[Mrjinglesusa]

B.A. - Biochemistry (1996)
Ph.D. - Chemistry (2004)

[Doofy]

Originally Posted by lavar78

If you think teaching is nothing, you must be doing something wrong.

Or I found it to be exceedingly easy, perhaps.
Anyways. Enough thread-jacking.

[jersey]

Originally Posted by sknapp351

... Montclair State University...

Hey....I have work in the museum right now.........

Are you going to live in Montclair?

[badidea]

Dipl.-Ing.
(TUM - Technical University Munich)

[lavar78]

Originally Posted by Doofy

Or I found it to be exceedingly easy, perhaps.

Or you have the best class ever.
Or you have no frame of reference.

[jersey]

Originally Posted by Doofy

Or I found it to be exceedingly easy, perhaps.

I'll second that. I too find it to be exceedingly easy sometimes. Think about it; we get to spout off all day about things we really enjoy.

Of course you almost always get at least 1 problem student.

[sknapp351]

Jersey,
I sent you a pm. I just moved up to the town next to Montclair. What exhibit?
Sorry... off topic.
Sam

[Doofy]

Originally Posted by lavar78

Or you have no frame of reference.

To my knowledge, at least three of my ex-students are now university lecturers in the same subject. What other frame of reference do I need?

Originally Posted by jersey

I'll second that. I too find it to be exceedingly easy sometimes. Think about it; we get to spout off all day about things we really enjoy.

Precisely. Like falling off a log if you know and like your subject.

[Hash]

BA in political economy,
MA in economics (international macroeconomics)
Ph.D in economic theory,
certificate in C language programming

[jebjeb]

One year of not attending a BSc - Info Tech in Australia.

Moved to UK, fell on my feet (gift of the gab) and am now a successful Management Consultant (a real one rather than one of those guys that can just speak all the made up buzz words ), loving my job and making VERY decent money at 26.

Sorry, hope it doesn't seem that I am trying to diss degrees or anything like that. Organised higher education was not for me and I was lucky enough to get some great experience on the job under some fantastic mentors. I don't pretend that I know everything or that university (or some other type of higher education) could not teach me anything more. However, common sense and decent intelligence appears to be treating me well so far.

Will re-assess my education requirements later in life but at the moment, I don't feel I would ever go back to a degree level course. I will probably do some more specific courses as required.

Sorry for the potential derail.

Carry on.

[ghporter]

Originally Posted by jebjeb

One year of not attending a BSc - Info Tech in Australia. ...Sorry, hope it doesn't seem that I am trying to diss degrees or anything like that. Organised higher education was not for me ...

It's amazing how many people wind up in universities at 18 (or even 17) without the preparation needed to make a good go of it. Far too many kids show up and find out that their parents are NOT going to get a phone call about little Johny cutting class, so that's what they do, and they NEVER learn how to build their schedule so that it fits them. jebjeb, you're lucky in that you found what appears to be your dream career. But a lot of people are not that lucky, and there is nobody helping them stay at it to get the education they need to get the job they want.

Now if parents would manage to make secondary school seem like something other than a social event for their kids, that might help a bit. But it's the late-teen psyche that seems to be the major culprit, since the "I'll cut class because I just don't feel like going" thing has been around forever.

[Demonhood]

B.A. Film Studies

[suvsr4terrorists]

Yep. That's what screwed me up in Platteville. I got good grades in some classes, but flunked a few classes because... well... I didn't go. Then I noticed a strong corellation between 'good grades' and 'going to class all the time'. Who'd have thunkit?

Now I'm going back to school at the age of 24, married, and ready to kick ass. And all the young ones will look to me for maturity, knowledge and guidance (JOKE!).

[turtle777]

Originally Posted by suvsr4terrorists

And all the young ones will look to me for maturity, knowledge and guidance
(JOKE!).

Darn. I was ready to flame

-t

[RonnieoftheRose]

Just another morning I wake up to find myself with another 180 degrees.

[finboy]

Originally Posted by jersey

I must admit, the being 27 and teaching college gig is damn sweet.

Been there, done that. Tough but worth it.

BA Finance & Economics
BMF from the Skool o' Hard Knocks
MBA
PhD in Finance

Teaching is a tough job, depending upon whether you do it right or not. Tons don't. If you love it, it just gets easier with time. The sense of accomplishment is priceless, but it gets more and more frustrating each year.

[Shaddim]

Originally Posted by lavar78

Or you have the best class ever.
Or you have no frame of reference.

It *IS* easy. Sometimes I feel like I'm taking advantage of them, considering the amount of money I make compared to how much I work. It's crazy... but incredibly fun.


Ph.D. Theological Studies & Comp. Rel., Vanderbilt/Carson-Newman (joint program)
M.A. Theological Studies / M. Div., Vanderbilt
B.A. Theo., Carson-Newman

A.C.S., Walter's State Comm. College (the oddball. Soon after graduating, I decided to change careers).

[Chuckmcd]

BS in Studio Art, emphasis on Life Drawing and Computer animation, from FSU.
Worked Designing VR simulations and freelance graphics for about 6 years.
Currently, I am a youth pastor... and I'm working on a MDiv (masters of divinity) from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary.

[lavar78]

Originally Posted by Doofy

To my knowledge, at least three of my ex-students are now university lecturers in the same subject. What other frame of reference do I need?

Another job. If your point is that the pros of teaching greatly outweigh the cons, I wholeheartedly agree. However, IMO the statement that it's "money for nothing" is a gross generalization that implies anyone can teach. Teaching isn't "nothing" and everyone can't do it.

Precisely. Like falling off a log if you know and like your subject.

Qualifiers are good. FWIW, I'm sure it's easier on the collegiate level.

[historylme]

BA in history, UCSC
MA in history CSUN

I taught for two years at the community college level. I love it, al though I never thought of teaching. I'm now working for an apparel company. I'm going to try to go back to teaching. Much more rewarding.

[Doofy]

Originally Posted by lavar78

Another job. If your point is that the pros of teaching greatly outweigh the cons, I wholeheartedly agree.

No, my point was that I found it exceedingly easy. Others may not, depending on how well they know their subject and how easy they find communication. For me, it was money for nothing.

[lavar78]

Originally Posted by Doofy

No, my point was that I found it exceedingly easy. Others may not, depending on how well they know their subject and how easy they find communication. For me, it was money for nothing.

So teaching music technology is solely dependent on knowing subject matter and communication? What does music technology involve? Anyway, I'm glad you clarified your earlier statement.

[RAILhead]

BA in Theology
BA in Philosophy
BA in Religious Education

Maury

[davechen]

BA Computer Science & Astronomy, 1988, UC Berkeley
MS Computer Science, 1991, UNC
PhD Computer Science, 1998 UNC

[beb]

AA Broadcasting
BS Digital Communications

[OreoCookie]

Originally Posted by SimpleLife

The topic was Sex-Role Self-Perception and Sexual Satisfaction in Heterosexual Dyads with Young Adults Sample. (unpublished).



I hypothesized that from a measure of Sex-Role (with the Bem Sex-Role Inventory, a classic), men would tend to perceive themselves as more masculine and female as more feminine during sexual intercourse, whatever their self-perception before would be. That little research showed that actually, both male and female participant (age 18 to 25) perceived themselves as more feminine. Not gay, feminine; as in "I identify myself to people living such and such characteristics I usually attribute to female", or if you prefer, mnore caring, emotional, etc...

That was fun.

What do you mean … fun?
Stupid question, but … exactly how did you measure this? (I'm a (mathematical) physicist, so please forgive my lack of imagination )

[tgags]

BA - Art & Design

Worked as a graphic designer for 6 years (commercial printing/advertising & publishing). Unfortunately the economy was hitting that industry pretty hard, maintaing and gaining employment was challenging. So I went back to school for Education.
Currently teach Art & working on my MA in Education. It's funny, I actually make more money and have summers off (where I can do freelance), tbe best of both worlds.

TG

"All children are artists. The problem is how to remain an artist once one grows up."
- Pablo Picasso

[kiwibabe]

BSc Hons Biochemistry (1996)
PhD Biochemistry (2001)

[turtle777]

Originally Posted by kiwibabe

BSc Hons Biochemistry (1996)
PhD Biochemistry (2001)

Is it normal in NZ to go for a PhD w/o having a Masters ?

-t

[SimpleLife]

Originally Posted by TheIceMan

BA - Philosophy (God, that was a waste of time and money!)
MA - Psychology (much better)

Currently, I work with students with emotional/behavioral/classroom management problems.
Although truthfully, it's the adults around the students who need the most help.

As usual.

[SimpleLife]

Originally Posted by OreoCookie

What do you mean … fun?
Stupid question, but … exactly how did you measure this? (I'm a (mathematical) physicist, so please forgive my lack of imagination )

Fun because my hypothesis was proven false.

And it is not a stupid question to ask.

I used a couple of questionnaires; BSRI (Bem Ser-Role Inventory), Relationship Adjustment Scale olf Spanier and another scale measuring Sexual Satisfaction (I do not have my paper at hand).

Basically, I asked the individuals under study to answer a first BSRI, then the Spanier instrument, followed by the Sexual Satisfaction Measurement Sclae and then a second BSRI, but for that last one, I asked them to imagine themselves in a situation of sexual satisfaction with their partner. The subjects were really pleased to do that, although they never got access to the answers. It provided them with a topic of discussion. I did not check a "couple" variable, meaning, I did not look for couples, only individuals who said they were in a relationship. Gather the data, did some stats, a few exotic tests and voilà!

Simple, not a PhD...

[jorgem4]

B.S Mechanical Engineering - Marquetter University 2005

[OreoCookie]

Originally Posted by SimpleLife

Basically, I asked the individuals under study to answer a first BSRI, then the Spanier instrument, followed by the Sexual Satisfaction Measurement Sclae and then a second BSRI, but for that last one, I asked them to imagine themselves in a situation of sexual satisfaction with their partner. The subjects were really pleased to do that, although they never got access to the answers. It provided them with a topic of discussion. I did not check a "couple" variable, meaning, I did not look for couples, only individuals who said they were in a relationship. Gather the data, did some stats, a few exotic tests and voilà!

Simple, not a PhD...

Ah, ok, so they just imagined the sexual encounter. Please forgive my nativity, but I was pondering whether you were asking directly after intercourse or so … 

[jebjeb]

Firstly, I apologize if anyone feels I am trying to diminish the achievement of earning a degree. I do not intend that. I am just trying to give a different perspective.

Originally Posted by ghporter

It's amazing how many people wind up in universities at 18 (or even 17) without the preparation needed to make a good go of it. Far too many kids show up and find out that their parents are NOT going to get a phone call about little Johny cutting class, so that's what they do, and they NEVER learn how to build their schedule so that it fits them. jebjeb, you're lucky in that you found what appears to be your dream career. But a lot of people are not that lucky, and there is nobody helping them stay at it to get the education they need to get the job they want.

Now if parents would manage to make secondary school seem like something other than a social event for their kids, that might help a bit. But it's the late-teen psyche that seems to be the major culprit, since the "I'll cut class because I just don't feel like going" thing has been around forever.

Generally good advice. Partly applies to me but not a lot. You will like this one. I actually wanted to be a pilot in the RAAF (Royal Australian Air Force). I tested extremely well (lucky or unlucky enough to be naturally intelligent - which ever way you put it) but got bumped as I broke my arm when I was younger and my left little finger doesn't retract properly. I said unlucky to be naturally intelligent earlier as it meant that I felt I didn't have to work as hard as other kids. Just as everyone told me, it caught up to me later in my teens when the less intelligent or equally intelligent kids who were putting in the work started besting me. This was also one of the reasons that I couldn't go aircrew. They were not convinced of my ability to work hard. They were partly right.

As for uni, I started an IT degree which quick to realise was not going to prepare me for the real world. Instead of "wasting" my time (a couple more years) finishing a degree that was not going to help me, I went and did what I, at the time, believed was my best option; go and get real world work experience. You could say that I did the cut class because I just didn't feel like going thing but it was primarily because I had already made my decision and was also working 30-40 hours a week getting a leg up and financing my trip to the UK.

I made the move to the UK not to do the traveling thing but to start my career (which turned out to be a whole lot of good length contracting). I started in IT training as I have a knack for teaching. This treated me well for a few years during which time I quickly started managing teams and training roll-outs. I progressed into consulting as my clients could see that I could identify and translate things for them well. Basically, it turned out well.

I can clearly see why some professions/people need to go to university. I can see why many people are attracted to it and the challenges it brings forth. However, for me and where I see myself going, I don't see the return for the investment in my time. Nearly everyone I work with, on the higher client side and all my consultancy colleagues are graduates but I certainly do not feel disadvantaged that I do not have a degree. Who knows, this may change in time.

ghporter, I believe that we both agree with this; kids are generally (being the operative word) not ready to choose what they want to do at 17 or 18 and therefore most should not try and decide by taking a three or four university course to help them. They should get out in the real world and then later, when they are equipped with greater life skills and experience, they can make a much more informed decision. Many people seem to go through their three or four years of uni, have a great time, learn a little about work in the real world and then try and go out and conquer it. They then learn maybe they are not as ready as they thought they were and maybe the course they did is not what they actually want to do with their lives.

Above are some fairly large generalisms but they are quite common and accurate. Let me reiterate, I do believe that you learn some very useful skills in university, some essential ones for particular professions, however, many of these can be learnt (along with lots of other important ones) in less time out there in the real world. And the best thing about learning these skills out in the workplace... you get paid to do it!

Uni is not for everyone, as well as the route I took is not for everyone. My problem is that it seems as though only the former of these routes is sold to todays teenagers.

[olePigeon]

I've managed to squeeze out an AA in Graphic Design. I'm too poor and too white to get any money, and, of course, I don't make enough to go to a University but make too much to qualify for financial aid. Life sucks.

[olePigeon]

Originally Posted by turtle777

Is it normal in NZ to go for a PhD w/o having a Masters ?

-t

In America you can get a PhD in Alien Autopsies without a single degree... if you have enough money.

[mac-kerouac]

B.S. - physics - 1995
M.A. - educational administration - 2003

I've been a high school physics teacher for 10 years. Its a good gig but I'm currently pursing a Ph.D in Education Policy so I can move on an teach at a univeristy. I don't mind dealing with 16 year olds every day, but in 10 years I"m sure I wont feel the same way. I don't want to become one of 'those' teachers. Thats my story.

[SimpleLife]

Originally Posted by OreoCookie

Ah, ok, so they just imagined the sexual encounter. Please forgive my nativity, but I was pondering whether you were asking directly after intercourse or so … 

For some individuals, Ethics had to be applied to its absolute, extreme perfection.

For others...

[olePigeon]

Originally Posted by mac-kerouac

B.S. - physics - 1995
M.A. - educational administration - 2003

I've been a high school physics teacher for 10 years. Its a good gig but I'm currently pursing a Ph.D in Education Policy so I can move on an teach at a univeristy. I don't mind dealing with 16 year olds every day, but in 10 years I"m sure I wont feel the same way. I don't want to become one of 'those' teachers. Thats my story.

I had a physics teacher in High School and he was the absolute coolest. Everyone wanted his class. He'd been teaching there for 10+ years.

I can tell you the trick: LIQUID NITROGEN!!!

I tell ya, kids can't get enough of that stuff! Magnets, engines, lasers, and most importantly, instant ice cream.

It's also fun when the teacher partakes in the "Will it break?" weekly "quiz." Bring in a safe item, submerge it, then drop it from 4 feet. Class members debate on whether or not it'll break when it hits the floor. Haha.

Of course, he also teaches at Berkely and gets the stuff for free. So having a source helps.

[zizban]

Originally Posted by Chuckmcd

BS in Studio Art, emphasis on Life Drawing and Computer animation, from FSU.
Worked Designing VR simulations and freelance graphics for about 6 years.
Currently, I am a youth pastor... and I'm working on a MDiv (masters of divinity) from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary.

So you are going to be a pastor, then? Good! I am tilting toward being a Roman Catholic priest.

[ghporter]

Originally Posted by SimpleLife

For some individuals, Ethics had to be applied to its absolute, extreme perfection.

For others...

I am about to finish my Freshman Psych course (tomorrow's the final), and your exposition on your experiment fit very nicely with some of what we've gone over. Very interesting stuff-and it was probably interesting to both you as experimenter and your subjects. Did you consider the implications of self-selection in your subject pool? Presumably (and this is from a Human Sexuality course as well as Psych) sex research always runs the risk of not being as generalizable as other research because of the perception that subjects may not be representitive of the population you want to measure.

Anywho, being back in school (again) and "over 40" is a pretty interesting experience. For the record, I have yet to decide what I want to do "when I grow up" because "growing up" is not necessarily something I plan to do. I have decided to change fields, though, and I'm moving from electronics and computers into healthcare. As it turns out, having a background in computer science will be an asset in Occupational Therapy if I specialize in developing adaptive equipment based on computer systems.

[SimpleLife]

Originally Posted by ghporter

I am about to finish my Freshman Psych course (tomorrow's the final), and your exposition on your experiment fit very nicely with some of what we've gone over. Very interesting stuff-and it was probably interesting to both you as experimenter and your subjects. Did you consider the implications of self-selection in your subject pool? Presumably (and this is from a Human Sexuality course as well as Psych) sex research always runs the risk of not being as generalizable as other research because of the perception that subjects may not be representitive of the population you want to measure.

This Masters was not about sex, but rather on the contextuality of Sex-Role self-perception. The whole idea was about how people perceive themselves from a general context to a very specific one (sexuality). In terms of representativity, the statistical tests performed on the sample showed a good consistency. Of course, nothing is perfect so...

Anywho, being back in school (again) and "over 40" is a pretty interesting experience. For the record, I have yet to decide what I want to do "when I grow up" because "growing up" is not necessarily something I plan to do. I have decided to change fields, though, and I'm moving from electronics and computers into healthcare. As it turns out, having a background in computer science will be an asset in Occupational Therapy if I specialize in developing adaptive equipment based on computer systems.

I once heard a woman say over the radio that men really start to live at 40. I am 41 and I believe that more and more...

Keep it up on these projects ghporter; that is where life is!

[Hash]

Originally Posted by mac-kerouac

B.S. - physics - 1995
M.A. - educational administration - 2003

I've been a high school physics teacher for 10 years. Its a good gig but I'm currently pursing a Ph.D in Education Policy so I can move on an teach at a univeristy. I don't mind dealing with 16 year olds every day, but in 10 years I"m sure I wont feel the same way. I don't want to become one of 'those' teachers. Thats my story.

Is it different teaching at high school (compared to colleges and universities)?

[Spliff]

Originally Posted by mac-kerouac

I don't mind dealing with 16 year olds every day, but in 10 years I"m sure I wont feel the same way. I don't want to become one of 'those' teachers. Thats my story.

Could you elaborate, please? What do you mean by "one of 'those' teachers"?

[lavar78]

Originally Posted by Hash

Is it different teaching at high school (compared to colleges and universities)?

I imagine college is much easier for two main reasons: your interaction with parents is greatly reduced and the kids are generally more interested in learning.

Nothing's worse than teaching a kid you think was raised by wolves and then feeling bad that he wasn't after meeting his parents.

I'd love to hear more about teaching music technology—if you don't have to deal with parents, that sounds like a great job for me.

[kiwibabe]

Originally Posted by turtle777

Is it normal in NZ to go for a PhD w/o having a Masters ?

-t

In NZ you do you BSc first (3 years) then you can go onto doing either a Masters research project for two years or a 1 year Honours degree (which is basically a research project for a year).

After that you can go onto doing a PhD (which for Biochemistry is normally 3 - 4 years long).

It is not uncommon for someone doing a masters to turn their project into a PhD or someone doing their PhD to get sick of working on it and turn it into a masters instead.

[ghporter]

Originally Posted by SimpleLife

I once heard a woman say over the radio that men really start to live at 40. I am 41 and I believe that more and more...

Keep it up on these projects ghporter; that is where life is!

That woman on the radio was RIGHT! It just keeps getting better!

[E's Lil Theorem]

Originally Posted by SimpleLife

...
I once heard a woman say over the radio that men really start to live at 40. I am 41 and I believe that more and more...
...

That's why I want to retire when I'm 38; 39 if things get a little tough

[SimpleLife]

Originally Posted by E's Lil Theorem

That's why I want to retire when I'm 38; 39 if things get a little tough

I don't understand; don't you have enough tummies to deal with already?

[historylme]

Originally Posted by Hash

Is it different teaching at high school (compared to colleges and universities)?

When I taught at different community colleges (I don't know about High School), teaching was great. Preparation was a lot of work but the actual teaching was rewarding and fun. Best of all, I didn't deal with personality issues or parents. I simply lectured, answered questions and made sure I conveyed the hows, whens, wheres and especially the whys.

The only major problem I encountered was ageism. I was 24 when I first taught freshman. To make matters worst, half of my students were over 40. Ah, good times.