BackToLearn.com - Helping adults find the best college

4 things you can learn while flipping burgers
November 29, 2010 at 2:54 pm — by enid | No Comments
Category: Blog

Wouldn’t it be great to get a part-time job or paying internship that directly relates to what you want to do with your life? But what if you’re not sure what you want to do with your life yet? What happens if you get a job at your nearby fast-food joint, department store or supermarket? Consider yourself lucky.

Jobs in the service industries can provide you with experiences and skills that you can use in any career you choose. What retail jobs have in common is that they involve customer service. Unless you plan to live and work in total isolation, success in any job you choose will depend on how well you learn to work and deal with people. So what can you learn from serving burgers, running a cash register or answering the office phone?

You learn how to treat people professionally

“Professionalism” isn’t something you get to practice in the classroom every day. But on the job, it’s required. When you work with customers either face-to-face or on the telephone, you gain experience in greeting and talking to people in a professional, courteous manner. You get to practice using phrases and a tone of voice that may not be necessary in your day-to-day life now, but will help you in your career later.

You learn how to handle “difficult” people

When dealing with customers in a store or restaurant, you’ll find that most people are friendly and pleasant. But some people just aren’t easy to please. They may come off as demanding, impatient, angry or even rude. Learning how to cope with these people in your part-time job without taking their behavior personally helps you to deal with difficult bosses, co-workers and customers.

You learn how to step up during busy times

If you can demonstrate through your part-time job experience how you’ve handled stressful job situations and busy, fast-paced periods, employers will admire (and hire) you. In customer service jobs, you meet or work with people of all ages, personalities and backgrounds. You can learn a lot from these people, whether it’s about careers and colleges you’ve never thought about, cool places to go when you’re not working or how others view the world or handle tough situations.

You learn how to work as part of a team

Sure, you can learn this skill playing a team sport in school. The difference in working as part of a team on a job, however, is that you aren’t doing it to win anything—you do it simply because it’s expected of you. This means noticing and helping out a swamped or tired co-worker or coming into work early or staying a bit longer if your “team” needs you. Experience as a team player will get you noticed by many employers.

Excerpted from an article by Mary Anne Hahn. For more articles on going back to school, go to BackToLearn.com

Find your vocation!
November 22, 2010 at 12:12 pm — by enid | No Comments
Category: Blog

Whether you have a flare for fashion or a knack for fixing car engines, there is a vocational program designed to meet your needs.

The first step is to determine what careers interest you before you go back to school. Then you must choose a school. Most schools have entrance requirements ranging from age restrictions, proof of high school diploma or GED and residency requirements. Individual programs often have requirements that must first be met, such as completion of a beginner-level course.

But there are also several important personal factors to consider when making your decision. Consider these: location, cost and career services.

An appealing aspect of trade schools is that they are typically shorter than traditional university degree programs. Ask your school’s representative or department chair how long the program will take to complete. Additional factors to consider when choosing a vocational school include accreditation, class size, attendance and refund policies.

Here is a sampling of programs and careers available at vocational and trade schools nationwide: administrative clinical specialist, culinary arts, heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC), graphic design and computer programer and analysts.

Vocational and trade schools offer countless degree and certification programs attainable in a fraction of the time as their four-year counterparts. That puts you into the workforce ahead of your peers who chose a more traditional route! Start researching vocations today!

Excerpted from an article by Amy Covington.

If you want to connect with other adult learners and find more resources about going back to school, check us out on Facebook!

Tuesday Tour Day — Nazareth College School of Management
October 5, 2010 at 11:07 am — by enid | No Comments
Category: Blog

Today we take you on a tour of Nazareth College – School of Management.

The Nazareth College – School of Management (SOM) is in the business of guiding you to greater long-term success. The graduate programs, the MS in Management and the MS in Human Resource Management, are designed with flexibility, affordability and the adult student in mind.

If you are looking for additional professional growth and personal development, both programs can be completed in two calendar years, on a part-time basis or adjusted to fit your busy life, and help you find balance in your demanding career.

The college promotes an entrepreneurial orientation to managing and leading in a global, ethical and socially responsible manner. Programs are designed in collaboration with management executives from the major companies in the greater Rochester area.

For more information about Nazareth College, click here!

Tuesday Tour Day — American Career Institute
September 28, 2010 at 10:27 am — by enid | No Comments
Category: Blog

Today we take you on a tour of the American Career Institute.

Get the hands-on training you need for some of today’s most popular jobs at American Career Institute. Choose from classes at one of our eight convenient locations to develop the skills you need to start an exciting new career.

Train for a successful future in careers, such as dental assisting, digital media, information technology, medical assisting, medical coding and billing and programming and oracle.

Now is the time to make a change in your life! Fill out the form on this page for more information about the exciting career training programs at ACI!

At American Career Institute you get more than a great education. You also get these great benefits:

• Financial aid for those who qualify
• Career placement assistance
• Resume writing tips
• Dedicated faculty with real-world experience
• Online access to practice quizzes, skill assessments and other resources 24/7
• Hands-on training

For more information about the American Career Institute, click here!

Tuesday Tour Day — The Art Institutes
September 21, 2010 at 1:26 pm — by enid | No Comments
Category: Blog

Today we take you on a tour of The Art Institutes.

By now you already know that you’re the “creative type.” You can’t imagine a life without expressing your unique vision, whether your passion is fashion, design, culinary or media arts.

The Art institute is a system of more than 45 schools located throughout North America. We specialize in helping students like you channel their talent into the creative skills employers are looking for…Getting them one step closer to the real-world careers they really want.

With all of the programs and resources available at The Art Institutes schools, there’s never been a better time to get started on your creative future.

For more information about The Art Institutes, click here!

Tuesday Tour Day — Redstone College
September 14, 2010 at 9:57 am — by enid | No Comments
Category: Blog

Today we take you on a tour of Redstone College.

Redston College provides the hands-on training necessary to prepare for a variety of jobs in the aviation industry – and with their accelerated programs you can get there in as little as 17 months!

Whether you choose our Avionics program or our Airframe & Powerplant Maintenance program, you’ll leave Redstone with the skills you need to land a job with aviation companies throughout the country. You’ll get hands-on education, an accelerated program, flexible class times and job placement assistance at our top rate facilitiy in Denver, CO.

Our aviation program provides you with the opportunity to enter one of the hottest fields in the U.S.

Redstone College – Denver (Broomfield, CO) is accredited by the Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges (ACCSC).

For more information about Redstone College, click here!

Can you live without social media?
September 9, 2010 at 10:40 am — by enid | No Comments
Category: Blog

Can you imagine if you had to go one day without checking your Facebook updates or tweeting? What about one week?

Eric Darr, the provost at Harrisburg University of Science and Technology, came up with an experiment designed to examine how we all live with social media by studying how we live without it! And he is using his faculty, staff and student body at Harrisburg for the research.

“… It is about pausing to evaluate the extent to which social media are woven into the professional and personal lives of the people on the Harrisburg campus, and contemplating what has been gained and what has been sacrificed,” Darr said in an interview with Inside Higher Ed.

What would you do without social media? How would your life change? Would it be more complicated?

Share your thoughts with us!

Tuesday Tour Day — Finger Lakes Community College
September 7, 2010 at 11:09 am — by enid | No Comments
Category: Blog

Today, we take you on a tour of Finger Lakes Community College!

Whether you’re starting over or just starting out, fitting college into an already-busy life can sometimes be a challenge. Finger Lakes Community College understands the concerns of adult students who juggle work and family. They can help you fit an education into your already busy life and guide you through the process of enrolling in college.

FLCC offers flexible full or part-time schedules including day, evening and online degree options.

The cost of a college education doesn’t have to put your future out of reach. FLCC offers affordable tuition, scholarships and financial aid.  About 75 percent of FLCC students receive some form of financial aid—loan, grants, work-study programs and scholarships. In fact, FLCC awards more than 120 scholarships per year, some of which are exclusively for adult students.

Not sure where your education might take you? Counselors can help you explore career options, learn about job prospects and discover a career path that’s right for you. If that path involves continuing your education at a four-year institution, FLCC can make the transition as smooth as possible.

For more information about Finger Lakes Community College, click here!