Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with ba

What's in it for me?

jasondigitized — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 08:54:23 -0800

How do I get coworkers to spend quality time with me? I am starting a new gig as a business analyst, and will be trying to convince strangers that they should meet with me to tell me about their jobs, needs, and requirements. After that I have to also get them to review the documentation I will create. What tactics have / would you use to get quality results from people who are busy and don't know you from Adam?

Are BA miles safe?

Neiltupper — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 09:46:21 -0800

Are BA miles safe? My father has 180,000 points with the RBC Avion programme. He wants to transfer them to the BA miles programme, as they are currently offering a 50% bonus for transfers.

My concern is with the solvency of BA. If they were to file for bankruptcy, what happens to the points programme? I don't know the corporate structure of BA or how bankruptcy works, and he has only a few days left on this offer. What would be your advice to him?

1. ??? 2. Ph.D. 3. Profit!

ailouros08 — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 12:05:09 -0800

The eternal question: A 2d bachelor's degree, or straight to grad school? Another rehash of a fairly common question on AskMe, but with a fun, crushing-financial-burden? spin.

My darling girlfriend is considering going back to school for a Ph.D. in Ecology or Environmental Science. She is currently the not-so-proud owner of a B.A. in Interdisciplinary Studies (her particular brand includes a mixture of biology, chemistry, environmental science, sociology and anthropology). She's been out of school, working in retail, for about five years. While she has managed to avoid the lay-offs so far, the chances that her company will still be around by next February are vanishingly small. So, she's finally mustered the courage to take a stab at her dream: Getting her Ph.D. in Environmental Science.

Complications? Her graduating GPA was a mere 2.3, so it would be difficult, if not outright impossible, for her to get into grad school without some prep work. So right now she's trying to decide between getting a 2d bachelor's in Biology, taking classes as a Post-Bacc at a local university, or taking classes at a local community college in order to boost her GPA.

Her question really revolves around the cost-benefit of each of these paths. The financial considerations, while still significant, will lessen considerably once I finish school in May 2010. Though I won't be earning the big bucks, I'll be able to replace her earnings (we live quite frugally) and she'll be able to focus entirely on being a student.

1. A 2d Bachelor's would take longer, but it would be easier to get financial aid. All the past AskMe's we've looked at suggest that its effect on admissions to a graduate program would be negligible.

2. Post-Bacc classes would be the fastest way for her to beef up her GPA. Additionally, she would be taking them at one of three great research universities in the area, so she'd have networking opportunities. However, Post-Bacc students aren't eligible for financial aid, so this would be the most expensive option (and she would probably have to work part-time to help defray the cost.)

3. Taking community college classes is the cheapest option by far, but unless she actually enrolls in an Associate's Degree program, she won't be eligible for financial aid. Her worry with this option is that the rigor of the classes (or lack thereof) may hinder her when she applies to a grad program.

I apologize for the long question, but she is at a very big crossroads in her life, and needs all the advice and encouragement she can get. So, fellow mefites, have you taken any of these paths? What would you recommend? Should she focus on quality or affordability? Advice/warnings? Alternatives?

Is a BS worth spending another year in school?

pullayup — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 12:31:00 -0800

I'm working on a BA in chemistry, with a concentration in biochemistry. Compared to getting a BS, will it be harder for me to find a job when I graduate? If so, how much harder? I realize that the economy sucks, all bets are off, etc.

If I want to switch to a chemistry BS, I'll need to take an additional year or more of math and physics, recapitulating the courses I took for my BS in Biology, which were part of a different track. Biology was my first degree—I started with a minor in chemistry, and switched to the full BA program when I started to look at the job prospects for biologists with only an undergrad degree.
I'm not going to graduate or professional school after I graduate.

Distant Education Recommendations? (esp ones that offer IT BA Programs)

premo — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 13:07:18 -0800

Distant Education Recommendations? (esp ones that offer IT BA Programs) I'm looking for any distance education that has teachers, councilors and staff that CARE. A program new or old that is high tech and streaming video feed of lectures would be nice. If you received some distance education that is worth mentioning and you've enjoyed it or even better you've done 2 different schools online. PLEASE LET ME KNOW! Thanks. About ME:
I'm 27 working professional in SF, CA and looking to further my career in IT or Computer Science. My work pays for $5K annually for any educational purposes, I can afford maybe 7-8K annually without looking into loans. Low cost would be nice.

I've been to University of Phoenix and it was horrible. In 1 years time I had 6 different councilors and there's so much turmoil behind the scenes that it negatively affects the whole school. Plus its EXPENSIVE.

History ---> Cash

Avenger — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 01:35:51 -0800

1) Get BA in beloved liberal arts field 2) ??? 3) Profit? Help me balance my desire for a degree in History with my desire to earn a decent living for myself. This spring I begin my Junior year of college -- working towards a BA in History. I love History and I consider it to be one of my passions. Probably my "main" passion. It's difficult to describe to someone who hasn't felt the "history bug", but I am "that one kid" who spends his lunch hour reading up on John XXII and the political intrigues of the Avignon Papacy. There really isn't much that I enjoy more -- intellectually speaking -- than history.

So, naturally, I went for a degree in History. My struggle right now is finding an algorithm that will result in "History --> Cash".

Grad school is a definite possibility (I have a 4.0 -- that should help me to get in, right?), although my parents are bankrupt and I'm poor, so financing might be tricky. But what should I study there? I really have no desire to teach high school. I suppose I could do it if the alternative were starvation, but I never liked high school and, frankly, I don't like kids that much. My parents have been encouraging me to head into law school after I graduate, but the
idea of having $100,000+ in debt is too scary for me to even contemplate. Also, lawyering doesn't thrill me either.

I've considered teaching at a college level, although when I ask my professors about it, their responses are usually shades of "don't bother". Apparently, a glut of humanities professors and deep cuts in state and Federal education budgets makes it very hard to get onboard a faculty without somebody dying first. Math and Science professors are much more in demand -- and while I enjoy science and am competent at math, I just don't see an academic career for myself in either.

I've also considered "Government" (a vague term if there ever was one) and a Masters in Public Administration, although I'm not even completely sure what I could do with that. I'm probably too much of a humanitarian to get a job with the FBI, CIA or just about any political campaign.

This is also difficult because I'm trying to figure out exactly how much money would be enough for me to be comfortable living on. 40,000/yr? 50? 60? I've never made more than 16,000/yr in my whole life. I'd like to make more, of course, but I have no absolute goals for how much money I feel that I need to earn. I guess you could say I'm still exploring my values in this regard.

On a more practical note: This fall I will be taking an EMT course to improve my near-term employment prospects. Entry-level EMT's can make $25-30,000/yr, which is pretty good from my current $9/hour vantage point.

So should I try to get a job that relates to my History degree somehow, or should I get it just for the enrichment and pursue a more practical route to financial success? Am I missing something here?

Aspiring Business Analyst

jasondigitized — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 07:24:00 -0800

Help me become a great business analyst. I am slowly taking on more responsibilities as a business analyst and I am completely winging it. Does anyone out there gather requirements and do business modeling? Is that what a business analyst really does? I would like to here more about what makes a good business analyst. Can anyone recommend some good books, websites, techniques, and tools for jedi BA's? Should I learn more about UML? Interviewing techniques? Sharpen my general business understanding? Buy a fancy Monte Blanc pen? Is this job more about relationships than technology? Real life anecdotes appreciated.

what the hell am I doing?

Baby_Balrog — Sat, 15 Apr 2006 06:13:39 -0800

Do you have to have a Master's degree to get a Ph.D.? I was just reading this question and I noticed that the OP didn't even really acknowledge that they didn't have an MA and wanted to start a Ph.D. program.
Have I been living in a cave? I ask because I'm about to start my M.Div, on the long road to getting a doctoral degree, but why the hell am I spending all this money if I can just skip the Master's and go right to Dr. Balrog?
Of course, in that case I won't be Rev. Dr. Balrog, but I always thought that it was sort of an A -> B -> C sort of progression, with the Bachelor's leading to the Master's leading to the Doctorate.

Should I get a lit degree early?

rfordh — Tue, 08 Mar 2005 11:43:12 -0800

I can graduate in a year with a BA in literature. That would make it 2.5 years start-to-finish. Should I double major and stick around longer, or can I move onto grad school with just this? I'm considering Journalism, Medicine, Law, or a PhD in Literature towards teaching. I hadn't given it much thought because I didn't realize how close I was to graduating. If anyone has thoughts on how they decided what to do post-graduation, that would be nice, but I have some specific questions to avoid ChatFiltering.

I have two jobs and well-rounded extracurricular experience, but should I still be looking for an internship? I've heard that undergrad doesn't matter, but I'm still apprehensive about my financial future/career path. Is a humanities degree a mistake? Do you know anyone that jumped to a completely unrelated field for grad work? And how much of it is really just dependent on the person?

Pros and Cons of an Economics degree

Sangre Azul — Tue, 31 Aug 2004 10:21:18 -0800

My friend needs help deciding on either a BA or BSBA degree in economics. He would like to work in international trade or something related. What are some pros/cons of each degree (and possible minors for the BA)? He would probably be working for a few years before pursuing a master's degree.

Which Degree?

ttrendel — Thu, 08 Apr 2004 08:51:20 -0800

I'm returning to college this summer to finish a degree and have come to a crossroads as to what degree to go for. (more inside) I need about 20 credit hours to finish my Bachelor's degree and am trying to decide which degree to go for.

Option 1:

B.A. in Computer Science/Philosophy - not a double major, a combination of the two. This will take a longer time to finish and move back my graduation date by a semester. Need to finish philosophy and language reuirements.

Option 2:

Bachelor of General Studies with minors in Computer Science, Information Technology, and Entrepreneurship. This is by far the quicker of the two, only requiring a few semesters of part time work to finish the Entrepreneurship minor.

I want to work in the tech sector ideally doing any kind of programming and would love to delve into interface design.
The BGS makes the most sense based on money contraints and time until graduation, but something about receiving a BGS instead of a BA bothers me. Do employers looking for fresh grads to fill entry-level positions make any distinction between the two? Will the multiple minors in different disciplines help or hinder me?