Re: Texas Tech U/ tech writer experience....

[Rachael Lininger <techwhirl -at- earthlink -dot- net>]

Isaac Rabinovitch <isaacr -at- mailsnare -dot- net> wrote:
Rachael Lininger wrote:
 
>> Agreed. But the person who wrote originally already has two 4-year
>> degrees -- including one in English -- and is talking about a graduate 
>> degree. That's where I am, as the difference between a double major
>> and two degrees isn't that significant to HR. My current crackpot 
>> theory on the job market is that there should be a balance between 
>> education and experience that's appropriate for the field. 

>Not so crackpot, and I agree that the original poster should probably be 
>thinking more in terms of gaining techncial expertise and experience 
>than in accumulating more degrees. But I still think you're wrong about 
>the value of a Master's. A double batchelor's is just a little extra work 
>at the undergrad level, whereas a grad degree is a *lot* of extra work 
>at a whole new level. That makes a lot of difference, and not just to HR.

I meant a double major vs. two undergrad degrees being about the same; 
I was just trying to say that I was in about the same place he is in my first
technical writing job search. I was getting "overqualified" and "no
experience" at the same time, and really felt pinched. I suspect another 
degree would have made that worse, not better. Maybe there would be
networking opportunities to offset this? Of course, interviewing well trumps
everything except the background check, but it took me a long time to 
learn how to do that.

I want a graduate degree, just not right now. Now I want experience. Ok, 
and technical certs. 

Rachael