Long story short; behavior problems in HS led me to study a liberal arts discipline at a mediocre school. I got a boiler room job in business for a bit, and then got a masters at a rather fine school in a MUCH more quantitative discipline than my UG. It was in a field related to the job I once had but a massive math/academic shock compared to the partying I did in UG. My grad school GPA was above the 3.0 minimum, so I graduated. A few job interviews (for good roles, tho basically because of my school’s name) and no job. I’m now taking classes non-degree so I can apply for a second bachelors in a STEM field. I slacked in math in HS, which hurt me in grad school. Tho the last semester (summer), I faced the old mathematical demon in pre-calculus (for the first time in a decade) and got an A (not an A-, but a real A). Calculus is among the courses I’m taking now. I have no record of behavioral/legal problems.
Which good schools will accept a guy like me? Which schools at all? Am I better off getting another masters or is a second bachelors the only way, given that my UG degree is simply a piece of paper, and it feels like all the employers see thru the grade floors of grad school. What else in terms of life options do I have? My folks don’t wanna pay for a post-bac premed (they refuse to accept that its easier than pre-engineering), and law is a bad field for an unconnected job seeker unless at an Ivy League law school. I gave thought to accounting or nursing; my folks say I will not make a living as a nurse and won’t pay for it. It seems business (accy and fin) are “networking” based instead of skills and they value youth and image (think jocky/preppy). My parents will only pay for me to study STEM.
Many public universities will accept second bachelors students. Start with the closest cheapest public U.
But before you spend your parents’ retirement funds on yet another degree, get yourself some serious career counseling either through the institution where you earned that masters degree, through your state’s job service office, or through a private career counselor. You may find that your current masters and a better-written resume is enough to put you back into the workforce. If not, the counselor can help you determine the best way to get yourself on track either with further coursework, or with a full second BS or MS.
A good counselor will also help you get the message across to your parents that in most parts of the country, nursing is a major that will get you a job immediately after you graduate and pass your boards.
1 Like
I’ve called up several state schools, and they all say that engineering (of any sort, aside from compE or CS) second bachelor spaces and admissions are rather limited. How truthful they’re being because they want to limit the number of “students older than 25” is something I can’t figure out. I mean am I calling up too selective ones? Its not like I’m calling up UC Berekely or uMich or anything. I have been calling up flagship state unis. Would I have better luck at state universities that are NOT flagship (like UW-Whitewater, SUNY New Paltz, Rutgers-Camden, etc.)?
I’ve tried with my career dept. They don’t take the masters students serious. They do take the undergrads seriously. Also, what case could I make about nursing moneywise? My parents also are against me, a male, becoming a nurse.
Can you tell us what your degrees were in? Having no information about that makes it very hard to provide any meaningful advice.
1 Like
a liberal arts UG and business-like G. GPA’s were similar
The state universities in California are extremely impacted and competitive in all engineering fields such that a person attempting a second bachelor’s degree would not faire well in getting admitted. The publics are state funded schools and have to be efficient in getting students in and out.
Once you have a BS in anything, the universities don’t feel obligated to admit you because their job is to use the taxpayers funds well, by getting students out in 4 years. It has nothing to do with age. A CC could have a 50 yr old transfer student applying, and that student would have a better chance of transferring into the UCs because there is no prior degree.
1 Like
OK I’m not trying to go to a UC school. Where could I actually get in? Aunt Bea, you sound rather harsh. Ever thought some people make mistakes and don’t get life right the first time? if a person improves himself and shows character and self-inventory, that ought to garner some empathy.
Well, the question you really need to ask yourself is what do YOU want to do? You already have a Masters degree and you have some employment history but you mentioned at least three different paths that you might wish to take so all I see is uncertainty and grasping at possibilities instead of a clear direction. Getting another degree might not be the best direction for you right now. Perhaps you need to keep trying to find a job (go back to the career center of your undergraduate school if the one where you did your graduate degree is not serving you properly) and become financially independent. Then you can really determine if another degree is what you want and need.
I am certain that there are plenty of satisfying careers available with a Bachelors in liberal arts and a Masters in a Business related field. You need to be persistent in looking for a job because after you start with your first one, your GPAs will no longer matter, only your performance in your job.
If you eventually decide that nursing is the path for you and you are independent, you can make the sacrifices necessary to move yourself along that career path without your parents paying for it and dictating what you should study. Choosing yet another degree in an area you are not enthusiastic about won’t lead to stellar academic performance.
1 Like
Not trying to be harsh JohnMKris, and I didn’t think I was being harsh, just informative explaining why your second bachelor’s degree may not bode well at public universities.
If you target large universities, that have diverse students of all ages, you have better chances. Large privates might be your best bet.
I was explaining what happens at public schools, which are constrained by state legislative budgets. (California for example is hard) They have to get students in and out. So, second bachelor’s degree students are not priorities for those public universities.
You may want to seek out a career counselor at your local CC and have them plug in your strengths and current degrees/coursework.
1 Like
will I have a hard time getting a job if I do manage to come out with a second bachelors in engineering? Will employers laugh at me, or will I get something because I’d study something rare (unlike biz, law, humanities), etc.
No employers will laugh at you with a second degree in engineering. All they care is your talent.
You must have a good understanding and good GPA (above 2.8, 3.2+ is preferable) though.
1 Like
I just think you are not persistent enough with your job search or you are not considering options where you can start with a more modest job and advance. I wish you would say what exactly the grad degree is. Often people with non elite MBA can’t get hired because they don’t have job experience sufficient to the degree. Accounting should not be a problem with persistence.
its a masters degree in a business field but not in accounting, and its not an MBA (precisely because it would’ve been two years instead of one, with also uncertain job prospects. The degree I got is unusual enough I don’t wanna say what it is in case I get found out here. I’ve been searching for a job ever since I got outta college, and quit the chop shop job I had a year before coming to grad school. I can’t keep banging my head against the business “networking” wall when I have no network. I had no close friends in spots to get me jobs, no family there either. If I had known I could be good at math by simply retaking precalculus, I woulda done it way long ago. OK, I didn’t get life right, but I didn’t get it 100% wrong. I did do grad school at a place I’d LOVE to do my second bachelors, if I could get in.