Is a bachelor of general studies useful

October 28, 2009 8:15 PM

I am a nontraditional student who has gone back to school and completed an AA degree.I work all kinds of messed up hours and I have found that pursuing a bachelors of General studies (over the internet) at the university of Missouri will work for me.I can have the tests sent to a local library or school for finals etc. I was wondering what the Meta filter community thinks about a bgs. Has it helped or hindered them.
posted by Upon Further Review to education (6 answers total)

I did an AA degree through correspondence, and I had my exams sent to local school teachers or professors who I knew who administered the tests for me. This should not be a problem for you--usually there will be certain requirements regarding who can administer your exams (i.e. not related to you, has a professional affiliation with a school, it's done in a school setting, etc.) but they are fairly broad. I don't know about the BGS; have you looked into just taking more classes, like at your local community college, or online, rather than working towards that degree? If you wanted to build your skills or knowledge in a particular subject area (like science) this might be a better route. I would think it depends on what your academic and career goals are.
posted by Dilemma at 8:24 PM on October 28, 2009

I am also a non-trad currently pursuing a BGS at MU, albeit on campus. I feel like it fits me better than a different more specific degree or major. Email me for specifics if you want.
posted by schyler523 at 9:39 PM on October 28, 2009 [1 favorite]

Many employers want to see a degree on a resume. Not because they'll think you're smarter or whatever, but that you have the drive to finish something big!

While many expect to see "standard" local colleges, as long as the place you're attending is accredited, your degree is worth as much as someone who did attend a "standard" classroom type school!

Congrats on getting your Bachelors Degree! It's truly an accomplishment, especially if you're working at the same time!
posted by Jinx of the 2nd Law at 4:45 AM on October 29, 2009

What up, Mizzou!

As a person with an English degree who's taken a few different roads afterwards, I agree with the previous poster that it's about finishing the degree, not so much the actual degree you get. Your job experience will get you future jobs, and your degree will say, "I can start something and finish it."

If the degree is job training, like education or engineering or science-y or even journalism, then it might matter what exactly you were doing. But most of the rest of it won't matter too much, unless you're planning to pursue graduate work in those fields. Find something you like to study and get your degree in that.
posted by aabbbiee at 6:46 AM on October 29, 2009

Thanks for all of the responses so far, I appreciate it!
posted by Upon Further Review at 10:12 AM on October 29, 2009 [1 favorite]

Many, if not most, bachelor's-degree holders don't work in their field of study. Examples from my files: English major working as a marketing director, Anthropology major as a legal secretary, Legal Studies major in Human Resources...

Employers want to know that you have a) finished your degree at a b) accredited school. Sure, there are fields which demand specific degrees (mostly in science, engineering, accounting, and such like) and employers who have so many eager applicants that they can demand a traditional degree from Big Name University. By and large, however, your degree is a foot in the door and demonstrates your ability to finish a project, organizational and research skills, etc.

Finally: "Non-traditional students" such as you now constitute a majority of college students. So there are more online programs and they have far more respect from employers than ten years ago - because students like you (and like I was!), adults working crazy hours, are more the norm than the exception.
posted by Rosie M. Banks at 4:33 PM on October 29, 2009 [1 favorite]