Advance Your Career by Taking Advantage of These Education Shortcuts

What we know is that the world is changing. The products and services sold today may be considerably different than what is sold in the next months or year. Take the iPhone, for example: every 18-24 months, a new and revolutionary iPhone is sold. The public shows an insatiable demand for something new, something different, and the organizations that meet this expectation are destined for great heights.

The same strategy should be utilized by employees. Employees must reenergize, redevelop, and retool their knowledge, skills, and abilities. They must invigorate their imagination and broaden their experience in order to advance their careers.

These ambitions all start with continuing and advancing your education. In an era of tight personal budgets, this can be a challenge. For these reasons, it’s important to explore any and all opportunities to make upskilling less burdensome, such as earning a degree from an affordable university, pursuing continuing education, or taking advantage of tuition reimbursement benefits offered by your company.

1. Earning Your Degree

If returning to school is the best option for your industry and feasible for your finances, choose a university that offers opportunities above and beyond a standard education. Of course, financial aid resources and scholarships should be investigated to assist with tuition, but what about providing real-life experiences to assist you directly with your career before you’ve completed your degree?

• Find out what grants are available to help you attend or present at a professional conferences to gain inside exposure to the field and increase your industry-specific network.
• See what professional organizations or certifications the coursework is aligned with so you’re prepared to continue refining your skills after you’ve earned your degree.
• Identify honors societies that you can become a part of as a current student or alumni.

2. Upskilling with Continuing Education

Earning a full degree may not be the best investment for you right now in order to get ahead in your field. The benefits of continuing education can include increased job opportunities, promotion, or transferring your current knowledge to another industry. Short-term, accelerated certificates can give you the skills you need to quickly stand out by refreshing your education.

Professional certifications usually require a test to prove your skills in a certain subject or profession. Educational certificates cover a subject or career-relevant area that includes a combination of courses. Regardless of which certificate you choose, make sure it is worth the investment by researching applicability across your industry.

3. Taking Advantage of Tuition Reimbursement

Identifying businesses that offer tuition reimbursement benefits for their employees is another way to adapt and evolve with the changing trends of your industry. Tuition reimbursement is when your company pays you back for a portion, or the total cost of your education. Depending on the organization, the type of education they provide funding for may be specific to your professional role.

For instance, some corporations have partnered with a university to offer all of their employees one flat tuition discount. Other businesses may work with a university to provide college credit for relevant on-the-job training employees have, or will receive.

Tuition reimbursement benefits both the employees, or students, and the organization as a whole. Employees receive discounted educational opportunities to grow within their current organization, or take their new skills somewhere else. While businesses can grow faster with more capable, knowledgeable, and invested employees.

In any case, prospective and current employees, or students, should contact their organization’s human resource department to inquire about available tuition reimbursement or other opportunities for advancement.

Education can be a costly adventure, not only in terms of tuition, but time. However, not advancing your career through education can be even more costly to your long-term goals.

Students should pursue every alternative to determine the available options they have to pay for college; from scholarships to tuition reimbursement to employee training accounts. Then you can begin your trek to retool and reimage a future with unlimited opportunities and infinite promise.