This weekend was interesting to me. I live with my cousin and her mother lives just a couple miles down the road, so we see her quite often. My own mother lives across the state, but she came to visit this weekend. Both of them are looking for work. My aunt has been out of full-time work since the bank she and I used to work at went under in 2009. My mother was a stay-at-home mom for about a decade while she was married to my step-dad, but they have recently divorced and now she needs a full-time job. Both my aunt and my mother are very experienced in their fields. My mother has several certifications in human resources and has even taught continuing education courses at a university. Both my mother and my aunt are in their mid-50's, very smart and experienced women, but no college degrees. When they began their careers in the the 80's and 90's, college degrees were bonuses on the resume. These days, it's keeping them from getting hired. On Friday, my aunt was telling us about the difficulty she's having in getting a job that's equivalent to the position she held before due to her lack of college education. She's seriously considering University of Phoenix. When my mom got into town, she told me about the job she applied for and really hopes to get. They recently called her to find out what her educational background is, exactly. Now she's terrified she won't get the job.
My cousin is a teacher with a master's degree. I have recently returned to college and will be the first woman on my mom's side of the family with a degree when I graduate. We both know that without a degree, we cannot work in our chosen fields. I wonder, however, what disadvantage I'll have when I'm my mother's age. I would like to eventually have a Ph.D. in nutrition, but will that be enough to compete for jobs with the generation after me? Will that level of education, which is considered a bonus now, but the expected minimum in 25 years?
No comments:
Post a Comment