Get Career-Ready
The number one reason to choose a career college is that their goals match your goals. The very name, career college, tells you that your education will focus on getting you career-ready. Many university graduates are disappointed to find that their bachelor’s degree doesn’t open many doors. They don’t realize that universities are not designed to start you on future careers. They are institutions of higher learning. Their goal is to expose you to theory and get you thinking critically. That’s a fantastic goal but if your primary reason for pursuing education is to start your career, you’re better off at a career college, where learning the skills you will need on a job comes first. Of course, this includes learning theory and critical thinking but that is not in and of itself the end goal.
Get Career-Ready Sooner and for Less
Most career college programs can be completed in anywhere from a month to a year. Taking a full course load, a bachelor’s degree is generally four years while an associate’s degree from a college is two years. That’s a whole lot more time that you’re not working. using a direct month to month comparison, some career college programs may seem more expensive than a semester at university but in the long run they are cheaper because they pack more information into a shorter program. This doesn’t mean you get class hours for your dollar. In fact, you probably get more. Most career college programs run five days a week for a full day. Comparatively, a full-time course-load at university is only fifteen classroom hours a week.
If you can imagine, you can achieve it. If you can dream it, you can become it. (William Arthur Ward)
Get a Practical Education
Career college courses focus on information and skills that you will actually use in your career and give you opportunities to put what you learn into practice. When you learn theory, you learn its practical application and why it is important. Then, you apply it. For example, if you were taking a TESOL course and you learned about Communicative Language Teaching, you would probably have to put this into practice in lesson plans. If you took a Business Law course, you might analyze a case and give a ruling based on what you learned in class.
Get One-on-One Feedback
Career colleges have smaller class sizes. At Greystone, an average class is usually between six and twelve students and most classes have a cap of twenty two students. Furthermore, you generally spend at least a month of full day classes with the same instructor. Smaller class sizes and prolonged exposure means instructors get to know you better. They have a much clearer sense of your strengths and weaknesses and can advise you accordingly. Smaller class sizes also mean instructors have more time to give you individualized feedback on assignments, presentations and even class discussions.
Get an Education That Suits You
Smaller class sizes also mean that instructors can adjust their lessons to suit the needs, interests and learning styles of the students in their classes. If students are having a hard time grasping a concept, they can spend a little more time on it in class. If students are already familiar with a topic, instructors can move ahead. There is time for students to ask questions. Overall, smaller classes result in a much more student-centred approach.
Get Networking
Not only do smaller class sizes mean instructors get to know you better, smaller classes also mean your classmates get to know you better. Your classmates will soon be your peers in the industry. If you make connections with them while in class, when opportunities open up, they are likely to let you know or even put in a good word on your behalf. Because they know your strengths and interests, former classmates are far more likely to suggest positions where you are a good fit.
Graduation gown: photo credit: <a href=”http://www.flickr.com/photos/skobo/4345704586/”>skobo</a> via <a href=”http://photopin.com”>photopin</a> <a href=”http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/”>cc</a>
graduation: photo credit: <a href=”http://www.flickr.com/photos/werwin15/3608822025/”>Werwin15</a> via <a href=”http://photopin.com”>photopin</a> <a href=”http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/”>cc</a>