Experience vs Education
Does it matter where your education came from? On-line courses are fairly new and I don't think the typical hiring manager may be very aware of the ability and additional retention one can gain with the navigational simplicity. Traditional learning can be very restrictive. Isn't it true that most will hire the most experienced and possitive canditate if they have several with the educational requirements and diplomas?
What do you think?
Debra:
These are my thoughts on your rsponse. As a person responsible for hiring staff for my department, I am primarily interested in their abiltiy to perform the duties related to the job function.
I have had instances in which candidates have reported false academic credentias on their resumes; so as of next week, we will be asking for Transcripts. If I were to hire someone who received his or her education in an online environment, as a minimum, I will take the necessary measures to ensure that the person I am hiring is indeed the person who took the course and that the exams were taken in a proctored environment.
Satrohan
Debra:
Employers who are looking for qualified candidates take education along with experience as qualifying factors.
When education is listed on the resume most employers are not looking to do a background check; however, with jobs that have a high profile or you are working in the education field employers will check transcripts. Diplomas are not trustworthy as there are so many diploma mills where people can purchase a degree for $200 to $500 to add as a qualifying factor in a career move.
If you get your degree online from a respectable accredited school, it does not matter if you were in class or at home along as you fulfilled the requirements.
Rhonda:
Your points are well taken. I take an additional precaution when job applicants have competed thier education in an online environment. We administer a test that is criterion-referenced to the job tasks; and take those results into consideration when we evaluate applicants. And definitely, we ensure that the institution from which the applicant received their education is accredited.
Satrohan
Satrohan,
I live the idea of the criterion-referenced test which is related to the tasks they will be accomplishing. I have seen several people hired for positions that they were not qualified to do based on education and experiences they claim to have. When they enter the true environment the truth is comes to light. In those situations the damage has been done and the individuals do not perform to the expected standards of their employment and have to be trained to accomplished to accomplish the tasks that they claimed they had. Which incurs an additional cost to the company.
Through testing I believe less qualified applicants would be weeded out early.
Agreed on all counts, Rhonda.
Satrohan
I work in a university setting, and my employer has taking a different avenue to determine a prospective permanent employee's worth based on education and experience. Many departments are hiring employees as casual or temps for 90 days to determine their competence. Background checks and references are not always a true validation of a person's worth because some have outstanding references only to find out that the ex-employer were glad to give their problem to some else.
Once a person is hired in the temp position, their performance within the 90 days period would have determined their educational skills along with experienced decision making capabilities.
Lynnette
Lynette:
This is an excellent strategy to determine the suitability of a person for a position regardless of whether the person completed their education in an online setting or a traditional classroom setting. An addition to the strategy you mentioned, I stagger salary increases over the year----three months, six months, and end of year.
Satrohan
I also work in a Universitiy setting. We also only hire new professors for a semester at a time to see how they work out before hiring. This seems to work well.
Charleen
i think on-line teaching should be subject matter experts on the subjects they are teaching. I don't necessarily believe they need a teaching degree but I do believe they should be passionate about the subject they are teaching.
Charleen:
Do you hire Professors whose academic acheivements were obtained through online instruction? If yes, for which Faculty?
Satrohan
Charleen:
Please share your thoughts with us on this Question.
We agree that Online Instructors should, like any other Instructor, be passionate about the Subject-Matter. They must also be experts in the content domain. Do you believe they require special skill sets to teach in an Online environment? If yes, what are some of those skills?
Satrohan
Technology is moving in a different direction and education is apart of that movement. Adult learners now want a "more convenient" way to obtain a degree, and due to technology, we now have many options.
I think traditional learning can be restrictive and quite boring. I've sat through many four hours lecture and learned nothing because I wasn't focused and involved. It also depends on the facilitator. On line courses provide learning from the instructor and the students - its a shared responsibility.
The degree needs to come from an accredited institution. The number of degrees held is up to each individual person. From a hiring manager standpoint, positions are filled based on the skills, knowledge, abilities and educational requirements. Due to today's temporary/ transitory working environment, having a number of degrees does not equate to a higher position with more pay as it did some years ago.
Charlotte:
You have provided a very comprehensive response on this Subject. I cannot dispute any of the positions you have taken on the Subject, as I share the same. More striking, is your observation that the number of degrees does not equate to seniority and higher compensation.
Satrohan
Lynnette Washngton mentioned about taking steps in the hiring process to see of the indiviudal is a good fit after the probationary period. This time allows an employer to validate the information provided by the applicant. This also allows the applicant to demonstrate his/ her knowledge from the degree received, including his/ her professional experience. Earning a degree demonstrates a willingness to learn and a continued opportunity to grow.
Charlotte:
As a Manager, I would be cautious about the frequency with which I adopt this probationary period approach unless my organization supports it. If too many new hires do not work out, this could turn out to be a very expensive process for the organization, and I can be viewed as someone with poor hiring skills.
Satrohan
Satrohan,
All of the organizations I have worked for have an interview process and a probationary timeframe. In determining whether or not a candidate is right for the position/ organization, interviewers need to be prepared upfront to determine whether a candidate has the necessary education, knowledge, and experience. I concur that this process could become too costly foor an organization.
Thank you for sharing this information with us Charlotte. Likewise, all organizations with which I have worked, except on a cotract basis, have a probationary period. Probationary periods, in my opinion, serve two purposes. It gives the employee the opportunity to determine whether they like the working environment; it helps the employer to further evaluate the employee's suitability for the job. Perhaps I might have not been clear in my eralier response. I am not against probationary periods. I offered for consideration, the predicament in which I will find myself if a high percentage of the people I hire do not survive the probationary period. As I write this response, a statement a colleague of mine made to me almost 20 yeasr ago comes to mind---players do not necessarily get fired; coaches.
do. Hope this clarifies the position I took in my earlier response.
Satrohan
On-Line courses are new to me; have been in the teaching arena for about 21 years for adult students. Passion is critical on the part of the instructor; not only does it prove their knowledge base but allows an instructor an opportunity to "look outside the box" and guide a student when they encounter difficulty. My goal is now to relay my passion for teaching and its subject matter to the students via on-line. I am finding this to be a new challenge and also very rewarding.
Renee:
I strongly believe that with your experience, you will be able to adapt to teaching in an online environment. The challenge will bring its rewards in due course.
Satrohan
