically and over the course of their careers. Employers have attached a stigma to CJ majors, and I am sorry to say, it is overall justified. There is a reason that CJ majors consistently score the lowest on the LSAT, for example. It’s possibly the weakest social science major, and it is populated by a large number of weak students.
As someone who has now majored in both CJ and poli sci at the same university, I can tell you, without a doubt, poli sci is by far the more rigorous major. Not only is it more rigorous, it provides substantially more breadth of knowledge than CJ.
So, in answer to your question, I basically had to redo undergrad to escape the CJ stigma and the lack of career options CJ provides.
OP- I am nearing your exact position. I picked police as a career and never looked back, never considered any other career or degree EVER. I heard once not to major in CJ, but did it anyways because “nothing else interests me”. I’ve worked at a PD 3 years, as a clerk and now as a CSO while completing my degree. I’m in my senior year of college and realize 1) I hate the soul sucking, jaded police culture and the lack of ethics I see every day in my field 2) I don’t want to be a cop anymore 3) I don’t want to work for the government or social services because it’s miserable work and low pay 4) my degree is not marketable, at all, for anything other than the aforementioned.
I’m grafteful my CSO job has allowed me the ability to go to school while making $20/HR part time with flexible work days, but cannot see myself doing this forever or any job in a PD anymore. I’m 1 major course and 1.5 quarters away from graduating, and considering buckling down and double majoring in business and doing an entirely different path such as HR or being a business analyst. My concern is losing financial aid, which I won’t be eligible for if I graduate and return back. I won’t have much before I run out, but it’s something. I have the finances to cover the rest.
I am concerned I won’t like business, but I’m more concerned about going insane at my current job, losing it, then being homeless or -worse IMO- becoming a file clerk because I have 0 marketable education or skills.
It’s a lie that “any degree” is worthwhile. CJ simply is too specific and nonapplicable in any other field. I hate that I’m here right now, but at least I realized before I graduated and moved out??