Shades of gray (was Degree vs. Experience)

Subject: Shades of gray (was Degree vs. Experience)
From: "Smith, Amy" <amsmith -at- PTC -dot- COM>
Date: Tue, 22 Jul 1997 08:59:11 -0400

(Read this first - this post only addresses the issue of potential
divisivness around this topic. It does not cover employer requirements,
certification issues, or salary differentials. So don't even *think*
about firing up the flamethrowers! :-) )

At the risk of stating the obvious, isn't there room for both realities
(degree/experience) here? I'm not sure why this discussion is devolving
to black vs. white. It seems that everyone has been successful
regardless of what path they've taken, and are happy about their choice
into the bargain. Have we heard from anyone regretting the path not
chosen? If you think about it, those who chose not to pursue a degree
and are wildly successful will probably never get a degree, because
getting a degree is just not for them. On the other hand, those who
chose to get a degree (at whatever point in their lives) would most
likely always have done so, regardless of job success, because that's
what they want to do and because it's important to them.

And then there are all the people who take courses for the fun and joy
of it, but who are not necessarily getting a degree.

Disclaimer: I am currently pursuing my Master's in Technical and
Professional Writing. I have a BS in biology; I went right from high
school to college. There's been a space of, oh, about 12 years between
the efforts. I'm just one of those degree people. If it wasn't tech
writing, it would have been something else.

I don't think this issue is really so black and white - more like a
million shades of gray!

Amy (in a dove-gray mood this morning)

My opinions are my own and not Parametric's
-------------------------------------------
Amy Smith, Documentation Manager
Parametric Technology 128 Technology Drive Waltham MA 02154
http://www.ptc.com
amsmith -at- ptc -dot- com
-------------------------------------------

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