2015 MATC Scholars Program: Mr. Juhann Waller

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11/14/2017 Added

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Why Graduate School?

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[00:00:00.385](classroom chatter)
[00:00:09.032]Alright people, let's get ready to get started
[00:00:10.495]so that we can try to make up as much time as possible.
[00:00:15.473]Hello, I'm Professor Juhann Waller
[00:00:19.017]from North Carolina A&T, and I am here to give you
[00:00:21.621]a presentation on
[00:00:23.551]why to go to graduate school.
[00:00:27.435]What I want to do is start out with
[00:00:29.600]a presentation outline, give you an introduction,
[00:00:31.933]tell you a little bit about myself.
[00:00:33.487]We'll do learning objectives, learning outcomes,
[00:00:35.202]and then we'll go through the course map
[00:00:38.275]presentation on why to do graduate school.
[00:00:41.639]And then I will do a conclusion at the end,
[00:00:43.747]and then I'll allow you guys a few minutes
[00:00:46.144]to ask me questions about the presentation or
[00:00:49.911]my life in general.
[00:00:50.744]But I think I have a learning background
[00:00:53.070]than most of your professors
[00:00:54.230]that you have at your respective institutions.
[00:00:57.591]Learning objectives for this presentation is
[00:01:00.546]to talk about reasons for pursuing an advanced degree,
[00:01:03.003]considerations to begin the application process,
[00:01:06.003]complete the application process and gain an admission
[00:01:08.510]into graduate school.
[00:01:12.655]Our learning outcomes is to be not (mumbling)
[00:01:15.151]about why graduate school is important.
[00:01:19.270]I'm knowledgeable about preparing for graduate school
[00:01:21.591]and then being fluent about the benefits of
[00:01:24.242]attending and and advancing in graduate studies
[00:01:27.234]and career paths as a graduate student
[00:01:29.205]that's available to you.
[00:01:31.931]What I'd like to do is do a little activity
[00:01:36.294]called discovering commonalities.
[00:01:39.213]What I want you to do is probably get into
[00:01:41.448]groups of four.
[00:01:44.284]And groups of four and generate a list of 20 things
[00:01:46.968]that you know about graduate school.
[00:01:48.826]And you will have, let's say 10 minutes
[00:01:52.016]to complete this exercise and at the end of
[00:01:53.918]this exercise, we'll get a representative
[00:01:56.037]from each group to go through their list
[00:01:59.814]of the things you know about graduate school.
[00:02:03.364]Let's give you (mumbling) to do that now.
[00:02:06.682]Don't want to do the (mumbling).
[00:02:08.699]Intermingle with people from other universities.
[00:02:11.630]I don't want to see all the A&T people together,
[00:02:15.070]all the University of New Mexico.
[00:02:18.237](mumbling) I want you to mix it up.
[00:02:21.501](classroom chatter)
[00:02:27.172]I will cut this time down.
[00:02:29.059]Let's do it in five minutes.
[00:02:31.023](classroom chatter)
[00:05:14.096]About three more minutes.
[00:06:18.680]Alright, let's go through the list.
[00:06:20.398]Who wants to go first?
[00:06:23.203]How many you got?
[00:06:25.743]That's close enough. (laughing)
[00:06:28.938]I'd like 20, but (mumbling).
[00:06:31.342]Alright, same thing, what university you're from,
[00:06:33.324]and then go through your eight.
[00:06:35.417]My name is Ee-Oh-Dah,
[00:06:36.915]I'm from (mumbling) University.
[00:06:38.560]Majoring in Mechanical Engineering.
[00:06:40.523]And I would just say we did.
[00:06:43.257]Or, we didn't actually come up with 20 things.
[00:06:47.028]We said that the salary increases
[00:06:50.054]more than college.
[00:06:52.132]That after committee scholarships and funding,
[00:06:54.365]you have networking and closer relationship
[00:06:56.701]with the people that you're working with.
[00:06:59.101]Granted, in the workforce, you
[00:07:00.788]may make those relationships, but
[00:07:02.569](mumbling) as personal.
[00:07:06.699]Research-based study and fellowships and TA,
[00:07:09.448]less amount of credit, more projects,
[00:07:12.592]less time in school and more conferences.
[00:07:17.345]And then what I want to do real quick.
[00:07:19.795]Each one of your group members, say your name
[00:07:21.495]and what university you're from,
[00:07:23.026]so everybody can meet everybody.
[00:07:26.235]I'm Chantelle McCoy.
[00:07:27.350]I'm from North Carolina A&T State University.
[00:07:29.703]I'm Civil Engineering.
[00:07:33.689]I'm Mitra English.
[00:07:35.617]University of Maryland, Eastern Shore.
[00:07:37.588](cheering)
[00:07:38.463](laughing)
[00:07:39.296]Aerospace Engineering.
[00:07:40.830]My name is Othello.
[00:07:42.937]I'm from (mumbling) and Vasilia U.
[00:07:48.165]Next group.
[00:07:50.323]You guys.
[00:07:54.829]My name is Nicholas Buchanan and I go to A&T University,
[00:07:59.664]and I'm a Civil Engineer.
[00:08:03.415]And a lot of these things are the same
[00:08:05.022]as our group had.
[00:08:06.439]We were saying more research and
[00:08:08.780]more concentrated research.
[00:08:11.209]As a Civil Engineer, it's so broad,
[00:08:13.169]but if you go to graduate school,
[00:08:14.801]you could do transportation or structural.
[00:08:17.847]Or you can really get in depth
[00:08:19.515]with what you want to learn rather than something broad.
[00:08:22.936]You get your tuition paid with a stipend.
[00:08:26.154]You get mentors, you get really close to your faculty
[00:08:29.450]members, who are really
[00:08:31.112]better for networking skills.
[00:08:34.546]Stronger resume, higher chance of getting
[00:08:36.720]a better paying job.
[00:08:39.785]That's pretty much it.
[00:08:41.082]OK.
[00:08:42.675]Group members.
[00:08:45.136]My name is Denzel Curry, I go to Southern University.
[00:08:47.967]I'm majoring in Electrical Engineering (mumbling).
[00:08:50.788]Esther, University of Maryland,
[00:08:54.076]Eastern Shore, Aerospace Engineering.
[00:09:02.751]My name is Olivia Empiano,
[00:09:04.229]I'm part of Mexico State University.
[00:09:06.782]And we put pretty much the same thing.
[00:09:09.144]You know, it's expensive.
[00:09:10.655]It's specific, more to your content.
[00:09:14.340]I'm not an Engineer.
[00:09:17.764]I getting my B.S. in Biology
[00:09:19.961]and I'm going into Education (mumbling).
[00:09:24.215]It's more research intensive,
[00:09:25.389]and you can either have a thesis or a project.
[00:09:27.761]I hadn't really heard that.
[00:09:29.600]I thought everything was more thesis-driven.
[00:09:32.556]You get paid for it, if you didn't think of.
[00:09:34.569]You have a mentor, so you get closer
[00:09:36.673]to (mumbling) classes.
[00:09:39.446]You don't necessarily have to teach,
[00:09:41.518]but you can with that.
[00:09:42.992]And it's like the working degree.
[00:09:48.173]Good morning, everybody.
[00:09:49.631]I'm Craig Beasley, Jr., studying Civil Engineering
[00:09:52.005]at Prairie University.
[00:09:56.682]Hello, my name is Kamrie Diller,
[00:09:58.154]I'm a senior studying Mechanical Engineering
[00:09:59.989]at Southern University at A&M College.
[00:10:03.874]I'm Matthew Furby,
[00:10:04.934]a junior Civil Engineer student at
[00:10:06.565]North Carolina A&T.
[00:10:09.629]Next group, let's go in the back.
[00:10:14.030]Alright, so we came up with.
[00:10:16.240]Hold on, first some light.
[00:10:17.542]Sorry.
[00:10:18.581]I'm Jerry Sanchez from (mumbling) University
[00:10:21.280]majoring in Mechanical Engineering.
[00:10:23.846]We came up with
[00:10:26.806]one, it's expensive.
[00:10:28.256]Two, it's kind of a long process.
[00:10:30.574]You're always studying. (laughing)
[00:10:35.561]It's too time consuming.
[00:10:37.221]They said a lot of coffee,
[00:10:38.974]you know, that's gonna happen.
[00:10:40.843]It's gonna be academically challenging,
[00:10:44.577]requires a lot of study groups.
[00:10:46.590]You get paid for what we're gonna be doing.
[00:10:48.744]A lot of communication skills,
[00:10:50.647]and then don't get emotional.
[00:10:55.741]The schedule's pretty relaxed (mumbling).
[00:10:59.483]Credits (mumbling).
[00:11:03.984]And more opportunity and there is more pressure.
[00:11:06.802]OK, and quickly, your group members.
[00:11:08.757]My name is Muhammad Scully,
[00:11:11.163]Southern Indiana and State University.
[00:11:14.752]My name is Eye-Ah-Kole-Aye Ah-Kum-Bay.
[00:11:18.935]I attend to University of Maryland Eastern Shore
[00:11:21.089]in Mechanical Engineering.
[00:11:23.353]OK.
[00:11:26.950]I'm just sitting in.
[00:11:27.896]Oh OK. (laughing)
[00:11:29.222]No, not me, I'm just sitting in.
[00:11:31.137](laughing)
[00:11:33.256]Good morning everybody.
[00:11:34.269]My name is Edward Abraham,
[00:11:35.796]Civil Engineering student at Prairie View A&M University.
[00:11:39.696]Our group has come up with 13 different things.
[00:11:43.664]Number one, graduate school is expensive.
[00:11:46.526]Number two, it's time consuming.
[00:11:49.353]Number three, we need to take the GRE
[00:11:51.798]and the admission depends on your GRE scores.
[00:11:56.218]Number four, hard.
[00:11:58.757]Number five, good resume.
[00:12:02.304]Number six, letters of recommendation.
[00:12:04.713]Number seven, research experience.
[00:12:07.043]Number eight, it has its own benefits.
[00:12:09.267]Number nine, higher pay.
[00:12:10.983]Number 10, good GPA.
[00:12:13.142]Number 11, scholarships.
[00:12:15.130]Number 12, working closer with faculty
[00:12:17.519]and your professors.
[00:12:20.026]And at number 13, increase your critical thinking
[00:12:23.266]and intellectual ability.
[00:12:24.636]OK.
[00:12:25.469]Quickly, your group members.
[00:12:27.501]My name is Mayu Lalters,
[00:12:29.216]I'm a senior at Tennessee State University.
[00:12:31.775]I'm a Civil Engineering major.
[00:12:34.874]My name's James Jones.
[00:12:36.189]I'm a graduated senior at Tennessee State University,
[00:12:38.212]Civil Engineering.
[00:12:40.541]My name's Arturo Dominguez,
[00:12:42.249]sophomore at Mexico State University,
[00:12:44.260]and I'm majoring in Mechanical Engineering.
[00:12:47.885]Thank you everybody for putting that together.
[00:12:49.827]What we're gonna do, what this presentation is to
[00:12:52.532]give you some more general information on
[00:12:55.652]graduate school, so you can put that
[00:12:57.252]in your tool box to make the decision,
[00:12:59.210]if you're on the fence, whether to go to graduate school
[00:13:01.667]or not to go to graduate school.
[00:13:03.353]That's what we're gonna
[00:13:05.264]go through next.
[00:13:09.650]What is graduate school?
[00:13:11.236]Graduate school provides specialized
[00:13:12.988]knowledge and training for your chosen field of study.
[00:13:15.406]Like you said in your groups,
[00:13:17.526]it gives you more specialized option.
[00:13:20.538]You get really delve down into the details
[00:13:23.276]of the field of choice that you like,
[00:13:25.286]you're excited about.
[00:13:26.811]What makes you excited, what gets you up in the morning.
[00:13:30.057]So you get to do in depth studies on that.
[00:13:32.251]And it provides more depth to subjects
[00:13:34.453]already taken in your field of study.
[00:13:36.712]And then, it allows you ability to engage in
[00:13:40.037]research and other intellectual activities
[00:13:41.886]to advance and contribute to the
[00:13:43.724]already scholarly body of knowledge
[00:13:45.868]that exists out there.
[00:13:47.989]And then it also requires a personal commitment
[00:13:50.455]to go to graduate school.
[00:13:52.997]Like some say, all the coffee, the long hours.
[00:13:57.577]Graduate school is interesting.
[00:13:59.099]But everybody can get through it.
[00:14:02.781]Some of the reasons why I chose to get an advanced degree.
[00:14:05.950]Number one, personal growth.
[00:14:07.804]You get to grow as an individual.
[00:14:09.837]Those long nights, you're drinking all that coffee,
[00:14:12.280]staying up, it makes you a better person.
[00:14:14.654]It stretches you, but it never breaks you.
[00:14:17.232]You get to learn a little bit more about yourself,
[00:14:20.192]from a personal level
[00:14:21.984]as well as from an academic level.
[00:14:24.106]And then it gives you greater employment opportunities,
[00:14:26.454]because you expand your knowledge base,
[00:14:28.517]so you're exposed to items that you're not
[00:14:30.662]necessarily exposed to on the undergraduate level.
[00:14:33.382]You can also get a greater
[00:14:35.958]career of excellent opportunities,
[00:14:38.099]meaning the more knowledge you have,
[00:14:39.677]you'll be able to (mumbling)
[00:14:41.309]in the chosen field you may be able to
[00:14:43.309]advance faster than somebody that just has
[00:14:46.218]a B.S. degree or just a Masters degree
[00:14:48.989]based on your body of knowledge.
[00:14:50.884]Once you finish that degree,
[00:14:52.830]go through all those late nights,
[00:14:54.718]you feel a sense of accomplishment.
[00:14:57.604]Because some of you sitting here thinking,
[00:14:59.557]I can't go to graduate school.
[00:15:00.886]It's so hard and such a great task.
[00:15:03.154]And once you finish that,
[00:15:04.085]a sense of self, pride,
[00:15:07.327]a sense of self-preservation.
[00:15:10.026]And then also, you get greater recognition and credibility
[00:15:13.518]with that.
[00:15:15.086]Because again, now you're starting to become
[00:15:16.650]an expert in a chosen field.
[00:15:18.663]And so now, people start looking upon you
[00:15:21.414]or looking to you for that knowledge
[00:15:23.428]in that chosen field.
[00:15:26.047]And then also, your field of study requirements.
[00:15:28.814]You also need to figure out
[00:15:29.720]what your field of study requirements.
[00:15:30.985]And then there's also, sometimes at the end of the day,
[00:15:33.159]a financial award where,
[00:15:34.766]once you get out to the work force,
[00:15:36.204]as far as a salary requirement.
[00:15:39.835]Those are some of the reasons why
[00:15:42.318]I think pursuing an advanced degree is important.
[00:15:46.310]Trends in pursuing an advanced degree,
[00:15:48.094]trends in the economy
[00:15:50.618]show that the US is becoming extremely dependent
[00:15:53.383]on seeking a highly educated workforce.
[00:15:55.410]Years ago, we used to be more of an industrial nation,
[00:15:58.352]and now we're in a technological ago, so
[00:16:00.590]the big push is for advanced degrees,
[00:16:02.968]technological degrees.
[00:16:04.613]Let's become the technological leaders of the world.
[00:16:11.008]Between 2008 and 2018, approximately 2.5 million jobs
[00:16:15.657]will require a Masters, Doctoral or advanced degree.
[00:16:19.370]That's a fact.
[00:16:21.201]And the reason for that is because our world
[00:16:23.401]problems are getting more complex,
[00:16:24.766]they're not getting simpler.
[00:16:26.197]We need advanced computer programs
[00:16:29.532]to be able to run different probability,
[00:16:32.276]because we're running into complex problems that,
[00:16:34.584]20 years ago we would have never thought
[00:16:36.351]that the world could be this complex and complicated.
[00:16:42.480]Another trend.
[00:16:43.751]What this right here shows is the unemployment rate
[00:16:45.907]and the median weekly income.
[00:16:48.824]2014, so it's last year's data from
[00:16:51.053]the Labor and Bureau of Statistics,
[00:16:54.060]one of those agencies.
[00:16:55.262]You can see if you have less than a high school diploma,
[00:16:58.261]your unemployment rate is fairly high, 9%.
[00:17:01.775]I think 2009, you had what everybody was calling
[00:17:05.043]the Great Recession,
[00:17:08.891]where a lot of markets contracted and so we had
[00:17:12.726]a lot of people unemployed.
[00:17:14.264]I think the unemployment rate hit,
[00:17:15.670]in some states, 10, 12 and 13%.
[00:17:18.103]That's very high.
[00:17:19.614]And so a lot of those folks were probably
[00:17:21.754]less college educated fall into that 9%,
[00:17:26.266]but it trickled its way up.
[00:17:28.065]And as you can see, if you have a Masters degree,
[00:17:29.808]you have a Bachelors, the unemployment rate
[00:17:32.588]was about 2.8.
[00:17:34.379]And then when you get to professional degrees
[00:17:35.891]and Doctoral degrees it was about.
[00:17:37.473]For professional degree, 1.9
[00:17:39.412]and your Doctoral, 2.1.
[00:17:42.349]And your professional degree would be
[00:17:44.138]degrees that's required for lawyers, doctors,
[00:17:47.383]things like that that you have to have that
[00:17:50.250]advanced degree in order to be able to practice.
[00:17:53.689]Oh, like medicine.
[00:17:54.866]And then you can see the income differential.
[00:17:56.973]As you get a Masters degree, you'll earn
[00:17:59.138]roughly about $200 more
[00:18:01.161]weekly and it progresses.
[00:18:04.166]So, over the term of your career,
[00:18:06.398]the monetary benefit would be cumulative
[00:18:10.225]as you go along.
[00:18:15.153]Other trends is, as you can see,
[00:18:17.465]these are a list of fields that require
[00:18:20.108]some type of advanced degree in order to
[00:18:23.847]be able to practice these fields.
[00:18:28.848]So, you got economist now,
[00:18:31.228]psychologist, speech pathologist,
[00:18:33.585]statisticians, urban and regional planners,
[00:18:36.650]nurses, librarians.
[00:18:38.536]So, it's just not for the Engineering and STEM majors.
[00:18:41.471]It's starting to branch out and touch other
[00:18:43.538]fields and majors that,
[00:18:45.387]10 years ago, they didn't require a Masters degree
[00:18:49.209]to be deemed proficient in that particular field.
[00:18:55.728]Some of this stuff on this list may be fields,
[00:18:57.873]for those of you who are not engineers,
[00:18:59.370]that you want to pursue.
[00:19:00.668]So, it may be important for you to
[00:19:02.409]put your foot in the door, that you have to go
[00:19:04.206]and get a advanced degree just to be able
[00:19:06.972]to practice those
[00:19:11.157]fields.
[00:19:12.733]And we'll go over the soul searching.
[00:19:14.858]'Cause I think some of you guys
[00:19:16.205]in this room are probably on the fence of
[00:19:18.040]whether I go to graduate school, or whether I
[00:19:20.051]go and start working 'cause I'm tired of being broke.
[00:19:22.990]How many people are on the fence
[00:19:24.262]on whether they want to go to graduate school or not?
[00:19:27.210]Be honest.
[00:19:28.286]OK, so about half.
[00:19:31.267]All right, I got another little exercise for you.
[00:19:34.488]In your same groups,
[00:19:36.019]generate a list of five reasons
[00:19:37.559]for attending graduate school and five reasons
[00:19:39.097]for not attending graduate school.
[00:19:41.756]And we're going to do this in about five minutes.
[00:19:47.157]You've got some information,
[00:19:48.460]so now as you use that information
[00:19:49.618]to create these two lists.
[00:19:51.230]Some of the same stuff, or?
[00:19:52.683]Pretty much.
[00:19:54.527](classroom chatter)
[00:20:01.885]You got two lists.
[00:20:02.894]A list of reasons for going to graduate school,
[00:20:04.326]or reasons not going to graduate school.
[00:20:10.552]In each group, I would like a different speaker
[00:20:12.035]than the one that did it.
[00:20:15.754](classroom chatter)
[00:22:40.291]Alright, one more minute.
[00:23:00.686]Alright, time's up.
[00:23:02.197]Let's start in the back and work our way
[00:23:04.088]back around this time.
[00:23:06.296]We'll do it in reverse order,
[00:23:07.827]if y'all can remember all that.
[00:23:09.201](mumbling)
[00:23:15.609]Alright, let's go.
[00:23:18.294]If you don't have five, just say what you have.
[00:23:20.472](classroom chatter)
[00:23:27.656]OK.
[00:23:29.212]We didn't finish all this,
[00:23:30.179]but we have three on each side.
[00:23:31.899]These are the cons for grad school.
[00:23:35.206]Better job opportunities,
[00:23:36.592]advancing your knowledge and social respect.
[00:23:40.296]Against going to graduate school,
[00:23:42.763]time, money and stress.
[00:23:45.515]Time, money and stress.
[00:23:48.724]Next.
[00:23:52.057]That's not a good reason for (mumbling).
[00:23:55.230]We said for the positives,
[00:23:57.523]better knowledge,
[00:23:59.387]you become an expert in your field,
[00:24:02.814]and you get better pay.
[00:24:05.624]And for the negatives,
[00:24:09.739]scared of job leave,
[00:24:12.140]you owe a lot of money
[00:24:14.925]and socially,
[00:24:17.149]I guess social reset.
[00:24:18.171]Yeah, social reset.
[00:24:19.977]What was the last one, social?
[00:24:22.520]Social reset.
[00:24:23.372]I guess you gotta start all over you know,
[00:24:25.396]making friends and--
[00:24:26.516]Oh, OK. Yeah.
[00:24:28.098]Party watch, you gotta reset your party watch.
[00:24:30.043](laughing)
[00:24:30.991]That's all you had to say, man,
[00:24:32.043]just start over for party watch.
[00:24:33.712](laughing)
[00:24:36.397]Next?
[00:24:38.327]Alright, some of the cons we mentioned
[00:24:41.589]were higher pay,
[00:24:43.311]more efficient,
[00:24:45.654]you get to do what you want,
[00:24:48.543]self-accomplishment,
[00:24:50.807]and something specific to your job.
[00:24:53.306](classroom chatter)
[00:25:02.931]Need to work harder,
[00:25:04.980]some people might have financial problems.
[00:25:08.731]And another one was family.
[00:25:11.318]Some people might have kids, children (mumbling) patient.
[00:25:14.244]And then, the opportunity to get into grad school.
[00:25:18.393]It's competitive, things like that.
[00:25:20.607]Lastly is time.
[00:25:23.091]OK.
[00:25:26.571](laughing)
[00:25:28.386]For our group
[00:25:30.290]we have four things for why.
[00:25:32.435]We have higher pay, expanded knowledge
[00:25:35.297]for job opportunities,
[00:25:37.386]and we have fun on both sides.
[00:25:41.328]You can't have fun for both sides,
[00:25:43.205]either one or the other.
[00:25:44.203]But you can have fun in (mumbling).
[00:25:46.117](laughing)
[00:25:47.781]For the why nots, we have
[00:25:49.563]time consuming, stressful research and fun.
[00:25:52.991]OK.
[00:25:54.366]You put fun in the maybe column.
[00:25:56.596]Yeah, in the middle.
[00:25:58.038]Yeah great, OK.
[00:25:59.039]Well, and you could go for both
[00:26:01.059]depending on (classroom chatter).
[00:26:02.668]It can, it can.
[00:26:06.115]We'll talk about that in a little bit.
[00:26:08.083]Alright, the last, last group.
[00:26:10.109]OK.
[00:26:11.364]For arguments to go to grad school.
[00:26:13.862]You get a salary increase,
[00:26:15.604]better opportunities including research,
[00:26:17.316]and you have the ability to educate others,
[00:26:19.952]and the knowledge required.
[00:26:21.419]Our reasons for not going to grad school
[00:26:23.362]are if you're tired of school,
[00:26:24.659]if it's an intensity workout,
[00:26:26.848]you get a government support,
[00:26:28.223]in terms of having to pay for grad school
[00:26:30.490]and having to maintain your GPA.
[00:26:32.432]And if you're not affected.
[00:26:34.568]How come you were backing him?
[00:26:37.105]You didn't want him to look at you?
[00:26:38.504]Oh, I was talking to them. (laughing)
[00:26:40.089]I heard you, I heard you.
[00:26:41.750]I get no respect. (laughing)
[00:26:46.466]Alright so,
[00:26:48.098]I'm gonna want to come back to that,
[00:26:50.112]hopefully we have some time at the end.
[00:26:52.366]'Cause I want to give you a little bit about
[00:26:54.457]my little life story, and then
[00:26:56.520]we'll do the questions.
[00:26:58.196]So, soul searching, at least for me,
[00:27:00.165]the reasons to pursue a advanced degree
[00:27:02.744]is increase your earning potential,
[00:27:04.633]professional growth and development
[00:27:05.832]in your advancement in career,
[00:27:07.563]and enjoy gaining knowledge about your
[00:27:09.466]chosen field of study.
[00:27:11.609]Those are reasons why you should and
[00:27:13.730]I don't have a reason why you should not
[00:27:15.701]go to graduate school.
[00:27:16.916]To me, going to graduate school is all positive,
[00:27:18.765]because if it's a field that you truly enjoy,
[00:27:22.193]love, eat, breathe, sleep,
[00:27:24.109]then learning about it should not be a problem.
[00:27:27.013]So, the stresses of not making the bar,
[00:27:28.915]they should be a non-issue because
[00:27:31.237]you enjoy what you do.
[00:27:35.487]Yes sir.
[00:27:36.345]What if you have family constraints?
[00:27:38.300]Family constraints,
[00:27:42.535]there are programs around where
[00:27:44.316]you can go to graduate school part time.
[00:27:46.084]So you don't have to be a full time student
[00:27:47.730]and there are sometimes still assistantships
[00:27:49.529]available to part time students.
[00:27:52.245]'Cause there are some graduate programs,
[00:27:54.304]for example, some MBA programs.
[00:27:55.886]They require you to be in the workforce
[00:27:59.142]in order for you to be accepted.
[00:28:00.956]So those classes are on weekends or at night,
[00:28:04.278]and then there are now new trends, online study.
[00:28:07.574]There's opportunity for you to go online
[00:28:09.827]and get an advanced degree.
[00:28:11.878]So there are ways around those type of obstacles.
[00:28:19.385]Another thing about grad school is that
[00:28:21.753]you get to pace yourself, to some degree.
[00:28:23.943]Nobody wants to be at school for 20 years, but
[00:28:25.941]if you have extenuating circumstances
[00:28:28.454]like you have family or other commitments
[00:28:29.990]that you need to take care of
[00:28:31.917]while you're getting your degree,
[00:28:33.842]graduate school allows for that.
[00:28:36.616]So like I said, you could be a part time student
[00:28:38.642]and still work, but keep in mind that the
[00:28:42.786]assistantship would not be as much
[00:28:44.760]as if you were a full time graduate student.
[00:28:48.583]If I may chime in.
[00:28:50.888]An 80 year lady
[00:28:54.260]graduated with her B.S. after raising all her kids,
[00:28:57.405]so how difficult can it be for you
[00:29:00.114]to do your Masters or PhD.
[00:29:02.941]Just think about it.
[00:29:04.041]She took all that time
[00:29:05.565]and she still had the pursuit of knowledge,
[00:29:08.386]which is what graduate school is, the pursuit of knowledge.
[00:29:11.991]And at the end of the day,
[00:29:13.762]at 80, she got her B.S.
[00:29:17.025]and celebrated her life, so
[00:29:19.957]you shouldn't sell yourself short.
[00:29:23.018]Correct.
[00:29:23.883]And so, you don't have to do what (mumbling) your B.S..
[00:29:27.351]There are some people out there that go,
[00:29:29.201]they get a B.S. in, I don't know,
[00:29:31.627]let's say, social work, and they start doing that
[00:29:34.645]for a number of years and they realize,
[00:29:36.163]I like social work, that's not really my passion.
[00:29:38.549]And so, then they go back and get a Masters degree
[00:29:41.264]in another field that is their passion.
[00:29:43.948]So, just because you got your undergraduate degree
[00:29:45.919]in civil engineering, mechanical engineering,
[00:29:48.729]psychology, does not necessarily mean
[00:29:51.027]that you have to get your advanced degree
[00:29:52.546]in that same field.
[00:29:54.383]You can do some more soul searching between
[00:29:57.001]leaving undergrad and pursuing that advanced degree.
[00:30:07.317]I got to skip this one.
[00:30:09.041]What's next, the graduate school process.
[00:30:13.904]Somebody tried to skip another one, OK.
[00:30:15.961]The graduate school process is, what you want to do is
[00:30:19.227]when you're starting to look at graduate schools,
[00:30:21.138]is look at the research rate and reputations
[00:30:23.562]of graduate school program that you want to go to.
[00:30:26.447]Make sure that it has
[00:30:29.233]concentrations that you're interested in.
[00:30:31.082]They're doing research and projects that
[00:30:33.372]get you excited.
[00:30:35.667]Because then that takes down that stress level.
[00:30:38.353]Because there's nothing worse than going to work
[00:30:40.202]every day and going to graduate school every day
[00:30:42.135]doing a research project that you don't like
[00:30:44.300]or doing something that you're not excited about.
[00:30:46.722]Second thing is you need to find out
[00:30:48.613]what the requirements for admission
[00:30:50.016]are for that particular university or graduate program
[00:30:52.918]in your chosen field of study.
[00:30:55.144]And then you need to ask questions about
[00:30:57.210]what type of research is being conducted
[00:30:58.992]by faculty or professors in your chosen field of study.
[00:31:02.640]And how long are those research projects going to last?
[00:31:04.812]'Cause you don't want to go,
[00:31:06.212]you know, they tell you about a research project
[00:31:07.810]and you're all excited about it and
[00:31:09.674]they're at the tail end of it and it'll be done
[00:31:11.615]in two months, and so when you get accepted
[00:31:13.450]and you think you're gonna have the opportunity
[00:31:15.110]to work on this research project,
[00:31:16.541]and it's done and you're getting stuck doing
[00:31:18.572]that research project that you're not passionate about.
[00:31:23.768]You also want to find out what student services are
[00:31:26.290]available at the school
[00:31:27.506]and with respect with programs.
[00:31:30.045]You want to find out what type of assistantships they have,
[00:31:32.917]what type of financial support,
[00:31:35.009]what type of resources they have.
[00:31:37.578]Also want to find out,
[00:31:39.843]and I just touched on what type of financial support
[00:31:42.705]they can expect for students.
[00:31:45.107]There are some graduate programs that are
[00:31:46.957]very heavily research-intensive
[00:31:48.494]that can pay for your tuition and give you a stipend
[00:31:52.258]and do some other things and allow you
[00:31:54.850]to go to conferences and present papers
[00:31:56.851]and do things that you might be passionate about.
[00:31:59.225]Whereas other programs may not be that
[00:32:01.013]research intensive, more teaching intensive.
[00:32:03.857]Or they're not allowed to,
[00:32:06.013]they don't have the resources to
[00:32:07.633]allow you to do those things.
[00:32:09.935]Another question, we'll go through this quickly is
[00:32:13.425]how much educational debt does a graduate students
[00:32:16.585]leave with?
[00:32:17.581]That's a very important question.
[00:32:19.089]My philosophy is, when you go in to a graduate school
[00:32:21.045]and get an advanced degree,
[00:32:22.100]you should not have to pay a dime out of your pocket.
[00:32:24.027]They should be paying you,
[00:32:25.298]'cause you had a resource that they want.
[00:32:27.916]Your resource is your brain,
[00:32:29.135]you want to absorb knowledge.
[00:32:30.339]So, the answer to that question
[00:32:32.748]should be zero or very minimal.
[00:32:34.763]You also want to find out how many
[00:32:36.620]graduate students are within your program
[00:32:38.834]and complete the program of study.
[00:32:40.672]Here again,
[00:32:41.548]circumstances beyond everybody's control.
[00:32:44.681]Maybe they have family obligations
[00:32:46.164]or other obligations that come up with.
[00:32:48.094]You might have some students that
[00:32:50.108]are in the program longer than others,
[00:32:51.849]but you want to find out what is the average
[00:32:53.939]time does it take a person to complete
[00:32:56.799]the graduate program.
[00:32:58.293]'Cause I have seen situations where
[00:32:59.931]we call it the vortex.
[00:33:01.336]Students get trapped in this vortex,
[00:33:02.806]and they can't get out
[00:33:03.764]and they become frustrated.
[00:33:05.196]When you become frustrated,
[00:33:06.099]you do not finish your program of study.
[00:33:09.409]Location of the university
[00:33:11.460]and associated cost of living.
[00:33:13.280]For me personally, I do not like the cold,
[00:33:15.395]so I will not be going to Canada
[00:33:16.776]to get an advanced degree.
[00:33:18.734]I'll be going somewhere warm.
[00:33:20.246]So you can take that into consideration.
[00:33:22.162]And that goes along with your social life.
[00:33:26.341]Make sure it's some place that you can
[00:33:28.048]do the activities that you like to do.
[00:33:30.314]And then also you want to find out from
[00:33:31.852]the programs, where are your
[00:33:33.379]past graduates employed
[00:33:35.066]to make sure that they are working in fields of study
[00:33:38.102]related to their degree and that they are getting
[00:33:40.809]good jobs and opportunities.
[00:33:43.324]And then you kind of put the expectations
[00:33:45.337]of that particular program at that university.
[00:33:49.025]Some programs require you to be a teaching assistant.
[00:33:51.542]Some programs require you to be a research assistant.
[00:33:53.435]So you need to find out what the expectations are,
[00:33:56.216]so that will help you manage your stress level.
[00:33:58.863]You don't want to go into an institution
[00:34:00.668]that's a research intensive institution thinking
[00:34:03.094]I'm going to be a TA or a graduate assistant
[00:34:06.148]and you don't want to be in a lab.
[00:34:10.077]Grad school selection process,
[00:34:12.275]I'm gonna go through this extremely quick.
[00:34:14.289]Participate in graduate participation conferences,
[00:34:17.207]like you are.
[00:34:18.040]Campus visits, become familiar with the
[00:34:19.892]time table, the deadlines for submitting your application.
[00:34:22.132]Make sure you have a purpose statement,
[00:34:23.952]GRE score.
[00:34:25.463]And GRE varies from institution to institution,
[00:34:28.045]and from program of study.
[00:34:30.523]Your transcripts, resume, work experience requirements,
[00:34:33.713]recommendation letters and GPA requirements.
[00:34:35.924]So if you're thinking about going to
[00:34:37.663]graduate school, make sure you kind of
[00:34:39.112]keep that in mind as you continue your
[00:34:40.785]undergrad education, 'cause some of those,
[00:34:43.054]now that you do an undergrad,
[00:34:44.362]will be a factor on what opportunities there are for
[00:34:48.040]your graduate process.
[00:34:50.324]What's next, as far as gaining admission.
[00:34:52.527]Make sure you can understand the admission process
[00:34:54.324]at your select your university that you
[00:34:56.493]would like to attend.
[00:34:57.578]Your graduate admission committee is mostly
[00:34:59.885]comprised of professors at that university.
[00:35:02.640]They'll be some in the department that you'll be
[00:35:05.392]applying to, as well as some from the
[00:35:07.550]overall graduate school admissions office.
[00:35:10.061]Generate and submit a competitive application.
[00:35:13.033]Follow up and be proactive.
[00:35:14.906]That is very important,
[00:35:16.603]and that's for anything in your life.
[00:35:18.000]Always follow up and be proactive.
[00:35:19.857]In conclusion, attending graduate school
[00:35:22.492]offers tangible and intangible opportunities.
[00:35:24.449]Earning potential is higher than those
[00:35:26.368]who have just a Bachelors degree.
[00:35:27.918]Understand the factors that consider prior to
[00:35:30.715]start your application will greatly enhance your
[00:35:33.792]chances of putting together a competitive application.
[00:35:38.109]Again, kind of to piggyback off that,
[00:35:39.974]you have a support system at your undergraduate level.
[00:35:42.483]If you think of a university that you want to apply to
[00:35:45.490]for graduate school, talk to your faculty.
[00:35:48.429]They may know another faculty at
[00:35:49.985]that particular university.
[00:35:51.254]Also, I think they will be happy to review
[00:35:53.388]your application and make sure
[00:35:54.818]that you have everything covered and they don't see
[00:35:57.177]any areas that you can improve your application.
[00:35:59.163]Especially if you have to write
[00:36:00.582]a personal statement.
[00:36:02.268]I think they would be happy to do that for you.
[00:36:05.818]And also, be proactive about your investment
[00:36:07.464]and then being made to pursue a graduate degree.
[00:36:11.810]Realize it's hard work, but you'll make it through it,
[00:36:14.543]just like you will make it through your undergrad.
[00:36:17.087]Any questions for me?
[00:36:18.963]I know I did that really quickly.
[00:36:24.583]Oh, quiet.
[00:36:26.008]You said you were gonna give us a personal.
[00:36:27.602]Okay, personal.
[00:36:28.562]That's what everybody was waiting for,
[00:36:30.275]a personal (mumbling).
[00:36:31.654](laughing)
[00:36:32.625]OK.
[00:36:33.458]I think I'm a little different
[00:36:34.930]from most of your faculty.
[00:36:36.382]I am a course of civil engineering
[00:36:40.316]business, or I own my own civil engineering firm,
[00:36:43.896]and I also teach at North Carolina A&T State University.
[00:36:47.661]So, I kinda bridged the gap between industry
[00:36:50.045]and academia.
[00:36:52.352]And so, that gives me a different perspective,
[00:36:55.839]and I can tell you, I went and I got a Masters degree
[00:36:58.498]in civil engineering and (mumbling) development.
[00:37:01.610]Those skills that I got from my advanced degree
[00:37:06.840]lends itself to writing your own civil engineering project.
[00:37:12.230]'Cause here again, problems are more complex
[00:37:14.065]than they were 10 years ago.
[00:37:15.536]And so I have went back to some of the classes
[00:37:18.177]that I have taken in that Masters degree program,
[00:37:21.193]I've been able to apply them to
[00:37:24.559]real world problems.
[00:37:27.442]So, again, in my opinion, I think an advanced degree
[00:37:31.099]is very important, at least at the Masters level.
[00:37:34.034]But going all the way up to the PhD,
[00:37:36.858]it's a beautiful thing.
[00:37:43.319]Oh, got hands now.
[00:37:44.718]Yeah.
[00:37:45.566]Yes, ma'am.
[00:37:46.604]Oh, me? Yes.
[00:37:47.827]How do you balance
[00:37:49.283]being a professor and owning your own business?
[00:37:52.505]It's tough, it's challenging.
[00:37:56.208]Time management, a lot of time management.
[00:38:00.931]Let me get in the back and (mumbling).
[00:38:02.663]What kind of advice would you
[00:38:04.027]give someone who has completed their B.S.
[00:38:06.573]In Civil Engineering, the way it is going,
[00:38:09.749]who wants to pursue or is thinking about
[00:38:13.095]pursuing a MBA degree?
[00:38:17.280]MBAa are a great degree 'cause it teaches
[00:38:20.639]you the business side.
[00:38:21.976]It just depends on what you want to do,
[00:38:23.528]as far as career path.
[00:38:27.749]If you start out in the engineering field,
[00:38:29.572]you just start out on a project engineer level,
[00:38:32.006]and eventually work up to the project management level.
[00:38:34.516]So in project management, that MBA degree
[00:38:37.155]will come in handy.
[00:38:38.770]You'll know some of the stuff that we don't get
[00:38:42.213]on the engineer side.
[00:38:43.853]So that degree is really important.
[00:38:46.758]And it just depends on what you want to do.
[00:38:49.166]Yes, sir.
[00:38:50.378]When you're applying for graduate school,
[00:38:53.387]how would you know whether or not you should get
[00:38:55.441]your Masters or get your PhD?
[00:38:57.223]'Cause I know that they're, in terms of like,
[00:38:59.582]not sure what would be better.
[00:39:03.721]The progression is you have to get your Masters,
[00:39:05.610]and then after you complete your Masters,
[00:39:06.794]then you go back to school and get your PhD.
[00:39:10.045]Some programs have a Masters PhD mix,
[00:39:13.958]meaning you'll start your Masters,
[00:39:16.843]they'll fast track your Masters.
[00:39:18.506]And so you'll get that degree
[00:39:19.995]but then you'll continue your project until
[00:39:21.624]you complete it and at the end of that
[00:39:23.527]you'll get your PhD.
[00:39:27.699]Is there a substantial difference
[00:39:30.618]between the two?
[00:39:31.777]When it comes to getting a job or something like that?
[00:39:35.004]It depends on the type of job opportunity.
[00:39:39.488]Meaning if you go to a company that's
[00:39:43.003]very research intensive,
[00:39:44.300]then they may be looking for PhD candidates.
[00:39:48.050]If you go out into industry,
[00:39:50.706]they may or may not be looking for a PhD
[00:39:53.226]level candidate.
[00:39:54.859]You might get to thinking that you're over-qualified,
[00:39:56.976]because in industry, well at least for Civil Engineering,
[00:40:00.379]most degree they look for is typically Masters
[00:40:05.482]in industry.
[00:40:06.452]But it just depends on what you're doing.
[00:40:07.921]Like i said, if you're going to
[00:40:09.410]a company that does a lot of cutting edge
[00:40:12.062]things that hadn't been done before,
[00:40:13.929]then they, nine times out of 10
[00:40:16.155]have a couple of PhDs floating around.
[00:40:19.184]So it just really depends
[00:40:20.959]on what you want to do.
[00:40:22.334](applauding)
[00:40:30.190]There is
[00:40:31.584]an evaluation form,
[00:40:33.526]so if you'll fill that out
[00:40:35.390]and make sure we get that back.

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ntc
matc
nebraska transportation center
mid-america transportation center
matc scholars program
scholars program
graduate school
unl
university of nebraska-lincoln
juhann waller

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2015 MATC Scholars Program: Mr. Juhann Waller

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